The Original Commercial Arms Race

Possibly the most memorable commercial for many in our generation was the 1984 ad by Apple. It’s an iconic commercial much like Coca-Cola’s Mean Joe Green spot, Budweiser’s Frogs, and McDonalds’ Jordan vs. Bird. Everyone knows those commercials. But a funny thing happened along the way. Our once creative commercials devolved into sultry, uncreative attempts at shock and awe advertising.

Pepsi was one of the originators of this sex-sells strategy for Super Bowl commercials. Madonna’s Like a Prayer ad in 1989 was the first to really garner national attention for its risque content. They followed that up with the less-explicit-yet-still-sexualized Cindy Crawford ad in 1992. Even though ads were toned down some in the later 1990s, a precedent had been set and the DotCom boom in the early 2000s helped take things to a new low.

Sex Sells Website Addresses

While they are not solely responsible, GoDaddy is now the leader in the clubhouse when it comes to commercials that both objectify women and use sex to sell completely unrelated products. The website registrar began Super Bowl advertising in 2005 and has been on a downward spiral ever since. This year’s Kiss ad with Bar Rafaeli was just the latest example of how low the bar has fallen. What is discouraging is that ads like the Tim Tebow’s Mom one from 2010 are the ones which draw criticism while sexualized filth like Go Daddy’s ads not only don’t draw much mainstream criticism, they actually are quite effective in selling their “product.” GoDaddy saw more new sales and new customers as a result of this year’s ad than any of their previous Super Bowl ads.

An Encouraging Trend

But there is hope. A “remnant” of wholesomeness is lurking. It’s been there all along, yet it has never contrasted so much as it did Sunday night. The Farmer ad from Chrysler was a runaway hit with much of America. Will it sell more Ram trucks? Maybe. Did it remind us of what America– and our commercials– could be? Definitely.

Where Do We Go From Here?

As trite as it may seem, we truly have become two Americas. We saw this clearly in November. Though it was presented differently Sunday night, there were red state ads and blue state ads. There is a clear delineation and polarization of values in our country. And advertisers know this.

Until GoDaddy isn’t the #1 domain registrar on the planet and Calvin Klein isn’t one of the most iconic brands in fashion, nothing will change. Ad execs know they can keep pushing the envelope and moving the line because half of the country is with them. The ad execs are not to blame. Their job is to make their clients successful. And they are succeeding.

Why?

Because they are more in touch with their America than we are with ours.

Immorality is easy an easy target for marketers. It’s a known commodity to us all– even the most Christlike among us. We know our depravity. And we know what appeals to that. So do advertisers.

We live in a post-Christian culture. The Nones are rising. We are fighting an uphill battle against culture. It’s a battle that has waged since the garden. And one that will not end until His return. It is a valiant battle and one we must fight.

We must connect with culture while not compromising our message. Why did the Farmer ad connect with so many? Because it offered hope. Honesty. Diligence. Tradition. Values.

But those values are becoming less valued. However a remnant remains. We are that remnant. We must point to the noble. To inspiration. To wholesomeness. And ultimately to the gospel.

Just last month, my wife and I had our third child (and Jonathan begat Micah). Because of this recent life event, fatherhood had been on my mind more than usual. When I read over is familiar passage, two things stuck out: our parenting doesn’t affect just our kids but also generations to come, and it matters whose you are.

Trickle-Down Parenting

We see it over and over again where one sin causes peril for generation after generation. Cain, Akin, Abram, etc., are prime examples of this.

The genealogies in Scripture should serve as a minder of how much our actions do matter for those yet to come. And when applied to parenting, this increases all the more.

My responsibility as a father to Ethan, Micah, and Parker is the train them for godliness. They will be most significantly influenced in matters of both faith and lifestyle by my actions, words, and training. That is a heavy responsibility, but a welcome one. God has chosen me as a father to these three boys. That in itself is quite humbling.

But He provides me guidance as I provide them guidance.

Through both Scripture as well as the example of my own godly father, I am blessed with a firm foundation on which to live my life as an example to my boys. I can rest in the grace God has extended to me and show that same grace to my boys.

My prayer is that they see that grace, respond to Christ in faith and do the same for their children, they for theirs, and so on.

Remember Whose You Are

When I was a youngster, the last thing my dad would tell me before I went out with my friends was, “Remember whose you are.” I knew the meaning of that quite well. He wasn’t just telling me to not do anything to embarrass him or my mom. He was reminding me to act in a way that represents the character of Christ. It’s one of the most vivid memories I have from my childhood.

Reading these genealogies brings that memory rushing to the forefront once again.

Something that seems as boring as a genealogy was comfort to me and should be a comfort to you as well. For we are to remember whose we are. We are bought with a price. Heirs.

Sons.

We know who our heavenly Father is. Let us not forget that. We are His, and He is ours. And we are to pass that on.

So what works?

I’ve narrowed it down to four basic principles:

• Content
• Connection
• Consistency
• Community

Content

People start blogging thinking it will be an easy task—they just need to go in and write every day. Then when they begin, they realize how difficult it is to come up with something to write out of thin air. Even if they have a specific topic, it becomes difficult to regularly produce original ideas and thoughts.

The most important thing about your blog content is for it to relate to what you’re already doing in life. If you write about what you live, you will always have content for your blog.

The content is already there to write about. You simply need to see it that way. Since I work mostly with pastors and Christian authors/leaders, I encourage them to take adifferent perspective on their work as a way to find content for their blog.

Here is a simple example for pastors: Pastors typically generate several thousand words every week for their sermons. If you gave me a thirty-minute sermon, I could show you at least five blog posts in it. Take your 3 main points along your introduction and conclusion and condense them into 300-500 words. There are your five blog posts for the week after the sermon. Add in a quote or section of reading that you used in studying for the sermon and you have another post for Saturday. And you haven’t even touched on the content available in your life moments of ministry, family and leisure time.

As for the non-pastor types out there, be intentional about seeing content in your everyday life. Use a journal or your smart phone and jot down ideas as they come. The content for your blog is all around. It’s just a matter of seeing it as such. It takes discipline, but once you start it will become natural.

Connection

Content alone might make a blog, but it won’t necessarily make for a good one. That takes connecting to the audience. You have to present the content in a way that it connects with the reader. It’s like baking. You might make the best homemade cupcakes and icing, but you’ll have a tougher time getting people at work to try them if they look like they’ve been dropped in your car a few times on the way to work than if they are presented well.

Once you have your content, you have to make it appealing. Be timely with your posts. Tie in your topics with current events. If during the week of the Super Bowl you’re blogging about where the MLB All Star Game will be played, you’re not going to get the traffic you would if you were blogging that same topic in early April when the MLB season begins.

Another key point of connecting with your audience is making your content fit the web. I’ve noticed that pastors tend to struggle with this at times. They are so used to having an introduction to set the stage for their points, that their posts come out that way almost by default. When it takes 4 paragraphs to get to the first point, the reader is either bored or has moved on. You have, at most, 15 seconds of reading time to connect with the reader. If you haven’t made your point in the first two paragraphs, you’ve likely lost your audience.

Here are a few bonus tips on writing for the web:

• Use bulleted lists (like this one)
• Use headers or subheadlines to separate longer bodies of text
• Incorporate graphics if possible
• Use correct grammar and punctuation
• Try to include short, pithy statements in the post that can be tweeted by readers

Consistency

This might be the most difficult part of blogging. We all have a work capacity. There is only so much we can get done in a day. And when we think we have extra time, something usually comes up and fills that time slot too.

That’s why having a structure or plan for your posts is helpful. Also calendaring your writing and blog time is beneficial. If your blog is related to your job, carve out time at work. Make it part of your work day. If it’s not part of your job, then it’s like anything else you have to find time for. If that weekly round of golf or time spent fishing on the lake can make it into your calendar, so can your writing time.

I have a routine for working with the different websites I manage. I know how long it takes to complete certain tasks over the last year, that time has decreased because it’s part of my routine now. The same will happen for you. A post that takes you an hour to start will likely be one that takes 20 minutes later down the road.

If you want to be successful at blogging, it will take time. But no one has more time in their day than you do. We all have 24 hours. How will you use that time to make your blog successful?

Community

Of the four principles for successful blogging, this might be the easiest. Why? Because if you’re actually blogging, you will want to connect with readers. Talking about what you’ve written will come naturally.

So get to know your readers. Connect with them on social media platforms.

Also, connect with other bloggers who write on the same topics. When they have good content, share their posts. They will start to take notice and likely reciprocate the favor when they see something from you that they like.

Two of the blogs I manage saw incredible growth in 2012. One grew by 67%. The other saw a remarkable 178% increase in traffic. But the difference in the workload from the previous year wasn’t anything big. It was these four small steps.

These four steps have worked with these bloggers and many more. And they can work for you. But remember, it’s not an overnight thing.

In his book Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell shares his principle of the 10,000 hour rule. Gladwell wrote that greatness requires not only a great amount of talent, but a great  amount of time as well. The 10,000 hours rule claims that the key to success in any field is, to a large extent, a matter of practicing a specific task for a total of around 10,000 hours.

I’m not to the 10,000 hour mark yet with blogging, but I’m getting close. And I can tell the difference. You will be able to as well.

If you’re interested in a book to help you with the basics of setting up your blog or to grow the one you already have, there is really only one book I would ever recommend: Platform by Michael Hyatt. It is the best resource for bloggers I have ever seen. Even for someone who works with this every day, I found loads of helpful information in the book. If you’re starting at square one, make this book your first purchase.

If you have any specific questions about blogging or social media, or if you would like to book a in-person consultation for you or your group, feel free to email me at jonathan@howeoriginal.com.

Healthy church leaders in local churches are vitally important. In two weeks, the PLNTD Network is hosting a conference in Nashville focusing on cultivating gospel-driven leadership.

On the weekend of Nov. 2-3, Ed Stetzer and Trevin Wax will address this important topic, namely how the gospel shapes church leaders as well as how to forge a distinctly gospel-driven philosophy of leadership. Whether you are a seminary/college student, pastor, church planter, or small group leader, this focused time of training will provide instruction and encouragement for anyone wanting to train, equip, and send out gospel-driven leaders to reach our communities for Christ.

Alongside the main sessions, there will be breakout sessions, Q&A discussions, and several free resources given to everyone who attends.

For the next two weeks, you can register for this event with a special promotional code and receive 25% off registration (normally $49). Get the details on the conference and register with the special code “projectTGM” to take advantage of the special discount!

(Via Buzzplant)

That was all last week. Then this morning’s Bible reading (using the 4+1 plan from Read the Bible for Life) dropped me into Numbers 5.

The Lord instructed Moses: 2 “Command the Israelites to send away anyone from the camp who is afflicted with a skin disease, anyone who has a bodily discharge, or anyone who is defiled because of a corpse. 3 You must send away both male or female; send them outside the camp, so that they will not defile their camps where I dwell among them.” 4 The Israelites did this, sending them outside the camp. The Israelites did as the Lord instructed Moses.

Sure does look familiar. Those who were members of God’s family were put out of the flock when they were found to be unclean.

Leprosy, now specifically known as Hansen’s disease, was akin to death in Biblical times. There was no way back into fellowship with God’s people unless you had been cleansed by God and inspected by the priest (see Leviticus 13). If one had leprosy, one was basically living as though dead.

While interesting to study and debate at times, Church discipline is never enjoyable in its application. For if one takes joy in exercising discipline over unrepentant sin, there are greater issues at hand.

The same could be said for those cast out due to leprosy. Family members and friends would no doubt be devastated by the news. They would likely cry out in desperation for healing.

Our response to Church discipline should be similar. It should be marked with brokenness for those who are unrepentant. We should cry out for their spiritual healing. And if/when they return, we should welcome them with open arms, ecstatic that they are once again in fellowship with the community.