February 26, 2019

Back to the Sources: The Need for a Social Media Renaissance

February 26, 2019/ Jennifer Blair

At the end of December I felt the urge to step away from the sphere of social media as I entered into the new year. I needed a sabbath for my mind, and to clear out extra clutter and noise. I have mostly found social media a positive place. It can be harnessed for immense good, foster beautiful connections, opens up great entrepreneurial opportunities, and help us reach further than ever before. In fact, you're reading this on a screen right now and I may not even know who you are. That's pretty amazing. I also had an online-based business for 5 years, and was so blessed to connect with people from all over the world. There is much to be gained from our online world, and yet I confess, it is easy to put too much importance on what happens online. I have often struggled with getting on and zoning out, consciously and unconsciously comparing myself to others, or caring too much about what I see and the little numbers on posts. Even if it is mostly positive, those positive things can still negatively affect my heart. I'm no psychologist, but I think a lot of people see themselves negatively affected by so much "connection" via screens and social media. For me personally, it was so refreshing to unplug. I reached for books, instead of scrolling on my phone. I had to ask friends what is going on in their lives, because I didn’t read about it online. I allowed myself to experience a lull during downtime, and found my mind quickly filled the space productively. I went about my life without knowing what everyone else was up to, and it helped me find deeper contentment in my ordinary. It was like a cloud lifted from my mind and my thoughts found more clarity. But even when I stepped back I knew I wouldn't stay away for very long. The nature of our world has changed, and it's all online. For better or worse.

February 13, 2019

Shame is a Prison; Humility is a Highway: The Story of a Woman Who Loved Jesus

February 13, 2019/ Jennifer Blair

This year I really don’t want to post about anything we’re doing for Valentine’s Day. It’s not that those things aren’t good, or that I don’t want to celebrate my wonderful husband or do fun things with my girls. But looking at so many posts gets to be too much sometimes. I don’t know were your click on this post fell in your feeds full of happy faces, lovely dates, crafted perfection or special gifts, and I just don’t want to be another one of those this year. Instead, I want to tell you a story about a time I messed up.

I had just made one of those sweet, heartfelt posts for a special occasion…you know, sort of like today. I was happy and feeling the love. Later that day, the same special person I wrote about said something and I took it the wrong way. I’d like to say I responded in a loving and gracious manner, but the truth is that I didn’t. In my pride, I responded selfishly. And I felt pretty awful about it afterwards. I wish I could say I repented right away as well, but again, I didn’t. Putting something kind and loving online is a lot easier than actually being kind and loving all the time. Of course, I’m not advocating that we should all share our mess-ups with the world online. It’s just that what we say online and what we do in person are sometimes different. I’m no more immune to my own humanity than anyone else, but I carried around the shame of my words the rest of the day. I felt the dichotomy between what I had said and how I had acted, and it felt like a chasm.

January 01, 2019

The Secret to Being on Fire

January 01, 2019/ Jennifer Blair

To be “on fire” is often how we term someone who is visibly passionate for God, and the ones who seem consumed by working for God’s glory. It’s a good term. Rewind about 15 years, and you’ll find little teenage Jenny (as I was called then) sitting on her bed reading of the heroes fo the faith, and asking God to make her “on fire” too. I wanted to live out God’s purpose for my life with passion, all in and whole-hearted…on fire. But how does it actually happen?

I don’t know much about building fires, but I do know that you can’t rush it if you want it to be long-lasting. Sure, you can get a lot of heat quickly by grabbing anything flammable, pouring gasoline on top and lighting it. Will it last? Probably not. A truly good fire takes experience to construct. It needs the right kind of wood, kindling and design. Our lives are the sticks for the flame. God has created us with passions fit for a purpose in His Kingdom. The potential for flame is there and often the desire for it too. The problem with passion and wanting to be “on fire” comes when we rush God’s purpose or try to arrange our lives on our own. We feel a nudge towards our calling, and feel as though it must happen immediately. I sense God’s calling, so I want to pour gasoline on everything. I want the sticks to light. I want to see a tangible result in burning brightly. It’s easy to think God should make our flame start quickly. We’re passionate, after all! We want to follow the Lord’s calling on our lives. And then we look around us and don’t see it happening how we envisioned. Our sticks aren’t arranged how we think they should be. Maybe we question, “Surely my calling can’t happen here?” Or perhaps we look at someone else and think our fires should burn like theirs. We can easily presume that we know the way God should light the fire of our lives. We can go after things in our own strength, but we’ve all seen how that turns out: burn out. Lasting fire comes when we first let God arrange the sticks of our lives and light them in His time.

May 29, 2018

A Legacy of Worship

May 29, 2018/ Jennifer Blair

Worship probably isn't the top word that comes to someone's mind when thinking about a legacy. Words like heirloom, character, stories, and love might be more common. But have you ever thought about the fact that how (and who) you worship will also become part of our legacy?

Scripture says we should pass down the worship of God from one generation to the next:

“These things we have heard and known, that our fathers told us. We will not hide them from their children, but tell to the coming generations the glorious deeds of the Lord and his might, the wonders he has done. He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers to teach to their children that the next generation might know them, the children yet unborn, and arise and tell them to their children, so that they should set their hope in God and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments.” (Psalm 78:3-4, a Maskil of Asaph)

October 06, 2017

Upside-down: God cares more about the depth of your roots than the brightness of your blooms

October 06, 2017/ Jennifer Blair

Everyone loves surface things. It's easy to show what is on the top, the growing, beautiful things. We love to see what is blooming. We put it out there into the world, not necessarily in a bad way, but it's out there. We see it. Stuff. Achievements. Happy moments. Beautiful adventures. Snapshots and stories of what we can see and quantify. All the things that are beautiful. Our world is obsessed with what grows above the surface. Stay on social media long and you'll see things like "how to grow your platform" or ads saying "you need this" or carefully curated ways to get more likes and acceptance in this world. And it's all based on what you can see. Happiness is found in enrichment, enjoyable things, abundance, leisure, travel, a cute house, a cute family, a cute wardrobe, cool friends and just the right balance between killing it and exploring the world. (Among other things of course.) These things are the measure of success. Do what makes you happy and show everyone your wonderful life, with just a touch of real thrown in so we know it's legit.