Band of Bloggers

Last week, we closed registration with the understanding that we had maxed out the 2009 Band of Bloggers fellowship. Days later, however, we realized that there we have room for 50 more attendees.  As a result, we have opened up registration until those 50 slots are filled, after which the registration will (finally) be closed.

We have filled all remaining slots for this year’s Band of Bloggers. Thank you for inquiring, and we look forward to seeing you at future Band of Bloggers fellowships in the future!

This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ
and stewards of the mysteries of God.
~ 1 Corinthians 4:1

From generation to generation, God has faithfully raised up and empowered His people to be servants of Christ and stewards of the Gospel.  What is unlike generations in the past is the ability through technology to literally impact the entire world.  For the past 5-10 years, the advent of blogging and social media has afforded followers of Christ to personally broadcast the good news of Jesus Christ while developing a web of relationships that has formed a gospel-centered community seeking to leverage whatever means possible to spread the fragrance of the knowledge of Christ everywhere–both in person and on the web.

Band of Bloggers is an informal fellowship of gospel-committed writers seeking to encourage faithfulness in what is spoken of Christ while raising the standard of discourse to reflect the character of those called to blog worthy of the gospel to which we have been called.

This year, we are excited to announce that Band of Bloggers is partnering with The Gospel Coalition Conference to host the 3rd Band of Bloggers Fellowship in conjunction with their national conference in Chicago, IL.   On Wednesday, April 22, 2009, from 12:00-2:00 p.m., we will be hosting a lunch and fellowship at the Rosemont Conference Center. The theme of the conference is “Servants & Stewards” (building off of 1 Cor. 4:1), which expresses a two-pronged approach in faithfulness as servants and effectiveness as stewards.  As servants, we want to make much of our Savior in not just what we say but how we say it.  As stewards, we want to collectively labor to leverage all available means to propagate and publish the Gospel in our increasingly technologically-literate culture.

To do this, Band of Bloggers has sought the instruction and encouragement from well-known evangelical bloggers to addresses various issues.  Taking a slightly different approach than in years past, we are given each person one question to answer in 5-7 minutes and then diving into Q&A/discussion.  Here’s what we have in store for 2009:

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1.  Servants and Stewards: Maximizing your blog in service to Christ (Timmy Brister)
2.  How can we blog for the glory of God? (Justin Taylor)
3.  Improving usability: How to write so people can read (Mike Anderson)
4.  How can you use your blog for the edification of the church? (Tim Challies)
5.  How can you make your site more accessible and visible? (Eric Johnson)
6.  Why should pastors blog? (Tullian Tchividjian)
7.  What is the place for art and culture in Christian blogging? (Steve McCoy)
8.  How can bloggers steward the teaching of the young, old, and the dead? (Tony Reinke)

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One of the highlights of Band of Blogger fellowship is the opportunity to meet people you may have encountered on the Internet and network together with people of kindred spirit who share a common passion for the glory of Christ and the advancement of His Gospel.  Together with The Gospel Coalition National Conference, this will be a week that you will not want to miss!

Registration for 2009 Band of Bloggers will open shortly.  Here are the details again in summary form to mark your calendars:

“Servants & Stewards”
2009 Band of Bloggers Fellowship
Wednesday, April 22, 2009 :: 12:00-2:00
Rosemont Conference Center :: Chicago, IL
(in conjunction with The Gospel Coalition Conference)

REGISTER :: PROMOTE :: BoB DIRECTORY

I am excited to share with you the news that Band of Bloggers will be coming back in Spring of 2009.  Details are being finalized, and registration will be open as soon as everything is confirmed.  Stay tuned for more information about the 2009 Band of Bloggers fellowship!

As we are looking to move forward with the vision of the gospel trust, it is our desire to use this website to aggregate the blogs and websites that are committed to the gospel of Jesus Christ.  What we want to do is develop a directory of gospel-centered blogs (or in the words of Abraham Piper, those who “do not bury the gospel in their blogs”) and seek to regularly highlight the work and writing that emphasizes and underscores the message and mission of Jesus Christ.

To begin this process, we are asking you to consider submitting your name and blog address for this directory.  Bear in mind, however, with this vision and trust comes accountability and a standard which we desire to maintain–that is, to blog in a manner worthy of the gospel.

If you would like to move forward with us and join us to spread a passion for the gospel in the blogosphere, please leave your first and last name along with your blog address in the comments section.  

In the coming weeks, we are going to redevelop this website to make this a hub and launching point for gospel-centered blogging.  Please stay in touch as we work together to keep Jesus Christ and him crucified front and center in our blogging.