I find myself in something of a dilemma. Who is my audience? I’m not sure.

          I am a dedicated Christian. My life and all I do reflect that. (To be sure you understand what that means, you might want to check out the My Beliefs page.) I want to explore aspects of that faith with and for those who share it. I want to encourage others of like mind with my anecdotes, uplift them with insights and challenge them with the Word. I want to, as Hebrews puts it, “spur one another on to good works.” (Heb 10:24)

          But I also have what I think is a somewhat unique gift (or is it a curse? ). I am able to understand, sometimes even relate to, the objections or arguments against believing, against living this separated lifestyle we Christians are called to embrace. (Or at least I understand some aspects of those objections. Even I find it almost incomprehensible how anyone can choose to not believe in anything spiritual.) I also want to dialogue with them, I want to reason with them, I want to introduce them to the Truth. (He is my Best Friend, after all. I want everyone to know Him as I do. Or at least to a little better why I want to honor Him.) Even beyond that, though, is the fact that dialoging with non-believers will challenge and quantify my own faith. What good is my faith if I can’t articulate to a dissenter in such a way that she at least sees a glimmer of my perspective? And in so doing, I fulfill my destiny, to be light and salt to those around me. (Mt 5: 13)

          There is my dilemma. Who do I talk to? Do I create different blogs for each audience? Or talk to both, and risk alienating one or the other by some of my posts? It’s a dilemma.

          My life, my ideas, everything about me tends to merge and combine and synthesize differing personalities, ideology and practices. This harmonizing and integrating theme runs throughout my entire life. It’s there in my childhood, when I was arbitrating fights between cousins. It’s seen when I was a young mother and I became the catalyst that created a trio of friendship between three disparate women that still thrives, even though we are separated by long distances and family crises. And obviously that same theme is here in my dilemma.

          And, I think, it is the answer to my dilemma.

          Struggle though it may be, I think this blog just might be meant to be a catalyst, as I was with my two friends, that creates (or at least calls for) a friendship, or at least mutual respect, among those who read it. A friendship that accepts, even welcomes differences of opinion while acknowledging a core of absolute truth.

          So while most of my posts may be directly targeting the thinking Christian, I will continue to keep in mind there may be those reading who need a more complete explanation or definition.