The word “blog” makes me roll my eyes.

That’s why I prefer to think of what I do as more of an “anecdotally illustrated Christ follower’s motivational chit chat.”

Sadly, that does not roll off the tongue. So “blog” it is. Eye roll optional.

The redesigned Beyond Lashley Lane will have a similar feel to the original version with its semi-disjointed, mildly opinionated ways. I’ll have a thing or two to say about a thing or two or three, and ideally we’ll all arrive at an acceptable conclusion within the framework of my Christian lens. There may be a chuckle here and there . . . certainly a teardrop or two (at least on my side of the screen). Maybe you’ll agree with my words. Maybe you won’t. Oh . . . there’s often music!

If you’ll take a couple minutes to watch this old John Denver video, you may understand the parallel I feel between it and my misplaced writing journey. I cannot play the guitar. But I can weave a decent story, hopefully playing it and fine tuning it like my instrument. I need the practice. So I’m back.

Everything I am and everything I write is formed by my Christian faith. It is deeply important to me that you do not find this fact off-putting, so my words and phrases are carefully chosen. Ultimately, however, it is what it is. I am who I am. God was always waiting for me to reach out to Him and when I took that leap at the lowest point of my young life, it forever changed me. So there you have it. As careful as I will be with you, I will also be unapologetic. With love. Always.

If you think you are reading a professional theologian you are mistaken. If, on the other hand, you assume you are reading from a black hole of ignorance and a homemade not-a-clue soapbox, you are mistaken. Somewhere in the middle, leaning toward a decent grasp of scripture by an experienced Christ follower, is a semi well-read, moderately educated, tremendously well-intentioned careful Christian writer hailing from a Wesleyan Arminian point of view.

How’s that for a disclaimer? Let’s goooooo!

I’m not sure if you could call Psalm 94:18-19 my “life verses,” but close enough. Simple. Straight to the point. Just the way I like it.

When I said, “My foot is slipping,” your unfailing love, Lord, supported me. When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy. NIV

I will do my best to communicate to you what you need. All I really want is to express encouragement and hope, consolation and joy.

A bit of news is that the blog (ugh) will feature an embedded series apart from regular posts. These stories will put you in my shoes, or somewhere near them, during various portions of a magnificent journey. Tumbleweed is a concept that blew into my mind years ago — vague ideas struggling to birth a printed book, one I could hold in my hands and exclaim, “Ah! It smells right when I fan the pages.” Chapters will preview first in serial form on Beyond Lashley Lane. It remains to be seen if they will magically glue themselves together into a book that smells right. Click Tumbleweed on the navigation bar to find the latest available chapters. No concrete timetable, but you should see the first chapter within a week or so.

Another feature being emphasized in the redesign is “What Should We Talk About?” It’s also on the search bar and messages come straight to me. I would love to hear from you. No topic is off limits but remember, if I write about it, I’ll be keeping these pages PG-13 or less. It will be completely anonymous unless you state specifically you’d like to be mentioned. PLEASE NOTE: As Executive Editor/Lead Writer/Head Custodian, I reserve the right to choose which suggestions are published. My boss insists.

For those of you who have been readers of this space in the past, all the old posts are still available here. I’ve traveled back over a few of them and sprayed a smidgen of Lemon Pledge around their vicinity to make them sparkle a bit more, but for the most part, what you saw originally is still what’s on the table. Only one post from the past has been entirely deleted. And whoa. Did it get me in t.r.o.u.b.l.e. . . which took more than a few walks around the block to facilitate my mental recovery. Some might say I never quite got there. But we ignore those voices.

Lastly, please tell your friends about Beyond Lashley Lane! Readership is important — life giving actually. I’ll need both critics (kindhearted preferably) and supporters, though it sometimes necessitates those walks around the block to recover from the former. Yeeikes.

Use that “share” button liberally, follow @beyondlashleylane on Instagram (still under construction), and above all, click subscribe on the front page of the blog (ugh).

Thanks. Appreciate it. Truly.

Much love,

MM