introduction, round three
This is the third time I've started typing an introduction. I'm not complaining or anything but man I thought that first one I had all typed out was pretty good, I guess my computer thought otherwise. Whatever. I'm gonna put a cool divider here so it looks like I know what I'm doing.
I've been thinking about the ways to best present myself in the context of a blog, because I feel like the first post really determines a lot about the future of where something like this can go. A few nights ago as I was driving home, I started thinking hard about the different identities I could portray. I could be the edgy, aggressive type, calling people out and waging war on religious Christianity. I could do that. Or there's always the mysterious type. Vague details, standoffish, big ideals, doing my best to make profound statements then retreat back into the cave until next the time I have something to say. That's really doable. Or, of course, Hipster Aesthetics. I could make a coffee shop my safe writing space, drawing my inspiration from only the most perfect latte leaf. Every blog could be incomplete without a lux-filtered picture of a mountain, or at least a mountain reference. Pretty sure I could just snag a template or google "hipster blog" and really come out swinging with that one.
Before I was done running those scenarios through my head, more concerns began knocking on my door. First of all, what specifically can I say to be different, cool, or inspiring? And what gives me the right to expect anything different than other people who write and post on the internet? I have some amazingly supportive friends who would read pretty much anything I post (to a point, I think I'm pushing that right now), but I want more than just that. I want more. More recognition, maybe. More network, larger impact, stuff like that. Another concern was this: is it even worth it? Is the importance of what I have to say even on the scale of important things? Where and how do I figure that out?
Recently I've been on a big "be genuine" kick, but obviously from ^ those two paragraphs I have a rough time actually understanding what that means.
Later on the drive home that night, after letting all these thoughts dance around in my head for a while, I remembered an observation I had just talked about with a new friend the week before:
Satan wins when life is either too important or unimportant to share
We (you, me, everyone else) are all pretty similar in that we're all in life together, we all have secrets we don't want to talk about, we all have victories we feel are under-appreciated, and we all feel alone or like we're the only one who truly understands the way life is at some point. From my conversations and random experiences of reaching out when I didn't want to and being vulnerable, I've come to the conclusion that nobody truly wants to be without someone to whom they can relate. It's crazy what a quick "this is how I actually feel" conversation will do, and it's crazy the doors that open when someone reaches beyond their comfort zone to be genuine with someone.
So, the fact that we're all in this together is the core of what makes me want to type up things to say on this website. On a deeper level, those of us who strive to see Jesus at the end of our lives are most definitely all on the same team. Somewhere in 2 Timothy Paul implies that true followers of Christ suffer with one another. With that knowledge, how can we not be honest with each other? Not just with suffering, why shouldn't we share our joy, peace, and victories as well as our trials with the people who are called to truly care? It's the best way to share and spread the Gospel. It really is.
I guess that's kind of my mission statement with this blog. Just to create opportunities to talk and think. Nothing that I've given over to God has turned out completely negative yet, so based on that record I'm giving this thing over to him as well. Whatever I say I'll strive to give to God, and Lord knows it won't all be inspired by him because I tend to ignore what he wants me to say and do sometimes. But I'll try my hardest, and at the risk of being basic I'll say thank you for joining me on this totally epic journey.
Bear with me, I have a lot of learning left to do.
~mason
PS: I think somewhere around the bottom of the home page there's a little "subscribe" option, and if you want another email in your spam folder whenever I upload a new post, I highly recommend putting your email address in. thx