Jul

Blogging Is Not a Four-Letter Word

I’m sorry … but I had to write that headline to get some attention for the subject and debate it represents.

The concept of blogging has become synonymous in certain circles with those who have abused it to air their church family’s dirty laundry to the world.

The key word is … abuse. Just like any other technology, it has and will continue to be abused. That’s life and the truth.

But that saddens me.

… because blogging can and should be used as a TOOL for ministry.

I put that keyword in bold and all caps for a reason. Just like most of us use Microsoft Word to type … or email … or hey, the computer you’re reading this on … blogging is a tool to be leveraged and used effectively to (a) do your work easier and (b) do your work faster.

And in the case of blogging, it can help multiply your ministry … to the world.

So I thought I’d share a little bit about what blogging is and how it can be used and leveraged for the Gospel.

For this, I thought specifically about some of the ways pastors, ministers, missionaries and Christians, in general, could use blogs and blogging technology.

Blogging can be used as a tool for …

Sharing your ministry experience with others.
Communicating with your congregation and community.
As Mark Batterson calls it “digital discipleship.”
Explaining your position on a social issue.
Teaching the Bible.
Mission advocacy and recruitment.
Reporting on what you’re doing on the mission field.
Giving practical advice for how to do things.

Plain and simple … here’s what blogging does for the typical pastor or minister or denominational leader … it lowers the bar for what it takes to publish websites.

Meaning … if you have something to say or share … blogs can help you do that … easily.

Here are some of the benefits of blogging as a way of communicating:

It’s cheap. Approx. $70 a year.
It’s fast. How fast can you type or write and push “Publish?”
It’s easy. If you know how to operate Microsoft Word, you can write and edit a blog.
Changes can be made on the fly. Make a mistake? Edit and re-publish it.
It has worldwide reach. Think “ends of the earth.”

It’s probably worth noting that all these benefits make it a ripe technology for those who want to abuse it.

But nonetheless … just because some people are abusing it, doesn’t make it unusable for effective, God-honoring ministry.

Think about it …