My Goal for Writing this Blog

In December of 2012, I had an idea to start a blog. I had accumulated quite a bit of writng, and I wanted to be able to share with others, and hopefully be of some encouragement. So, I contacted my friend Eden S.,and we talked about the possibilities I could do for a blog. Would it be a specific theme? Would it have giveaways, and reviews, or be more of an encouragement, and exhortation blog?

There were SO many possibilities for what I could do, and so many ideas in my head that I was eager to pursue. But overall, I knew that whatever my blog became, I wanted it to bring glory to God, and encourage other people to do the same. I wanted to start with lessons from my life, and insights from Scripture. I also had a few poems to share, and hoped to include details of our family expereinces. So, I started my blog, and with Eden's help, I came upon a name. Elanee's Endeavors.

Originally I was hesitant about using my own name in the title especially since it is SO unique, and sometimes hard for people to pronouce, and spell. I was concerned about protecting my identity, and wanted to make sure I wasn't being too open with my life. But after prayer, and some thoughts, and help from my Mom, I decided that Elanee's Endeavors was a great name for my blog, and I liked the fact that it was broad, and diverse in possibilities. It wasn't forcing me to stick to one specific topic, or theme, and I liked that.

As the details for my blog came together, and I worked on the original designs, I was very excited. Soon I had posted my first welcome post, and had written several heading pages for people to read. It was fun being able to have a space to call my own, and being able to share my life, and experiences with others. I felt a sense of connection, and a passion to share my life with others. Eden encouraged me to start by scheduling several posts in advance, and then using the free time to create and write more posts. It was so fun to begin to see page views on my blog, and get my first comments.

As the months went on, I began to find it more difficult to continue writing, and began to wonder if people were really interested in reading all about my life, and what God had been teaching me. As a result I began to get discouraged, and several times considered closing my blog. I had numerous doubts, and questions, and I was even concerned for my personal safety as a result of seeing how many people were viewing my blog that I didn't know. I prayed about it numerous times, and found God saying to wait, and not give up on the blog just yet.

Around this time, I came across Michael Hyatt's Intentional Leadership Blog, and Podcasts. I was immediately hooked, and found new inspiration to continue my blog. I thought of countless ways to improve my blog, and began to implement some of the ideas Michael Hyatt was sharing from His blog. And I began to see results, which was SO encouraging. But I was suddenly thrust into a decision. I wanted to make my blog more meaningful, more impactuful, and more practical for my readers. I wanted to get inside of their minds, and see what motivated them, what challenged them to action, and what their biggest needs were. I wanted to be a go-to source of encouragement for young ladies who were needing motivation to press on in the path of righteousness.

But I had a problem. I needed to write more, post more, possibly rename my blog, and definitely re-design it. The task seemed impossible, and the more I thought about it, the farther I got from accomplishing it. My duties in life were becoming more demanding, and I was getting more focused on my dog sitting service instead of my blog.

But God kept calling me to write more. So, with the help of Jeff Goins 31 day 500 Word Writing Challenge, I decided to write my blog into the place I wanted it to become. And so, that is my desire with my writing, to pursue excellence, and to create a place of encouragement for everyday struggles. I am not going to be silent anymore, and I'm not going to neglect sharing the gift God has given me. I will write, and encourage others as much as possible, and with the Lord's help, I will create a successful blog, that is an encouragement to thousands of people. To God be the glory! Great things He has done!