June 14, 2011 in My Blog by rsfrye0330

I’m Getting Organized!

My friends that know me well, know that organization does NOT come natural for me! Most of you know too, that I love to read, study the Bible and Christianity as well as I love to write about it. So- being that I’m not organized and I love to study- you can just imagine the fix I’m always in.

I have several “favorite” Bibles! I have study Bibles, devotional Bibles and illustrated Bibles in several translations. I think I have “Bible-i-tis!” I also frequently visit Christian websites, read blogs,and watch you-tube or stream-lined sermons too. When I’m not reading those types of things, I’ve got my nose buried in a good book or I’m listening intently to a sermon on Moody Radio as I try to jot down notes-of course to eventually lose. I guess you could say I’m obsessed with learning more about God. I find him most fascinating and mysterious and I love writing about what I learn. Study is such a thrill for me. I write, star, circle in ALL my bibles and books and save websites to my favorites.

Not only do I love to study, I love to journal too- It’s actually written conversations I have with God. To keep me from distraction, I’ve learned I do better if I write my prayers out in detail like I’m writing Jesus a letter. Often times I write in faith what I sense Him saying to my heart. But ya know- I’m always picking up a different journal, or notebook or anything I can find to write on.

Study, Reading, Writing- those are good things! My problem? Well- my journaling is not in chronological order or together. And…when I try to remember where I learned that “great truth” I’ve learned- I never have a clue where I read or heard it! I waste precious time flipping through books and Bibles and looking through all my journals trying to find information or research. I’ve thought about setting up files under topics and every time I read or write something that fits, maybe I should rip that page out and file it!- LOL.. You know that wouldn’t work.. SOOOOOO Here’s what I’m doing and it’s WORKING. I thought I’d pass it along.

I opened up an email account in gmail. This email is only for me, not for communication. Under labels- I have made the following folders or labels: writing research by topic, analogies, a-ha moments, writing topic ideas, lyrics, song writing ideas, song hooks,instructions by God, sermon notes, and sweet somethings. When I’m reading or whatever- if I come across something and think- that would be a great resource if I were to write about “grace” or “adversity”- I email myself- put the date, topic in the subject line and in the body I put the source- page number- then file. If I find something 3 weeks from now on the same topic, I can pull it up, add to it, resend and file. Same thing if something jumps off the page as an “aha” moment, I can email that to myself too. Today- I listened to a great sermon in the car- got home, jotted down the points, the speaker,date, topic in the subject line and emailed myself! If God shares something special to my heart, I have a file called “sweet somethings” to keep a record of those too. If the Lord tells me to do something, I can email the list to myself as well. Often times “life” speaks and I think- wow.. wouldn’t that make a great illustration- but if I’m not working on that subject- I will forget it before I get around to it. If that happens now, I can put the topic in the subject, email and file under illustrations or analogies.

Another thing I like about Gmail is the Gmail Docs. I can create a document- like a word document and journal every day. I also love the google reader feature as well. I signed up for a few sites that I frequently go to and subscribed for the rss feeder- so that devotions come right to me! And the calendar feature is cool if I ever want to schedule fasting periods, or set other spiritual goals.

Maybe this sounds complicated and I’m sure there is probably software out there for this- but I needed help with organizing my personal study and writing ministry. And.. please know that I’m not sharing this to sound spiritual. God knows I’m not- I have so many faults and short-comings. It’s just that I’m really serious about my relationship with God and I want it to be the best it possibly can. Maybe this method could help you too, so I thought I would share!
Oh yeah- and the picture up there is me in my favorite study spot- my back porch! If you have any tips to share, please feel free to help me!!! Have a BLESSED week!