Tag Archives: blogs

B&B Friday: Forthright Magazine

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Fridays in The Kitchen are often for books and blogs. I want to look at another site maintained by members of the churches of Christ, Forthright Magazine. It’s technically not a blog, but many of the articles are presented in a blog format. You can subscribe to the site by e-mail or by RSS feed, just like a blog. Unlike your typical blog, however, Forthright Magazine has regular articles by numerous authors, some writing weekly, others bi-weekly, others less regularly.

Several of the authors are people that I know on some level. Editor Richard Mansel and I have participated in several preachers’ forums on the Internet; despite his love for the Crimson Tide and mine for the Longhorns, we’ve forged a friendship. Randy Matheny also participates in one of those forums, plus I knew of Randy when we were living in neighboring countries (he in Brazil, me in Argentina). Barry Newton and I went to graduate school together, so we’ve known each other longer than either cares to admit. Paula Harrington is a “blog friend” that I got to meet personally in Tulsa last week. She does amazingly well at overcoming the handicap of having a brother who carries a purse. (Inside joke)

Forthright Magazine produces an amazing amount of information on a variety of spiritual topics, especially considering the fact that it’s all created by volunteers and provided for free. It’s well worth your time to explore the site at www.forthright.net.

Feed me, see more

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I’ve become a big fan of reading blogs via RSS feeds. Some people use Google Reader or something similar to accomplish this. I am currently using Vienna, an open source program, although I also own Newsfire. And I know that my browser will let me read RSS feeds, as will my mail program. There are lots of options available.

RSS is often expanded as “Really Simple Syndication,” although I’m not sure that was the original meaning. It provides a “feed” of frequently updated materials, like blogs or news websites. I currently follow over 200 feeds; I wouldn’t be able to begin to look at all of that material on their original websites.

Some of the blogs I follow don’t provide a full feed. I don’t mind too much those that give excerpts, but I really don’t care for those that give you nothing but a title. If you’re going to get me to read your blog based merely on a title, it had better be a really good title. Those blogs that come through blank rarely get a read from me. (I’m sure their authors are crushed)

I think the use of feeds will grow, both in the number of sites providing feeds and the number of people reading via feeds. If you haven’t tried it, I would suggest you give it a whirl. To subscribe to the feeds from this site, you can click on one of the choices at the top right or click on the link that says “RSS feed” at the end of each individual post. Some browsers also let you click on an RSS symbol in the address bar.

See you in the feed!

B&B Friday: Bloggers and others discuss alcohol and the Christian

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bible_in_handsThis B&B Friday will be dedicated to blogs, somewhat, though not in a review. To cap off the series on alcohol and the Christian, I wanted to offer some links for those interested in reading more.

B&B Friday: TreyMorgan.net

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treymorganWell, my books and blogs reporting has been heavy on the blog side. I’ve got some books to recommend, I just don’t seem to be organized enough to write about them. So we’ll stick with blogs for now. It only seems right to mention Trey Morgan’s blog. It has become one of the more popular blogs written by a member of the churches of Christ. Trey does a great job of offering good information on church life and family relationships, while mixing in a generous dose of humor. Trey also has a knack for involving his commenters in the conversation, asking questions or providing anecdotes that beg for further discussion.

Trey describes the site as follows: “Here are my thoughts about marriage, family, raising children, humor, faith and the life God intended for us all. I am a Christian husband and father, who moonlights as the minister for the church of Christ in Childress, Texas. My wife Lea and I have been married for 20 years. We are doing our best to raise our 4 boys, who are all growing up way too fast.”

If you haven’t visited TreyMorgan.net, do yourself a favor and go there today. If you’ve already been there, you probably don’t need my encouragement to go back again.

B&B Friday: A Serious Blog

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Fridays are for books and blogs. Today’s blog is a little different. It’s existed for less than a week and probably won’t exist very long. But I hope you’ll take a look. It’s the Cochabamba Youth Group blog.

I wish this blog had come into being under happier circumstances. As is, it was created after a tragedy, when a bus carrying members of the youth group from the church of Christ in Cochabamba, Bolivia, plummeted off the side of a mountain. Three young girls were killed, and a number of others were injured.

The website gives information about the accident, the health of those involved, and financial needs that exist. Even if you can’t give money, I hope that you will support these Christians in prayer during this difficult time.