A Blogging Fast?

Several of you have commented on my lack of blog posts for the past month or two. I could come up with a good excuse ("I took a blogging fast for Lent"). However, that would be untrue.

The truth is I've gotten out of the habit of regular blogging. Isn't it interesting that good habits are so hard to instill and so easy to break? It took me two months to become a 3-4 times a week blogger. I kept up that pace for nearly one and a half years.

How long did it take me to become an infrequent blogger? About one day. Once I got out of the habit, it became self-perpetuating. Each morning, instead of writing a blog, I started writing on a Bible study book that's due at the end of the summer. I need to write 4 pages/day to keep on schedule. After I finished writing, usually around noon, I convinced myself that I had already used up my creative energy for the day.

What happened to my blogging can happen in nearly any area of life. If we don't discipline ourselves to maintain good habits, they easily disappear. Since a virtue is a "habit of character," the consequences for lack of discipline in this area can be disastrous.

I'm committing myself to becoming more regular (at least once a week) in my blog posts. But, I may need to take another blogging fast from time to time. I thank you in advance for your patience and understanding. Come to think of it, patience and understanding are good habits to have. I'm glad I'm helping you instill them!

Blogging Lessons

I've been blogging for 6 months now. I've enjoyed this experience even though blogging 4-5 times a week can be challenging. Here are some things I've learned.

(1) My initial delusions of grandeur have been humbled. Agents haven't beaten down my door to offer me six figure book deals. Google hasn't offered me a huge contract to blog for them. My readers number in the teens rather than in the thousands. However, learning humility is a good thing.

(2) I was initially worried that I'd run out of things to blog about. This hasn't been the case, even though some days I have more to say than others.

(3) What has amazed me is the great diversity of connections I've made with others in the spirituality field. I've exchanged comments with Buddhists, Hindus, Agnostics, Evangelical Christians, Progressive Christians, Shamanists and Non-religious persons. I've learned that many persons are seeking a deeper spiritual connection and have a great variety of ways of seeking it.

(4) Blogging almost daily has forced me to dig deeper into my own soul and life experience. As I've dug I have found greater clarity in understanding and describing a spiritual life.

As I've found with teaching, the teacher is really a fellow learner. I am grateful for all the lessons I've learned through this experience, and am looking forward to a future in the blogosphere.