5 Blogging Questions with Gene Mason
As part of the "Blogging 101 for Pastors" series [click here to see all the posts], I've been asking several proflic blogging pastors to answer five basic questions about blogging.Church communications guru Gene Mason responded to my 5 Blogging Questions. He is the communications director for The Church at Brooks Hills and updates an incredible site the church's communications ministry at communicorps.org. Take some time and browse that site. It's loaded with ideas!
1. Why (or how) did you start blogging?
I started it as a more timely extension of my website, communicorps.org, mainly for stuff that didn't fit the more permament nature of the content of the site -- personal thoughts, quick tips, random stuff. Largely useless in my opinion, but I'm still experimenting...
[Editorial Note: It's definitely not useless. Go see and you'll agree with me!]
2. What subject do you post most about?
Communications ministry, mostly. And my dog, of course. Lately I've come under great conviction that the Word (Bible) is so undervalued in ministry, and so I think that Scripture is going to play a much more prominent role in the coming months, maybe even transitioning to a more Bible-fed format versus me-fed.
3. What are your favorite blog tools?
Not really a tech guy when it comes to blogging. I use Blogger.com. Don't link to a whole lot. Interestingly, I find that I enjoy writing occasionally and meet interesting people who come to my blog or site, but spend relatively little time online clicking to others' blogs or sites. If I have time to share, it's usually with the 6-8 folks I am discipling versus the online community.
4. How often do you post?
A few times a month. Wish I had more time to post, but... God-work-family-dogs-disciplemaking-missions - travel-wife-mow-lawn-trashcans-empty often gets in the way.
5. What one piece of advice would you give for prospective blogging pastors?
Hmm, we'll this will likely come off as hypocritical, but frankly I care very little about what Pastors think or their philosophies or strategies. I've heard them all over 20 years in ministry, and most of it fizzles if it isn't Bible-centered (versus Bible-ish). When I'm listening to a pastor or reading something from a pastor, I want to hear what God's Word says, and so I'm listening for a minister of the Word first and foremost, be it on Sunday morning or a blog on Thursday night in front of the computer. Since so few Pastors really know God's Word (yeah, I'm frank at 12:49 a.m.), most of the blogs I've read are filled with stories and anecdotes, but very little in terms of teaching I can apply from the Word to life and re-teach to those I am discipling.
So my advice would be, "Stick to the word of God. If you're given a forum as a Pastor to share something, let it be God's Word at every opportunity." I mean, you can talk about the stale popcorn you got at the movie theater last Saturday and it's kinda funny and I identify with it, but who's gonna care in 5 years?
Now, that said, I've got some mumbojumbo on my blog that probably nobody but me is interested in reading, and frankly I'm wrestling right now both with the blog and with my site as to whether or not I'm really communicating timeless teaching or asking people to follow Gene's 12-steps to communications bliss. I guess "He who is without sin cast the first stone" applies here. Blogs in general lack a timeless quality (mine included). I want to work on changing that, at least in my case.
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