        
A little over a year ago, I decided to start blogging. My reason was that I wanted to leave my family a collection of my thoughts on life as it was happening. It did not take long for me to figure out that there was more to the blogging world than met the eye. I soon discovered that there were “followers” & “views” that mattered to many bloggers. I thought, “That will never matter to me.”
Recently some close to me started a blog of their own. You can follow them here: thehockeycouple.com. And some funny things began to happen ——
As they began to blog, the number of views they were receiving was amazing. They began to acquire followers. And all in a very short    period of time. I was truly excited & happy for them although I must admit, I found myself wondering…..
“How can it be that I have been at it for over a year & they get          immediate success?”
  “Why aren’t I getting followed?”
     “What am I doing wrong?”
        “What can I do to get more exposure?”
And so, I came up with a thought. The word “scheme” might be better applied here 🙂 I decided to post a blog about their blog :))) Then perhaps those that follow them, would follow me. I thought it was a brilliant idea on my part. I shared it with said Hockey Couple as we sat in the afternoon talking about their blog. We laughed over it actually. We all thought it might be interesting & funny to see how all this would work.
Over the afternoon, I was informed by Hockey Boy that they had   gotten a view that was directed from my post. Hmmm, very               interesting. Surely that meant that I was getting read as well(?). I will let you know the answer to this later…..
This morning as I sat at the computer to check my blog activity, the Spirit very gently had a “talking to” with me. It is amazing how quick He was to put His finger on some ugliness in me:
- the motivation of my heart was in the wrong place
- I should not be comparing myself to others
- I should not be competing with others either
And so I sat & confessed & asked the Lord to not only forgive me but to keep my heart in the place where I was doing what He would have me to do, with the right motivation of heart. As I have thought about this over the day, I was reminded of someone else who had a similar problem :)……..Peter.
In John 21, we find Peter in a conversation with Jesus. Jesus asks Peter 3X, “Do you love me more than these?” Jesus was looking to reinstate Peter, after his denial, & commission him to tending to His flock. Christ was calling Peter to nurture & protect Christ’s followers. In this conversation, Jesus also predicts how Peter will eventually face death – through crucifixion. It is then that Peter begins to wonder about the fate of John, the beloved disciple & asks Jesus, “Lord, what about him?’ (verse 21).
Jesus’ response is most interesting, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?” (verse 22a).
“What is that to you?’
- if I want someone to have more success than you?
- if I bless someone with more money than you?
- if someone has a better job than you?
- if you don’t always get what you want in life?
- if someone has an easier life than you?
For you see, the truly important thing to remember is what Christ says to Peter next:
                           “As for you, follow me.” (verse 22b)
We are to be faithful & follow Him. No matter where He leads us. No matter the cost. No matter how difficult. No matter how obscure we remain. We are to be faithful to do what He has called us to do.
Now to share about the outcome of my posting the link to the blog in an effort to get more views to my blog – it was totally unsuccessful!! And I am so grateful to our God for that. May I keep my motives pure before Him. And may any “success” come because He has ordained it to be so & not by my own strength or competiveness.
