Short term in Cameroon
November 2, 2005 18:08
I don't generally include short term missionaries on my blog list. This is nothing against short termers - in fact, I'm very pro-short term (as long as it's done right). It's simply for the practical reason that my time is limited and I don't want to have to cull through all the blogs every month to see who's still working in another culture and who isn't.
But when someone pointed out Sharon's blog to me, I realized that this is the place where I can mention those short term missionaries. I won't attempt to give mention to every individual or team that's on the field for a week or two, but if I see a blog that's well done I just might talk about it here.
So, back to Sharon's blog. It's called Lasselanta. Sharon has been blogging since June, and she's in Cameroon. Recently, she's written on diverse topics such as creechie bugs, storytelling, and taxi bumpers. Check it out!
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AIDS in Nigeria
November 6, 2005 08:09
This morning I just had to share with you these encouraging words from Nigeria, written by Dr Mike Blyth from Jos, Nigeria. The blog entry is entitled Not Even Shaking Hands. His blog is Kids' Doc in Jos.
I've mentioned Mike's blog here before, but you may not know that he and his wife Barb both contribute to the blog, and also have their own website, with lots of interesting tidbits. The website is kept up to date, and is called From Nigeria: With Love...
Their website has an extensive photo gallery which you can enjoy, as well as videos, stories and articles.
It was interesting to read a little about how teh Blyths have been able to make use of the internet on the field. Read in their August newsletter how technology has changed their ministry.
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Riots in France
November 9, 2005 08:34
For the last few days the eyes of the world have been on France, and the riots that have been taking place there. I don't know of any missionary bloggers who are right in Paris, but we do have at least a couple of bloggers that are in France, who have written about the riots.
First, we hear from Alan Davey, who assures us that there are no major disturbances where he is, then yesterday shares some of his thoughts on the riots.
relevantgirl has also posted her thoughts on the riots. She starts by writing We live near Nice and Cannes where some mischief has occurred (over 100 fires, 37 cars burned in Nice on Saturday), but not on the same scale as Paris.
It sounds like the violence is starting to calm down, but there are many struggles ahead for France. Please pray...
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Categories and other new things
November 10, 2005 11:55
A few things have been added here at Missionary-Blogs.com. First, you'll notice a box above that allows you to subscribe by email to this news feed. If you don't have a news feed reader, or just prefer to be updated by email, this is for you. This service is provided free of charge by FeedBlitz.
Second, you'll notice that the blog entries are now broken into categories, to help you find things easier. If you look at the bottom of this page, you'll see a list of the categories. Or, you can click on the Categories link above.
Finally, to help pay for the costs of this site, I've set up a little tip jar (click for details).
My full list of missionary blogs is almost at 100 blogs. And you know what that means! Well, no, you don't. But you will, because I'm going to tell you. It means that later this month there will probably be a major update to our blog list, with a host of new blogs for you to enjoy. So stay tuned, by visiting, by news feed, by email - whatever works for you!
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Ramadan ends...
November 11, 2005 13:55
Blue Mosque, IstanbulRamadan, Ramzan, Ramazan - according to Wikipedia, these are all different ways of saying the same thing. Ramadan is a month in the Islamic calendar when Muslims fast. At the end of the month comes Eid ul-Fitr (or just Eid), a time to break the fast and celebrate.
But I won't say any more. Instead, go on over to Friderich.net to read this post about the Last Night of Ramazan, or check out Kevin's Web Log with the post entitled Eid.
If you want to look up some other upcoming religious holidays, check out the Earth Calendar search.
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Instant information - Missionary blog tip #3
November 14, 2005 21:14
When I'm trying to persuade a missionary to create a blog, there's a certain aspect I always mention. And strangely enough, it seems to be an aspect that most missionary bloggers overlook. And yet it's sitting there in most blogging software, waiting to be used. In the months to come, people around the world will be making better and better use of it. But what will you be doing with your news feed?
My what?! Yes, you know - the news feed. RSS - atom - syndication - all those things. If I'm still speaking Greek to you, you need to read on and find out exactly what it is and how you should be using it.
Imagine - you have an urgent prayer request. You put it into your blog, and instantly a message pops up on someone's computer on the other side of the world, reminding them to pray. Imagine - your blog's latest headlines instantly updated on the website of your home church. It's free, and it's easy.
You see, most blogging software has a news feed built in. It's like a specially formatted version of your blog that is intended to be read by a special program, called a news reader. If I have 20 blogs I'm reading, the news feed allows me to collect them all into one place, instantly updated. Your supporters need to know that you have a news feed available.
There are a lot of issues related to RSS that I won't cram into this blog entry. But here's what you need to do, in short:
Find out about the RSS feed in your blog, and make sure it's turned onMake sure that there's something on your main blog page that tells readers how to get it. Usually this is a little orange RSS button, like you see on the top of this blogAs you learn more, tell your readers more. Recommend news reading programs, or tell them how they can put your feed on their own website (what a cool way to support a missionary - make their blog headlines appear on your own website!)
There's lots to learn here, so we'll take it one step at a time. But be sure readers know how they can subscribe to the feed, that's a great place to start, even if you don't yet understand all the ins and outs. As the months go by, we'll be reading more and more blogs. The news feed is the only way we'll be able to keep track of all our friends. After all, who has time to actually visit so many websites? We want the blogs to come to us!
Ready to learn more? Here's an in-depth article on creating and promoting your feed (from a business perspective, but very helpful for you). The article covers topics like which programs can read a feed, why you should have it, and what it is. For technical basics and history, try this Wikipedia article on RSS.
A few examples, as always: See if you can find the feeds on these blogs...
Kingsley ClanNews n' Views OnlineFinding direction
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Mixed bag
November 19, 2005 08:33
It's been a while since I've directed you to some interesting posts. Today it's going to be a hodge-podge (or hotchpotch, depending on where in the world you are) (or a mixed bag, if you don't understand either term!).
Many people around the world will relate to these great pictures of the train in JapanIt's always good to hear a little background about a missionary family, such as this one from Mission Safari.Enjoyed the cultural insight from Brazil in Sr. Chico, the PostmodernistSome thoughts on beauty from NigeriaPhotos of the Whirling Dervishes from the Friderich familyAnd finally from Moldova, you gotta love kids...
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Jesus building His Church...
November 24, 2005 11:01
Glimpses of how Jesus is building his Church today. First, this story all the way from Mexico of José, his faith, and the impact it had. (Actually, I just wrote about some new believers in Mexico in my personal blog too).
Second, from Africa we read about some Fulani baptisms (photos included).
In other news, more great photos of France from the Daveys (start here and work backwards) (some day they'll allow comments so that we can tell them how much we enjoy them!). Finally, this fascinating set of stats about struggles with giving to missions in the USA. (Let's see...do we wait 20 years and try to solve all these problems, give up on missions, or...? The kingdom moves forward as always, and as always we are called to sacrifice. But will we?)
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Brazil, missionary blog capitol
November 26, 2005 21:39
Welcome to the new country on the block - Brazil. Yes, I know, the locals spell it Brasil. But however you spell it, we have a lot of missionary bloggers from that country! I made up a new page which included a few I had on the list, and then tonight I found a couple more. They're multiplying!
Anyway, in honour of our new missionary Brazil page, here are some interesting entries from the last few days from Brazil missionary bloggers:
Thoughts on language struggles from KelsieSome thoughts on waiting and cherishing the moment from BrianOn the lighter side, Reflections on a Bald Head from Jennifer
You'll also be amazed to see that the blog list has grown dramatically. Since I promised (sort of) that I would add some missionaries before the end of the month, I decided I'd better take the plunge now while I had the chance!
Now remember, these are only a few of the blogs that actually appear on the main page (over 100 are represented there). Missionaries on the blog list come and go and grow little by little.
Be sure to welcome our newest bloggers - Scottspiel is new this month. The Scotts are missionaries in the Cameroon, currently spending some time in Canada. (By the way - if there's any country challenging Brazil as the missionary blogging capitol, this is it! Missionaries in Brazil, you'd better talk to your missionary friends or else Cameroon may be the new champion!)
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