Putting Things in Perspective

If you frequent any message boards that cater to bloggers, there is a common theme that runs across every site, "How do I get more followers on my blog?" I will admit, I have posted those threads and been slightly upset that no one seems to have the magical answer.  It took a discussion with my pastor to put things in perspective for me and lead me to ask Christ to place contentment in my heart with the growth of my blog.

Pastor Sue has been a huge source of encouragement for me as I have begun this ministry. For the first time ever, I too the news of my calling to her rather than to a member of my family. As strange as it may sound, my first email to her solidified that I was doing what He wants me to do.  You see, I've always placed clergy on some sort of pedestal and viewed them as too busy to focus on my joys and concerns.  Yes, I know that's foolish but the pastors of my youth were somewhat intimidating.

Earlier this week, I was in her office and we were talking about the blog. I told her how many page views my blog is getting per day.  Now, I'm not unhappy with how many I have but, as with anything, I would love to have more. Then, she told me that she doesn't get that many people into the seats in church on Sunday.  That really hit me. Maybe I'm not doing as bad as I thought since I have people choosing to come to my site daily and every single day I have more views than we have members in church. Boy, sounds like I need to just take what the Lord has given me and be happy with it!

In some ways, I think we are even more driven to have huge numbers when we view our blogs as a ministry to others. If you choose to spread God's Word with people, you want to spread it to the masses. When you start to feel that way, perhaps it's time to remember that some of the greatest work performed by Jesus and his disciples was done in front of very few people.

What to Write?

If you blog, how do you decide what to write and how much to share? Today, I came across a post that really struck me because I was in nearly the same situation today with my own daughter. The reason this post jumped out of the screen at me is because this is a woman I admire and look up to for her professional accomplishments and yet she puts it right out there that she has days where she winds up yelling at her children.

As I put in my comments to her, I think it's easy to view other bloggers as being some sort of super human being who does no wrong. Other parents must have it all together and I'm the one who loses my cool with my kids. It's funny, we all think about the fact that we shouldn't judge others in a negative light, but isn't it almost as wrong to judge people into a more positive light, placing them on a pedestal?

After all, when you place someone else on a pedestal, you are in turn putting yourself in a position of inferiority to others. You are telling yourself that this other person is a better parent, wife, daughter, community member, etc. God is the only one in a position to judge and He knows what our place is.  If you truly feel inferior to others, perhaps the thing to do is take a moment and pray for Him to help you become the best person you can be.

So, that leaves me with the internal struggle of what to share and what to write. I don't want to come across as impersonal and insincere but I also don't want to write every personal struggle I have with my husband and children either. It's not that I don't want to share my humanity, it's just that there are some things that I don't feel like broadcasting.

From now on, I think the best thing to do is write from the heart and trust that what He wants me to write will be what comes out.  If He wants me to tell you all about how I failed at letting it go today, you will. If He chooses for me to write about my struggles with a very opinionated 5 year old, you'll hear about that too!

Do you form an image in your mind of how people you know online "just have to be" in real life?