As time is constantly marching on, and life is constantly changing, and people are constantly evolving, so, in fact, must my blog.  As near and dear to my heart as my “Blooming Onion Theory” post is, because it was the first I had ever written, I finally had to archive it.  It was time for a new post to take center stage, because as I’ve honed in on what bloggers like to refer to as “their niche,” I have come to realize that my blog now has more of a central theme than when I first started out.  I want my new “sticky” post to be about this blog’s purpose.

First of all, some of you might be asking, “What is a niche?”  According to Dictionary.com, the definition that best suits the type of niche I’m talking about is “a distinct segment of a market.”  Simply put, a niche for a blogger is sort of their main topic, or their specialty, if you will.  It’s something specific that they write about.  Now when I first started researching the things I needed to know about writing a blog, I distinctly remember that most of the books I read on the subject inevitably stated at one time or another, “Everyone is an expert at something.”  Ha!  Me, an expert?  I’m not an expert at anything!  It was enough to make me break out into a cold sweat.

I wanted to make sure that anyone who visited my blog was well aware that I was no expert.  I didn’t have the answers to all of life’s questions, so I didn’t want to profess that I did.  I came up with the original blog name, Learning Life Together, because I wanted my readers to understand that we were in this together.  Did I have lots of life experiences to share?  I sure did!  But did that make me an expert?  It surely did not.  The one thing I knew, though, is that I wanted to encourage, educate, and edify other women like me who shared the same struggles.  I may not be an expert in anything, but I sure have a lot of experiences under my belt that taught me a life lesson or two.

If you check out my More About Me page, you’ll get the synopsis of my life story, but honestly, my story isn’t nearly as important as what I’ve learned from it- and what I’m still learning!  To put it mildly, a traumatic childhood and a lifelong addiction to food caused chronic self-loathing, self-condemnation, depression, guilt, and shame.  I felt I was too unworthy to receive love and respect, and frankly, I didn’t believe anyone would ever truly fall in love with me anyway.

But someone did!  Not only do I have an awesome husband and three incredible kids who love me unconditionally, but there is Someone who has loved me since before time began!  Jeremiah 1:5 says, “I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb.  Before you were born, I set you apart…” (NLT) Wait, what was that?  I was set apart?  Could I really be that special?  The answer to that, my friend, is YES!  And the good news is that so are you!  And I have made it my mission to prove it to you.

For more years than I could count, my Aunt and I tried to start a ministry at our home church.  We had a passion for women who struggled with “identity crisis” just like me, and although we weren’t sure how to go about it, we knew we wanted to share God’s truth and hope with those women.  Believing God put the name on my heart, I called it the Sparrow Ministry- the Savior’s Promises and Advocacy for the Redemption and Restoration Of Women.

Our theme verse came from Luke 12:7, “…Do not fear, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.”  Our mission statement was this: “Our purpose is to bring God’s truth to His daughters and His hope to their situations by helping women feel worthy, loved, confident, and encouraged.”  We had several meetings with our Pastoral leadership, and we had their full support.  But for all of our efforts, we just could never get the ministry off the ground for one reason or another.  I have since made it my mission to bring the ministry to you, my readers.

Do you have any idea how valuable you are?  I’d like to refer you to a previous blog post of mine called “His Princess.”  Please check it out when you have a chance, because it is definitely full of some gospel truth that you might need!  Here is some more truth for you: “The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.  Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ…”  (Romans 8:16-17a NIV) I ask you, if you are a daughter of a King, what does that make you?  A princess of course! 

And because we are all princesses just trying our best each day to live up to our title, I have decided to change the name of my blog from Learning Life Together to Princess and the P—because none of us are doing this alone.  My Prince of Peace is your Prince of Peace.  My Promise Keeper is your Promise Keeper.  The Great Physician and the Good Shepherd Who heals my heart, protects, teaches, and guides me, does the same for you.

In this blog, I will share candid stories and life experiences with you, because I want you to fully understand and believe that we truly are in this together.  In fact, you will still be able to find me on Twitter @LearnLife2gethr and on Instagram @LearningLife2gethr, because I am still learning every day, just like you. That much has not changed; I am still no expert, and even when I think I’ve got it all down pat, that pesky enemy will do everything in his power to make me doubt or forget.

I will also share some of God’s truth with you in every post, because the Sword of the Spirit is our greatest weapon against attacks from the enemy.  Know that, although I won’t know your specific struggles, I am making a commitment to pray for all of my readers.  I pray that God will sustain you, heal you, restore you, and empower you, and if my blog can play even one small part in that, then I will be the one that is blessed!

My beloved Sister, know at this very moment that you are not just a daughter of a king.  You are a daughter of THE KING!  As you explore my website, and particularly my blog posts, my prayer is that you will feel worthy, loved, confident, and encouraged.  Not one little sparrow is forgotten before God, and you, my friend, are more valuable than a whole flock of sparrows!

Be blessed, my Sister, and happy reading!