Not a day goes by that don’t see someone talk about how someone else won’t let them do something.
I would be gay affirming, but my denomination won’t let me.
No one will publish me, so I cannot be a writer.
No one will let me speak at their event.
No denomination will ordain me, so I cannot be a minister.
I don’t have a Master’s in Social Work, so I can’t help poor people.
I don’t have an MBA, so I cannot start a business.
ad infinitum, ad nauseum
Here is the thing no one will tell you:
You don’t need anyone’s permission.
You don’t need a piece of paper from anyone to minister to anyone. Yes, you may need it to marry someone, but you can start your own church with three other people who are not your family and ordain yourself. Perfectly legal. Or be a minister that does not do weddings. It is ok – you are allowed to not do weddings.
You don’t need a publisher to write or print a book. Just ask John Locke, who has sold millions of books on amazon while having no publisher.
You don’t need a degree to start a business – Just look at Steve Jobs, Bill Gates or Michael Dell.
Start your own damn event, if no one will let you speak at theirs.
You don’t need anyone’s permission, so quit using that as an excuse, OK?
Note: There is nothing wrong with deciding you want that approval. I am just saying it is no longer necessary to get stuff done.
I love blogging, and honestly, blogging has been good to me. However, lately, blogging has just lacked… something. I want to try something different.
And for that, I need your help.
I want to write something like a newsletter about the practice of the faith. Actually, newsletter may be too strong a term. I envision a periodic letter from me, to you, about the books I am reading, ideas I have heard about, or things that have been meaningful to me in living my faith out. It will be a lot like me writing a periodic email to my friends.
This is not about dogma or propositions, but about how we live – our praxis, if you will.
So, you may ask, why not blog about it?
Two reasons:
Blogging is a broadcast medium. I have no sense of who is reading the stuff I write. And because it is out there on the internet for everyone to see, I find myself playing to the crowd. I am tired of feeling like an internet whore.
I want to slow my life down, and so choosing a technology that is both as pervasive and as basic as email is attractive to me.
Here is the deal:
This won’t replace my blogging – but it will replace parts of my blogging life. I won’t blow your inbox up – you will receive no more than, on average, one email a week from me, and probably less than that.
This is not a newsletter about my “work” – I already have one of those, and you can sign up for it here.
This won’t be a fundraising newsletter.
This is an experiment. If I don’t enjoy it, or it flops or whatever, I may discontinue it.
You should sign up for this if:
You are interested in the thinking that goes behind my work
You want to learn about resources that can help you live out your faith.
You want to help me build something cool.
If I have not yet scared you off, please click here to sign up.
Got questions about this new project? Ask them in the comments below.