#THE BABYSTEPS BLOG
Hi there!
My name is Christen Limbaugh Bloom and I'm the creator of Haplous. I absolutely love Jesus and am genuinely “wow’d” CONSTANTLY by His immense grace and love. For a long time I tried to start reading the Bible but never really knew how to get hooked like so many people in my life were.
That all changed one summer when one of my best friends gave me a daily devotional. That devotional became the first baby step I needed to start growing the deeply personal relationship with Jesus I had heard so many people describe, but had never experienced for myself. THANK YOU JESUS! (literally). My relationship with Jesus started to flourish when I finally took the pressure off MYSELF, and allowed HIM to transform my heart, day by day.
People began to notice a difference in me and I, in turn, started telling them about all of the books, devotionals, websites, & scholars I had stumbled upon throughout my journey to get to know God. And that’s exactly what I intend to share HERE with you. I’ve created this page for people who are craving a deeper connection with God, but don't know where to start.
I hope these #babysteps will help each & every one of you. Jesus LOVES you! For real. He is an actual person who loves you. He also has a PLAN for YOU. Take your first #babystep and subscribe to the Haplous blog!
WHAT IN THE WORLD DOES "HAPLOUS" MEAN?
Original Word: ἁπλοῦς
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (hap-looce')
Short Definition: single, simple, sound
Definition: single, simple, sound, perfect Cognate: 573 haploús (haploós) – properly, unfolded, single – literally, "without folds" (J. Thayer), referring to a single (undivided) focus, i.e. without a (secret) "double agenda" which prevents an over-complicated life (becoming needlessly distracted)
haplous: simple, single
WHY I CHOSE TO NAME THIS CHRISTIAN BLOG "HAPLOUS"
When I first had the idea to create a Christian blog, I decided I wanted to emphasize how much EASIER our lives can be if we surrender to God and let HIM transform our hearts by SIMPLIFYING the process: day by day, one #babystep at a time. I googled "words for 'simple' in other languages" and the definition for haplous (above) was my first search result. This definition came from the NAS New Testament Greek Lexicon. In other words, haplous was a word used in the original Greek translation of two verses in the New Testament: (Matthew 6:22 & Luke 11:34). Not only did I find it odd that I simply googled a word and a Biblical reference popped up, but the reference number to the word haplous was 573, the area code in the small town where I grew up. There's a God wink for you!
