BACK when I started blogging there
was next to no Facebook — it was very uncommonly used in Australia at that time.
I could really have done with it, however, as blogging felt lonely without it
starting back then.
These, here below, are some of the
things I’ve learned over my writing journey:
Blogging has taught me to be
careful with what I say. Too many times I’ve written things unadvisedly,
without knowing potential ramifications. What I write has occasionally caused
me problems in my marriage (early on) and in my ministry. But I have learned
the boundaries (sometimes the hard way), hoping that I steer clear of views
that might upset those I depend upon; views that don’t honour God. It’s why my
writing features many fewer illustrations from real life as opposed to sermons.
I have learned how quickly I can
get an idea, how important it is to jot it down (even at 2AM), and then I’m
often surprised how the article ends up going in different directions, as I
write, than I thought it would — the influence of the Holy Spirit I’m sure. For
me, receiving an idea is akin to revelation and I treat each such receipt as if
it were gold. It’s very often how my prayer life works; God communicating to
me.
I’ve been able to write a 400-word
article in less than 20-minutes. Many times I’ve written over 1,000 pretty
clean words in an hour. It’s like my brain thrives on the challenge, and once
an idea comes it is fertile ground until I’ve exhausted it. I’ve discovered it
is one of the things that lights me up. It’s my healthy addiction to write each
and every day.
I’ve discovered I’ve never had
writer’s block. I’m not sure I believe in it for me. There have been seasons
where creativity has ebbed and flowed, but I never felt words, themes or
messages evaded me or were drying up. In fact, quite the opposite. I’ve often
not been able to keep up with the flow of ideas, and have had to learn to not
get frustrated.
As far as statistics are concerned,
EzineArticles.com
has recorded over 750,000 reads on my articles, and my three blogs have
recorded another nearly 1.5 million views (since recording began on Blogger in
May 2010). EzineArticles.com
allows websites to ‘publish’ articles, and that’s occurred nearly 12,000 times
for mine, so I’ve probably been read a whole lot more. Besides the spam! I
cannot tell you how many other websites have copied my words and modified them
ever so slightly (or even majorly) and passed them off as their own work.
Welcome to the social media world you cannot control!
I’ve also learned that God’s Spirit
sifts me on certain topics I’ve written on and certain positions I’ve come to
land in. This is the benefit of reflection, and blogging is active reflection.
I write something, and I continue to muse over it for hours and sometimes days
afterward — all because I committed myself to a standpoint, I said something,
that anyone can see. It’s exposing, and it makes me feel vulnerable. Sometimes
I get some sort of revelation that I’ve crossed a line into heresy, and I want
to quickly re-check what I’ve written. Most of the time I don’t change what
I’ve written, or perhaps I elaborate. I have to accept that over the three
million words I’ve written, some of it could be better written.
Most of all I’ve learned that the
time I’ve invested in curating my craft has been a personal blessing. The
in-excess of ten-thousand hours I’ve spent writing, publishing and posting has
nourished me and pushed me and encouraged me. I’ve had to live with that
awkward reality that you get when you receive some kudos that’s over the top
and, yet you hardly ever hear of those who would like to give you a piece of
their mind. They just stop reading, for they disagree. And still I’ve had a lot
of negative feedback, but small in comparison to the positive. But at times it’s
been just one little piece of positive feedback that’s kept me going amid the
negative — that’s the call; a little positive outweighing a plethora of
negative.
Interestingly, many times I’ve actively
sought to give writing and social media away, and each time God showed me the
value in continuing. Not that I’m not open to him showing me I should
discontinue someday soon. It’s up to Him.
Writing is collaborative with God, a
creative work and a contribution, all in one.
As an outlet, I’m thankful for it.
No comments:
Post a Comment