No Apologies

"So sorry I haven't blogged in a while!"

This is a common first line of a blog. I'm not exactly sure why we feel compelled to apologize for a lack of frequency in online updates, as if the general public is owed a certain number of updates per month. I have personally strived to never use this phrase in my blog and think I have succeeded. (Of course I welcome being corrected if that's not true.)

I don't see any reason to apologize for the way I have set up my priorities in my time. I firmly believe that when you are with others, you should be fully there. Not texting or surfing the web or watching TV, but investing your whole focus in the relationship at hand. No amount of communicating through technology can replace a face to face conversation. So because of that, I have found that blogging often ends up at the bottom of my priorities. And I don't feel any need to apologize for that.

My family and friendships come before that. But if I were going to apologize for a lack of blogging and theoretically give a reason for such a lapse in online updates, my reason would be that we are about to move to a new city. Aaaaaaand that I have a 6 month old. Aaaaaand that I have been traveling with Jimmy more lately. But that's only if I believed in apologizing for not blogging.

But since we're on the topic, YES, we are moving! Although we will only be 4.5 hours from where we are now, this has been an extremely stressful season of life for us. Selling your home, trying to buy a new one, and timing the move with a family that travels is extremely time consuming, expensive and stressful. We are soon to be residents of the Dallas area and living near some dear friends and the studio Jimmy recorded "Not Without Love" at. We are very excited about this season of change and looking forward to raising our family in this beautiful city surrounded by a great community of people.

As we are entering a new season, I thought it was fitting to reevaluate the purpose of this blog. I have often been tempted to apologize for a lack of blogging but decided against it for the reasons I mentioned above. And that causes me to wonder... what is the purpose of my writing? If it's to be an accomplished blogger with a large following, then I am certainly not on the path to accomplishing that. I've also been tempted to write a lot about my precious baby girl and all the sweet moments that happen every day as I watch her change and grow. But I never wanted this blog to become all about Lively. Or even all about Jimmy for that matter.

So why do I write? It was always my hope that anyone who would come across this blog would be encouraged and challenged to chase harder after Jesus. I feel my strongest spiritual gifts are encouragement and teaching and have desired to turn every blog into something that leaves you, the reader, longing for more of God! Hopefully... I have been accomplishing this so far. And at the same time, my desire has been to never let a desire for a large following overtake my desire for more of God myself.

Truth be told, I have often sat down to start a blog thinking... if I blog more, I will get more followers, more acclaim, more whatever. And I usually decide against it, knowing that God is who I seek to please and He is more concerned with my motives than my actions. Therefore, sometimes months go by without a new post on this site. And I am totally fine with that. But I do desire for this website to be a blessing and encouragement to you, the reader. I am so thankful for those of you who do follow my blog and take the time to comment and write to me (even though I am not that great at responding yet... but I'm working on it). It blesses me to hear how God is using my love for encouragement and writing to impact hearts and lives.

And with that, I wanted to ask you all if there is anything else you would like to see from me as far as blogging is concerned? Do you want to know more details about my life being married to a recording artist? Do you have any topic you'd like me to tackle? Any questions for me about my life, my story, or my day-to-day? Would you like to see more teaching on the Bible or more thoughts on marriage or parenting? I'd love to hear from you and I welcome any questions you have. Please respond with either a comment on this blog or send me a message through the "contact me" page. Again, thank you for reading and thank you for your feedback! May God receive all the glory!