Join Me On the Journey

I read a lot! I have always been a reader.

When I was a little girl, I read pages and pages of fiction. As I grew older, I began reading about different subjects: psychology, self-help books, personality types, success. A great deal of what I read in these areas was written by Christian authors.

I also read widely about subjects that are important to me. I read books about prayer and Bible study and quiet times. I started reading about homeschooling before Olivia was even born. I read about marriage building. I read about how to be a good mother and how to keep house.

It has also been my habit that each time I got interested in a new hobby, I bought books about that hobby. Consequently, I have a library in my home with large sections on photography, gardening, quilting, and numerous other subjects.

Like you, there is usually one or two points in a book or article that I read that really stick with me. However, when you add that all up, it gets to be a head stuffed full of tidbits about a diversity of topics. All those little tidbits are arranged in a manner peculiar to me. In the history of time, there is only one person who has read all the words that I have read and had all the experiences I have had.

That puts me in a very unique position; a position of sharing what I know with you from a very singular perspective.

On the other hand, I’m very much like most of you. I’m a Christian. I’m a woman. I’m a wife, a stay-at-home mom. I used to work outside the home in a fairly high-pressure job. And so, the wisdom that I have gained in my 41 years on this earth will translate easily into your life.

And that is why I have begun writing here. I have so much inside my head, it’s just bursting to get out! I feel like if I don’t begin sharing, my heart will explode. Writing here has been like a spillway letting pressure off the dam inside my head, LOL.

Writing here is also causing me to shift my paradigm from that of learner to that of teacher.

Now, some of you may not be familiar with the word paradigm. It’s an awesome word that simply means the set of assumptions, concepts, values, and practices that dictate the way you view your world. In other words, you are a product of your beliefs and decisions. The Bible puts it this way:

For as [a man] thinketh in his heart, so is he: Prov 23:7a (KJV)

A paradigm shift is that “aha” moment that you experience when you connect the dots in your mind. It’s that moment you finally learn that lesson that God has been trying to teach you. It’s the moment you read a scripture and it speaks something totally different to you than the last time you read it. It’s that moment that you realize that your husband really does mean it when he says he’s thinking about nothing. (see my entry In the Box With No Words)

I realized this morning that this forum is a paradigm shift for me. I am going from the mindset of a learner, or a gatherer of information; to the mindset of a teacher, or a sharer of information.

Now anyone who has prepared any type of a lesson knows that when you look at information with a mind toward teaching the material to someone else, you look at the material differently. You actually learn information more thoroughly when you know that you are going to be teaching it to someone else–whether formally or informally.

For that very reason, I look forward to great changes in my life from this website. As I share with you, I expect to become more focused and accountable. I look forward to feedback and critique. I know that sharing with you will make me a better person, and I pray it will benefit you as it does me.

Have a great day!

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