Jesus Doesn’t Care About Your Blog
The Christian blogosphere is a crazy place.
It’s full of egos, agendas, jealousy, shadiness, envy, bitterness, and a little bit of Jesus.
Sounds a lot like the church these days huh?
Pot calling kettle here so back off pharitweets.
There are Church ranking sites that rank churches based on influence ect…and the very same bloggers who rip the Church ranking lists proudly display their Blog rankings next to others.
And at the end of the day I have to keep telling myself and you…
It’s crap. It’s all a load of bull. Your stats. My stats. Your amount of comments. Your blog awards.
They are easy to manipulate.
Ready for the secret?
Write about sex, alcohol, rip a church, cuss a little, and ask for retweets and your blog will rise in stats.
That was free.
Jesus is not impressed with your or my blog.
While we are stroking our ip addresses like million dollar family heirlooms I’m fairly certain Jesus could care less and is WAY more impressed with the nun down the street who has given her life to serve others and serve the Lord.
And I’m pretty sure the nun wouldn’t even share the heights and depths of her dedication to the Lord if you paid her.
It’s her Lords alone.
Let’s make sure during this season where we get to remember the Lords sacrifice to us, not to whore our dedication to the Lord out to impress people.
Because remember, the Lord could not be less impressed with you or I.
But the good news is…He loves you WAY more than your most impressed blog reader.
Satisfy us Lord in Your unfailing love…
Los
RAIN IT DOWN
Preach it.
Preaching.
Very thought provoking! So true!
word.
Just wanted to say thanks for this post. I’ve been struggling with the sin of acknowledgement for awhile in all aspects of my life. I get frustrated when my bosses at church don’t give me credit for ideas. I get irritated with my husband when he gets to travel places for career training and I don’t. I have second thoughts about quitting to be a stay at home mom, because it’s thankless (no immediate gratification or results, and if I leave my job, I’ll become invisible and won’t matter to anyone any more.
I KNOW I’m wallowing in pride. I KNOW that Jesus is the only opinion I need to be concerned it. I KNOW that HE is all I should be living for…but here I am. Sitting in the dung heap of pride. Wanting to be more than I am simply for the accolades.
I’m praying and asking Jesus to clean this gross heart of mine.
Thanks for this post. I’m going to save it and reread it during these icky times.
Thanks Vikki.
Thanks Vikki for your awesomeness.
vikki.. i want to encourage you… yes you may feel you are invisible for a while but you are investing in the future. when my adult children talk now about “remember when we did this” or honor me on their facebook pages i know i did the right thing in staying home until my youngest was in about 4th grade.
i do understand your need to be acknowledged. it runs strong in me as well–especially at work. i am learning to be a better acknowledger. others need it too.
blessings on you for struggling on. i acknowledge you for being honest and for wanting Jesus more.
Vikki, you are not alone! Your post is exactly what I am going through right now. I’m waiting and praying right now for it all to become clear. I think I need to be completely removed from Corporate America and home with my kids where I can get my priorities in check!
Thanks Los! I needed this today.
It seems there is so much pressure to be ahead of the tech curve in ministry in order to make a huge impact. Truthfully it ends up being more of a distraction than a help at times. Again, thanks!
Yes sir
Good call. The Internet has become more of a home for the fool Plato describes rather than the wise man: “The wise man speaks when he has something to say. The fool speaks because he has to say something”. It is frequently an ill-affected, late-twenties blogger that is bitter at the church over something that happened 10 years ago or a seminary student that wants to show off their impressive spiritual vocabulary, all the while swearing only to show that they know how to exercise their freedom in Christ.
Jesus was in the gentle whisper. We can’t hear Him for all the “noise.”
Which for us guys and gals that get hardly any views a day that last part is very refreshing: “He loves you WAY more than your most impressed blog reader.”
Thank God we are saved by grace and not by our blog stats, I would be screwed.
So true Kamrie. “Saved by grace and not by our blog stats”.
Los
I like where you’re going with this, but your conclusion leaves me wanting some resolution.
What I read in your post is that the focus of our writings, our blogs–our lives–must be and should always be Jesus. Bingo. Right on. In that sense, I agree that he doesn’t care about our blogs, he cares about us.
When it’s all said and done, though, I think Jesus really does care about our blogs. I think he cares about it because those of us who are dedicated to our art–you and me and countless others–care about it.
I think this is more than just semantics. There’s a heart issue at stake that says, ultimately, “God doesn’t care what you’re passionate about.” You and I would both agree that this is false. But when I read your post, I didn’t get that impression.
Maybe a different way of saying it would be, “Jesus Doesn’t Care About Your Blog Stats”?
I have mad respect for you. Just something to think about!
Justin
The biggest thing for me here is getting more caught up in my stats then my blog. That was how I took it, but I can see what you are saying.
Great stuff. Still don’t think he cares about my blog. Me? Yes! My blog? Nope. People in this community? Yes! The “art” of bloggin, songwriting, ect… Maybe mYbe not…the people doing those arts? Yes!
Well, I care about your blog.
How about that?
Now were talking.
This is tough for me, mainly because I live in this world everyday. It is tough not to compare yourself to others around you. I think that can be true outside of blogging as well.
Stats will never be enough, which I think is the reason why we want more and more.
Honestly I am sometimes more concerned with what my stats look like then my walk with God. This is a great reminder to getting back to what matters most….Jesus
Not that it’s always bad to share your ownn persona stories with others through blogging, but I know for me, too often what I used to share on my blog was due to wating people to look at me.
I suck. It’s true.
Thanks for sharing this good word Carlos.
I should spell check and grammer check my posts before I his ‘send’. Wow.
this is why we write… because have an an agenda, a story, an idea, however. the hope is that we also have a pure heart. I too am a blogger and am guilty of stat checking.
I appreciate your thought, just don’t get too excited that I commented.
ah, sarcasm, the key to our humor.
I like that hope.
Hope based in purity.
Thanks Los. It’s good to see some introspection. now stop checking all your comments and go share the gospel.
I need my track
Man, I feel this. My identity is not my blog, twitter account, or facebook page. My identity is in Christ. Period.
But it’s easy to get caught up in it. We might just need a big serving of humble pie.
Thanks for the word.
“Pot calling kettle here so back off pharitweets.” love that line. Love the post. Thanks for the reminder.
Yup.
So…
Does this apply to my ranking on i-tunes as well, or just my blog?
Just wondering…
That and seeing if a comment can stir the pot.
All of it. Never said it’s bad, just not THE thing.
ohhh man here we go…
guilty. You still the man ‘Los. This is a great post for me to ponder on. I just had to throw that first jab out there.
Why? Why did you “have” to throw the first “jab”?
HA. No sweat. It’s tough. Never said any of this was bad. Just not “important”.
Honestly. I think Jesus cares if I wrote songs for HIM and he could care less about an iTunes ranking.
But I care.
But I’m human.
You are so right – Thanks for the announcement! This was great. One of your best.
Yep. Word!
Yep, one of the reasons I don’t subscribe to many ‘Christian’ blogs!
Yours is one of the few exceptions.
Well said
Andy
Amen.
BRAVO you are dead on it here
I’m ready for the altar call..do I hear “Just As I Am?”..
Since I was so bold to say it on Twitter…
I disgree.
Jesus does care about my blog. He cares about my thoughts, my feelings, and what I write about–because it is all about HIM!
There is a certain amount of promotion that goes into it. In fact, I saw this post on Twitter and RT’d like a billion times…so clearly that can’t be what we’re against, is it?
I think Jesus doesn’t care if I get 10 visitors (or no visitors) or a million visitors. He cares about my heart first, what’s in it, and who I am–then He cares about how what is in my heart reflects who I am to Him.
I have to continuously give my writing projects back to God because I like to greedily steal them away and say, “Look, what I did!”
I know I’m supposed to be “in” to the shock value of this post, but the statement itself, I think, is one that people readily agree with and don’t spend time wrestling with.
“I think Jesus doesn’t care if I get 10 visitors (or no visitors) or a million visitors. He cares about my heart first, what’s in it, and who I am–then He cares about how what is in my heart reflects who I am to Him.”
You got it!
HE loves YOU.
I still don’t think blinks an eye at your BLOG.
And no. You’re not supposed to be in the shock value of anything.
Take this for instance.
God could care less about my iTunes ranking.
I care.
He doesn’t.
What He dopes care about is the heart that went into the songs…
The obedience in your writings…
But the effect they have on your blog and on people?
I dont think so.
But thats just me.
Right on! Cary this over in the ‘real world’ as well. It’s not about what I am doing at all. It’s about what Christ is doing in me and through me. Heck. That doesn’t even matter. He could do it without me. Thankful daily for a gracious Lord who loves me no matter what.
Go on with it!
phew. thank you for taking the pressure off of my 50 comments a year
I agree with Amy’s comment 100%. I find too often that faithful friends I follow or whose blogs I read are sometimes more about “hey look at me” than “hey look at what Christ as done in my life that I want to share with you.” Like Amy I don’t care how many followers I have or hits I get on my blog. It is my space to speak from the heart, even when it hurts and even when it is something that someone might not agree with. Thanks for getting me thinking about this today.
Maybe only 99%?
Cause weather you write it in a journal, blog, book, ect…I dont think He cares…but He does care about YOUR heart.
So yes.
Good point! When I blogged today it was all about me and Him.
Thanks for the inspiration!
I feel so encouraged now. Thanks.
dude… you just said “pharitweets” and I laughed out loud in my conference call!
HA HA HA A HAHA HAHAHA HA!!!
I’ve constantly prayed to God that he would guard my heart against this very thing when I started my self-hosted site in October. He has been faithful to answer, as I have one reader that’s not my spouse.
Good, good word today, Los.
Great post…couldn’t agree more!
Good stuff…definitely hits hard…Thanks…
Reading and discussing this this morning with friends…
From Ephesians 2:
ut don’t take any of this for granted. It was only yesterday that you outsiders to God’s ways had no idea of any of this, didn’t know the first thing about the way God works, hadn’t the faintest idea of Christ. You knew nothing of that rich history of God’s covenants and promises in Israel, hadn’t a clue about what God was doing in the world at large. Now because of Christ—dying that death, shedding that blood—you who were once out of it altogether are in on everything.
14-15The Messiah has made things up between us so that we’re now together on this, both non-Jewish outsiders and Jewish insiders. He tore down the wall we used to keep each other at a distance. He repealed the law code that had become so clogged with fine print and footnotes that it hindered more than it helped. Then he started over. Instead of continuing with two groups of people separated by centuries of animosity and suspicion, he created a new kind of human being, a fresh start for everybody.
16-18Christ brought us together through his death on the cross. The Cross got us to embrace, and that was the end of the hostility. Christ came and preached peace to you outsiders and peace to us insiders. He treated us as equals, and so made us equals. Through him we both share the same Spirit and have equal access to the Father.
19-22That’s plain enough, isn’t it? You’re no longer wandering exiles. This kingdom of faith is now your home country. You’re no longer strangers or outsiders. You belong here, with as much right to the name Christian as anyone. God is building a home. He’s using us all—irrespective of how we got here—in what he is building. He used the apostles and prophets for the foundation. Now he’s using you, fitting you in brick by brick, stone by stone, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone that holds all the parts together. We see it taking shape day after day—a holy temple built by God, all of us built into it, a temple in which God is quite at home.
I wonder if we use our blog stats and influence to divide us these days as opposed to Jew and non-jew, or righteous vs un-righteous.
This is exactly why I:
-haven’t been posting to my own blog.
-rarely comment on other blogs anymore.
-have just about dropped off the face of Twitter.
-have been focusing on what God wants me to do and less about what others are doing/saying.
-have been digging into developing skills and disciplines that will help me grow as a Christian and a Creative.
Los- It’s “etc.” NOT “ect.” I’ve been wanting to tell you that for two years…Jesus may not care, but I do…
BTW, I dig the post
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
Maybe the operative word here is “care”. We know He cares for us and about us.(Psalm 138:6) God has definitely shown favor on his children as they create works of art for Him, which could include blogging. Are you saying more that He is not “impressed” with people’s blogs? I definitely don’t believe we could do anything to impress GOD.
Thanks for the perspective…encouragement, just as I was checking my own blog stats
So…to second Crystal’s comment…
word.
Thank you for this post… I’ve been struggling a lot with the sin of envy in my life… not only me envying others but me wanting to be envied. There was a good quick note about it on relevantmag.com that got me thinking… anyway… in conjunction with that, your post reminds me that the value of everything is not based on us comparing ourselves to each other, but based on us comparing ourselves to Christ and realizing we will endlessly fall short, thus accepting Grace… if I have any beauty, any intelligence, any service, any worth, anything at all good in me – it is by and through the very Grace of God.
well since no one reads my blog i have nothing to worry about. Of course i had to check my blog stats to know that didn’t i.
Great Post Los. Honesty is great. I love reading blogs and comments esp when it expands my thinking. But I’m always weary that it doesn’t replace my Journal or Personal God time.
As much as Jesus doesn’t care about your blog. The people you inspire do and your blogs still encourage people to love and live for Christ.
Keep up the great work.
Amen.
Amen and Amen. Thanks Carlos
dude I love you more everyday!… it is rare that I get to find another prisoner of Jesus Christ that wastes themselves so well and with such abandon! You are right the stats don’t matter. what does matter is that we cry out against the things that cause people to lose their focus on Jesus!
pharitweets… hahaha, amazing.
Los,
And thanks for keepin’ it real.
I thought it was very timely that I read this. I launched my blog today. I know this is a God-birthed endeavour but I pray I never allow something that was meant to serve God’s purpose in my life to make me serve it… thanks for the sobering warning, my friend
So, are you saying that we should stop checking our stats?
Hi …newly interested South African potential blogger….first time comment on blogging. I attended a a “blogging seminar” yesterday and keen to start a SA Christian blog…and while I was there realised that Jesus IS NOt INTERESTED! but the point is about fellowship, and community within a Believing sector…I am not a pastor, or anything great, but perhaps we all have some gems to share, not so? Confirmation form your comment, thank you
Thank you for saying this out loud…er… in writing, or whatever. It’s so very true. I haven’t been blogging for very long, but sometimes I feel sort of caught up in it. And that’s not cool.
Thanks, again.
Jason Upton tells a story about his son trying to help him put together an equipment rack. The job was obviously far beyond the child’s learning, ability or comprehension but it was the desire to help that mattered to Jason. A lyric from the song, an illustration of how God might respond to our desire:
“My simple desire to help You means more to You
than whether I really can”
On this level, it’s not really about glorifying God (vs yourself) or evangelizing for His kingdom (vs yours). It’s about BEING with Him, desiring Him, knowing Him.
Stats aside, if our lives are geared towards being with Him, joining in with Him, and becoming His sons and daughters, then the stats, the blogging, twitter, facebook and all the rest will be notes in the symphony.
And, in this respect, whether we’re office workers, firemen, insurance salesmen, artists, songwriters or even bloggers, God cares.
Carlos, perhaps these stats should be kept by the number of lives you’ve had a positive impact on. That’s exactly what you’ve done for me!
I think the key is to approach all things with genuine humilty. Humility before honor.
Los,
I just wanted to let you know that your blog reaches much more than stats. I started following you a while ago as a pastor trying to pursue effective online connection and knew your successes.
…so I watched to see how you were creating community and here I am months later realizing somewhere along the line I have become a part of that unintentional community! Thank you for sharing your life, your journey, your joys, your struggles. It is building lives, including mine!
P.S. I’m also excited to worship with you at The Rising in a few weeks! I’m bringing some of our young people! See you there!
Great challenge
Pharitweets! Now that’s clever!
Just to help you out with your blogging ego I won’t retweet this post.
Uhhh. I had no clue the Christian blogosphere was like that. What’s that all about anyway? Really? Is it blog popularity? Do people talk stats over coffee? For what?
On a side note, my husband was jammin to somethin really great on iTunes and when I looked to see what it was? It was you. You go Los! And thanks…we’re lovin what God spoke into you on that EP.
Had to look up what Pharitweet meant. I had a clue (I did, honestly) but wasn’t sure. Just shows that the blogosphere is a microcosm of our fallen humanness, just like any other venue when people get together, except the anonymity seems to give license to be a little more nasty about it.
If you are facing family issues, always remember, you are not alone. Someone,
somewhere in this world is facing the same issue as you. Go ahead and
speak your mind, you will feel better. Remember, by being anonymous, it will be
easier for you to better express what you are going through. No matter what
happens, I can re-assure you that it will past. It is always good to talk about
your issues. If you have nowhere else to turn to, please use this platform to
vent a little because it will make you feel better.
This blog is really nice love to know that, God is so Good.
That’s plain enough
Thank you for this word!!! Because in all we do if we seek to please the Lord more than ourselves or others the results of our efforts are up to Him!! Tactics for more exposure, striving to push our own agenda over the gospel of Jesus Christ is where we often go astray!! Thanks again for the reminder to keep the main thing (Jesus) the main thing!!!
Just like your book…in your face and too the point. Taking my site stats down now LOL
This is powerful, and a good reminder that if we claim to write a Christian blog, we need to remember that it’s about HIM, not me.
nobody reads my blog. i dont get a high traffic. yet i write anyway. coz i follow the voice of God and not stats and comments of man… and when i heard Him to tell me to write…i followed.
i write for an audience of one.
love this. so true.
Excellent Article ………….. <3