WRITE: Dear Friends (A Fresh Start)
Dear Friends,
I’m trying something new with my blog format–at least for a little while. For the past year and more, I’ve had seasons of faithful postings and seasons of, well, nothing.
I think at least part of why that happens is because writing is my profession. So when I have assignments and deadlines and clients waiting to read my words or receive my edits, it’s easy for me to put writing for work first.
I can’t fix that. Work remains a priority. But if I’ve discerned anything about my values over the past few years, it’s this: relationships matter. I Would Die for You, the first book I agreed to write (you can read about it/read an excerpt here) came out of a relationship of prayer and friendship. In fact, every book I’ve written since (eight total now) has come from the relationships God has allowed me to build.
And the five mission trips I’ve been privileged to take with Never the Same Missions and first Susie, then Sisterhood Magazine? Each time, I went as the writer for the trip. But what came out of them was, well, relationships—with the students and adults on the trips (including some of you!) as well as in the countries where we served. That’s true for the two mission trips I’ve taken with Awe Star Ministries as well. Their president (and my writing partner), Dr. Walker Moore, has taught me that everyone matters to Jesus, so everybody matters to me. And someday, Jesus will matter to everyone.
The other day, I asked a quick question on my Facebook page about what people might like to read here. Answers ranged from “Anything you write” to specific titles for blog posts to topics of deep personal concern. And I intend to use most, if not all of them. I had wondered if I might need to abandon some aspect of “Read. Write. Pray,” but the consensus doesn’t seem to indicate that.
So instead, I’ll seek to remain faithful to those three broad topics and, within those topics, faithful to you, my friends. To remind me of our relationship, I’ll turn my posts into letters like this. I’ll keep them short (most of the time, anyway). I’ll keep them positive, pointed toward the truth, and personal.
Because blogging isn’t work. It’s something I do for you. It’s something I do for me. Because we have a relationship. You matter to me.
Because you matter, I pray for you. Do you have a special prayer request for 2015? I’ll be glad to add yours to my growing list. Feel free to share in the comments below or in an email through the “Contact” link at the top of the page. And if you have more blog ideas for me, feel free to share those as well.
We’ll talk again. Soon.
