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Happy TEN YEAR Blog Anniversary! 17 drafts still hiding. 622 posts. 1,641 comments. 72,520 views. Technically the ten year mark was Easter Sunday, but it felt a little too sacrilegious to commemorate a mere blog on the day of our RISEN SAVIOR! I have to say, my generous and creative guy did help me celebrate that day. He surprised me with the delicious book, Bird By Bird written by Anne Lamott. He truly couldn’t have delighted me more!
It’s been a beautiful ten years with you all! When I first
started writing Full of Joy I never
really thought anyone else would read it. A few days later, a good friend and I
confessed to each other we had BOTH started a blog on the same day! After that,
many more friends from my church community and from work started blogging, as
well. It was a blast to read each others posts and leave comments. This was
before Facebook was very popular. Can you imagine a time?! ;)
I like how Anne Lamott describes being published, “It provides some sort of primal
verification; you are in print; therefore you exist. Who knows what this urge
is all about, to appear somewhere outside yourself, instead of feeling stuck
inside your muddled but stroboscopic mind, peering out like a little undersea
animal- a spiny blenny, for instance- from inside your tiny cave?”
For me, blogging
has been an outlet God has used to allow me to appear somewhere outside of
myself. When I write, the Spirit shows me what’s going on in my heart. The fact He can take the ashes of my heart and make them beautiful for someone else
astounds me.
Overtime, most
of my original blog community has faded away. I truly miss their blogs, and
hearing their hearts through posts. But God has kept Full of Joy going these past years in the
good times, and in the bad. He even used this very blog to lead Chuck to fall
in love with me, if you can believe that! After the first time we met, Chuck
looked up my blog and read every post from the previous two years! When he
eventually told me, I was floored. Chuck couldn’t have known how
much the blog meant to me, but God used Chuck’s thoughtfulness to draw me even
more to him. He’s actually the one to point out when my Blog Anniversary was!
I’m grateful to
you readers. I’m always surprised when I hear of someone who has read a post-
it makes my heart skip a beat. Thank you to those who check in from
time-to-time, or on a regular basis. It is my JOY to write for Jesus, and a
special bonus when He uses it to speak to someone else. Writing is like taking
breath. It fuels me.
Today I celebrate
Jesus and the creative outlet He has given me. Today I celebrate you readers,
and want to thank you for your love, support, and the time you take to read.
As a small token of my gratitude, I would like to GIVE AWAY a few of my
favorite things. I think you might notice a little writing theme- THANK YOU notes,
a note pad, a journal, COFFEE (can’t write without that!), and a cheery Spring
kitchen towel to add a dash of color. Hope you enjoy, and thank you again for
being a part of the Full of Joy journey. 
***For a chance to win the 10 Year Blog Anniversary Give Away, please share this post on your preferred method of social media (let me know where you shared in the comments), and comment on this post: 1.) What is the creative outlet God has given you to appear outside yourself? OR 2.) What is a post from Full of Joy that has stood out to you? (by me or any other guest.)
(***For those who commented yesterday, you are already entered! Thank you so much for sharing!!!)
(***For those who commented yesterday, you are already entered! Thank you so much for sharing!!!)
Winner will be announced next Monday, April 4.
Much love and gratefulness to you all!
Much love and gratefulness to you all!
3 comments:
Writing is my outlet, too! You inspire me to keep going. I feel like we have a similar passion to share Jesus and what He's done in our hearts through blogging. Happy 10 Years! Thank you for your ministry!
Hey there, your blog is now showing on my Facebook feed! Congratulations on 10 years of blogging! Keep writing and see ya soon!
Shared on Facebook!! Been meaning to anyways, so good push for me to do it! I often read your blog and am inspired, convicted and encouraged. The posts you write or others write make me think long after I read them. I don't know which to say has stood out the most. Recently it would have to be two different ones. I was really encouraged by the Sweet Things post, it really helped me see God through out my day and has been a great reminder of Gods love for me especially when lies creep in and get comfy. The other would be about how hard it is being a mom! And how often i judge other moms. What you said about how we are each different and each have a different things that we find difficult was a good reminder to me that I'm okay in what I find hard about momhood and that its okay that others are somewhere different to me. Thank you Roomie for all your hard work! I'm so proud of you!!
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