I’m a big believer in blogging. Blogging has given me a great outlet at times in my life when I needed to clear my head. It’s also helped me understand and follow God’s next steps for my life. There are lots of great blogs out there and many of them are by pastors. Here are 4 reasons every pastor should blog.
1. Blogging is a great way to communicate your church’s vision beyond Sundays.
Perry Noble does a great job of writing a “letter” to his congregation every week. A blog allows you to share God’s vision for your church beyond those sitting in the pew. It shows the world and your community that what God is doing in your church is important and bigger than any one person. Your blog can be a catalyst to bring synergy and enthusiasm to your congregation. God can use your blog to unleash His people on your community.
2. A blog is a great way to think “out loud” about important issues.
Paul Tillman recently posted about creative ways to financially support a pastor. Philippians 2: 12-13 says, “Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.” I see blogging as a way to work out my salvation. It’s not often safe to let people inside your head, but having people join in the conversation may lead to a breakthrough.
3. A blog helps you improve your writing skills which can translate to better speaking skills.
In an era where spelling, punctuation, and grammar in general have been tossed aside as we lol our way through life, there has never been a greater need for competent, articulate preachers. This isn’t to say that everyone should read their sermon straight from a manuscript, but learning to communicate more effectively through the written word will translate to improved communication through the spoken word. Writing about a tough subject on your blog may help you find the right phrase or wording that with God’s help can penetrate a hard heart. Let me be clear:
As preachers of God’s word our primary objective is to receive and share a word from the Lord (click to tweet).
However, we should use all our talents and resources to make sure that shared word is compelling, competent, and convicting. Do you think it’s any coincidence that Max Lucado is a great writer and speaker?
4. A blog can help you build your platform.
Do people know what you stand for? Do they know what God is doing in your life and ministry? Are you becoming an expert on anything? Being a co-host on The Techology Show has opened the door for me to be a weekly Tech Talk guest with Wesleyan Pastor David Gould on the Good Morning Show which airs online and on AM radio in Tennessee. That has pushed me to start blogging more about technology and social media. Just the other day I got a Facebook comment from someone who couldn’t believe I had a blog. Michael Hyatt has done a great job of using his blog to become the expert on building a platform. Tony Morgan’s blog has become the go to place for church strategy. God may want to open some new doors for you and blog can be that bridge that leads to new opportunities.
What do you think? Are there other reasons a pastor should blog? Are there compelling reasons why a pastor shouldn’t blog?
Great article, Heath. Like you, I use my blog as part of my spiritual formation. Hopefully, it encourages others to continue their walk with God. It is especially good for me, as meditation and writing are strong disciplines for me. I’ve done book journaling, and found that I rarely, if ever, go back to reread my journal entries, but blogs are searchable! I also set yearly goals for how many posts I want to write (I’m a little behind this year, but working to catch up), so the public nature of it keeps me accountable in my personal growth.
I don’t link my blog to my church’s website, mostly so they have plausible deniability if I say something stupid 🙂 but I am often surprised before or after church when someone I didn’t know read my blog comes up to me and wants to talk about something I posted. I have also deleted articles before I ever posted them. Not all dirty laundry or rants need to go online.
Thanks for the shout out! I didn’t know you ever read my blog.
Good stuff, Heath, and I agree with every point. Frankly, I don’t blog… traditionally, though I have a couple of friends who constantly tell me I should. I Facebook, and I do it several times a day. It is in short bursts. Mostly seed thoughts.
The upside?
1 – It is easy. I’m already on FB regularly, and I can easily update my FB blog at any time.
2 – I have a ready-made audience. And by leaving my FB public, it goes beyond my hundreds of friends.
3 – My friends/followers can easily interact with me by, ‘sharing’, ‘liking’, or ‘commenting’ on my status.
Why I haven’t blogged? (These may not be good reasons, but they are what I tell myself, and would love to hear responses from others.)
1 – I probably won’t carve out time every day to write a single article. So, then my blog will be inconsistent. I’d rather not send people to something that isn’t regularly updated. I could be shying away from the pressure of daily coming up with engaging content… though you may say that once a week of solid material is better than no blog presence on the web.
2 – I think most people have an online routine, and I am hesitant to ask them to spend 10 more minutes going to my site. I mean, that’s 10 minutes less they can spend watching that cat sing Amazing Grace, right?
I have considered making a blog collage of my best FB statuses every day. Maybe that is a good compromise.
Anyway, I look forward to chatting with you tomorrow on the show. Thanks for the mention.
Looking forward to seeing what God has in store for The Good Morning Show!
Amen.
Why do I agree with you so often?