Prayer Doodle Tutorial
Here is a simple tutorial for a basic prayer doodle. Thank you to Barbara Skiles who so graciously allowed me to use her doodle as the example here.
Supplies:
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Paper (plain, sketchbook paper, scrapbook paper… whatever you like)
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Markers or pencils (depending on what you like to work with best… I love Prismacolor and Tombow markers with the brush tips for calligraphy writing, Crayola markers and pretty much any kind of colored pencils)
Make a note of the person/people/situation you are praying for. If you have specific phrases or scriptures that apply, make note of them (you might want to include them in your doodle).
Pick a piece of paper for your doodle. It can be basic white paper or scrapbook paper or paper that you have made ahead of time. I like to use paper that I have painted ahead of time - I am currently using a Crayola marker/water technique - because it gives me a color theme and has a lovely watercolor look.​
Write the name of the person/people/event/situation you are praying for. (I have been experimenting with calligraphy and calligraphy markers, which gives the doodle a lovely art look.) As you are writing, pray out loud (or in your head) for the person/people/situation, asking God to be watching over them/it.
Draw a border around the edge of the paper while praying for God to surround the person/people/situation with His love and peace (or whatever is applicable). Be creative!
Write specific words, phrases or scriptures in the empty spaces and pray over them as you write them. (Most of the time, I am alternating between just talking to God about it and being silent as I am writing and coloring. You don't need fancy words or prayers.) I like to use different colors for different ideas or words (mostly because colors are symbolic for me).
Color the border of the doodle with the colors that you used to write the words, phrases and/or scriptures. As you do this, pray for God to surround the person/people/situation with the things you are praying for (for example: good health, strength, joy, etc.)
Add little details as you like – dots, spirals, flowers, etc. I often add dots as I come back and pray for specific things for that person/situation (sometimes I will work on a doodle over the course of a few days). I like to use a set of three dots as I wrap up praying as a symbol of the God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. I also like to highlight the main person/people/situation with a color that corresponds to specific things in the doodle (for instance, if I’ve used blue to write “peace” and I am really praying for peace for that person/situation, I will highlight that person/situation’s name in the blue).
I have a prayer board where I keep doodles once they are finished and as I walk by it during the day, I will try to stop and say a prayer or two for the folks on the board. When the board is full, I like to mail the doodles out the people they are for. That way they have a tangible reminder that they have been prayed for and are loved. On the refrigerator door is a great place to keep them, too!