The kindly Elihu over at Elihu’s Corner – whose blog I follow and immensely enjoy – has been kind enough to nominate Samaritan’s Song for the Starlight Blogger Award. Cool!
Because the first part of the nomination is to answer three questions from the giver, I’ll do that here:
1) What is the prevailing message that you want to get across to your readers?
For my Christian readers, I’d like to get across the message that there is always more growth. Always. And that we should pursue growth ferociously. There’s no such thing as thinking too much about God’s word and there is always a new revelation around the corner, a new change, a new idea, a new mission. And part of embracing the walk is embracing the realization that God has given us infinite potential to change, to grow close to Him, and to live in faith, and that we are the only ones to limit ourselves.
For nonbelievers (well, and believers too!), I just want to show Christ’s love. To allow them to come here and read the thoughts of a believer and say hi and hang out, if they feel like it. To offer love and compassion and to listen. There’s such a wall of rhetoric sometimes between Christians and the rest of the world that I’d like people to come here and just see: this is how it is. I’m not going to snarl at you or hit you over the head with a hammer of righteousness. Come in peace, leave in peace.
2) What is your source of inspiration?
It’s cliche to say God, right? It is. It’s cliche. But it’s also true.
More accurately, this blog itself came from a place where I was sort of stuck in a rut, and actually frustrated with God. I have long felt called (and still feel called, and am still working out what the entirety of that call means) to minister to others in some way, and definitely through writing. And I kept waiting for an opportunity to present itself and one night I just sort of gave up and I told God I was really tired of thinking about myself so much – that mostly I just wanted Him to reveal Himself to me and to inspire in me a hunger to be close and to grow in wisdom and love of Him.
And it was like God sort of came through the door in my heart with an axe. God tends to grant those sorts of prayers immediately and without limitation. I started devouring books and the Word and everything caught fire at once. And I thought, “You know, I can do this. I can write down what God is teaching me because maybe others would find it useful too.”
I would write for myself, I think, even if nobody read – I’ve promised God that, since in the end it’s about growing closer to Him and not really about finding an audience – but it blesses my heart and makes me hopeful when people respond and I realize we’re sharing learning and growth or I’m touching on familiar experiences. It’s a sense of community that really inspires me, too.
3) What contribution do you want to make to society?
My non-Biblical spiritual heroes have always been writers and thinkers: C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, Philip Yancey. People who just grappled with the world in beautiful and thoughtful ways and set my heart on fire with a hunger for learning and also a hunger for the divine.
I will never be the writer or thinker that they were, but I aspire to fulfill the same sort of role: to be a thinking Christian. I am a Ph.D. and I’ve worked in academia a while, and I have long embraced the place where reason and faith meet. I admire intellectual Christians, I admire Christians who make me think, and I admire Christians who are wise, thoughtful counselors, who inspire others to grow in their faith and to hunger for God and who have established this amazing vision of what it means to live out Christ’s love. And I would like, in some small way, to be that for others if I can.
As far as the other bloggers I’d like to nominate:
1. He’s already been nominated, but Edmond Sanganyado’s Chronicles of a Kid Next Door is full of interesting insights and tools for new Christian bloggers!
2. hiking2Christ is an inspiring blog that appeals to the nature-lover in me: they provide gorgeous pics and lovely verses to accompany them.
3. StoryShucker is a lovely blog full of thought-provoking slice of life pieces.
4. The C.S Lewis Minute is an awesome source for material on Lewis, especially for those who might be newer to him or who might find it hard to get into his stuff.
5. Don Merritt’s The Life Project does fascinating Biblical explications and has offered up some enjoyable, intriguing work on Revelation lately.
6. Biblical Studies Online is an enormous clearinghouse of online Biblical research and scholarship. The amount of material here is huge and staggering and very much a blessing.
Award Rules:
•Nominate your 6 favorite bloggers! In your nominees I would like for you to think at the light emanating from the stars the ones that truly touch your soul with their work, the ones that are the light for you a true STARLIGHT Blogger.
•Thank the giver and link their Blog to your post.
•Answer the 3 new questions from your nominator given to you.
•Please Pass the award on to 6 or more other Bloggers of your choice and let them know that they have been nominated by you.
Include the logo of the award in a post or on your Blog, please never alter the logo. Please don’t delete this note: the design for the STARLIGHT Bloggers Award has been created from YesterdayAfter is a Copyright image you cannot alter or change it in any way just pass it to others that deserve this award. Copyright 2015 © YesterdayAfter.com – Design by Carolina Russo
Samaritan's Song 