An Introduction

     In the summer of 2009 I started a project that would affect my life in startling ways.  I thought it would be cool to start taking down notes while sitting in church, talking in small groups, and while in my private time with God.  I found that by writing my prayers out I concentrated more fully.  By putting them into writing they became more precious, I was less like to be frivolous as I put my thoughts, dreams, desires, and gratitudes into words.  This project was very slow on the uptake.  I would forget my book, neglect my quiet time, and I was very lax about this idea that I had come up with.  From 2009 to 2010 it was something I always meant to do.  It was in the back of mind, but the whole thing never came to fruition.  The notes were scattered and inconsistent; between one page and another entire seasons would pass.  That is until December of 2010.  At this point I became almost religious about my note taking.  I cataloged everything.  What I read, what I heard, and what I discovered.

    This is what I want to share with you, with anyone who is interested.  This project I started in 2009 did not see real fruit until about 6 months ago.  I began to see trends in the notes I was taking.  I was drawing connections between what I was reading and what I was hearing.  I would sit in sermons and notate in the margins passages in books or lines of songs that went along with what I was hearing.  I would really like to share what I have discovered, what I have learned, and what I have come to believe.  I mentioned before that it changed my life in startling ways.  It did.  Actually writing things down does something to a thought.  It becomes corporeal.  I really can't fully explain how writing something down somehow makes it more real.  This solidification helped stream line my thoughts into convictions.  I believe it has caused me to grow in my faith and produce real fruit in my life.

     I have always thought that knowledge is like a sponge.  If you fill a sponge with water and leave it alone it rots.  It's quite disgusting after only a week or so.  In the same way I see it as useless to just gather information.  The only way a sponge can be useful is to wring it out and spread what it has collected around.  In this blog I will wring out what I have heard, what I am thinking, and what I am struggling with.  I hope that in this I can help solidify my own beliefs and convictions, as well as maybe helping those who read this with theirs.  I want to share what I have learned and draw connections where I can find them.

    If you have made it this far, I want to thank you.  I hope you can find something useful in what I am going to post.

All the best,
Kearstin H. Sale