Day 362

With just four posts left to write and 108 reasons left to find, I can’t help but think back to the night I wrote my first post and made my first list.  August 6, 2012.  About a week before that, while I was making dinner, God gave me the idea to be thankful for 10,000 reasons over the span of 365 days by listing 27-28 reason each day.  I immediately fell in love with the idea.  I found myself thinking about it all of the time and every time I thought about it, I felt like I should share the idea and my lists through a blog.

I knew nothing about blogs, except that a few of my hipster friends used to have them and they would post about their favorite new albums and weird independent films on them.  I wasn’t sure how to set one up for myself or if anyone even read blogs anymore, but I couldn’t get that word out of my spirit.  I hadn’t shared my idea with Josh yet, because I wanted to hash it out a bit more, so one night while he was away on a staff retreat, I started hashing.

I tucked the kids in, made myself comfortable on the couch, grabbed my laptop, opened it up and started to google “free blog” when a list of suggestions popped up, I clicked on the one that said “free blog hosting” and the first site that appeared was wordpress.com.  I clicked on it and within 10 minutes I had set up my own blog.  “10,000 Reasons” was taken by a food blogger, so I went with “10kreasons”.   Everything was ready to go, I just needed to write my very first post.  I started to type away and was amazed at how quickly the idea that had been stirring in my heart for a week came together.  I was excited.  It felt great to get everything down on “paper”, but now I had to decide if I wanted to publish it.  I had to decide if I wanted to share my heart with my social networks or whoever happened to come across the site.  I had to decide if I could commit to taking the time to make lists every night.  I had to decide if I was going to obey God.

I re-read what I had written about 25 times and then I did it.  I clicked publish.  A banner popped up that said, you published your 1st post.  Last night the same banner popped up, but this time it read, you published your 361st post.  The next morning I posted a link to my blog via Facebook.  It was another nerve racking moment for me, but I knew God hadn’t given the idea to me just for me… He gave it to me so I could share it with others.

I had NO idea what the time commitment was going to be, if people would even bother reading it, or if I would be able to think of things to list every night.  I never considered the fact that I would have to make lists while I was on vacation or in the middle of a super busy week.  I kinda forgot about the fact that I had a part time job, a 17 month old daughter, and a 4 year old son to take care of.  I didn’t think about any of that and I’m glad I didn’t, because I probably would have talked myself out of the whole thing.

When God calls you to do something, don’t over think it.  If it’s His idea, He will work out every single detail in your favor.  Looking back none of those things I forgot to think about ended up mattering.  God graced me with extra time, I did think of things to list every night, listing on vacations was really easy and now I have all of the highlights of our trips recorded. Somehow I was able to keep up with my part time job and never had to neglect my most important job, being a mother.  And people did read it, lots of people, and those people were blessed!  God made it all possible, but I had to take the first step.

Ecclesiastes 11:4 (NLT) Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant. If they watch every cloud, they never harvest.

God trusted me with an idea, and I trusted Him to make it a reality.  I didn’t wait for everything to be perfect before I started, I just took a step in the natural, I posted my first blog entry, and He’s been with me every supernatural step since then!

1. 10kreasons.wordpress.com, so glad I took that first step!
2.  The encouraging little banner that pops up every time a blog gets published.
3. When God gives us an idea and we start taking steps in the natural, supernatural things begin to happen.
4. I didn’t over think it.
5. The extra time God has graced me with over the last year!
6. I was able to keep up with my part time job.
7. I found times to write during the day and in the evenings so I never had to neglect my sweet kids.
8. I was able to think of things to list everyday.
9. Beau decided it was a good idea to wake up at 5:30 a.m.  this morning.. I decided to wake up with her and get some writing done because I knew today was going to be very busy!
10. Safe drive home from Tulsa.
11. 4 hours of hanging out and talking with Josh with very few interruptions.
12. What-a-burger lunch.
13. Our batteries got recharged while we were in Tulsa.
14. Received some wonderful news from some wonderful friends!!
15. I got to go grocery shopping alone this afternoon.
16. Ran into two sweet friends from church at the store, Sayra first and then Karleigh.
17. Fridge and pantry are full!
18. Started my 21st week of pregnancy!
19. “Sunny” by Bobby Hebb.
20. Josh was home to help me unload the groceries on this very hot Texas day.
21. My mom and dad made it safely to our house.
22. Yummy dinner at Rudy’s BBQ, mom and dad’s treat!
23. Settlers of Catan game night.  My mom finally won one!
24. Josh unpacked all of our suitcases while I was grocery shopping.
25. The way Gus looks in his Jedi costume.  He’s so cute and so serious.
26. Beau was in a very sing-y and very chatty mood tonight.  She was happy to have Grammy & Grampy at her house.
27. My mom noticed the loud, clicking sound our car used to make when the air conditioner was on in the back of the car was gone.  I forgot it used to do that.  We took it in last year and the car shop said it would be $800 to fix, so we decided to stick it out.  How nice that it’s gone and it didn’t cost us anything!