Friday, January 17, 2014

Organizing Your Prayer Closet by Gina Duke

Do you sometimes feel that prayer is just a spiritual exercise, not a means of communicating with God? Gina found that journaling helped her discover that God was answering her prayers – He was moving in her life and the lives of others.

We use organizers for other areas of our lives, so why not for prayer? Gina created this prayer organizer as a resource for disciplined prayer.

This book has about a hundred pages of instruction on prayer. The rest of the book consists of 52 weekly journaling pages. (See a sample below.) Gina reminds us that prayer should always begin with praise and thanksgiving and she shows us how to make it authentic. She then suggests bringing sin to the Lord and receiving forgiveness. Asking and receiving follows, then your calling (passion) and your ministry for the day. She provides space to record how God is working and the impressions you receive from God. She has included suggestions in the text to help us know how to record our entries in each of the sections.


I found the organizer to be very practical yet leaving place for reflection. It is designed to allow us to put our thoughts in order, take them to God, and see how He answers. I've journaled my prayers rather haphazardly and I can see the real benefit to using this journal system. It is going to take some time each day. But isn't it worth the effort? After all, you are interacting with the God of the universe!

Gina wants us to “pray smart.” Using this journal will help us do exactly that.

Gina Duke is a popular speaker and Bible teacher. She has a degree in Organizational Leadership and 15 years of experience in leading women's conferences. She is the Director of Women's Ministry in her church and host for “A Moment of Clarity” radio feature. She frequently hosts prayer journaling workshops. She and her family live in Portland, Tennessee. To find out more about Gina, her ministry, and watch a video, go to http://ginaduke.com/.

Abingdon Press, 240 pages.

I received a complimentary copy of this book through the Book Group Network for the purpose of this review.

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