|PIC1|A Christian minister and author has launched a daily devotional journal that aims to help Christians get addicted to quiet times.

Nottingham-based Assemblies of God minister Alistair Kent has created Journal Junkies – a practical monthly guide to either kick-starting or revolutionising a Christian’s personal time with God.

Incorporating daily Bible reading plans, a Bible reflection system, prayer guide and help with a range of other Christian disciplines, Journal Junkies is tapping into a growing interest in disciplined quiet times.

Just a few months after the launch of the booklets, Alistair says he has seen a spiralling take-up by Christians, both young and old, determined to find out what God is saying to them.

“Too many Christians are living solely on borrowed revelation – what other Christians write in well-known daily devotionals," he says.

"While these can be very beneficial, they are no substitute for developing your own relationship with God and hearing what he has to say for yourself. Journal Junkies helps them to do that in a much more effective way than perhaps they have ever done before.”

Alistair was inspired by a sermon series at his local church on intimacy with God, that mentioned journaling. His previous attempts to journal, both on his PC and using a blank notebook, had not been very successful. But with a fresh understanding of the benefits, and a renewed desire to get close to God, Alistair began to search for a Christian journal that would help him. After many hours online, he only found one such journal available – and that had to be shipped from the other side of the world!

At that point, Alistair, who is also a graphic designer, decided to create a journal for himself and found himself enjoying a new depth of Bible reading and prayer using the journal, which is centred on an eight-step daily journaling system.

A new online version of the journal has just been launched and Alistair is now beginning to speak at churches and conferences on the theme of devotional time with God, in which he explains the benefits of journaling.

On the web: www.journaljunkies.com