Today is my one year writing anniversary with Patheos.

Writing has been my passion for years, and I was honored when Patheos contacted me and asked if I would be interested in writing for them full-time. Gladly I accepted the invitation, and Pathoes has been home to my musings for a year. Check out my inaugural post here.

I want to say a HUGE thank you to all my readers! You guys are amazing, and I’m truly thankful for you! Thank you for reading, thank you for commenting, thank you for your honesty. Words cannot properly express my gratitude to you!

I thought I’d share a few reflections / thoughts on my first year writing for Patheos.

1) Opportunities

I’ve been blown away by the opportunities I’ve had writing for Patheos. Below are a few of my favorites.

– A MOPs (Mothers of Preschoolers) group contacted me through my page and asked me to be a guest speaker at one of their events. Hesitantly, I accepted the invitation. As I prepared my talk, all my inadequacies rose to the surface. I thought, “I have nothing to offer these ladies. We’re not in the same place in life; I’m not a wife, I’m not a mom. There’s nothing I could possibly say to encourage them.” By God’s grace, I was able to put together a Gospel-centered talk, and was warmly greeted by women eager to learn and be encouraged. I love speaking, and I love getting to share the Gospel, specifically to women.

– My editor asked me if I would be interested in interviewing Chris Tomlin. Naturally I jumped at the chance, and he connected me with Mr. Tomlin’s publicist. Christ was doing a concert in Madison Square Garden, and I had the opportunity to travel up from D.C. to NYC to meet and interview him in person. He was humble, genuine, and filled with the joy of the Lord. (Here’s the link for the interview) Since that interview, I’ve had the privilege of interviewing Owl City, Big Daddy Weave, and Sidewalk Prophets.

2) Ignore the comments

Pridefully, I like to read the comments. Not every article I write gets a ton of comments, but some do (typically the posts on current issues). Some of the comments I receive are absolutely glowing, and puff me up! I’m soaring on cloud 9 as I read all the nice things people read. A few scrolls later, and I’m in the depths of despair because someone has made some extremely negative and mean comments.

After shedding tears over some hateful words, I’ve decided not to spend my emotional energy reading comments. True, it’s a temptation to immensely enjoy your kind words, but I try live by the following words.