The Good, the Bad, and the Bloggy

I've been reading a number of blog posts lately that seem to point to a common theme: blogging addiction.

The Good: What I've found to be true with blogging is that a sense of friendship and community can be formed almost instantaneously as you connect with like-minded, like-hearted people. I believe this to be especially true with the blogging adoption community due to the emotional ups&downs of the adoption process. Blogging, for me, has served many purposes including sharing Matthew's growth with friends and family, keeping updated on adoption news, maintaining my sanity as a SAH mom by providing fellowship with other moms, and forming friendships as I follow the lives of other bloggers.

The Bad: While initial intentions to blog are good, bloggers can find themselves sucked into blogging very quickly. I've read comments joking of blog "addictions" but, for some, it isn't a joke. When you blog, you make great friends...but, due to easy computer access, it's like these friends are at your house 24/7. So not only can your time become devoted to sitting in front of your computer, but also your mind can become blog-driven as your thoughts focus on checking blogs, writing posts, leaving comments, and uploading photos. And because of the huge blogging network, you can quickly gain so many friends that keeping up with each blog can become absolutely time consuming.


The Bloggy Advice: Be mindful of your initial intentions for blogging and then set parameters for using your time to best meet those goals. For example, if you blog to become connected with other adoptive mamas and find that your list of friends is growing rapidly, don't feel like you have to check each blog every day. Perhaps you set aside one day to check all blogs or you choose 3 blogs to read each day...or another scenario that works best for you. The time it takes to check blogs, especially if you leave comments, is deceptively greater than it may seem. Or, if you are blogging for family and friends, don't let a comment like "I check your blog every day" make you feel like you HAVE to post every day. You may find that mindset actually drives your daily activities!

I've read posts about blogging taking away people's time...and thoughts...from their family, their work, their responsibilities and most importantly from God. What an example of choosing what's good over what's best. In and of itself, blogging is good...but placed before God, it quickly becomes an idol. This happened to me and for awhile my first morning thought was how quickly I could get to my computer! Thankfully, my focus is back on God and my waking thought is how quickly I can get to God's Word.

So, all in all, my advice is this regarding your time, your mind, and your heart...

Don't give your employer leftovers.

Don't give your family leftovers.

And, above all, don't give God leftovers.

Take your "personal computer time" off the #1 spot on your priority list. Your blogging friends will understand!