Lessons Learned in Ten Years of Blogging

I just opened up my blog page and read the quotes at the top of my sidebar, about spiritual growth occurring at the pace of a hen when you are a married person (and a mother)...and the second one about learning at the pace of walking, at the speed of life.

What have I learned in the ten years I've been keeping this blog? It was my tenth blog-i-versary on New Year's Eve!

I should probably go back and re-publish some of my original posts on why I chose the title and those quotes. But ten years ago, I was a homeschooling mom of six, age 15 and under. The days were very full of the mundane--changing diapers, nursing, explaining math problems, reading aloud, doing laundry, and every time I turned around someone was hungry...again! There was very little time for anything that seemed of eternal significance--unless I embraced it ALL as having eternal value. This blog helped me do that, recording the memories with a thankful, joyful heart, and tracing God's hand as He provided and directed along the way. 

As more of our kids entered their teenage years and when we moved away from an established network of Christian families and friends, there were years where a lot happened that was too painful to share...but oh, how God was working through those dark days.

We've come through the tunnel and out into the light again, it seems. Not that there aren't shadows that loom from time to time, but here's what I've learned, following God at a hen's pace, in the last ten years:

Each day is a gift. Even if it's another day filled with worry and pain, it's another day to bring it all to the Lord, and to take small steps in the right direction in the tasks He's given me, and in the lives of those I influence.

As I've petitioned the Lord for situations that were completely out of my control, He's given me things I CAN do. He's reminded me to appreciate His goodness. He's told me not to strive, to worry, to be anxious--and to trust Him. He's given me responsibilities that give me joy and distract from the pain. He's taught me that joy is not about circumstances, it's a choice--and it's usually found in the small things.

The Scriptures say that he who is faithful with little will be entrusted with great things. By God's grace, I've been able to make small daily choices--one step at a time--that have brought me on a journey to to better places than I could have imagined ten years ago! I won't say it was all forward progress--like the hen, I'd backtrack and circle around, with the same besetting issues repeatedly tripping me up--but the cumulative direction, though at a hen's pace, was God-ward.

As a writer, I've learned that writing takes time. Choosing words is not something I do quickly, and I honestly can't say that I feel called to write--at least right now--in the same way that I feel called to do other things. I've always thought that I'd write a book someday, and maybe I still will...but it's not something I'm supposed to do now. But I would like to figure out a way to spend just a few minutes a day blogging. It would be great if I could get a few thoughts and memories recorded "at the pace of a hen," rather than in great waterfalls of words, few and far between.

Maybe that lesson will be learned in my next decade of blogging!