Finding Success

This post is complements of Gather Inspirit team member, Erin U.  She can be found blogging at Closing Time and designing blogs at Insight Blog Design.

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A few years ago, I never dreamed that I would be a blogger. The thought simply had not occurred to me. Yet here, I am, a little more than a year into my blogging journey. It has opened up a whole new world for me, a place to write and an incredible community of fellow bloggers.

The stories of bloggers who have become extremely successful in their niche and make the big bucks are amazing.  My blog, Closing Time, is really just a tiny little dot in cyberspace. If my feelings were linked to the roller coaster ride of my blog’s stats, I would be in a constant state of emotional whiplash!

Let’s imagine for a moment though, that my blog becomes a huge success. My page hits go through the roof. Subscribers grow exponentially. The advertisers are begging for a 125 pixel square. I become a big blogger.

Will I be satisfied?

When does fulfillment come? With 100 subscribers? 500? 5000?

In my opinion…never.

See, I think success in blogging is just like success in anything else. Success is a good thing, and we are called to do everything as unto the Lord. But if our identity is rooted in being a blogger, we are in trouble.

As a follower of Jesus, I must be grounded in who I am in Him. I don’t need to look at the numbers to find my worth. As much as I enjoy comments from my readers, they don’t bring true fulfillment. No matter how far I go in blogging, success in the blogging world is not going to make me happy. I would feel terribly empty, even in the midst of great success, if I was not confident of my identity as a child of God.

I want to encourage you today, fellow Christian bloggers. Yes, we blog. Many of us love it. But let’s not allow ourselves to fall into the trap of believing that our worth is based on it. Hold fast to our God. Cling to Him, and dig into His Word. Know who you are in Him. Because not a single thing about blogging can compare to that.

Blogging is a gift, an incredible opportunity to impact to a far greater circle than we could ever touch in person. My blog may be huge someday, or it may not. I am trusting that one to the Lord, and I’m truly content to follow whatever path He has.

The most important thing is that I am His.

Related posts:

1. A Question of Identity
2. Grow Your Blog Series – Be Social