go for it! use wisdom and send the word…Gods got the rest
photo : Bing Images
“I don’t think the way you think. The way you work isn’t the way I work.” God ’s Decree. “For as the sky soars high above earth, so the way I work surpasses the way you work, and the way I think is beyond the way you think. Just as rain and snow descend from the skies and don’t go back until they’ve watered the earth, Doing their work of making things grow and blossom, producing seed for farmers and food for the hungry, So will the words that come out of my mouth not come back empty-handed. They’ll do the work I sent them to do, they’ll complete the assignment I gave them. – Isaiah 55:8-11 MSG
These words were in my heart this week…but I couldn’t remember the scripture. A friend, obeying God, and without being asked, brought it to my remembrance. – thanks Joanne!
New blogger translation…
Chill out young writer…You’ll never comprehend this, but – you have to rest.
God is in control.
Your words take flight on His wings. They will reach their destination.
Don’t let worry about numbers and niche keep you from delivering the message God wants you to send.
If you prayerfully post what He pours your words will have reach.
All October long I wrote. For 31 days I wrote about infertility. Poured my soul into every word and believed God for the strength to pull through. Writing is hard. Writing for 31 days, on anything, is harder. During that time I questioned God? How do I write a blog about infertility? Is it scalable? Can I write about infertility forever? I don’t think I imagined still doing this, almost a year later. I worry about niche and subscribers…I worry about numbers.
At Allume, I presented this question to any one willing to give an honest 5 minutes of advice. The feedback was mixed. I got a clear yes to continue the blog but a 50/50 split on my niche.
When the 31 days were done I was relieved. And grace poured from obedience. I took 2 weeks to process my Allume experience and used that time to wait on God about my question.
In that time, I began to doubt. I reached out to a pro blogger of sorts by posting a question. I got a response.
“There seems to be a strong faith element to your blog, so perhaps that could be a more overt aspect of your blog, i.e. “an infertility blog for Christian women”.
Just be aware that the Christian angle will narrow your potential audience so if this is not an essential element for you then you may do better with a more “faith neutral” approach.
I read and re-read the comment. Infertility is a strong topic. Focus more on needs and concerns of others. Try to resist other topics. This was an honest opinion from a more business focused blogger. I get where the advice was coming from but it bothered me. What I got stuck on was this..
“Just be aware that the Christian angle will narrow your potential audience so if this is not an essential element for you then you may do better with a more “faith neutral” approach.”
How do I serve my community without a “Christian angle”? What is “faith neutral”?
photo : Mike Licht – Flickr Creative Commons
I froze in a blogging haze and couldn’t press publish on anything. I didn’t want to write because I write my truth and I can’t separate the blog from my faith. I don’t bible bash on my blog (or in life for that matter) but if you read my posts – he’s there. Still, doubt crept in and whispered the futility of my efforts. Those words confirmed my fears and a very real concern. Blogging is hard work. I don’t know if I can pour so much into it if it doesn’t offer at least a modicum of income. Pay for itself. Buy me coffee. Pay for a few classes for the kids per year?
I’ve loved every moment of this journey and feel his hand in this vision but those words stopped me. I went to sleep frustrated and discouraged.
The next morning I rolled out of bed in a funk. And being the pathetic stats junkie that I am, before coffee, before as my mama would say, “a lick of water touched my face” clicked over to WordPress. Through sleep crusted eyes I read a comment. Just one.
And I stood still and received His word to me on this subject – for the 3rd time.
He reminded me….again….of the ones that need the words. The words are his. No matter what I write about. I don’t have to worry about stats or my blogging future. If I stay in his will He’ll do the rest.
The advice I received was sound. And I did ask. But this is about more than business, this is ministry.
Are you a Christian blogger? Let God have his way with your blog. If you’ll prayerfully post what he pours the words will have reach. You won’t have to worry about stats, or niche or finances if He is found at the center of your focus.
Keep writing friends. If you’re like me you’ll check stats again, and perhaps from time to time, feel that pressure. But push through it.
How do you know if you should continue blogging?
Do you enjoy blogging? Feel his nudge to share your story.
Is God glorified by your words?
Then use wisdom and keep moving!
Adjust your time and resources as necessary, based on your families needs, but don’t let worry about numbers and niche keep you from delivering the message God wants you to send.
The internet belongs to God and Christian bloggers are holding down the fort in cyberspace. Use your voice to shout down walls, break barriers, encourage and inspire others. Be confident… your words are carried on his wings…they will reach their destination.
Press on in Christ…against the numbers. Can you tell the story without Him? Don’t worry – the story doesn’t belong to you. It’s his.
And remember there’s nothing neutral about faith.
P.S. – I do understand that to be successful as a blogger we must use wisdom, sound business advice etc. In writing this post I do not discredit the many gifted bloggers whose business it is to give advice. I wrote to express how words can influence us and how worrying hindered me.
I didn’t think I had expectations, but being in the middle of so many dreams put the pressure on me to identify my own – in a good way. Shortly after arrival, I started asking questions and petitioning God to create divine appointments. I couldn’t put my finger on what I wanted but I knew he could. He always knows what we need, exactly when we need it, right? So I asked for that. Well “that”, was God meeting or replacing hidden expectations. He answered prayer. Through delightful unexpected moments, my first conference experience was made memorable.
This years conference focused largely on the why of blogging. The keynote speakers kept the focus on Christ, reminding us to shine like stars and deal with hidden sin. Every word was meaty and intentional. There was so much to process. By Saturday morning I’d had my fill.
But there was just one more session to squeeze in. I arrived a few minutes late and found a seat. I listened to the speaker talk about dreams. By the time it was over I could literally feel the weight of every dream. They hovered over the room like clouds ready to burst. Speechless when I left the room, something drew me back.
Women milled around in clumps, talking, laughing, engaging in the after glow of what just happened. I wanted to get involved in the bubble and excitement but couldn’t. When I’m alone, sometimes its hard for me to start a conversation. So I sat. I listened to a woman share about a dream to travel to Africa and how god was making it happen in little and big ways. She wasn’t talking to me but I heard her story.
When God visits me by surprise, I do one of two things. I lay down if possible and fall into what I call a “Jesus nap” or actively pray. I couldn’t lie down…so I prayed. Scanning the room I asked him to bless each woman, to hold and protect dreams. In the middle of the room a woman caught my eye. I watched her. Really sat and watched her. The way she used her hands while expressing herself was lovely. Her delicate fingers and deep wine colored nails punctuated the air, accompanying every sentence. She was lovely and didn’t know it. Isn’t that the best kind of beauty?
On the brink of tears and lost in the moment , an older woman approached me. We’d connected a few times at the conference. At 47, I was one of the older women at the conference. If I prayed for anything I prayed God would lead me to the salt. Youth is bright, shining fire for god but I wanted to connect with the salt. The wise women who through experience have become teachers. The woman who approached me was exactly who I was looking for. She was another one of my hidden expectations.
She shared about her deep desire to serve. We talked about aging and a nagging voice whispering doubt to her about being the oldest woman attending Allume. She wanted to be useful. In a culture driven by youth, she wanted to be relevent. Feeling sensitive and hopeful I tried to encourage her. I connected with her fears. Middle age has brought with it the ability to view life from a certain perspective. I already sense society’s subtle putting away of the old. When I absolutely feel ready to soar, the message seems to focus on preparation for landing.
But she was more interested in me. My story. Not the story of infertility. My story. My life. She was interested in me – going forward. Because God was/is. She looked me straight in the eye and began to pray. Pouring into my heart words of love from the father through and to a daughter.
After a full morning…I remember getting up from the table before the last sponsor was announced. I wanted to relax for a few hours before my midnight train. I was at information overload and couldn’t handle the party planned afterwards. Even the lure of free chocolate and a bottomless cup of coffee couldn’t keep me at the table any longer.
So I excused myself. At the elevator bank I ran into a new friend and was invited to hang in her room for a while and I took her up on the offer. Something about leaving the table and a room full of ideas and dreams made me relax in a way I hadn’t since arriving. A little down time was exactly what I needed.
In the room, I met a handful of bloggers I greatly admire. Bloggers whose brilliance I trail, each engaging and gracious. I got a glimpse of the life I began to quietly dream about. A speaking engagement, a book? The generosity of spirit made me feel welcomed, as if I’d arrived at a party unannounced and the entire table shifted to accommodate me. There was room, because they moved over. It was the absolute perfect way to end my Allume experience. More unvoiced, hidden expectations met…filled.
I loved attending Allume. I was prayed for and ministered to. I was given honest blogging advice and loved on by roommates, Zohary and Debi. I still don’t know where this blogging journey will take me. I have a heart to serve and words to share but not sure where all of this is headed. I do know I love it and have no plans to stop. At Allume, God affirmed for me, the go ahead to dream big.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
– Proverbs 3:5-6
Not much is known about Jochebed. A bit of her story is found in chapter 2 of Exodus, Exodus 6:20, and Numbers 26:59. But the telling is incomplete. I look at this picture and see so much more. What we know of her story is told through the lens of Moses’ life…how hebecomes a son of Pharoah. To be sure, she plays an important role. I don’t believe her role is down played but her life as a mother, faced with the choice she had to make, isn’t explored. And that’s what I’m particularly sensitive to. Hers is one I’m compelled to sit with. This picture…before relinquishment, tells a little of the untold story.
Of what’s written…I hear and feel this….
But when she could hide him no longer, she got a papyrus basket for him and coated it with tar and pitch. Then she placed the child in it and put it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile. – Exodus 2:3
Jochebed did everything in her power to change her circumstances. Prayed and believed for a miracle of God that would alter her destiny. But in the end..when she’d done all … exhausted every option, pursued every resource…she chose to trust God. She displayed her trust in God by surrendering the child she loved.
It’s National Adoption Month and I’m thinking about choices and trust. How God calls us to make decisions that prompt reliance on him. Terrifying , heart-breaking choices that call for complete trust.
In this story, Jochebed is a birth mother. The decision to place a child for adoption is never easy. A birth mother surrenders the gift of life. Theirs is a breaking and rendering of a physical connection…resulting in a beautiful soul tie. My heart breaks at the sacrifice. Yet I’m compelled to, more than anything, admire the strength and resolve necessary to make and follow a plan of relinquishment. Jochebed had a plan, a God-directed plan. No doubt that plan was birthed during the struggle of her situation. But she trusted God and was graced with a plan.
We fight for our dreams. And they’re hard to let go. When we face road blocks and setbacks it’s hard to know when to surrender. How much more difficult the surrender when it involves the life of a child. If we rely on God and seek his face in every instance. We can’t go wrong. He promises to direct, if we will trust. Even when we don’t understand.
I’m graced to have connection with the women who birthed my children. They’re an amazing bunch of women who powerfully chose. In choosing the life affirming path of adoption, they said, and say yes, to trusting his will. I believe grace follows such an act of obedience.
I’m thinking about birth mothers. Women who face the difficult choice of placing their children for adoption. Allowing the branches of their family tree to blossom from the severing…..in other gardens. May they come to know his wholeness.
Adoption is about loss but it’s also about faith, and trust – in His power to redeem.
Join me in prayer for the mothers who prayerfully choose adoption. Amen.
