The First Step
The first step is always the hardest when doing something important. Getting the blog started, I will admit that I Googled, “What should I write my first blog post about?” It feels a little funny to say that. It’s not that I cannot think of anything to write, I just wanted to know from people who have been writing for some time and what they have to say. I clicked on one of the first articles that seemed pretty helpful (It had “Blogging 101” in the title:) and these were the categories suggested for a first blog post:
- A brief outline of who you are
- Why you’ve decided to start a blog
- What you’re going to be writing about
- Why people should read it
What I am going to do is take each of those categories as a separate blog entry. So, I will start with a brief outline of who I am. My name is Rob. That is who I am to most people I know. For some reason, hearing my name, Rob, helps me think about myself as a person. As a human being. I think the reason I go by Rob is because my parents liked one of the characters on My Three Sons.
I have been married for almost thirty years and have four great kids that are now mostly all young adults. These people are among the most forgiving and patient people I know and am glad I get to live my life with them. Our family pastimes are cooking, movies, music, and the outdoors. Did I mention how much we like cooking together?
Church is important to me. I have been involved in three churches – the one in Ohio where I grew up, one in Colorado where I served in youth ministry, and now a church here in Pennsylvania. When I am on Instagram I see lots of friends and people I don’t know and the churches they attend and wish I could visit and experience their church too. There are some feelings of missing out on something exciting. But then I am reminded how thankful I am to have had longer journey’s in the same place with people in their seasons of spiritual questions, frustrations, longings, and surprises.
I used to love mint chocolate chip ice cream, but got tired of it. I used to crave Butterfinger candy bars, but now really don’t want one. I used to drop everything for Thai food – and still would! I turned 50 recently and still love church ministry – but I burned out. I am climbing back but some things are different now. The topic of ministry/ church burnout is sure to be a part of this blog.
Before ending, three guiding principles that I am going to use when I write:
- It has to be short. I guess that’s relative to everyone. But, hopefully the length will draw you in and not turn you away.
- It has to be conversational. I would like for this to feel like we are sitting down for coffee and talking.
- It has to be something I am interested in. I will write on things curious to me and hopefully some of my enthusiasm will capture your attention for five minutes or so.