Helloooooo lovely people! Today I celebrate my first blogiversary.
It’s a beautiful Saturday and this girl(yes me, myself and I🤣 ) is super dopey excited. I am glad and my heart is full of Joy( Somebody shout glorrrrryyyyy!). Tomorrow,16th May is my baby’s birthday. It’s my first Christian blogiversary. Exactly a year ago I took a big leap of faith and started this blog. I had zero knowledge of blogging.
HOW IT STARTED
Before we jump right into the celebration of this first Christian blogiversary, let’s take a quick walk down memory lane(inserts dramatic sound effects)
It was January 2020 and y’all remember the hype(the 2020 hype lol). My friends and I were talking about all the amazing things we plan on doing.
In the midst of all the noise(you know how it’s like when a bunch of excited girls meet), I heard him whisper loud and clear. “Why don’t you start a blog or write a short story”.
I wrote it down and planned on doing my research immediately after my final exams. The semester ended and I embarked on this mission. After reading a lot of articles on blogging, I came to the conclusion that isn’t for me. I thought twice, counted the cost which also includes putting myself out there, forfeting my comfort zone etc…nahh fam, I wasn’t ready.
WHY I CHICKENED OUT EVEN BEFORE STARTING
Me to you: Well….you know….hmmmm..it’s a long story ooo….
You to me: Spill it child,i have all the time to listen
Me to you: Ok, let me be veryyy honest with you. The truth is I was afraid. Yes,I was.
BEFORE MY FIRST BLOGIVERSARY, WHAT WAS I AFRIAD OF:
- I was afraid that I wasn’t knowledgeable enough.
- The People(especially the youths) won’t be interested in reading my work. I felt God had no audience…*I was obviously wrong*
- The blog would have me put myself out there,get exposure,be vulnerable to attack(the internet is not safe),sacrifice my sleep etc
- I won’t be able to create a balance between the blog,my academics and my personal life.
- The fear of not being able to blog consistently(this was my biggest fear as I’m someone that struggled with consistency)
- I was afraid that I wont be able to afford running a blog all by myself
- lastly,I was afraid I won’t get the support to keep me going
AT THE END OF THE DAY
God reminded me of the fact that I won’t be doing this alone. He gave me assurance that He would be with me all through
16th May 2020, I published my first article titled Moonlight Romance: what’s in His glory. from then to now it has been a crazy ride of faith, trust and obedience.
A FEW OF MY STATS
In 12 months I have published 48 posts. I started off with one blog post a week(4 posts a month), dropped to one every 2 weeks(2 posts a month). I have 210 IG posts(videos and reels included) and a couple more on my facebook page.
I’ve had over 2,889 visits to my site and 5,219 page views. Some of these are returning visitors of course, but that is a good thing – people must like what I write about, glory to God.
These stats may seem small compared to some blogs, but to me they’re impressive(Praiseee the Lord)
ACHIEVEMENTS
- I embarked on the “Changing the narratives” project where I had 7 great men and women of faith share their struggles and life experiences. It was demanding and entailed a lot of work but it was worth it. I am grateful to God.
- I was featured in feedspot’s Top 20 Christian Teen and Youth Blogs post.
WHAT IT’S LIKE RUNNING A CHRISTIAN BLOG: A few of the thing’s I’ve learnt during my 12 months of blogging.
And say to Archippus: “Take heed to the ministry that you have received in the Lord, that you may fulfil it.”
Colossians 4:17(Berean literal bible)
1. My Christian Blog is my ministry:
As a faith blogger, my blog is not just a platform where I share my thoughts. It’s a ministry God has given to me to cultivate. This means me investing my time and energy, showing up consistently and promoting my blog on the right platforms. It also means networking and connecting with more people.
2. Blogging is hard work and involves alot of commitment:
Since I was going to build my blog from scratch all by myself, I had to put in the work and learn a lot of new things,
3.I cannot pour from an empty cup:
As a faith blogger, I learned the importance of sitting at the feet of the master to learn. As he poured in me, I am able to meet the needs of my audience. This one of the biggest lessons have learnt so far
4.Discouragement is a real deal breaker and comparison is a trap:
The devil will attack you and his best weapon is discouragement. honestly, there were days I had zero page views, no engagement on social media, no motivation to write. I was so discouraged and almost gave up(it hurts after spending hours on a post and no one reads it). In those moments I ask the Holy Spirit to strengthen me and empower me to press on.
Other times I see myself comparing my work with that of others. It leaves me so drained. I have learnt that most of those big blogger I am eyeing didn’t start big. It took them years of work. Besides another Christian blogger doing the work of God is not my competitor. We all have the same aim which is to preach Christ or encourage other believers.
5.Embracing my uniqueness
My blog, my experience, my life, the content I create are all unique. We may all be faith bloggers but we have different life experiences and different groups of people to minister to. Coming to terms with this truth enabled me to embrace my uniqueness
6.Progress not perfection:
I’m kind of a perfectionist. Every tool and resources must be available before I make a move. I find it difficult to learn as I go but all that changed when I started blogging. I realised I can’t wait for perfect conditions, I need to show up regardless. I’ve also learnt it’s better to start, make few mistakes here and there and learn from them. Progress, not perfection!
7.They won’t all support you:
I am truly amazed at the support I’ve gotten from the majority of my people. However, there were a few I really expected to support. I took it really personal at first but, as I grew I came to the understanding that not everyone will support you. There are various reasons why but one of the reasons could be their lack of interest in what you do. That is ok! True, we all can’t be interested in the same things. Instead of focusing on the people not supporting me, I’ve learnt to appreciate the ones that do.
I am sending out virtual hugs to all my readers, friends and familiy who have supported me.y'all hve been a strong support sytem.God bless you.
8.It’s not about me:
There’s this tendency to try to make the blog about me. Bitter truth-it’s not. These past few days I was reminded to abide. The blog is about God and I shouldn’t try to use Jesus for my own personal gain. I must abide in Him because outside of him I can do nothing.
THE MOMENT WE’VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR:
Yes! It’s time to cut the cake. But, allow me to extend my gratitude to you, my dear lovely reader. I thank God for your life. I may not know you by name or met you in person but you are very dear to me. Thanks for reading my blog post, thanks for liking, commenting and sharing our social media content. I love and appreciate you all.
So, back to the issue at hand—–where’s that cake
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