“It’s a process!”

“Ok.  So, Ré, I kinda understand what it means to process.  But, I still don’t understand how to do it.  You’re a writer.  I’m not.  It doesn’t just flow out that easily!”

You, my friend, are absolutely right.  The how is always confusing and even a bit of explaining still leaves you with mental question marks.  It’s called processing for a reason—and that’s because it’s a process!  Don’t be intimidated by the word.  When I started to process, the experience that led into it was one where I’d reached the end of what I could process without practical help.  My squad leader suggested that I buy a journal and helped me figure out that what I actually needed was a way to quit holding back.  Eventually, this came with accountability and some genuine freedom on the page.

Let’s look at some practical tips and ideas to get the process started.

#1 is the obvious—get some tangible tools, such as a journal you like.  Maybe get some fun colored pens, too!  Figure out what you like.  Some people enjoy blank pages for creative purposes.  I personally love lined pages with thinner spaces between each line because I write small and don’t tend to draw unless I really want to remember where I was when I wrote that page.

#2 is time.  You have to create the space for processing.  Sometimes, it comes with the ups and downs of the day and you have to get it all out before your mind can rest.  Other times, you find that you haven’t done it in a while.  I try to do some kind of processing once a week and a big processing day once a month (don’t let that sound too diligent because I DO NOT do it often enough) just because my brain needs it.  Setting time daily is so helpful, especially because processing goes hand-in-hand with quiet time and Sabbath rest.  Make it a part of your time with God and it will help keep you accountable to spending time with him as you see your journal’s pages fill or remain empty.

#3 is what you will want to write about.  This will again vary per person, but I will take you through a list of compiled items that I cover monthly in my personal processing journal to help you get an idea of what you can learn to process through.

• One of the most prayerful parts of my processing are my monthly focuses.  Every month, I pray into what God wants me to leave behind (mindsets, non-biblical habits, stresses, etc.) and, in turn, what God wants me to take into the next month.  At the end of the month, I write what I brought with me into the month and a little blip about how that changed the subsequent month’s mindset.  This has helped me recognize my need to conquer (things like rejection, distrust, and anxiety) and take ground back (with things like a clear reality, peace, and confidence).
• I do a month summary.  Usually, because of the Race, this is a ministry summary (who our hosts were, what we did with the ministry through the month, and observations about the ministry).
• Facts of the month!  I love this section because it gives me a cool place to talk about the good moments and days in the month (which comes in handy battling future bad days)!  These are also just memories-made which I’ll want to remember at some point in my life.
• I recently added a section to my process.  The section is called “Significance”.  It is a three point look into what God did and how he moved throughout the month.  I’m currently working on what this will look like month to month because I just did this for the first time when I processed Cambodia.
• MY FAVORITE PART OF PROCESSING: I write a ten song playlist for every month!  This is a special section to me as a singer and musician because I can write what songs replicated well the tone (especially the spiritual tone) of the month or the songs I’ll be nostalgic about after that month in particular or it’s just to a place to write down great songs that I discovered within the month!
• There’s a couple smaller sections that pertain to the Race life only.  Those are sections like: favorite team time, favorite food of the month (as we change countries), and constructive/affirming feedback I’ve received.
• Mood curve.  This allows me to track how I felt.  I actually draw out a line graph to go through the ups and downs I experience emotionally, spiritually, mentally… Anything really that affected my mood and mental health in positive or negative ways.
• I do two sections that sound similar, but they are not.  They are called “Lessons” and “Realizations”.  “Lessons” allows me to explain some of the mood curve by pointing out what God taught me through the good and the bad of the month.  “Realizations” is where I point out discoveries I made about myself and my relationship with God.
• The other more prayerful part of my processing is when I ask God for a word for the next month.  I love that God helps me set an expectation for what to look for from him.
• The last section I focus on is what I call, “Hey, Jesus.”  In this section, I thank Him for what I saw him do in the month.  It stretches me to find ways to continually see the good things He does and to ask God where he was even in the bad.

Next up in the Processing Series…  A Dummies Guide to Processing Anxiety [and processing while anxious].