I woke up this morning and realized something. It’s almost August.

August!

In all practicality, that means the last month of summer. Not by the calendar, of course, but by the academic calendar, which I have lived by for years—first as a student, then a teacher and parent. Because of that, August almost always feels like the end of something. This year, I decided to make it the beginning of something. Something new.

Something I’ll introduce here. In August, I’ll be starting—Da da da dum (imagine drumroll here)—

THE WRITING LIFE CHALLENGE!

The Writing Life Challenge will be a community of people dedicated to encouraging each other daily, challenging each other to grow in our faith in Jesus.

Let’s break that down.

It’ll be a community of people. That’s right. I’m hoping it’s not just me creating a challenge—I’m hoping others join in, because I believe this is one of the main elements that make for a good challenge. Let’s face it: We need people. The Bible tells us to “encourage one another daily, as long as it is called ‘Today'” (Hebrews 3:13). I find that belonging to a supportive group of people, either in person or online, helps me to continue on and challenges me to do more than I would on my own. There’s something about being held accountable, and about being able to cheer others on when they have victories.

That same verse also defines the purpose of the challenge: encouraging each other daily—simply encouraging each other to keep the faith. But, like I just said, it’s also about challenging each other to grow in our faith. To do things like reading God’s word. Like praying. Like spending time meditating on God’s word, or deliberately applying it in our own lives.

Interested? (I hope so!) Here are the practicalities:

1. Beginning August 1, I’ll post a challenge each day on @rhondalorraineblog on Instagram, but I’ll also post it in a menu I’ll add to this blog under August Challenge (it’s ready! Check the blog menu). Each challenge will ask you to do something to do with your spiritual walk, like Spend 10 minutes reading your Bible (or, if this is a regular practice, spend 10 minutes more reading your Bible). I’ll do my best to keep the time required for completing the challenge to a maximum of 15 minutes a day.
2. I’ll ask you to post a response to each challenge you complete on either the Instagram challenge post (in the comments), in the blog’s comments section under the August Challenge, or in your own Instagram post with the hashtag #writinglifeaugustchallenge. This could simply consist of telling us you did it, but on some days the challenge itself may ask you to generate specific content, like an answer to a question or a photo of something.
3. I’ll ask you to encourage each other by responding to completed challenges—read the comments and respond! Follow the hashtag #writinglifeaugustchallenge on Instagram and like or respond to those. This is how community forms—with interaction and communication.

So what do you say—are you in? I’d love to hear from you!