Well, it's official. The "plans for the future" have been arranged and implemented in less than 24 hours. I had actually been thinking about doing this for a long time, but all it took was a weekend trip from a good friend and long-time ministry partner, Matt McNeil, to put the other puzzle piece together.
Obviously you will notice right away that stewieBLOGS has undertaken a complete overhaul. The new URL for the site is www.bethechurch.com. You will still be able to access the site at http://stewie.blogs.com, but from now on I will be publishing www.bethechurch.com as the official domain.
The greatest difference you will eventually begin to notice on the site is that I will no longer be the only person who posts on the main page of the site. I have invited a few friends to share their wisdom with us as well. For some time I have had a vision to create a "blogging community" consisting of Oasis people from all over the place... Athens, Meigs County, Northwest Ohio, Indiana, etc. My vision is that the site will continue to grow into a great community of bloggers who encourage one another through their insights of scripture, their songs, their poems, their practical wisdom, and theological understanding. These people all have some good stuff to share, and I am happy to provide bethechurch as venue for them to share their gifts.
You will still be able to download the weekly teaching MP3, and do all of the things you did before. But now this site will simply include a little more than what I have to offer.
The vision of BEING the church...
I think most Christians would agree that the church is what we ARE. It's not something we DO, or something we GO TO, or something we stand in or sit in or get married in. The concept of BEING the church is the underlying theme of this entire web site. We recognize that we are a community, not because of proximity... not because of style, or method, or race, or even doctrine. We are a community because of JESUS. We belong to the body of JESUS. He is the reason why you are my brother, or my sister. It's not because you worship in the same room I do, or use the same translation of the Bible I use. It's all JESUS.
He is what makes us the Church. We are called to live out the life of Jesus in our own little communities where we happen to live, work, and play. It's from those places we have experiences that create testimonies and stories. This blog is about BEING the church wherever you are. This blog recognizes that BEING the church is a HUGE thing. It encompasses so much more than just my little group of people in my town. I am connected with people in all parts of the world. The Kingdom of God is SO big... and I am part of it!
Maybe we will see some glimpses of that truth as we continue on this journey. I am looking forward to having a "blogging community" to walk beside me.
I am personally very excited about this. There was an extensive period of time where I was posting at the Oasis Cafe. Originally this venue served as an opportunity for me to stretch out some of my fledgling theological ideas. It was the perfect breath of fresh air that I needed to express my opinions. Yet recently God has been busy putting songs on my heart and helping me zero in on some scripture. This sabbatical from blogging has seemed very necessary. For a while I seemed to be doing an awful lot of talking but not much listening. I think that is where “Voicings” really stepped in. It was a chance for God to get very personal with me. What an experience that has been and continues to be. Yet I’m starting to feel my fever for scripture rise once again. I’m nearly through with the Old Testament and after I finish that I plan to turn my attention full throttle on the John 10 study series that I started what seems like an eon ago. Some of my first posts at “Be The Church” will involve the first several posts that I made at the café regarding the John 10 study series. Yet I also have a multitude of other ideas that this new site will allow me to explore. I want to share songs, poetry, stories, theology, anecdotes, and whatever else I can dream up that praises God. I’m looking forward to what God has to teach me in this “new” endeavor. I’m especially looking forward to sharing the hearts and minds of this great family that I am in. I consider it a blessing with every breath that I can muster to have such sensational individuals as family members. I’m looking forward to growing and sharing with this family. I can’t wait to get started in this new community. I pray that God would bring his great temperance and patience upon our hearts so that this outpouring of minds will bring beauty and praise to Him. I say all these words with a heart blissfully heavy from the love I bear for each of you even though we may have yet to meet…but we will…
Posted by: Chad Dodson | November 16, 2004 at 11:35 PM
I love the new look! Very good idea!
Posted by: Bryan | November 17, 2004 at 09:03 AM