15 Tips on Blogging from John Newton
 May 03, 2012 04:00 am | by Tony Reinke

 Original John Newton, the slave-trade ship captain turned pastor and hymn-writer, wasn't exactly a blogger. Many of his writings, however, fit in the category of we today would call blogging. He wrote mostly letters — small, topically oriented and experience-based pieces — and he became increasingly aware those letters would be published for a wider audience. When you pick up a copy of his published letters and begin reading, they remind today’s reader of the blog style many Christians find edifying.
 Here are 15 lessons from John Newton on letter-writing that will serve blog writers (all quotes taken from _The Works of John Newton_, 6-volumes). _

1. Bloggers should write to learn, to meditate, and to remember: "I think you would likewise find advantage in using your pen more: write short notes upon the Scriptures you read, or transcribe the labors of others; make extracts from your favorite authors, especially those who, besides a fund of spiritual and evangelical matter, have a happy talent of expressing their thoughts in a clear and lively manner: you would find a continued exercise in this way would be greatly useful to form your own style, and help your delivery and memory" (2:76–77). _

2. Bloggers should write to edify, therefore it is preferable to write simple truth than to spread eloquent trifles: "Language and style, however, are but the dress. Trifles, however adorned, are trifles still. A person of spiritual discernment would rather be the author of one page written in the humble garb of Bunyan, upon a serious subject, than to be able to rival the sprightliness and elegance of Lady M. W. Montague, unless it could be with a view to edification" (2:16–17).

 _3. Bloggers should expect the well to run dry at times, and understand some of the personal factors that explain this barrenness: "My silence has been sometimes owing to want of leisure; and sometimes when I could have found leisure, my harp has been out of tune, and I had no heart to write. Perhaps you are ready to infer, by my sitting down to write at last, that my harp is now well tuned, and I have something extraordinary to offer: beware of thinking so, lest you should be sadly disappointed" (2:206). [i can relate to that one!]

 _4. Women should be encouraged to blog for the benefit of the entire church, since they naturally write in a style more enjoyable, and less stilted, than men are normally capable of: "I have often wished we had more female pens employed in the service of the sanctuary. . . . In the article of essay writing, I think many are qualified to succeed better than most men, having a peculiar easiness of style, which few of us can imitate" (2:16).

 _5. Magnify Christ in what you write: "I trust my pen is chiefly devoted to the praise of Jesus your beloved, and so far as I succeed, I am sure what I write will be acceptable to you" (6:349).

 _6. Blog to offer both converting and comforting grace to your reader: "Oh, that my heart may take fire as I write! Surely I am in my better judgment persuaded, that life is not worth a desire, but as affording opportunity to spread the savor of his name, to set him forth in my ministry, for the comfort of his people and the salvation of poor sinners" (6:153–154).

 _7. Make it your constant aim to blog with the intent of prospering your reader in God: "The hour is approaching, and, at my time of life, cannot be very distant, when my heart, my pen, and my tongue, will no longer be able to move in their service. But I trust, while my heart continues to beat, it will feel a warm desire for the prosperity of souls; and while my hand can write, and my tongue speak, it will be the business and the pleasure of my life, to aim at promoting their growth and establishment in the grace of our God and Savior" (3:304–305). _8. Be extra careful when handling controversy on your blog, and if you do engage it, know that it carries with it extra responsibilities, first in the tone of how you write, secondly in requiring you to sincerely pray for your opponent(s) before you engage them, and thirdly in requiring that you address your opponent as one who has an eternal soul, and who will either be lost forever, or as one that will be your brother or sister in heaven for all eternity_. "I shall, however, keep you particularly in my eye while I write, that a just sense of the candor and affection with which you have always treated me, may regulate my pen, and preserve me (if possible) from that harsh and angry spirit, into which writers upon controversial points are too often betrayed" (5:3). “As to your opponent, I wish, that, before you set pen to paper against him, and during the whole time you are preparing your answer, you may commend him by earnest prayer to the Lord’s teaching and blessing” (1:268–269). [what if everyone on the net did this??] _9. Bloggers should aim to write from personal experience: "To be affecting and useful, they [essays] must be dictated rather by the heart than by the head; and are most likely to influence others, when they are the fruits and transcripts of our own experience" (2:17). _10. Bloggers should also write from their observations of others: "The knowledge I have of what passes there, I have gained more from observation than from actual experience" (1:226). _11. Learn to blog your observations more freely, especially if you are bent towards a stilted formalism: "I wish you not only to write a good hand, but a good letter; and the whole art is to write with freedom and ease. When you take your pen in hand, pop things down just as they come to your mind; just as you would speak of them without study" (6:304). _12. Blog humbly and in faith, knowing the Lord will lead you to offer a “word in season” for your readers in their time of need: "I love to give up my heart and pen, without study, when I am writing. The Lord knows the state of my friends, their present temptations, etc and I look to him to give me a word in season" (6:42). _13. Pray that God would fill your soul with divine joy as you write, that this joy would be communicated on the screen, resulting in a shared joy with your reader: "Oh! that the power of God would set my heart and pen at liberty while writing, and fill your hearts while reading, that we may rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory" (6:18). _14. Do not allow blog writing to cause your neglect of family priorities: "I have been interrupted since I began my letter, and I must leave it again soon to go to my children, for it is almost eleven" (6:267). _15. Redeem your barren blogging experiences, use them to see your needs and weaknesses, and lean upon God for his sustaining and supplying grace: "Though my pen and my tongue sometimes move freely, yet the total incapacity and stagnation of thought I labor under at other times, convinces me, that in myself I have not sufficiency to think a good thought; and I believe the case would be the same, if that little measure of knowledge and abilities, which I am too prone to look upon as my own, were a thousand times greater than it is. For every new service, I stand in need of a new supply, and can bring forth nothing of my supposed store into actual exercise, but by his immediate assistance" (1:506). There are many other lessons for bloggers from the writings of the eminent letter-writer, John Newton. These 15 lessons have been gleaned from my own time in his writings, and perhaps that’s the best way to learn from Newton. Take up Newton’s letters for yourself (like this volume), read of his pastoral heart for others, and catch the loving tones with which he addresses his reader.

  so how does a blog on the rise and fall of the roman empire get me to thinking on marriage and relationships?
 not really sure about the conduit but there it is. . . maybe since my daughter is about to be married it has been on my mind a lot. plus my son's heartache. :( 

been thinking about raising kids too.
sometimes i think i have been most ineffective and maybe they all just have to find their own way. but then i turn around and think of what my mom did for me and what life would have been without her in it. she was not perfect, but her heart was. and she cared and she listened and i knew she loved me.
        she did not always listen when i wanted her to. she was          sometimes away when i would have wished her to be there. in other words, she was not perfect and just what i wanted her to be. none of us are is the thing ~ but she was more than enough. not only that, she has continued to be one of the best friends I have ever had in this life. she has always been there for me, always stood by me through thick and thin.
     i remember when i was a teen and one of my friend's sisters wanted to do something and i said, "i will have to ask my mom."
she retorted, "do you have to talk to her about everything?" i thought that was so odd! i looked at her and said, "yes."
i could not for the life of me figure out why i would not wish to consult and share with the one who loved me best (next to Jesus) and who wanted the best for me. why would you not want to ask advice, share trials and joys? who knows you better for most of your life than your mom? who wants good for you and not bad more than your parents?
of course her mom wasn't like mine.
come to think of it most of my friend's moms weren't like mine. i am blessed!
     so i hope my kids know i love them and i am here for them. i am not perfect or just what they want me to be ~ i can never be that. i am just me doing the best i can where i am and that brings me to marriage:
 i guess you just have to start with someone you like and then you make it work. you enjoy the good times and you work your butt off when it’s not good. when it gets really hard and i want to quit, the truth of why i stay and don't throw my ring in the bottom of the pool is simply this.
i like him.
he is not perfect, but his heart is. most times.
he has a**hole in him just like i have b**ch in me and it comes out in force sometimes - but he has so much else too. i get to choose what i focus on and when its good, man, nothing can beat it! and ya know, most of it has been so so good. there are no easy answers or formulas.
 what is a good reason to get married?
i have to tell you i don't know.
 i don't really know why i got married.
 i never wanted to get married.
 i still ponder that one.
 but i know i am better here than where i would be now if i had not joined my life with his. it has been a crazy ride, but i always liked roller coasters, so it’s all good. when he sends me a text that says "you are so beautiful to me. I love you." and that is what i start my day with - i know my life is good. i am so blessed in so many ways. it is worth the work and the hard times. it is worth the nights crying and trying to figure out how to fix what is broken. cuz when its good, it’s great. many settle for middle of the road not awful but not great in life. i can't do that. i'm not saying it’s good or bad, right or wrong. i'm just saying i can't live like that. it is like eating lukewarm ramen noodle to me. i prefer steak and if i have to work my butt off to get that steak, then i am willing to do that. i am not willing to live a pseudo-existence lying to myself that this is life, that this is what i was put on earth to endure, telling myself that this is a life worth living.
 not for me it’s not.
 i have no idea how this relates to the rise and fall of the roman empire, but they are connected somehow. lol thanks for reading :)

link to every now and then by ffh http://www.myspace.com/music/player?sid=28433648&ac=now

well, a slightly better window to compose in but it still ain't xanga! i do miss my old blog days! if i could get in a ring or something knowing i am read regular i think i would blog more. i spend most of my time on fb, but no way does that replace blogging. i am just not me on there. i worry about offending someone. i am more me on my blog. i think everyone is. fb is pretty superficial. i do have many awesome friends there and i am uplifted, but it just isn't a blog. If you are new here, do leave me a comment and let me know you stopped by. also - do leave your blog addy, i would LOVE to visit!