4 Ways to Break Through Blogger’s Block

Suffering from a classic case of writer’s block? Whether you are a blogger who can’t blog, poet who can’t rhyme, or pastor who can’t sermonize, here are 4 Ways to Break Through…

1) Keep writing. Sometimes you just have to push through and write when you are less than inspired. You never know when it is going to “click!”

One of my favorite encouragements by the Apostle Paul often comes to the rescue, “So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.” (Galatians 6:9, NLT)

2) Stop writing. On the other hand, don’t force it. Discern when you are about to go from blogger’s block to burnout. Step away from the keyboard, re-publish some of your more popular posts and take a much needed break.

3) Start Reading. Read great (old and new!) authors in your field and then, read who they are reading. Let their thought processes, creativity and good habits rub off as you continue to develop your own unique style and content.

4) Ask Others. You may not always be the source of your best material. The best artists rarely paint self-portraits! Ask those in your target audience what it is they are mildly interested in or wildly passionate about. Write about those things.

You don’t have to stay stuck. When I’m stuck… I usually just write about how to get un-stuck!

How do you un-block? Share your tips in the Reply section below…

Leading Change Through Prayer

Are you a ministry leader planning on some BIG changes? Start the process right by engaging in personal, family and team prayer. Then, don’t stop! Make prayer central to your leadership and congregational DNA as the Holy Spirit leads the every season.

Not sure where to begin? Here are 12 Names for God you can call on to go deeper in your understanding of who He is and what He is capable of through you and your team. (Consider teaching through these attributes as well!)

Yahweh is the promised name of God in the Old Testament. This name for God, which (by Jewish tradition) is too holy to voice, is actually spelled “YHWH,” without vowels. The modern spelling as “Yahweh” includes vowels to assist in pronunciation. Many pronounce YHWH as “Yahweh” or “Jehovah.” Jehovah is translated as “The Existing One” or “Lord.” The chief meaning of Jehovah is derived from the Hebrew word Havah, meaning “to be” or “to exist.” It also suggests “to become” or specifically “to become known” — this describes a God who wants to reveal Himself. It is to this sovereign yet eternally accessible Lord that we go to in prayer and trust with transforming our lives, families and ministries.

As you pray, speak the Name of God specific for each need, knowing that He will hear and answer as you call on His Name! A few of those names include…

Jehovah: Lord… One and only! Exodus 3

Jehovah-Elohim: Lord Sovereign… in control! Genesis 1:1

Jehovah-Jireh: Lord that provides… all our needs! Isaiah 61:1

Jehovah-Mekoddishkem: Lord that sanctifies you… sets you apart! Exodus 31:13

Jehovah-Nissi: Lord my banner… we are victors and not victims! Exodus 17:15

Jehovah-Rapha: Lord that heals… broken souls, minds & body! Jeremiah 30:17

Jehovah-Raah: Lord that shepherds me… our guide and guard! Psalm 23:1

Jehovah-Sabaoth: Lord of hosts or armies… He is supreme! Psalm 24:9-10

Jehovah-Shalom: Lord of peace… flowing in me and through us! Judges 6:24

Jehovah-Shamma: Lord that is present… anywhere, anytime! Ezekiel 48:35

Jehovah-Tsikednu: Lord of righteousness…clothed in holiness! Jeremiah 23:6

The Name of JESUS.

While all of these names describe the attributes of Jehovah, Jesus is God the Son and is all of the above in One!

“Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:9-11, NIV)

Go ahead, speak out loud the Name of Jehovah God in Christ Jesus as you praise His Holy Name and cry out for His sovereign wisdom and power. As our spiritual fathers and mothers before us, we can call on the Name of the Lord our God who is still mighty to save! Stay tuned for a Prayer Strategy post coming soon!

Click here for a free PDF copy – Prayer Names of God

Reference: Blue Letter Bible at www.blueletterbible.org

Used by permission, www.tompelt.com, Covenant Church Coaching & Peak Pastors

Contact Tom at tompelt1@gmail.com to partner in a PEAK Pastor Conference, Retreat or ongoing coaching relationship! 

5 Ways to Write More Now

“I don’t have time to write, blog or post interesting stuff!” If this is you, then here at 5 Ways to Write More Now.

1) Determine to write more! It all starts with a commitment to the discipline that is writing. Find a friend who will hold you accountable to writing on a consistent basis. Set a specific and doable goal (3 blog posts a week, etc.) and stick to it.

Bonus tip: Write it down… now! Whether you use an iPad, iPhone or MacBook (I’m a Mac guy!), or you go old-school with post-its and the classic yellow notepad, write your brain-storm down when it is blowing a fresh wind of ideas. I recommend Evernote to help you organize (https://evernote.com/). Think its a bad idea? Write it down anyway!

2) Know your rhythms. When is your brain most active? In other words, are you a morning person or night owl? For me, it’s definitely morning. Seize the times when your creative juices flow best for your most important writing. Then, discipline yourself to write some when you aren’t exactly in your sweet spot.

3) Read more and better writers. Find those in your area of interest who have strong followings and have solid reputations and read their stuff. Study what they write about, how they write and post it. Need some help with this? I would recommend http://michaelhyatt.com/ for all your platform building needs. For pastors and ministry leaders, check out http://careynieuwhof.com/ for awesome content and presentation!

4) Do less useless stuff. Binge less on Netflix or watching sports. Spend less time on social media browsing the evening away. Instead… write! You might even take some of that time and take a course in writing either online or at your local community college. Great writers are eager learners!

5) Write more. It’s as simple as that. Discover what you are passionate about and write about it daily. Keep it in rough draft and unpublished form until you are ready to put it out there… but keep writing! Your content will increase in volume and in quality. Have others read and critique your writing along the way. Be sure some of them are in your target audience. From professional bloggers to friends and family, ask them to be honest and incorporate their advice.

Whether it’s blogging, journaling, online articles or that novel you’ve been dreaming about, follow these tips. What are you waiting for? Go… write!

How to Diffuse the Situation

Great teams are full of leaders with equally strong talents, personalities and the opinions to go with them. While this creates a high potential for productivity, no one should be surprised when conflict arises and personalities collide.

Here are 5 Ways to Diffuse the Situation…

1) Don’t! The escalation may be an indicator of a relational or organizational disconnect or disagreement or it may just be that creative minds are hard at work. Abruptly ending the argument or placating someone will only provide a false and temporary peace that may keep things from going forward through the push and pull of high-capacity leaders. Remember that a steam engine only moves forward under well-controlled pressure.

2) Take charge… but just long enough to assure those involved that they will be heard, in turn and with respect. Be clear. Disagreement is tolerated and even welcomed in your organizational culture. Disrespect is not.

3) Keep digging. Ask questions that force the real issues behind the emotion. This will not only address the issues at hand, but will serve notice that unnecessary drama is out of place and simply “not what we do here.”

Jesus was the master at the art of inquiry, often answering questions with questions. Two of his disciples were arguing over who might sit by Jesus’ on His throne in Heaven. Rather than answering directly, Jesus asked them about their ability to lead well in the here and now. “Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?” (Mark 10:38, NIV) In other words, with leadership may come certain privileges, but with great responsibility to God and others.

4) Assign responsibility but don’t create new policy. Refuse any tendency to add policy based on isolated arguments. This only punishes the greater team and encourages wasted lateral energy. Be specific with the individuals involved as you assign the actions you believe are necessary to restore team health and harmony.

5) Follow-up. Team unity is too essential to be assumed. Check-in with the people involved individually and as a group. Again, this will help cultivate a healthy culture where people are free to disagree but where respect for one another stays at a high level.

How do you deal effectively with rising tensions on your team? Share your thoughts in the Reply section below.

I would love to come to equip and encourage you and your team! Email me at tompelt1@gmail.com to see how we can partner for a leadership conference, retreat or coaching relationship.

4 Reasons to Blog Your Sermons

What if your sermons were blog posts? Would they be shareable? How many “favorites” would you get and, from whom? How would your sermons improve if you had to put them in blog form?

As you prepare your next message, teaching series or speech, here are 4 Reasons to Blog Your Sermons…

1) It forces you to economize. Blogs aren’t novels. Who has the time? The attention span of our audiences (secular or sacred) haven’t exactly increased over the years!

“Our average attention span is now 8 seconds – 1 second less than a goldfish. According to the National Center for Biotechnology Information, at the U.S. National Library of Medicine, the average attention span of a human being has dropped from 12 seconds in 2000 to 8 seconds in 2013. This is one second less than the attention span of a goldfish. That’s right, goldfish have an attention span of 9 seconds – 1 second more than you and I.” (http://www.b2bmarketinginsider.com/)

2) It reminds you of your audience. Great bloggers know who they are trying to reach. They are in touch with their needs and desires. They can relate with their problems and are focussed on providing real-world solutions. The Word of God is nothing if not able to transform lives through Christ Jesus in the real world and in the real time of our audience.

3) It focuses you on the point. Every once in a while (Okay… that’s probably an understatement) I get this look from my wife while preaching that says, “Stop circling and land the plane.” Blog readers like their content simple and to the point. Make it. Illustrate it. Apply it to real life. Enough said.

4) It helps you make it personal. The best bloggers know that making a personal connection with their readers is vital. No one likes to feel like a number. How have you experienced what you are preaching or teaching? And, not just the successes. Sharing the story of our failures connects in a way that 3 or 4 of the most poignant points ever could.

Check out the Beatitudes. Matthew 5:1-12 is an excellent example of all the above!

How do you connect God’s Word to your audience? Share your thoughts below in the Reply section…

3 Reasons You Should Say It Anyway

Do you feel like God has given you something to say, but everyone is already saying it? Are relevant and urgent issues already being addressed by the experts in your field? Or, do you feel like your message simply get’s lost in the white noise of the web? Consider 3 reasons why you should say it anyway…

1 – You have a God-given circle. Your followers may not number in the thousands, let alone millions. You may get less than record-breaking “likes” to your posts and you have never been “re-tweeted.” Still, you have a group of people who have come to know and trust your voice. You have done life with many of these people and you have an influence on them that the greatest names in the business simply cannot have. Especially for the small/medium sized ministry leaders, never underestimate the impact your encouragement or instruction has on the unique circle God has given to you. Besides, most of those with trusted voices and larger audiences started with a very small following. Jesus comes to mind, here. Needless to say I strongly recommend you both “Like” and follow Him closely.

2 – You have a God-given perspective. While there are always some common points of interest, each person brings their own voice from their own experience to any conversation. Your voice may just add a missing ingredient to the mix. No, you may not have a Phd in the given subject, but your input is no more or less valid than any casual blogger or learned professional. Say it clearly, creatively and concisely.

3 – You need the practice. That is, you need the discipline in your life that researching and communicating on relevant subjects on a consistent basis brings. Doing so is a healthy life habit that is far more beneficial to you and your circle of influence than spending another hour on Netflix or Facebook. Communicate about things you are passionate about and you will never run out of material!

Finally, humbly take the gift and grow! One of the greatest benefits of today’s many internet platforms is the ability to bring amazing leaders right to your doorstep. From instruction to inspiration, research to reviews, video conferences, webinars and so much more, some of the most gifted voices in just about any field are putting there message out to the masses. Even more, many of these resources are given away free, simply for signing up to receive their e-news or daily tweets. Check out my Follow the Leaders page and click on any of the images for instant access to some great leaders and resources. Determine to learn from not only what these experts are saying, but how they are saying it. Then, add your own voice. Perhaps you might even respond to a discussion thread when the opportunity is given? Regardless, do some homework and then engage in the important issues. Your voice adds great value!

Go ahead, say it anyway.