Friends, I’m taking a leap of faith here.
I want to share a little something with you. And it may answer your question as to why I’ve started this blog… and rejoined Facebook.
As you may well know, I have been off of Facebook for a couple of years now. I took a break from social media (Okay, not Twitter. I like Twitter.) because I began to feel overwhelmed by the many, many details shared on my Facebook news feed. The feeling of losing a personal connection with my friends was gigantic. I no longer had the opportunity to be surprised when I saw a friend out and about and they told me their exciting news. All I could respond with was “Oh, yeah, I saw that on Facebook”, and that was the end of that. There were many, many reasons I left Facebook, not just the reason of feeling like I had lost real connections. Trying to explain them all would take days.
Back on social media
Just before Thanksgiving, I signed up for a Facebook account again, but for three specific reasons:
- I signed up for a course that had a (very helpful!) closed Facebook group for comments and questions.
- A project that is still a secret and I can’t share right yet.
- I felt the push to start a blog and needed a place to share.
Most of you are aware by now that I write the posts found on the Buckeye Bible Buddies blog. For several months now, I have felt like I needed my own personal space to write about Christian-related topics outside of what occurs in Sunday School class. Did I actually start a blog when I felt the gentle push months ago? No, no I didn’t. But, I did begin to provide content for another Christian blog.
Well, on a whim about a week ago, I had this feeling that I needed to share the last article I had written for that site. I shared the article around 9 or 10 o’clock at night. When I went to bed around 11 o’clock, I thought, Do I really need Facebook? I like being a social hermit! I won’t give all the details of that inner monologue, but I will tell you, I had already looked up how to deactivate my account, but still keep Facebook Messenger active. (Living out in the middle of nowhere, Facebook Messenger is kind of handy when cell phone service is spotty, I ain’t gonna lie.) The plan was to get up a little earlier the next morning and do the deed. I was determined.
Big surprise
I had every intention of waking up early and starting my day by breaking up with Facebook and going back to my reclusive social media life. But when I checked my email that morning, I noticed I had a few emails from Facebook about notifications that were a little different than I normally get. And suddenly I was reminded of the third, and most important, reason I joined Facebook in the first place.
The messages and comments I received from my friends about how the article I had written and shared made them think or that it was exactly what they needed to read was overwhelming, humbling, and convicting.
Yes, I said convicting.
A few days prior, I had hand written a post for Arlesia about following the Lord’s leading and not being afraid to do so. I had stuck my papers in my purse and kept them there for a couple days, just waiting for a time to sit down with my laptop to type, edit, and submit. When I opened my purse that Wednesday morning, though, what was staring back at me?
Yep, that post on following the Lord’s leading.
How can I encourage others to follow the Lord’s leading when I have been trying to push it away for months? Slightly hypocritical of me, isn’t it?
Each time I had felt the push to start a blog, I came up with a thousand and one other reasons not to. No one will read it. I don’t have the time to keep a blog going. I don’t have anything worthwhile to say.
Were any of those excuses actually good excuses? No, absolutely not.
Taking a leap of faith
If you feel like God is pushing you to do something, there is likely a very good reason behind the push. We may not know the reason at first, but as the Bible states, obedience is better than sacrifice. Truthfully, do we even really need to know the reasoning or all of God’s plan before we decide to do what He has asked? No, no we do not. Do you really think Saul (or as we know him now, Paul), knew Jesus’s entire plan when He told him to go to Damascus? No, he didn’t know either, but look at how his obedience helped spread the Gospel!
So, friend, here I am. Finally following that gentle push, taking a leap of faith, and starting a blog. I can only hope and pray that you read something here that encourages you in your Christian walk. Or if you do not know Jesus as your Lord and Savior, that these humble words written in this blog open a door for Jesus to come flooding into your heart and become your Savior, too.
I hope you will follow along as I embark on this journey. I welcome any comments or questions you may have. And if you read something that speaks to you, by all means, share it with your friends!
Until next time!
Well written, Cassie! I was intrigued by the first paragraph. I enjoyed your honesty and feel you have much to teach and help those that don’t follow God’s will like they should (me). You have a way with words!
Thanks for your kind words, Katie!
Thank you for sharing your story! I too feel called to blogging and put it off for years. For the longest time I had this desire to have a lifestyle blog but every time I sat down to write, even though I was full of creative energy and enjoyed what I was writing about, everything felt unnatural and forced. I never committed because I would lose passion and everything felt too whimsical and so I gave up. But every time I wrote about God, everything flowed and I felt I had so much to say. It felt natural and I enjoyed it and looked forward to writing something new. So here I am today! The only struggle now is committing to a posting schedule! 😉
Blessings,
Rach x
Thank you for your sweet comment, Rachel! I look forward to reading your blog! I, too, thought about a lifestyle blog for a while, but nothing ever really came together. Writing about the Good Lord, though? Completely different story. I think all bloggers are in the same boat (or have been at least once) about a writing schedule. Not alone there!