Category Archives: Blog

Hosting a Party!

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Happy Blog-a-versary to us!! This week, mittonmusings.com turns two years old! I can’t believe it! What started out as a little “learning experience” has grown into a full fledged toddler — complete with the meltdowns of a terrible two year old! (I recently had to delve into the world of website analytics. Let’s just say I don’t get it — yet.) But, I have learned a lot. A lot. And I want to thank you all for supporting me and this little adventure with your comments, encouragements and “likes”.

You’ll notice some subtle changes as we “grow up” a little. I’m hoping our new look is a little more streamlined and easy on the eyes. It’s been fun learning blips and blobs of this huge world we call “technology”. And it changes fast… so we are learning to keep up! We’ve just about hit 200 followers with just under 2 000 views. We’re active on Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and you can find our Facebook page here. We are not YouTubers yet, but maybe we’ll be cool enough for that someday. Won’t the kids be so impressed?! Videography is on the list of things to learn. We dove headstrong into our first ever daily email campaign, 30 Days of Blessings, and had lots of great feedback. God has truly blessed our little ministry.

So what are we going to do to celebrate all our slow, but exciting progressions?! We’re hosting a party! Well, sort of. As much as I’d love to have you all over for cake and ice cream, the introvert in me says ” uh, no.” So, we are going to do the next best thing, we are going to all sit at home and drink warm beverages on the couch — and colour!!

Colour, you say? Yup. For the next several weeks, mittonmusings will be studying all about colours! I’m no artist, but I’ve enjoyed colouring since I was, well, two years old. So I thought it would be fun to do a study on colours, their symbolism, their psychology, and why God gave us such a rich resource to play with! We might even look into Bible Journalling and colour coded study. Are you up for it, my friends?! Fabulous!!

And what would a party be without presents? Oh, we are going to have those too! How can you get one?! By joining us on the adventure! And sharing it with others! Throughout the colour party, I’ll be looking for likes, shares and new followers! It’s how the internet decides we are “worthy” of taking up space in it’s crazy world! Simply click on the side “follow” button, or join the adventure when prompted in the pop up! Then pick your favourite post, write a raving “colour commentary”, and share it on your favourite social site! It warms my heart to think that I have had a little impact on making people think, helping them grow, and encouraging blessings along the journey. Will you help me celebrate?! I’ll meet you on the couch next week, with crayons in hand!!

Can’t wait to have you join us!

2020 Vision

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I have a friend who has a whole collection of those little drug store reader glasses. He needs them to read, but keeps leaving pairs behind when they were of no use to him. Then, he ends up purchasing a new pair because he can’t remember where the old pair are! I’m nearsighted, so wear my glasses to see distances and drive. I’ve hit that age, however, when I need to take off my glasses to read small print, or thread a needle. I’m afraid I might eventually have a collection of drug store readers of my own one day! The Mitton crew are prone to vision issues (apparently!) and 5 out of 6 of us have glasses.

Why do I mention our vision delinquencies? It’s what I’ve been musing about since “2020” is approaching soon… “2020”… of the Gregorian calendar, the 2020th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 20th year of the 3rd millennium, the 20th year of the 21st century, and the 1st year of the 2020s decade. Apparently, it will also be a leap year. All special, if you are into that kinda thing. Fireworks, champagne toasts and midnight kisses for you all! But when I hear 2020, I tend to think of vision. It’s actually “normal” vision according to the optometrists…not exactly “perfect”, but the most accurate when it comes to reading that little eye chart at the office.

Vision can mean more than just eyesight though. Think visions and dreams. Something you imagine. It could be literal or figurative. Vision as in great plans for the future. New Year resolutions? Goals? How interesting that it all comes together under this concept of what we call “vision”. A new year, a new decade even… and the internet will be all a buzz on the top 10’s of the past — with great predictions for the future. What will happen in this new year? How will our lives change? How will we change the lives of others?

Now, I am a big believer in goal setting. I’m not very good at always achieving the goals… but I love to have a plan. I love a good list and work best when checking off the steps. Unfortunately, life does not always work in perfect little check marked boxes. Our lives are influenced by others, by our circumstances, and all the tiny nuances that ebb and flow in our life journeys. Our visions are hampered by our own guilt, shame and sin. We do not have perfect vision. We cannot see, nor predict, what lies ahead. We are like my friend, and leave behind our readers when we don’t need them. Or maybe like me, who must purposefully put aside our glasses when we feel the need to focus on the tiny things in life, when we should be casting our eyes to a wider view of the world.

So, my dear reader, what will your vision be for this 2020 year? Will the Lord be your vision? Like the words of the ancient, Irish Hymn… “Be thou my Vision, oh Lord of my heart…” Will you seek His will and trust in His plans for your life? Will you be devoted to learning all you can to make Heaven’s joys your personal goals? Will you be seeking riches and empty praises of people, or will you dwell in the beauty of Heaven’s sun? Keeping your vision clear and unclouded by the world around us?

It won’t be as easy as reading all the letters on the eye chart. We will forget our specs and abandon them when we think we don’t need the help. We will take our eyes off the goals and focus on our own insecurities and narrow minded points of convergence. Some of us will grow weary of sight and need extra help. Perhaps bifocals, transitions or permanent laser surgery will be metaphors for our pruning and molding this next year. All necessary to improve our vision. But my wish for you in this new year, this new decade, this year with an extra day… is that you will be seeing 2020, and that whate’er befall… He will still be your vision, O Ruler of all…

Never heard of this ancient hymn mentioned above? Check out my facebook page… I’ll post the lyrics there! Like what you read? Join the adventure! I’d love to have you along as a subscriber and join me each week in 2020! (Click on the little follow button on the sidebar and enter your email address!)

Blogging from the Heart

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I want to start this post by saying “thank you”. Thank you for reading. Thank you for being here. Thank you for reading this post all the way through to the end and supporting me by becoming a “follower”. Thank you for encouraging me by sharing and commenting. This blog thing started as an excuse for me to learn some technology. To broaden the scope of my horizons. If you’re curious, you can read my first ever post here. I don’t consider myself a writer, nor do I have ambitions to publish a book or creative set of poems or muses. I write from the heart about weird and wonderful things that happen, here, in our neck of the woods. Things I think about, things I question, things I struggle with. I also blog about things I love. My muses have blossomed and bloomed and it has become easier to share. Especially with regards to my faith journey.

I didn’t start out trying to be a #jesusblogger. I had no intention of writing devotionals or bible studies, nor do I wish to be the next woman of faith speaker. And yet, my muses quickly morphed into my ministry. We launched 30 Days of Blessings as a side project and I’ve learned more and more about websites. A self proclaimed introvert, it somehow became easier to share my faith journey, here, “on paper”, than from behind a pulpit. That’s one of those things about your own little space on the internet. It seems private, and yet it is not! It’s a tool. And any tool can be used for both good and evil. My hope is that you will find my space used as a platform for encouragement, growth, challenge, and to make you think. I don’t intend it to criticize or point fingers at any one source.

You will notice I have no affiliate links, no brand collaborations, no sponsors are knocking down my doors wanting to advertise. In fact, I pay extra to not have pop ups and advertising flashing across the screen on my homepage. Am I against it? No. I follow and read many a blogger and instagrammer who earn their living through influencing. It’s just not where I am at. I have no intention of quitting my job and blogging full time to earn thousands of dollars online. It’s my learning curve. Plus, I promised my family that mittonmusings would still allow me time for them.

Words on a page may not mean the same to you as they do to me….

Some weeks are difficult. It takes time to research, write, design decent photos and schedule and post. I’ve committed to weekly blogs and stayed up late to finish them. I have no technical background — so post many of my social media follow ups by individual upload. I don’t know how to keep stats and follow algorithms and make perfect SEO posts. Yet, I read every comment and see every follower. I learn and grow by studying and through the help of others. I hope that I encourage and shed light with each post. But the internet is tricky. Words on a page may not mean the same to you as they do to me. My attempt at humour may not come across as such. My Canadian references may not apply to followers in the Philippines. My opinions and muses about things that happened two years ago may have changed and grown from when they were originally written about. Which leads me open to criticism. And vulnerability. An introvert’s worst nightmare.

I recently stumbled upon a fellow faith blogger who shared my fears — and yet encouraged me that despite the vulnerability… jesusbloggers can still be salt and light to a darkened world! According to thinkaboutsuchthings.com, more than half the world’s population in 2019 has access to the internet. That’s over 4 billion humans online. It’s estimated that 3.48 billion people now use social media in some form or another. The internet is our mission field! (and yes, I do link and share on this blog! They are references for you to check out and discover — as I do).

I have two degrees hanging on my wall. I study and work hard. I love learning. But I am far from perfect. My words don’t always convey the meaning I want them to. You may disagree with my views and my opinions. But, I encourage you to be part of the conversation. Please don’t write me off because of something you find here. I challenge you to question and discover along with me. I am one in a sea of opinions. If you join the adventure and follow along, you will learn a bit more about the imperfect me, and how, through a whole lotta grace and mercy, I’m learning to write from the heart.