BUFFALO – God has given many gifts to Ashley Haupt, wife of First Baptist Church Pastor Tim Haupt, but one gift, her gift of writing, laid dormant for several years until it was confirmed recently by being published in the November 2011 issue of Lifeway’s Homelife Magazine.
“I have always loved writing,” Haupt said, but she did not feel her writing was a gift God could use to impact the lives of others with the love of Christ. “Looking back, I see some signs that God had given a gift, but I never thought about pursuing writing.”
Haupt, a graduate of Southwest Baptist University, had a couple of poems published in small periodicals while in college, but since October 2010 she has seen God using her gift of writing through her blog, “Little Pieces of Ordinary.”
“Ultimately, for me, it is a small way for me to tell my God-story, the way I see Him at work around me, even in the smallness of my world as a stay-at-home mom,” she said. “When I started the blog, I didn’t have a clear direction for it, but throughout the year, I have come to love writing about the grace of God, providing pictures and examples to encourage people and expound a mysterious truth of the faith.
“Obviously, since I am a stay-at-home mom, my main audience is women and moms, but grace is for everyone,” Haupt explained. She describes herself as, “A believer and a dreamer. A wife and a mama,” and she also “guarantees” imperfection. This writing of the beauty of imperfection is exactly what connects to her readers. One reader of Haupt’s blog commented, “I’ve read several posts now and her (Ashley Haupt) gentle words are like aloe vera on a sunburn.”
It was through her blog last February, Tullian Tchividijian (Billy Graham’s grandson) became aware of her desire to hear more grace at church. He tweeted about it on Twitter and over 1,000 people read that particular post.
Homelife Magazine encourages readers to share their experiences in The “My Home Life” section.
“I had thought about submitting something, as this is exactly the sort of thing I write about in my blog: God at work in my home. My mom saw the section and called me one day to suggest I should send something in, so I took that as confirmation to do so.” Haupt said, “I was very excited to be published.”
God continues to confirm Haupt’s gift of writing by publishing a second article in Proverbs 31 magazine, a magazine for Christian women, due out in February. Haupt conveyed her trust in God using the gift He has given when she said, “As of yet, I don’t have any specific goals or ambitions for writing. I do it because I love it and I will leave the results to God.”
When asked of her definition of success, Haupt said, “If I reflect His glory in any small way by being faithful to share my testimony through blogging, that is success for me.”
Haupt’s blog can be viewed by going to: http://ashleyhaupt.blogspot.com.
Bruce Tegg/contributing writer