My Reasons for Blogging

In the back of my mind, I have always desired to explain to you (those who actually read) why I post on this blog. Then a few days ago I read this blog post explaining why that particular blogger blogs. I was encouraged and challenged to actually type out an explaination of the reasons why we have this thing called "Chilejournal".

Background to the genesis of this blog:

1. For the longest time, I was skeptical of the medium of the blog. "How do these guys find the time to post these things?" was a thought that often came to mind when reading blogs.
2. The fear of the unknown, effectively scared me away from even the thought of attempting to start a blog. I am not a computer geek, and new programs or applications give me great grief (do they to you?).
3. After reading many pointless blogs, I stumbled on several that were meaningful to me and exciting to read, because...
a. of a personal relationship with the author (family or friend).
b. the content was interesting to me (missions, theology, pictures, or culture).
c. they kept me informed on a daily (or weekly) basis.

My Reasons for Chilejournal:

1. To better inform those interested in our ministry and journey toward service in the country of Chile by prayer requests, cultural stories, pictures, support updates, and interaction with articles I am reading about Chile.
2. To help me develop my writing skills. I view myself as a very poor writer, but I desire to keep practicing. This blog gives me the format and context to keep trying. Knowing that others will read what I write helps me think through my thoughts and attempt to type them in a more readable, concise, and interesting way.
3. To be an encouragement to others by sharing what God is doing in my life and family.
4. To encourage me to think. For example, taking articles or news events of Chile and distilling them into a blog post that will help others, not only know about the issues, but know how to pray for us in a better way as we attempt to face those issues in Chile.
5. I found that writing shorter posts more frequently was more effective than a monthly prayer letter. A blog helps me to communicate more frequently and with better precision.
6. Let's be honest...also so that Grandpa & Grandma F & T can see updated pictures of their grandchildren.

We thank you for stopping by to read our ministry blog. Our desire is to make sure our posts are "worth" your time and not a "waste".

Please feel free to post comments, questions, or ideas so that this blog would better serve its purposes.