Celebrating TWO YEARS of Blogging!

Yesterday marked two years since I’ve been blogging! My intention was to do a special post to the day, but since my family and I were recently on vacation, my body’s time clock has been way off – I’ve been exhausted; hence, I missed this very special post. But better late than never, right? So here is a very special post in honor of my two-year blogging anniversary! Enjoy, and be sure to celebrate this special occasion with me!

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On August 23rd, 2008, I launched this blog. I had been reading many great resources on the Bible’s reliability, and I found the material to be quite fascinating. I began to wonder, “How many people out there don’t know about the soundness of the Christian faith?” Sure, there are plenty of skeptics out there who are just waiting to pounce on the unintelligent; and that is just the point: the Bible makes it perfectly clear that we are to know what we believe and why. Thus, I initiated this blog.

Five days later, I did my first official post; but then, my blog lay dormant for a few months, due to the busyness of life. One day, I logged on to see that I had my first follower! It was Brian from Apologetics 315; he encouraged me to keep up with my blog. Thank you, Brian! Later on, I met some other fabulous bloggers: Alice, Rebecca, Hercules, Renee, Jay, Brickster, and Ruth, to name a few (and I am meeting many more as times goes by -- thank you to each one of you!). While these are not apologetics bloggers, each one has, in his own way, encouraged me on with my venture. I would also like to give a big shoutout to Skeppy and AL, both of whose blogs have inspired me along the way!

But the real inspiration for this blog came from someone you wouldn’t expect. In February 2008, I met an atheist on a message board. He claimed that he “didn’t want to be an atheist,” and stated that he was an agnostic atheist (an oxymoron in my view) who was searching for the truth. However, He refused to even discuss the Bible, though I believe that was where his issue lay. In the process of trying to help him, I discovered that there are many skeptics out there who are not really interested in the truth, though they claim to be (It’s mostly a heart issue, as I learned.). However, this experience led me to delve deeper into the soundness of the Christian faith, and in particular, the topic of God’s existence. This was when I really began to toy with the idea of a blog, and I actually wrote a few posts on atheism as a result of this encounter with the atheist.

As time goes on, I continue to come across skeptics; but rather than discourage me, this just prompts more posts on the soundness of Christianity! One of my favorite topics is the Resurrection; so many people try to dismiss it as impossible with various theories that do not stand up to scrutiny. On one blog, I saw an atheist using various arguments that were so ridiculous that I had to write a rebuttal; you can read it here. I have also come across various OSAS adherents, prompting several posts on this topic. Another time, an atheist asked for my assessment of a debate that he did with a Christian man. I read most of it, but I could not give an assessment; in my view, the debate got nowhere, because the atheist would not look at the evidence – he just kept pushing his own view. In November 2009, I posted a Thanksgiving special prompted by the comment of a man who did not agree that the Founding Fathers were Christians. He insisted that I was rude for posting it, going so far as to say bad things about me on his blog… Oh well! I also came across a man who insisted that there was no hell. And these are just a few of the critics that I have come across in my blogging venture. It can be quite a challenge at times, but it is something that I enjoy doing, and I believe that God has gifted me in this area. (Note: Due to potential hostility on certain topics, I have made blog rules and updated them from time to time; you can read them here.)

Of course, I am aware that the mere presence of logic may not convince a skeptic; there must also be a change of heart, and that seems to be a big issue for most critics. However, I hope to fulfill the mandate of 1 Peter 3:15 which states, “… always be ready to give an answer to those who ask you a reason for the hope that is in you, with all meekness and fear…” That would include both the skeptics and the true seekers. My job is not to convince anyone; the Holy Spirit will do that. I am here only to present the truth of the Gospel – to give people hope; that is the goal of this blog.

I have also taken a great interest in encouraging Christians who are struggling, be it physically or spiritually. Lifting up others in the Lord gives me great joy and hope. For this reason, much of what you read on this blog is a result of my personal Bible studies. At first, I did not see the connection between this and apologetics; however, a friend pointed out that studying the Bible – the source of our faith – is also providing evidence for Christianity.

Several of my articles have become extremely popular, and people have been finding me every day through them. One such article – and THE most popular – is Inspiring Story: Dr. Kent Hovind, written by my brother. I even had Dr. Hovind’s son-in-law comment on that one! What an honor! Thank you, Paul! Second to that is Did Pontius Pilate Exist?, an article where I share about a stone that bears witness to Pilate’s existence. In April of this year, I did a series on The Shroud of Turin; this has become the third most popular list of articles, with someone finding my blog through one of the articles almost daily. One person even suggested it to a skeptical friend on a message board even though she said that she didn’t entirely agree! Another favorite was Contradictions in the Resurrection Narratives, which I did back in 2009 for Resurrection Sunday. I have never regretted that I did these posts, not so much for the popularity (though that is great), but I’m more than glad that people are finding the truth through these articles.

In May, the DCF blog got a Twitter account, where I share my zany opinions about life as well as some apologetics stuff interspersed. Last week, I submitted an article to a Christian site. Thank you, John, for featuring it on your site! If you have a site that would like to feature any of my articles, please contact me. I have also received two awards: The Superior Scribbler Award from Rebecca in March, and the Sunshine Award from Renee in July! Thanks, guys!

I also have a few of my own little things going on, but they haven't yet "taken off," and I haven't been entirely faithful to keep them up: They are the Inspiring Story meme (anyone is welcome to join; just check out the rules first), where I write about anything Christian related that is either inspiring or that we can learn a Christian message from; and The Story Challenge hosted by the Brickster, where I'm writing a novel that aims to tackle why bad things happen to good people, that God is still a healing God, and that all things work together for good to those who love God. I am also doing a campaign to send as many letters to and prayers for a Chinese woman who is in prison for her faith (Update: She has since been released! I now blog on religious persecution at Christian Witness Under Fire). Thank you to all who have joined so far! In addition, as some of you know, I recently launched a photography page (Update: I now have a Tumblr page specifically for the purpose and I also reblog beautiful pictures); I love to take pictures. There aren't very many pictures up yet since I haven't finished transferring and uploading them, but I'd love to have your feedback on them; and you can also see some of them featured on the mainpage from time to time. Please check these out, because I can't do them without y'all! :D

So what’s in the future for the DCF blog? Only God knows. But I do plan to expand my horizon in this arena as time goes on, and I have a few “tricks” up my sleeves… so sit tight! I do hope that if you are encouraged by what you read on this blog, you will drop me a comment or email me at my profile page. I love hearing from each and every one of you!

Thank you to all of you have made year two possible! God bless!

~ Miss S.


Updated: August 9, 2011