Story is our Native Language

I feel like story is our native tongue. We all have a story. We’re living our story everyday. We’re revealing our story in our conversations. And when we dream; we’re thinking of the story to be.

There’s some sort of connection that I feel when I’m engaged in a story. It makes me come alive.

Stories can be used by God to connect with us personally. Stories can be like parables from God straight to you.

The other day I was in need of being reminded about some important truths; and I felt led to watch Spider-Man 2. That movie connects with me in many ways and inspires me. I can honestly watch it and grow closer to God as I do. It feels like a parable He’s created for me to watch and be reminded of some of His truths.

Going from inspiration to application might be another post of itself, but don’t underestimate how God can connect with you in story.

Am I on my own on this one? Please talk to me those of you that love stories and are motivated by them.

I can truly say I love stories and am so motivated in watching, reading, and listening to them. Writing them too. But I also want to live my story. God has a story written for each of us. Let's walk with Him in it.

Please leave a comment below mentioning some of the stories that have really connected with you.

Thanks for reading. God bless you.

Starting an Online Ministry (Part 1)

I'll be honest that I don't have a big online presence. This is my first actual post on this blog. So what can I possibly tell you about building an online presence? 

That's a good question. And the truth is that I can't guarantee you that my advice will work. I guess I'll be my own litmus test on if there is anything to this advice. But these are some  of my conclusions on building an online presence.

Here's the first takeaway: you as the content creator have to create something that a consumer values. 

That may not seem real complicated, but that's the base of building up a following. There are so many people online looking for something. And there are a group of people that need you and will value what you are doing.

Target audiences

It doesn't matter what type of blog or online endeavor you are undertaking; there are people out there that will value what you do. These people are your target audience.

It's your job to provide them with consistent material that they find valuable. 

Examples

Here are 2 examples of people that have been a blessing to me online. I would be in their “target audience”.

Rocco Grimaldi is a professional hockey player for the San Antonio Rampage. When I first came across Rocco was at the 2011 NHL draft where he was outspoken about his faith in Jesus Christ. He was interviewed and asked about his faith, and his answer was such a blessing and encouragement to me. 

I was encouraged by Rocco. I appreciated what he said and wanted to learn more about him. He seemed like a guy I’d like to get to know more, and eventually I followed him on social media where he continues to be an encouragement and inspiration to me to this day.

Matt McCoy is a construction worker in the States. A few years ago, I was trying to learn the guitar and went on YouTube to find some videos that could help me. One of the videos I came across was Matt McCoy teaching how to use a capo on your guitar. I watched the video and it was extremely helpful. And it turned out he was a follower of Jesus. I’d been searching for a guitar teacher and found a good one, only then to realize I found a brother in Christ. It was a great encouragement to me, and I still follow him to this day. He has a video talking about starting an online ministry here.

Rocco and Matt are both relatable guys. They’re leaders. They’re genuine and hard working guys persevering in the faith. Following them is refreshing. They’re cool and energetic guys. They’re infectious with their excitement and positive vibe. They challenge and encourage those around them. It’s a breath of fresh air and quite inspiring seeing them live for Christ and using their gifts for Him. It motivates me in my walk with the Lord.

I can tell that’s what I’m looking for online.  I want to find people I can relate to that’re living for Jesus.   

Review

What I’ve tried to establish in this article is that if you want to create content that gets engagement, you need to create content that provides value for a target audience.

Rocco and Matt both connected with me. I’m an avid hockey fan, and so Rocco being a hockey player living for Jesus made me want to learn more about him. And wanting to learn the guitar and finding a good teacher in Matt only to find out he was a follower of Jesus; made we want to learn more about him and follow him.

Both guys objectively gave value to me. I enjoy hockey and I wanted to learn guitar. Rocco’s a great hockey player and Matt’s a great guitar teacher. They both do a great job in working in the thing I valued. They’re gifted in that skill and are followers of Jesus. And that’s what I’m looking for online; people I can relate to that’re living for Jesus. 

Conclusion

So one last time; to sum up what we talked about here; to get engagement online you need to provide value to a target audience.

I used some personal examples of what target audience I would fall under, and people that’ve been a blessing to me.

What type of online ministry are you interested in starting? I hope this article has been of help to you.

How do you know what content to create? How do you find your target audience? I hope to write more articles that delve into this.

Thanks for reading and please leave a comment below. God bless.

Here are some resources that have helped me with this article:
Randy Ingermanson on finding your target audience
Matt McCoy's YouTube channel and website
Rocco Grimaldi's Twitter and website

Another Blog?

Hello there. Thomas is the name. I felt led to start this blog. "Another blog," you say. Yes indeed. Yet another blog in the blogosphere. 

A tiny bit about me and the vision of the blog: I'm a twentysomething-year-old follower of Jesus wanting to grow daily in my relationship with Christ. The vision of this blog is to encourage each of us in our walk with the Lord.

I don't know exactly what this blog will look like, but that's the vision of it. If either of those things take place; it's only by God. All glory to Him.

I love Jesus, I love to write, I enjoy watching sports with my family, and I'm an INFJ. I have a lot more interests, but I'll leave it at that for now. 

I want to be a willing vessel for Him to work through and to not lean to my own understanding. I don't want to be prideful. I want to be genuine.

I'm glad you stopped by. Please feel free to leave a comment below and introduce yourself. 

I'd love to hear from you, and I'd love if you stuck around and joined me for this journey.

Thanks for reading. God bless you.