Followers

Monday, March 10, 2008

Blog Reviews (1) Berean Spirit friends

There are hundreds of good blogs out here in cyberspace. And it seems all are competing for your attention, to varying degrees. What makes a good blog? What draws in the casual reader or the one with a focused interest?

I have to confess that I really do not know the answers to those questions. Something about peeking in at someone else's ruminations piques the interest. After all, there are hundreds of very specialized chat groups on YahooGroups and other sites like it. But a blog...well, it just seems more personal. It is an open invitation to anyone who cares to look to see our deeply held convictions and reflections on things. Even the comments left behind by visitors is interesting, even riveting, at times. Why? I believe we all like to see whether anyone else shares our thoughts about what we have just read...and see how they difffer from our views, too.

So today I am reviewing a few of the blogs I have read recently. Some I subscribe to and some I just found while looking around.

One of the first blogs I ever read was and is written by Bobby Cohoon. Bobby's blog examines mostly topics of religious interest and offers some insights into his heart. I have enjoyed reading Bobby's blogs from time to time (I am about as regular at blog-reading as I am at posting my own). He challenges my thinking and he offers some good thinking about why he believes as he does. Also, Bobby was one of the first, if not the first, to encourage me to write a blog of my own. But please don't blame Bobby when you disagree with me. How could he have known how his encouragement of me would turn out? Do we ever know just what an encouraging word might mean to another? (Sounds like a good blog topic to me....and I wonder how many have already addressed that thought? LOL)

One of my other long-time blogs of choice to read is written by John Dobbs. John is a southern preaching minister (meaning servant) for a church of Christ, until recently with one located on the gulf of Mexico. Their experiences during Katrina first drew my attention to John's blog, but his reflections on what it means to live out the life of a follower of Jesus are what have kept me coming back over and over. John is a doer, and not just a thinker. And I find that incredibly compelling.

One of my oldest and best friends has a web page that gives updates on what is going on with the congregation of saints he serves as Senior Pastor over in the Quad Cities area of Northwestern Illinois/Southeastern Iowa, right along the Mississippi River. You can listen to his sermons and watch the occasional video of congregational lfe that he posts there, but I do not know if he has a blogsite. I think I would enjoy that if he did. Chuck Dorsey is a D.Min. degree holder, and he goes by Pastor Chuck on his website, but he'll always be Chuck to me. We grew up together in Central Illinois and went away to different colleges and then returned to Central Illinois to preach and serve and raise our families. He has been a friend through some of the toughest moments of my life and he lets me challenge his thinking and he challenges mine as few people I have ever known do for one another. Whether playing pool, knocking around ping-pong balls or ust hanging out, he is and has been one of my closest friends. I really do wish he had a blogsite to review. Maybe he does and I've just missed it. I kind of doubt it, though.

Tim Archer is another fellow whose blog I've really enjoyed. Both the title and content of his blogs are fun and thoughtful and often provocative. Tim is the only one I am reviewing here besides Chuck whom I have met in person outside in the real world. I met him in Kansas City last year during the North American Christian Convention and we had some great visits at the booth he hosted for the Herald of Truth organization. What a tremendous heart he has!

I reccommend that anyone who even mildly enjoys reading my scattered thoughts take the time and Google these fellows and find their blogs. If I knew a bit more about how to do it, I would offer links to their blogs and websites. As it is, I just wanted to let you know that if it seems like I don't get back here with any regularity, it is because i have been spending time with these fellows and their thoughts...and the fact that I am a lazy writer in this venue. If you feel inclined to hear from me more often, perhaps you should come on over to the Berean Spirit forum on YahooGroups and join the conversation. Most there will tell you I hardy ever shut up! LOL

Maybe that is why I don't write more here.....

Thanks for stopping by.

4 comments:

Tim Archer said...

Thanks Glenn. I wish you did write more often. Of course, I almost never post on Berean Spirit anymore, so I can't complain.

Grace and peace,
Tim

JD said...

Thanks Glenn! I appreciate you!

WendyC said...

waiting for your next post, Glenn

and... I tagged you!
http://wjcsydney.wordpress.com

the verner said...

Thanks Glenn for your loyal friendship and encouragement . . .

Check out my BLOG sometime and share it with your readers - IF YOU WISH

http://theverner.blogspot.com/

And - I may be sorta controversial - but I am wanting us to study the WHOLE BIBLE and get the WHOLE story - and I struggle with that - join me ! the verner