IntenseDebate Plugin
Due to user request, we have recently installed the IntenseDebate plugin for all users of Nazarene Blogs to utilize.
IntenseDebate is an “intense” plug-in for comments. It augments/replaces the Wordpress comment system with a much more robust system, that includes threading, comment-voting, user login via Facebook and Twitter (so you don’t have register to yet another site to add comments), gravitar support, moderation via email, subscribe to comments etc. Blog administrators get a full suite of management tools, including “theme-ing” the comments section, auto-moderation features, spam-prevention, user banning, profanity-filters, and a lot more.
To begin using IntenseDebate go to http://intensedebate.com/ and sign up for a free account. Then come back to your blog admin window and select the setting link on top right side of the window. In the next window select Intense Debate from the list of settings along the top.
We hope this is a useful tool to our bloggers. It is not a required tool. The other comments engine will still work. This is just another option for you. Let us know how you like it. Let us know if you have questions too.
Featured Posts
One of the tabs at the top of Nazarene Blogs is Featured Posts. We use this section to bring your attention to a blog post that we think is really great. But we can’t read them all. So when you read other users blogs and come across a good one, post a comment on the Featured Posts page. We’ll get it linked up.
Hopefully this will be a good way to highlight and find some exceptional talent.
New Feature
I just wanted to take a moment to make you aware of a new feature here on NazareneBlogs. If you take a look at the top of the page at the RSS subscription area you will see there are now two options-
- RSS Feed: NazareneBlogs
- RSS Feed: All NazareneBlogs
As you may guess the “All NazareneBlogs” link will give you a feed of new posts from any of the blogs in the NazareneBlogs family.
We hope you enjoy the new feature, I know my iGoogle page is now much more interesting.
Conversations lead to mission
Church renewal expert Dave Daubert makes the point that mission often arises when a God-inspired word invokes “real conversations among the faithful.” When a person shifts from listening into genuine conversation they open themselves up to deeper levels of engagement which prompt insight, application, action, and innovation.
In the same way, the Nazarene blogging community is intended to be a place where Nazarenes are free to converse with each other in ways that we hope lead to missional activity. The willingness to share requires effort, maturity, and a spirit of generosity. It is my hope that if you will be open with the best of what you know, you will be respected and valued for the effort. As Reuben Welch used to say, “We really do need each other”—and this is especially true when it comes to the work of God’s kingdom. I value the insights, knowledge, and perspective I’ve gained from conversation partners.
Anyone can be a thought leader if they are willing to share their best insights and knowledge. You don’t have to be in an influential position or an acknowledged expert. All that is needed is a willingness to share and converse. You never know when something you express will have redemptive value in the wider ministry of God. So, let’s keep talking!
Some Advice from blogger Phil Cooke
Pastors: Stop “Cutting and Pasting” Your Blogs
The essence of a successful blog is an honest, “behind the scenes,” authentic look at your views on something. Whatever your blog is about - religion, media, sports, politics, culture - whatever - the first principle is that it’s from YOU. It needs to be real, and it needs to be personal. Right now, too many people - especially pastors - are simply hiring someone to cut and paste excerpts from their sermons, books, or other materials into their blog. Obviously if you’re such a big name that people clamor to hear anything you have to say, you’ll still get readers. But if not - or if you’re trying to build your reputation, brand, platform, or message, then you need to write your comments yourself and they need to be written primarily for the blog. You can tell in a heatbeat those pastors and religious leaders who have blog ghostwriters, editors, or assistants simply pulling other material and inserting it into the blog. It sounds canned, too perfect, and bookish. Blogs shouldn’t be so perfect. They should be a little rough around the edges, imprecise, and casual. Remember, an interesting blog is really more like an online diary and the people reading it are expecting the kind of thoughts, ideas, and writing they wouldn’t find in any of your books or sermons. Get personal, and get real.
Thanks to Phil Cooke: www.philcooke.com/blog_advice
12 Blogging Ideas
Here are 12 Blogging topic inspiring ideas I found on the onlinejournalismblog.
- Respond to something elsewhere on the web
- Suggest an idea
- Interview someone
- Blog an event
- Ask a question
- Pick a fight
- Reflect on something
- Do something visual (photos, videos…)
- Review something
- Make a list (hmm - that’s a good idea
) - Write a how-to (another good idea)
- Let someone else post
I hope this might spark some good topic ideas - make sure to check out the original for more in depth about each one of the ideas.
NazareneBlogs Navigation
We made some changes to the navigation buttons at the top of the page on NazareneBlogs.
In addition to adding links to the Nazarene Homepage and the Nazarene MediaLibrary, we modified the contents of the “read” button page. Now when you click “read” you will see a list of blogs broken down into categories. We did this to try and direct people to blogs that might have content that interests them.
The categories are:
- Global Ministry Center
- Pastoral/Leadership
- Theological/Devotional
- Multicultural
- Church
- Journal
- Communication/Technology
- Miscellaneous
We felt like the full list was getting a little overwhelming. If you would like to see all the blogs click “view all blogs” at the top of the page.
Hopefully now your blog will be read by more people, and everyone will be finding more blogs with content that interests them.
Thanks,
-DH-
Sites are only as strong as their content
I would like to thank many of you for your recent comments and suggestions. These are so helpful!
We plan to add a “members” section to our blogging community that will go into more detail about each blog and the type of content they tend to feature. The current “members” section will morph into a “new” members section that will list the 15 most recent blogs.
At present, we have more than few blogs that have failed to generate their first post. Our team is at a bit of a loss to know what to do with these blogs. If you need help or encouragement to get that first post up, please drop our team a line at blogs@nazarene.org. We’d be happy to help.
Since a blogging community is only as strong as its posts, we most likely will not link to blogs that haven’t generated any content after 4 weeks of existence. It’s nothing personal, but we want our users to find content when they vist.
Finally, I want to thank those members that have worked hard to provide new blogging content regularly. We appreciate the work that goes into providing your thoughts and reflections. This is what brings real value to all our efforts. Thanks!
Blogs must wait on authentication before being finalized
A main reason for starting Nazarene Blogs is to solicit a particular point of view: Those who want to extend their faith journey into the blogosphere in ways that build, connect, and uplift Christ and the Church (particularly the Church of the Nazarene). Sure, there are many legitimate reasons for starting all types of blogs, but this online community wants to, in the words of that old Bing Crosby song, “Accentuate the positive.” In other words, we want to focus on what builds up and is redemptive, not what tears down and is negative. That doesn’t mean there isn’t room for truth-telling or criticism related in the right spirit, but the overall motivation is to honor Christ.
Recently, we’ve had a person or two–either as a joke or with malicious intent–try to initiate a blog of questionable character. As a result, our tech team has decided not to allow a blog to immediately post live, but go through an authentication process. We don’t think this will add much time to the process, but we do think it will help us avoid posting a blog that’s not in keeping with our purpose for the blogging community. Thanks for your understanding. If you have any questions about this, feel free to email me at blogs@nazarene.org.
ISPs may keep you from signing up for a blog
Happy New Year!
Again, I’m sorry that some of you are having trouble getting signed-up for blogs. Our tech team has determined that some ISPs (Internet Service Providers) are blocking the confirmation emails. If you are having such trouble, please check with your email provider or the folks handling tech support and see if they are blocking emails from nazareneblogs.org. Perhaps, these are being caught in a spam filter. As far as we can determine, there is nothing that would indicate a failure on our end. Most people who sign-up for a blog account should receive notification within 24-hours (though many receive notification within only a few minutes).
If you want to set-up a blogging account, it seems that institutional or business email accounts are not the best to use because they tend to scrutinize incoming mail more heavily. We’d recommend a G-Mail account for those that are having trouble.