Band of Bloggers

The second area for consideration, as it pertains to being entrusted with the gospel, is the content of our blogs.  As we gather together in just a few days for a time of fellowship and discussion regarding the gospel, let us consider how and to what degree we are using our blogs to treasure, uphold, explain, defend, exult in, and share the gospel of Jesus Christ with our readers.  I am reminded of something John Piper said just a couple of days ago on Abraham Piper’s blog.  John Piper commented:

Tell them that it takes relentless intentionality to keep a Christ-exalting blog from become a clever blog. The temptation to entertain is almost irresistible.

Relentless intentionality.  In other words, gospel-centered blogging is hard work.  It is concentrated work.  And it is a discriminating work–that is, discriminating against other things that might obscure or diminish the glory and worth of the gospel to which we have been entrusted. 

So with that said, let us consider the content of our blog(s) and remind ourselves of the stewardship of being entrusted with the most important, most valuable, most glorious reality in the universe–the gospel of the glory of Christ.

Some questions for consideration:

1.  How readily accessible is the gospel on your blog?

2.  How does the gospel shape your writing and govern the content of your blog?

3.  Is there regularity or gospel normativity to the overarching purpose and theme to your writing? 

4.  Does the content of your blog reflect joy and delight in the gospel?  Can readers be led to treasure Jesus Christ through what you have written?

5.  How often do you think, plan, pray, and seek the Spirit’s leadership in preparing and posting your thoughts? 

Let us encourage and exhort one another to be faithful stewards of the gospel trust! 

We are officially less than a week away from the 2008 Band of Bloggers fellowship, and I am really excited about how things are shaping up. Registration is maxed out (doubling the 2006 attendance), and preparations are being made to host what we hope to be a wonderful time of fellowship, discussion, and prayer together.

Many of you already know that the theme for this year’s meeting is “The Gospel Trust” (I have written briefly about this earlier). To set the stage, I would like to briefly share some thoughts about three areas for our consideration by way of prolegomena: thoughts on the Christian Writer, on the Content of our blogs, and the Communication of the Gospel.

Thoughts on the Christian Writer

First and foremost, as Christians, we must consider how the gospel is affecting, influencing, and transforming our lives. Perhaps this might sound elemental, but we cannot and will not graduate from the daily experiencing and applying the good news of Jesus Christ to our lives as we seek to be conformed into His image on a continual basis. Some questions we might ask ourselves include:

1. If someone were to ask us, “What is the Gospel?” would be you be prepared to share that with them?

2. How are you applying the gospel to your own heart and life on a regular basis?

3. Are you paying close attention to your heart’s affections, your mind’s thoughts, your conscience and will as to how the gospel is shaping and transforming your moral faculties?

4. Has the “gospel-centered life” become a slogan that has been embraced but is lacking in substance?

5. What are some ways to be gospel-driven in the ordinary, day-to-day scheduling of your life?

When we gather together around the theme, “The Gospel Trust,” it is important that each of us consider what kind of steward we are when it comes to the gospel and our own soul and personal sanctification. It is very easy to meander away from the center, to view the cross at a comfortable distance. Yet, the life of repentance that sings and faith that treasures all that God is for us in His Son Jesus Christ should lead us to greater enjoyment of our Savior whose face radiates “the light of the glory of God”. As we near our time together, let us consider ourselves in light of the gospel trust–a trust that begins first and foremost as we live coram deo.

We are less than a week into the registration, and we are now at 40% capacity which is great! Thanks to all of you who have registered early. For those of you who are thinking about coming, I would encourage you to register early as we will be getting close to maxing out in registration capacity.

Also, I would like to draw your attention to two things: the attendees page where you can find the names of all who have registered, where they live, and where you can find their blogs. Perhaps you will find folks in your area you might want to hook up with in the days to come. Secondly, I have also created a Google map marking the location of all those attending as well. I will be updating both these as more register in the days to come.

Lastly, I need to mention something I had assumed and did not realize that I need to address. The Band of Bloggers fellowship is a gathering evangelical Christian bloggers who are confessionally united under the banner of the Together for the Gospel Statement. If you desire to attend this fellowship and do not agree with the confessional statement under which the Band of Bloggers gather, I would encourage you to not register for this event. If you happen to register for Band of Bloggers, and it is brought to our attention that you are not together in the same evangelical convictions, we reserve the right to refund your money and decline your registration.

I will have more updates to come in the near future. Please stay tuned as we prepare for this year’s event!