It used to be hard for me to write things down – the kind of things that are personal and for my eyes only.

Years ago I wrote something so private and meaningful, and a person close to me not only found it, but they read it and belittled me for the words I had written. I was left crushed and silently vowed I would never write my thoughts down again.

Some of this mindset changed when I became a Christian. I love beautifully designed journals and I actually started collecting them and writing in them.

I quickly remembered however, the incident of someone reading my private thoughts and I decided to use scriptures and code words that only I could know what I was really trying to say.

My heart overflows with a pleasing theme; I address my verses to the king; my tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe. Psalm 45:1

Another way I found to keep my writing “safe” should anyone else read my journals, was to only write lists of people I was praying for and sermon notes.

And then one night, my view on writing my thoughts changed drastically. Our church had a visiting evangelist and he started talking about writing out a faith list.

I had never actually heard anyone call a prayer list a faith list, but it was to include everything we were asking and believing God for. It could be anything from relationship issues, a new job, car, home, family’s salvation, health issues and anything else that came to mind.

And the Lord answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain… Habakkuk 2:2

To take it further, the preacher had us write out our first request for the faith list and take it to the altar for he and us to pray over. We had to put his sermon in action right then and there!

This one incident led me to write out a detailed faith list as soon as I returned home.

As prayers were answered, I would write the date. I began to notice prayer after prayer being answered. Seeing in writing how and when God answers prayers is a tremendous boost to our faith.

There are still items I have not crossed off the list yet, but God knows best:

Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand. Proverbs 19:21 (ESV)

Do you have a faith list? Remember, write it down and make it plain.