Who I am reading and why - part 1

In the age of social media, everyone knows what everyone else is doing and saying and eating and thinking (when they are thinking and not just mindlessly posting). Blogs take this to a whole 'nother level.

The blogosphere can be such a fascinating, yet slightly disturbing, place.

I now know so much more about my friends and quite a few strangers than I ever would have thought possible.  I also know more about society, trends, and ideas.

Happily, I know more about theology and God and His work amidst His creation.  I am able to sit under sound teaching in the comfort of my living room instead of trekking midway across the country to conferences and the like for portions of spiritual nourishment.

Here are a few details on some of my favorite blogs:

Michael Hyatt writes a fantastic leadership blog.  He has been a successful businessman and author (and was the CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers) for years.  He has taken his expertise, and his Christian principals, and turned his talents toward providing a wealth of resources for other leaders, speakers, authors, aspiring writers/bloggers, and those simply interested in utilizing their gifts to the utmost.  Hyatt has advice on the technical side of blogging and publishing as well.  He posts multiple times each week and often invites like-minded guest authors to post when he is speaking at conferences or otherwise away from his writing desk.  Follow this link to his home page:  http://michaelhyatt.com/.

Ann Voskamp records a life beautifully real and seasoned with grace on her blog.  Voskamp, the now much-read author of One Thousand Gifts:  A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are, keeps what she calls a "journal" on her aesthetically gorgeous site.  She reflects on her calling as a farmer's wife and mother of six with language that is both lyrically poetic and heartachingly honest.  She writes primarily for women from what I gather, though her challenge to recall 1,000 blessings in each year's time is open to all.  I've not yet read her book, but I plan to do so soon.  I discovered her writings when a friend started posting snippets on facebook.  It is well worth the time it takes to wander through her artistic verbiage, and you may find her at http://www.aholyexperience.com/.

Lily Pads.  What a lovely name for a blog!  Kate Elizabeth Connor, who is somehow related to a friend of mine...though I am no longer sure which one, writes from the perspective of being a youth pastor's wife and young mother of two (soon to be three).  In the recent past, one of her posts made its way around facebook, and I have since found her observations to be both hilarious and solemn, depending on the topic.  I strive never to miss a post, and in fact this one is among my favorites.  You may find more of Kate's insight at http://kateelizabethconner.com/.