Onward Catholic Bloggers
There are literally millions of blogs floating around in cyberspace, all competing for followers, likes, maybe even ad space. Why do we blog? Why do I blog? Why do we bother?
I started blogging on New Year’s Eve, 2011, but not at 8kidsandabusiness. I set up a business website on the advice of my business mentor as well as a friend who owns an advertising agency. They said that I needed an on-line presence to grow my business so I took their advice. That move has proven to be providential and I thank them for their expertise. What I realized shortly after setting up that initial site was that there were posts I wanted to write that did not fit in with the site’s professional theme. After talking it over with my husband and my kids, I launched 8kidsandabusiness.
As happens in life, the best laid plans often take an unexpected detour. My original plan to write a working mom blog became more and more Catholic, the essence of who I really am. The Holy Spirit had other ideas, and as John Lennon sang, “life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans.” My biggest supporters are the people in my life who I lean on the most: my husband, my kids, my friends and my spiritual director, Wise Friend. They’ve got my back, and let’s face it, they’re terrific blog material.
Blogging while working inside and outside the home can be tricky, especially when a blogger gets into one of those I-have-to-write-this-now moods. I think that over time, a regular blogger develops a system that usually works and it certainly helps if those around you are supportive.
This blog post, as with all my blog posts, was first scribbled down in a notebook to be typed later. As I scribble, I’m baking cookies, warning my kids and husband that they better not eat them all if they value their lives, and keeping an eye on the clock since I still have to get ready for Sunday Mass. This controlled mayhem works for me. For other bloggers, my system might be too frenetic; every blogger’s different. Just don’t let blogging take over your life because there’s still dishes in the sink, a family to raise, a spouse to love, a paycheck to bring home, an education to obtain and friendships to cultivate. Find the balance.
Receiving blog awards still surprises me – and that’s a good thing. When I spoke to Wise Friend about the discomfort I felt at receiving and displaying blog awards, he, as usual, put things in perspective. He reminded me that humility is acknowledging that talents and abilities come from God and we are to use them for the benefit of our neighbors. “Ask for nothing; receive what you’re given,” he counseled. “Give Glory to God.” Soli Deo gloria. Besides, it’s an immense pleasure to give out “likes” and awards. It’s good to acknowledge other people’s hard work and use of God-given talents.
Our world is in quite the state. The culture of death is sickeningly pervasive. Into this darkness echo the voices of Catholic bloggers, the “children of God.”(John 3:1) The ones “the world does not know” because “it did not know Him.” (John 3:1) We are convicted to proclaim the Gospel, to proclaim “whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise…” (Phil. 4:8)
Encourage fledgling bloggers. If you come across a blog that you really like but you notice that it’s not getting much response or the tags/categories don’t seem to be working, drop them a line, link to their blog, help them out. If you know someone whom you feel should be blogging, encourage them. You’ll be glad you did and so will they. Share what you’ve learned. With our combined talents we can be, like John the Baptist, the “voice of one crying out in the wilderness.” (Mark 1:3)
So enough of my blog post. Go spread the Good News this week, rooted in prayer and the love of God. The world that “lives in darkness” (Matt. 4:16) is crying out for it. Onward Catholic bloggers…………..