Where Did This Come From | BlogFromTheBelly2

I have never written a blog before, created a community concept, sold my artwork, or even really publicly shared thoughts that were that personal before.

Reading my Bible and exploring my faith more, I’ve been drawn to the story of Jonah and the idea of being stuck in the belly of a whale. Jonah thought he was being punished and that maybe it was even going to be the end of him, but really in the bigger picture it was just a short, uncomfortable ride to get him to the destination where God needed him to be. 

I think we all have trouble appreciating our challenges and maintaining a grateful heart when things aren’t going well. I struggle with that all the time. We don’t have to feel alone in that or try to pretend it isn’t a struggle – so many others around us go through the same thing. So I started feeling this push to go with this idea and share it with other people because maybe some good would come of it. It’s been said immeasurable times that you learn from pain and struggle, and that life experiences make you who you are. However, do we always think, “Hey this is awful, but I can be honest with others about how I’m feeling. I can talk to God about it. And I can make an effort to actively encourage others to do the same when they face their own challenges.” I’m not sure that thought process always occurs when we are feeling stuck in unfortunate circumstances. I certainly don’t always think that way, but I am trying. Always a work in progress.

I started searching the internet for all things “Belly of the Whale” to see if someone had already taken this idea or the name. Of course that term has been used for some things. So then I started thinking…how can I change it so it’s usable for this. I tried MANY variations and got back “this email is already taken” or “this username already exists” over and over again. Until I added the LOVE into the name. The only way I could really use the term “Belly of the Whale” was if I added Love to the name. Which, it turns out, is actually a majorly important part of the concept – LOVE The Belly Of The Whale (whatever belly you are in, whatever moment of your life).

So I really didn’t have much choice in the matter. God made it clear that without the love, this concept wasn’t much. And here we are, months later, I have finally decided I’m ready to get going and share it. 

I’m still figuring out how blogging works, how to run a website, how to do this whole sharing feelings – sharing ideas – sharing my artwork – publically thing…but I’m hoping there are people out there that will relate to what I’m saying and in turn, start relating more to others. 

I’m not an expert on anything, I’m not saying LTBOTW can solve anyone’s internal struggles, but the goal is that this will create togetherness in your own relationships, create more love in people’s hearts knowing that we all live in this fallen world dealing with the struggles that are a part of it, and we can help each other through it by reminding each other that God is in it all. We are called to love one another, and there needs to be more of that in this world.

So, Love the Belly of the Whale is what I would call a concept, present on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and whatever else down the road. The purpose is to foster a relationship with our struggles where we wade through them knowing God is still with us and remembering how blessed we are. The other purpose is that we react to other people’s struggles in a way that helps them do the same. Eventually I may be selling artwork I create based on this concept, making art-related videos, writing more blogs, and sharing other things I find that inspire this concept. 

This is the very beginning of this whole thing, so thank you in advance for your patience as I figure all the details of this out. I don’t have it all together yet, but if I waited until I felt like I had it all together…we all know how that goes!