My Button is Lame

I had been contemplating participating in the 31 Days Challenge and then suddenly it was October 1st.  As in Day 1 of 31.  Oops.  How did that sneak up on me so quick?!?

That meant that I was sitting at my computer, stunned by the sudden start of the writing challenge and frantically reading through the "rules".

Pick a topic.  Check.
Link up.  Check.
Write daily.  Check.
Design a button.  Uh-oh.

I scrolled through the links.  What pretty little linky buttons!  There were fun colors, stylish fonts, vintage images and personalized designs.  Oh, boy.

"No problem.   I'll just Google "blog buttons design free" and fill in the blanks.  I'm sure it will come together really quickly."

Forty-five minutes later ... blurg.

The fact that I am a word person and not a tech person was becoming more and more clear to me.  I love to put my thoughts on paper, but I am oblivious when it comes to making it look purty for my visitors.  I tweaked the data fields, I wrinkled my brow (and my nose), I tweaked some more and this is what I ended up with:

Hmmm ... I guess that'll work.  It's not fancy or original, but I guess it will do the job.

I headed back to host's blog and linked up.  After selecting my new button as my icon, I hit "enter", then headed back to the list of contributors to make sure my link was successful.  I looked for my button and to my dismay I found this:

Awesome.

And double blurg.

Undeniable proof of what I said earlier, "I am a word person and not a tech person."  But that isn't necessarily a bad thing.

I have my gifts and strengths which are different from those of other people.  There are (apparently) people out in the blogosphere with the amazing ability of navigating the sea of "html".  I am not one of those people, but that doesn't make my abilities any less important.

Paul talks about this truth in his letter to the Roman church.  He must have been dispelling lies regarding the different roles in the church.  Some Christians were extolling the virtues of the "important" jobs (teaching, preaching, apostleship) while snubbing those believers with the "insignificant" jobs (service, giving, mercy).  Paul is quick to put an end to this confusion:

⁴ For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, ⁵ so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. ⁶We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; ⁷ if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; ⁸ if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.  (Romans 12:4-8)

I might go on to add, "if it is to create really awesome blog buttons, do so with style; if it is to write from your heart, do so with enthusiasm..."

With a shrug of resignation, I am releasing my blah-blog-button.  It's not my thing.  Writing, on the other hand - that is a gift God has given me and I intend to use it, "generously, diligently and cheerfully; in accordance with my faith."

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Day 1:  Mom in the Midst

Day 2:  My Button is Lame