“The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter. ’tis the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.” Mark Twain

Why I Blog

Take Flight. Patty Wysong Helping bloggers blog. When I saw Patty Wysong's latest "Take Flight" challenge, I absolutely, positively, had to participate.

(If you don't know, Patty/Peejers is an absolute BFF to me, and "Take Flight" is an occasional series she does on her wonderful blog Patterings, aimed at helping bloggers blog.)

Her challenge? Talk about why you blog. Peejers shares her reasoning here (and a place to link up if you want join in too). And now it's my turn :)

Here we are - our shared brain-halves almost touching!
First and foremost, I started blogging because Peejers made me (this is only partly a joke - she was definitely the one who encouraged me to start, and told me how much it would help me, and how much I would love it. She was right)  Three years, eight months ago EXACTLY, I put up my very first post, which was so-optimistically titled We'll See How Long THIS Lasts.

And that's where it began. If you read the post (which is NOT one of my best-crafted pieces of writing ever), you'll see that my original goal was to share information on my then work in progress (non-fiction on my husband's health issues) and share a bit of fiction once a week.

But soon, I found that my blog could be much more. Sure - it was somewhere to share my writing journey, but it was also a place  to use my writing gift. I started putting devotionals on my blog. (it was fun to look back and see that my friend Kristen Schiffmann started Monday Manna  - which I later took over - just a couple months after I started blogging!) I participated in Word-Filled-Wednesday for quite a whi le (this is still going on - and is FUN!). I started being a regular contributor to other blogs. I met LOTS of wonderful, wonderful people.

And then, I think I found my GREATEST reason I blog (and read others' blogs) - to encourage. Close to a year and a half ago, I started Finds for Fridays - a once-weekly blog posts that features my favorite blog posts by others. I LOVE doing this. And just this year, I began my God Is So Good series, which shares ways God is with us through struggles. This, along with my weekly devotionals and the occasional additional post on writing goals and other things I'm learning, is my blog in a nutshell.

And I still get to share writing tips and things like that - now that I'm the blogger at the FaithWriters blog (been doing that since 4th of July last year).

I LOVE blogging. It's a fun way to share what's in my heart, to encourage, to get to know people and have them know you, and make some wonderful friends.

So, why do YOU blog?

Stop by Peejers' TakeFlight post and learn others' experiences - and  link up with your own answer!

 
Traveling Rough Roads With God's Strength

4 comments:

  1. I am always astounded that whenever I post a blog, you are usually the first one to comment! I know you routinely read at least a hundred blogs and always comment. That is such a gift of encouragement! Thank you Joanne! :)

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  2. Yes!! A huge gift to so many of us.

    Way too funny that I made you start blogging! And I soooo remember that first blog post. Yup. I do. But aren't you GLAD I drug you along on this wild ride??!!

    hehe.

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  3. Ya'll are too cute! And I can tell you you've made your goal. I always feel uplifted and encouraged when I leave your blog.

    I blog for those same reasons. To encourage and also to teach. Sometimes, the Bible feels hard to understand or tricky, so I like to bring a fresh down-to-earth look at it and show it in it's beautiful simplicity.

    I also like to make others laugh. Laughing is so good for you! However, humor is subjective, so I never know if I'm hitting my mark or not. :)

    I'm so glad you blog, Joanne! :)

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  4. Interesting to see how you started out Joanne. I kind of stumbled into blogging but it has been a blessing.

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