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Archive for the ‘Blogs’ Category
More Blog Love
May 15th, 09
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While I’m settling into a new ministry, trying to get the house packed up, and preparing for a mission trip… I haven’t had the time to blog as often. So I may take the opportunity to highlight others who are doing a great job.
Perry just posted on a series on 4 Points of attack that people will use to attack your ministry. Here’s an excerpt from #4, Your Ministry Methods:
People are GOING to question how you do things…no matter how you do them. (BTW…they questioned the ministry methods of Jesus! I would say if people aren’t asking questions and getting offended then you are not being like Christ!)
(A little more on the above thought—Jesus was ALWAYS healing on the Sabbath, which was considered to be a “sin” in that society. Think about that…there were people who actually accused Jesus of sin because His ministry methods didn’t match up with their personal preferences. Hmmmm.)
- If you preach line by line, verse by verse then some people are going to prefer that you be more of a topical teacher.
- If you preach topical messages some people will scream that you need to exegete the text!
- If you use “secular” music then some people will scream you are “loving the world.”
- If you use all “Christian” music then some people will scream that you are not relating to people outside of the church.
- If you dress up then some people will say that you make them feel uncomfortable because they don’t really have any “church clothes.”
- If you wear jeans and a T-shirt then some will say that “you aren’t giving God your best!”
What I am saying is this…there is NO WAY that a ministry leader can please every single person coming in the doors! I once told a pastor, “You could stand at the back of your church this Sunday and give away $100 bills and SOMEONE would hate you for it!”
What you’ve GOT to do is figure out God’s unique calling on your life…and then DO IT with no apologies. If you and I are not being true to the call God has placed on our lives then we are basically slapping His grace in the face and saying to Him by our actions, “People’s opinions are more important than Yours!”
(I once heard Craig Groeschel say, “Becoming obsessed with what people think about me is the quickest way to forget what God thinks about me.”)
New Blog!
Mar 8th, 09
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Thanks to Brian Kalwat and his awesomeness, I will have a new blog very soon. One to call my own! I’m going to host it at patgillen.net and you will be able to RSS from there. So, in the next day or so get ready for me to start pointing this site (www.activepursuit.blogspot.com) over to patgillen.net!
You can go over and check it out right now too by clicking here!
Some Blogs You May Have Missed…
Dec 3rd, 08
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I have a ton of blogs on my friends list. And I need to add more. Maybe I’m just a geek with geek friends. 
But here’s a few blogs you may have missed. I thought I’d share them and give them a little bump.
Nate Ray – Nate is a church planter in Minnesota. I’ve posted about him before, but this guy is a stud. He’s just out of college and is starting a church in a college town. I have really appreciated our friendship – it feels like we’ve been friends for a long time, even though it’s only been a short while. I dig those types of guys. This guy is smart, and passionate about the Gospel – plus people always give him sweet stuff for free…. cool guy, check him out.
Chris Reeder – Chris and I have only met via the interwebs, but he is starting Revolution Church in Florence, SC. He’s a solid guy that has got his act together. He’s definitely worth the look, head over to his blog. And if you know anyone in Florence, tell them to get plugged up!
Nate Viar – The second “Nate” of the night… Nate and I were friends and roommates from college. I don’t know how much Nate will be blogging, but I’m glad to see him enter the blogosphere. I would trust Nate (Natey V if you will) with anything – I really love that guy. He’s a youth pastor in VA near his childhood home.
Brian Jones – Brian is a church planter in Canton and has been such an encouragement. It’s still yet to be seen if he will be a ‘blogger’, but you can check him out. Brian is a smart guy and is doing some great things with The Pointe Church. I know, I know… what’s the point…
Have a Successful Blog… Like Me
Oct 4th, 08
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So, all the time people ask me, “Pat, how can I have a blog with as much success as you?” Yes, you too can average a massive 50-100 hits a day if you follow a few easy steps:
- Make sure your wife checks your blog every day… or even more often than that if she has the time.
- Don’t tell people how to RSS feed, that way they check even if you haven’t blogged anything.
- Write brilliantly.
- Be a voice for a generation of young church planters.
- Grow a large church and tell them to all check your blog (putting a link on the church website helps!)
- Make sure to never write anything that could upset anyone.
- Share your expertise on life.
- Make sure to include a link to your Amazon Wish-list so countless fans can let you know how much they appreciate you!
Ok, so seriously speaking… my blog is simply for my own enjoyment. I don’t blog for a living, though I wouldn’t pass up the opportunity. Mostly it is a place for me to share my thoughts, interesting things I find, and even a little about my own family here. I appreciate all of my friends that check in from time to time to see how things are going and what I’m thinking.
Mostly it is a place for me to share my thoughts, interesting things I find, and even a little about my own family here. I appreciate all of my friends that check in from time to time to see how things are going and what I’m thinking.I will say at this point, I am wishing by buddy Brandon had a blog… he and his wife are due tomorrow (Sunday) and I’m eager to hear if the new little Nichols is here!
Scary Stats!
Jun 18th, 08
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I wish everything in life could give you such detailed feedback as a stat counter.
Every now and then I check my stats just for fun. I don’t have major stats on my blog, but it’s still a blast to check out. I have had over 12,500 hits in the past 8 months. Considering some people average a few thousand a day — this is nothing. But I enjoy this medium, so it’s more for me anyway. And I don’t peruse the web and comment on a bunch of sites either — so I’m not dropping links around.
Here’s the scary and cool part. I can find out how someone found my blog, meaning if you searched for ‘jeep with 33″ tires’ and got my blog; I can see that in my stats. Not only that, I can see where they are from and what their IP address is. Obviously, I can’t see or get any personal information – but I am able to tell if they used a Mac or a PC… and what resolution their screen size is, etc. It’s interesting the things you can find out.
For instance, a large majority of readers come from machines running Windows XP. There are double the number of Vista users than Mac (believe it or not) that visit. Unfortunately, there is a fairly large amount (almost 30%) that is unknown. Also, the large majority uses a very high screen resolution. So, while I they might not be tech savvy enough to have the brains to buy a Mac – they at least have a sharp system, it seems.
– they at least have a sharp system, it seems.Another interesting (to me) fact is that there are two types of people who visit my site. Those that visit for a very short amount of time or those that stick around for a while. In fact, 1/3 of people stay for less than 10 seconds (probably looking for a picture, etc.) and another 1/3 stays longer than an hour! I want make too many assumptions, but there must be some slow readers out there!
Of course the more interesting and link-able content I have on here – the more numbers go up. But I don’t really play the game that way. I just enjoy an outlet to share my heart and life with others. It’s more than just a blog about my family, I enjoy sharing thoughts on ministry and life in general — and I give a rant every now and again. Thanks to all of my readers out there!
Old Guys + Facebook = :)
Jun 7th, 08
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I think it’s hilariously great that all of these old guys are signing up for facebook. I’ve always thought it will be awesome one day to see 70+ year-olds rolling down the road playing “Gin and Juice” by Snoop Dog. Note that I won’t be one of them, but the idea of a grandpa chillin’ (and enjoying it) to some west coast rap makes me smile.
It may happen sooner than I thought… the generation (or 2) above me seems to be catching on to social networking pretty dang well. Not only are there a ton of them twittering and blogging, but they’re also facebook-ing. Good job old guys! I will be one before long, and I’m glad you’re already paving the way!
Btw, you can always tell the ‘elder’ facebook folks by the ones that reply to wall comments on their own wall instead of the other persons. It’s the old school blog comment way. Dig it!
Honored
Jun 4th, 08
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Ok, this is a TON of posts in the past few days.
But I used to do a little work on the side for Ed Stetzer. I dig the guy, and can’t say enough great things about him. Once he got ‘big’ (in the popularity sense) I haven’t done as much with him.
But I was just checking my stats, and someone googled (google blog search) “southern baptist convention and international mission board” and my site was listed before his (and was actually relatively high up). I rarely ever comment on SBC life, and just had one post doing so a day or two ago. Politics is not my game. But, I was honored that I beat out Ed by one spot on Google.
New Blogs to Come
May 28th, 08
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Blogging seems to have slowed down for me lately. It’s probably a combination of plenty of stuff going on – along with mental exhaustion. I still see a future in blogging… heck I have seen people go from nobody to putting on conferences because of their blogs. They can be effective tools.
Now that Mel is out of school and I am not watching Shay on a regular basis, I will have much more time to get stuff done – and probably a little more free time to spend time blogging.
Friday Fun
Mar 28th, 08
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Tonight Mel, Shay, and I went to Bricktops in Buckhead for my brothers 26th birthday dinner. It’s not the easiest thing to get out of the house with a 5-week-old, but I enjoy spending time with family. Teddy and I were talking about how great Hulu.com is. Especially if you don’t have cable, you can watch TV shows online. What I hadn’t realized yet was you can even watch some old shows too! So, per Teddy’s suggestion I’m watching the original blogger… Doogie Howser, M.D. Click the link and watch the Pilot if you are bored enough. I’ve got to admit, it’s kind of fun.