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Reflect More, Risk More, Leave A Legacy – Start Blogging

Blogging has brought several new friends into my life. One of them is Jason Fountain. Today, I’m blessed to share a guest post by Jason. Jason is an educator who blogs about living an intentional life. I have enjoyed his writing and the communication that we have shared. Jason shares his current STRETCHING story with us below. Please check out his blog here.

(If you’re interested in guest posting on my blog, please drop me a comment. I’d love to connect with you.)

John Maxwell relates a story shared by sociologist Anthony Campolo. Campolo tells about a group of 50 people over the age of 90 years old who were asked one question: If you could live your life over again, what would you do differently?

The question was open-ended and the people’s answers were varied. However, three ideas consistently emerged.

1. If I had it to do over again, I would reflect more.
2. If I had it to do over again, I would risk more.
3. If I had it to do over again, I would do more things that would live on after I am dead.

I want to share with you an idea that can help you begin to accomplish all three of these goals TODAY.

I love the title of Jon’s blog – Stretched. I think much of our life is spent stretching – whether we choose the stretching or it chooses us. Recently, I’ve chosen a purposeful “stretch.” Back in April, after at least a year of talking about it, I started a blog.

Little did I know, then, what a rollercoaster of emotions were in store for me. I knew that it would be challenging to write solid content that would be meaningful, but I don’t believe that I was quite ready for the grind of continually facing a blank document on the computer screen.

A blank piece of paper is open to so many possibilities, yet appears so daunting.

Blogging has stretched me in ways that I never imagined.

I want to share four lessons (about life) that I have learned since I began blogging.

1. Blogging teaches discipline.
I consider myself a fairly disciplined person, but blogging has taken this to a new level. Blogging is not an endeavor that can be undertaken every so often. It is a discipline. Steven Pressfield says in his book, The Work of Art, that the hardest part of writing is not the writing, it’s sitting down to write.

There are always fifty things other than writing vying for my attention. But, blogging has taught me to quiet those distractions and focus on the task at hand. There are days that I want to quit and days that I feel as if I could write forever. Managing that tension has been a “stretch” for me.

2. Blogging sifts your beliefs.
I am pretty solid and consistent in my beliefs. If any of you read my blog you know that the bedrock of my life is Jesus Christ. It’s much easier to talk about Christ with my “circle” than it is to write about Him in a blog post that is out there for the world to view. In fact, bearing your soul is a little overwhelming.

Beyond my religious views, blogging forces me to work through most all of my beliefs. If I write about goal-setting or any other facet of intentional living, I really have to narrow my focus and work on being concise in my delivery. This only occurs when I am crystal clear on my thoughts.

Several times I have written a blog and then did not post it because I lacked a strong conviction about it. Before I hit the publish button, I need to believe it. Attempting to present an articulate stance on an issue has really stretched me as well.

3. Blogging is more about me than producing content for others.
When I first started blogging, I was very concerned about how I thought others would perceive my thoughts and my writing. I still worry about this, but in the few short months that I’ve been blogging I have become more focused on recording what I believe about life.

If I focus on others, then I try to copycat my blogging heroes and write as they would write and about topics that they would write about. The problem with this approach is that I am not them – I am me. For me to enjoy the process of blogging, I have to be me. If others latch on to my voice, then great. If they don’t, then I know blogging is not my future.

The longer I blog the more comfortable I become in showing more of who I really am. And that is the only way to really put my “voice” out there. Balancing this desire to write for others with the need to be “me” has been a major stretch.

4. Blogging records my thoughts for myself and others.
Finally, blogging is providing me the chance to record a part of “me” for my future self. Every time I write a post I am really just recording my life lessons so that I don’t forget them. As I continue to blog, more and more life lessons that I have forgotten from my past seem to surface. The process of blogging has really been a mining project for me.

I’m also blogging so that parts of my life will be recorded for my future kids. Every time I write I want to be comfortable with my future children reading my thoughts. From this vantage point, I write with a purpose – something bigger than just blogging. Thinking about preserving my words for the future has stretched me as well.

So…are YOU ready to start a blog? For me, it has truly been one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences that I’ve ever undertaken. To say that the last three and a half months have stretched me would be a gross understatement.

If you really want to reflect more, risk more, and leave a legacy, think about starting your own blog. It won’t be easy, but I guarantee it will stretch you in ways you never imagined.

QUESTION: Is there something in your life stretching you right now? How do you manage the tension?

The Better Way

Today, I’m honored to present another guest blogger. Terri Stone is the Director of Pastoral Care at my church. I’ve had the privilege of serving with Terri over the past several years, and I’ve met few people who can connect and remember people like Terri. Today, Terri shares her current STRETCHING story with us. Enjoy!

(If you’re interested in guest posting on my blog, please drop me a comment. I’d love to connect with you.)

I’ve spent the last 11 years stretching. I should be good and warmed up; ready for anything. Serving on the ministry staff at my church has given me the opportunity to do more things and meet more people than I ever imagined I would in my lifetime. Being in the mix of a fast growing church has had me “burning the midnight oil” for a very long time. I have to be clear, though, and say that no one demanded I burn the midnight oil; I chose to burn it myself. My personality is one that needs to be busy from sunrise to sunset or I feel like a useless, lazy, non-contributing person. Crazy, I know.

I’ve had a few different jobs in my tenure at the church. I’ve seen staff members come; and I’ve seen them go off to do awesome things. I’ve been part of large outreach events, classes, small groups, Sunday services, baptisms, mission trips, and capital campaigns…and this is the short list. The thought of having enough time in the day to get everything done has been unheard of. This was the case until recently. I’m now in the job where I’m perfectly gifted to serve. I’m no longer involved in every single thing that happens at the church being pulled in a million different directions. Now my days are focused, helping people with their spiritual questions, life struggles and personal needs. I have time to think and pray, plan and strategize about how to build a new ministry from the ground up.

And while I absolutely love how I’m serving, it’s been one of the most challenging things I’ve encountered in ministry. The task list has changed. The “to do” list has become the “who list.” To say the least, this new place in ministry has me stretching in ways that I’m not used to stretching.

I think about the story, in Luke’s Gospel, of the two sisters, Martha and Mary. Martha welcomes Jesus and his crew into her home where she and her sister promptly choose two different approaches to their interaction with Jesus. Martha fusses with taking care of the needs of her guests while Mary ignores all the others and all the preparations so she can hang out with Jesus. Martha complains asking Jesus to tell her sister to help. Jesus’ response is not what she expects, “Martha, Martha,”…“you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

What I’ve come to realize is that I’ve been like that complaining sister! I’ve been busy “doing” ministry; all the while fussing about something or somebody. For someone like me, it’s strange not to have a task list a mile long of what must get done. Having more tasks than I can handle has always equaled value. But Jesus is saying there’s a better way. The better way has me stretching to be contemplative, to be quiet, to be more prayerful and to listen. In doing so, I’ll actually be better prepared to do the people things, “who list” things God has for me to do.

I think there’s a great lesson in the story for all of us. Jesus needs us to be with him first before we can really do what he has for us to do. After reading the story in Luke 10, there are some questions we need to ask ourselves. Am I serving Jesus in the right way for the right reasons? Is my busyness “for Jesus” to impress others with all I have to do? What will it take to sit at Jesus’ feet and listen so we can learn his better way for us?

Examine your service to Jesus and others. Invite him to show you what he truly desires the outcome of your time with him to be.

My Good Versus God’s Good

I have the privilege today of presenting guest blogger, Jeff Whitebread. Jeff (or Pumpernickel as I like to call him) is a good friend and sincere brother. Jeff is just starting his own blog (see the link below), and he has so generously volunteered to share his current STRETCHING story here.

(If you’re interested in guest posting on my blog, please drop me a comment. I’d love to connect with you.)

It certainly is a pleasure to be a guest contributor on my good friend’s blog. In sticking with the theme of being stretched, it is always helpful when I consider God’s purpose in stretching my life. For when I focus on life’s circumstances, I can often feel overwhelmed and find myself being swept away in moments of despair. For in the midst of life’s turmoil, I can feel as if I am being pulled apart from the inside, as if a part of me is dying. I am left with these nagging thoughts. Why does God make life so hard? If life is this hard, am I doing something wrong?

Romans 8:28-29 says,

(28) And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. (29) For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.

As I read this passage, an obvious truth jumps out from V28. God works all things for the good of those who love him, not some things or most things. God is working every single thing in my life out for my good. If I love God, then I can take this truth to the bank. I can believe this truth and live according to this truth. But wait, not everything that happens to me appears to be good, and here my story of being stretched begins.

When I was told, I was losing my job several weeks ago my first reaction was not, “thank you God this is so good.” It was a shock. I had to pick my jaw up off the table. Now, you must understand, I knew my job was going to end. I have been working for an insurance company that has been going out of business since 2001. When I started working for this company, it had 6,000 employees, and now it has only 150. During this 11 year process, I have seen God reawaken my heart and set a desire to serve him in the full-time ministry. I have viewed these last several years as a time of transition, as a time of preparation to leave the IT field and serve God where He calls.

As God began to open and close doors in my life, I developed a plan for how things were going to work out. I began thinking about how I was going to transition from working as an IT geek to being a missionary to our elected officials in Harrisburg. It was a smooth transition, it was neat and clean and in truth it required little risk and even less faith. After all, I will be serving the Lord; He would certainly bless such pure intentions. What I failed to see and what God is teaching me and stretching me to understand is this truth. God has a different purpose in mind. While I am focused on the destination, God’s laser beam focus is on me as an individual.

Let’s take a step back and ask ourselves, how does God define the word “good” in v28? We quickly realize through life’s circumstances that God is not working in our lives the way we might desire Him to work. He is doing something strange to us; He is taking us places we have no interest going. Our hearts cry out as we try to make sense of the situations we face. You see V29 tells us the goal, the good thing God is doing in our lives. What God desires for us, what He is working to accomplish through every situation and circumstance we face is to become like Jesus. This is what He wants; this is what He is doing. When we face the hard times in life we can hold onto this truth – this difficult and challenging situation is in my life because God is doing something good. His purpose for me is to be conformed to the image of His Son. He is working in my life and taking me through the hard time because his desire is that Christ may be formed in my life.

As I face the realities of my life and think of how God is at work, my plan no longer makes sense. I cannot connect the dots. I did not expect to be out of a job for another 2-3 years, I thought I would be one of the last people employed in my company. Obviously, God had a different plan from mine. Now I face the fact of raising my support, of trusting God with opening people’s hearts toward this ministry. As I look for God to validate my call through the financial commitment of others, it is humbling, it is scary, and yet it is where God has placed me in my journey to follow Him. I can say through the eyes of faith it is good. Whether I end up in this ministry or serve God in some other area, no matter what happens to my family and the things we place our security on, God is working to create in me the image of His Son.

The book of Hebrews tells us that Jesus is crowned with glory and honor because He suffered death (Heb 2:9). The path our Lord went down was one of sacrifice and suffering, if this was required of our Lord, should we expect that to become like Him would require anything less for our lives. The worldly part of our heart cries out, “No! Please give us another way.” Yet the cross stands and proclaims that there is no other way in which we can serve our great and glorious King, Jesus the Christ. Is it easy? Never! Is it worth it? Every single moment, for God is actively working for the “good” of our lives.

Through the encouragement of Jon, I am being stretched in another area, I have decided to start blogging about this journey. If you would like to read my attempt to write about this journey, please check out On The Narrow Road.

All for the glory of God!

Jeff

Where do you see Christ being formed in your life? How have you seen hard times actually used for good?

I’m Back…

I’m back! But maybe you didn’t even know I was missing.

I just returned from a week of vacation with my wonderful wife as we celebrated our 15th anniversary in Cape Cod. It was an incredible trip, and I hope to share some of the details in the days to come. I just wanted to send out a quick thank you to all four of my guest bloggers this week. I think they all did an excellent job sharing how they have felt “stretched” these days. If for some reason you missed it, here are the links to the four guest posts.

Monday: Norman Stolpe (my dad) – God in the Spaces

Tuesday: Beck Gambill – Faith Stretch

Thursday: Alex Humphrey – Savor The Flavor

Friday: Hannah Stolpe (my daughter) – Middle School Missions Trip Recap

Thank you!

When you go on vacation, do you prefer the mountains or the beaches (or maybe somewhere else)?

Middle School Missions Trip Recap

Today, I am so proud that I can introduce my daughter as my guest blogger. In her post below, Hannah shares her take on a missions trip she took two weeks ago with my son and a group of middle school students from our church. I think you’ll see that this trip had an impact on Hannah, and you’ll see that God can use anyone – even a group of crazy middle schoolers!

(If you’re interested in guest posting on my blog, please drop me a comment. I’d love to connect with you.)

Two weeks ago, I went on a missions trip to Johnstown, PA with my church’s youth group. We had a great time and were able to help and shine God’s love to so many people. As well as serving people, I also learned a lot about how I should live according to God’s Word. One of the biggest things I learned can be found in Luke 22:42:

“Father, if you are willing take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done“

A lot of the times, I want to do what I want to do. I’ll want to do this. I won’t want to do that. But as a follower of God, He calls me to do His will – to step out of my comfort zone and not necessarily do what I want to do. He has amazing plans for me, but they can only happen if I follow His will. Two weeks ago, whatever we did we asked God for guidance so that we could do His will. Whether it was asking Him what He wanted us to do that day or listening to Him to see if He wanted us to talk to someone, His will was done and it was amazing to see His plans for our group unfold.

Here’s a recap of our week:

On Monday, we went to a church down the street from where we were staying. This church has been closed for two years due to the economy. With the amount of churches closing in their area, they have decided to reopen. As it has been closed for two years, there was a lot of work to do. We mopped, swept, weeded, trimmed bushes, painted, scrubbed, and scraped paint and rust off poles. It was amazing to see how much work our middle school group was able to accomplish in such a short time. It also was great to see how grateful everyone was for the work we accomplished!Tuesday was by far my favorite day. On Tuesday, we went to an old hospital in the town of Culver. The owner of the hospital (Jeremy) is turning it into a community center for Culver. It will have apartments, a kitchen, his house, and other things for youth – such as a gaming room. On Tuesday, my middle school group and the high school group that was staying with us helped to clean out the hospital and tear down the walls and ceiling. It was God’s miracle that no one got hurt despite the large amounts of plaster that continually fell. After we finished our work, a friend and I explored the hospital. There was lots of papers, x-rays, and old equipment. Later that evening, we played volleyball, roasted marshmallows, sang songs around a fire, and watched fireworks.My day on Wednesday was split into two parts. In the morning, I baked cookies and made cards. Another group would hand out the cookies, cards, and Bibles to people the next day. Their decision to do this definitely involved following God’s will by stepping out of their comfort zones to talk with the people who received the Bibles.

In the afternoon, we went to Goodwill. We swept up trash and threw trash it into a big dumpster. Then a few people who worked there told us about what Goodwill does. We also got to meet a man who was employed by Goodwill a couple of years ago. He was very thankful for his job and groups like ours who help out at Goodwill.

On Thursday, we went to a soup kitchen and a nursing home. At the soup kitchen, we moved wood and sorted food and utensils. At the end, we were able to eat lunch with a few recipients of the soup kitchen food.

At the nursing home, we did several things. First, we escorted the residents to their rooms after a ballroom dancing show. A few of the people on our team were able to talk and pray with residents. After that, we cut and colored Forth of July coloring pages with residents. Later, the nursing home staff were going to put the decorations on the residents’ doors.

On Friday, we traveled home, but first, we made some detours. After a small lunch of pop tarts at the church we were staying at, we went to McDonald’s for a bigger breakfast. We then followed the GPS until we arrived at the incline plane in Johnstown. We took a round trip on the incline plane and then headed to Chuck E. Cheese’s for some last-minute fun. After Chuck E. Cheese’s, we sat on the pavement and went around in a circle complementing and encouraging each other. After that, we went to the food court to grab some food before heading home.

All in all, it was a great trip. I’m so glad I went, and I look forward to future opportunities to serve!

Have you ever been on a missions trip? What was something you learned on this trip?

Savor The Flavor

Here is a guest post by Alex Humphrey. Alex is an author, coach, entrepreneur, husband, and Christ-follower. I have enjoyed following Alex on his blog for the past couple of months, and he graciously agreed to share his thoughts and talents with us today. I love what he has to say below. Please chime in on his questions, and don’t forget to get connected with Alex. Besides his blog, you can follow him on Twitter or Facebook.

(If you’re interested in guest posting on my blog, please drop me a comment. I’d love to connect with you.)

Last week my wife and I had “a talk”. We haven’t been communicating well and it has left us feeling frustrated and making it hard to be open with one another.

It took a while, but we finally figured out what was going on:

My wife lingers on ideas. She sees books, movies, and even the Bible like a delicious meal where each bite needs to be savored, experienced, and understood before she can move on to the next.

I try to understand the ideas quickly so I can move onto the next one. If my thoughts were a meal it would be an all-you-can-eat buffet and I’d be doing my best to finish off 10 plates in 20 minutes.

After our conversation, God made it clear: I need to linger more.

Knowing God isn’t something that can be done quickly. We must experience him. Psalm 34:8 says, “Taste and see that the LORD is good”. The experience of lingering on a delicious bite is the same experience of understanding the goodness of God.

There are 3 lessons I’ve taken from this:

One thing at a time – More than that and I miss out on something.
Experience every moment – life is a marathon, not a sprint. Every moment should be experienced and enjoyed.
Work until it’s done – My method leaves a lot of projects unfinished. From now on, part of experiencing every moment is finishing what I start.

When was the last time you really experienced an event in your life? What are you doing to help you experience more of them?

Faith Stretch

Here is a guest post by Beck Gambill. Beck is an author, mentor, wife, mother, and Christ-follower. I have enjoyed following Beck on her blog for the past month, and she graciously agreed to share her thoughts and talents with us today. Her writing is inspired and beautiful, and I love what she shares below and how she says it. Please chime in on her questions, and don’t forget to get connected with Beck. Besides her blog, you can follow her on Twitter.

(If you’re interested in guest posting on my blog, please drop me a comment. I’d love to connect with you.)

Lately the very fibers and sinews of my heart are being pulled tight in a deep faith stretch. Three months ago my husband, Chris, and I took a risky step of faith. After serving as worship pastor for four years in a Wyoming church, due to some difficult circumstances and God’s leading, we left our place of ministry trusting God had a plan. My human assumption was that the plan would be revealed quickly and before long we would be serving in a new place of ministry. I was wrong.

We are thankful for dear friends who have graciously opened their home providing a place for us to stay while we wait. Yet I’ve learned it’s not good for a man to live without fulfilling work or a woman to be without a home. God knows this.

There are moments in the waiting that fear and hurt swell, choking off my breath. There are also moments of deep joy. The difference, I find, lies in the abiding. A tenacious sitting at Jesus feet decides if I will sink in despair or soar on wings of faith. Time in the word of God fills my heart with life-sustaining truth that counteracts the lies I would otherwise believe. Lies that say; God doesn’t see you, he has abandoned you, you’re not good enough, you have failed, you will never know fulfillment.

Daily I come, I press on, my spiritual muscles stretched and strengthened. As I come Jesus is always faithful to meet me. He recently revived my heart with the words of Psalm 18. Are you weary from the journey of life, stretched by your limitations or circumstances? Let me share some of those verses with you.

But in my distress I cried out to the Lord;
yes, I prayed to my God for help.
He heard me from his sanctuary;
my cry to him reached his ears…

He opened the heavens and came down;
dark storm clouds were beneath his feet.
Mounted on a mighty angelic being, he flew,
soaring on the wings of the wind.
He shrouded himself in darkness,
veiling his approach with dark rain clouds.
Thick clouds shielded the brightness around him
and rained down hail and burning coals.
The Lord thundered from heaven;
the voice of the Most High resounded
amid the hail and burning coals…

He reached down from heaven and rescued me;
he drew me out of deep waters…

He led me to a place of safety;
he rescued me because he delights in me.

Can you see the God of heaven leap to his feet at the sound of your voice crying out in need. Imagine him take flight on the wings of an angel, thundering his approach, reaching down his mighty hand to rescue you! Like a mother stalking across the playground, determined eyes focused, set to rescue her child from the bully, so is our God with his own children. In a purely physical sense we may not see God on the move but we can be sure when we call out in need he hears and acts.

In the midst of messy circumstances God is stretching my heart to trust him. He challenges me to show up daily to sit at his feet to be fed. As I obey, my heart is comforted that God sees me, he rescues me and it’s his delight to do so.

Are you being stretched through difficult circumstances? How has God reminded you of his care?

God in the Spaces

Today, I have the honor of presenting my dad, Norman Stolpe, as my guest blogger. I have so many things that I could write about in describing my dad. He has probably been one of my biggest writing influences. Dad helped me through my senior year of Honors English in high school. Writing has always surrounded Dad as he has written books, stories, curriculum, poems, and countless sermons. He is a true inspiration to me. Today, he shares about finding God in the Spaces. I think you’ll enjoy what he has to share. To read more from my dad, you can follow him on his blogs: Christlink and Writing Workshop.

(If you’re interested in guest posting on my blog, please drop me a comment. I’d love to connect with you.)

Monastery of St. Scholastica - "Ora et Labora"

My son Jon asked if I would write something for his Stretched blog about how I am being stretched by my current transition. After 35 years of ordained ministry and long-term relationships with three churches (one exception was 2 years), I “retired” from Central Christian Church in Dallas, Texas where I had been the pastor for almost 11 years. I am viewing this as a transition to a new phase of ministry as an interim pastor. I am in conversation with a couple of congregations, and the prospect of serving one of them by September is encouraging, but nothing is definite yet.

I believe I am being stretched as I watch for the presence of God in this in between space. Though I have intentionally described this as a transition, I am learning to accept that other people label it “retirement.” I am anticipating several years of active, full-time ministry, but I am adjusting to recognizing how major this transition is.

My wife, Candy, and I consciously started down this path couple of years ago and worked with Central Christian Church for a transparent, smooth, healthy transition for their pastoral leadership. My last Sunday to preach was May 29, and my successors (Revs. Drs. Steve and Debbie Chisolm) will preach for the first time July 10. God’s hand in that process was gentle but clear to us and the congregation.

I have been amazed at how many seemingly minor details have fallen into place for exactly the right timing as our transition has unfolded so far. I have felt that this has stretched my faith to expect the details will continue to fall into place at just the right time as it becomes clear which congregation we will be serving next. We know we will have an income gap of at least a month, hoping to fill it with supply preaching and temp work. So far we seem to have navigated the uncertainties and ambiguities with minimal anxiety.

However, reflecting on that is stretching me in another direction. I have to ask myself, “Why should I expect my path to be smooth with everything provided at just the right time? Other people who are at least as faithful to Jesus have to endure hardship and deprivation on their paths. I certainly don’t deserve to be exempt.”

In this in between space, I feel the tension between trusting God, perhaps presumptuously, and the pull of frantic activity to bring in income and perhaps force a premature decision about where we will serve. I believe I have to take responsible steps as acts of faith that God is the one actually orchestrating events. I am reminded of the inscription above the door of the Monastery of St. Scholastica (St. Benedict’s sister) in Subiaco, Italy (and other Benedictine monasteries). “Ora et Labora” pray and work. The priority is to pray first. Then work finds its place in harmony with God’s activity.

My patience is being stretched, not in the sense of anxious impatience, but recognizing that church processes move slowly. God is patient too, not just with our individual foibles, but also with the unhurried unfolding of history. With this stretching patience, I am learning to watch for God to slip the smallest details into place at just the right time. As I recognize God’s hand in the details, I am also learning that God’s story doesn’t revolve around me and having my journey unfold smoothly, but that I am privileged to play some part in God’s greater plan. If I will be patient, I will discern just how the details fit at just the right time.

How have you seen God in the spaces of your life?

Be My Guest

I am so excited to share the talents of some great guest bloggers this upcoming week. Over the past couple of weeks, I have shared guest posts by my wife and my son, and it has been remarkable to see the response. Recently, I’ve started asking people if they would be interested in sharing their “stretch marks” on my blog. This has provided an opportunity to hear what others have to share, but it’s also been an incredible opportunity to connect the blogging community. I cannot wait for you to read the posts coming up this week, and I’m looking forward to the feedback and dialogue that will be generated through these posts.

On May 27, 2011, Jeff Goins shared some tips for guest posting on Michael Hyatt’s blog. I think you’ll find this interesting, and I’d encourage you to head on over to see the full post.

Here are seven steps to successful guest posting:

Check the guidelines. Many established blogs, including this one, have a list of guidelines that you can follow to make a guest post. Before submitting your post, read the guidelines and follow them.
Study the blog. Do some research to understand the subject and voice of the blog and to see what topics haven’t been covered yet. If you know someone who has guest-posted for the blog, ask him how he did it.
Contact the blogger. Email is probably best. In the message, get right to the point. Either pitch an idea or send the whole article, but don’t waste time with unnecessary flattery or self-deprecation. Don’t say “sorry,” and don’t be arrogant. Just be yourself.
Write the best post you can. (This may happen concurrently with #3). Once you’ve made contact with the blogger, you can begin writing. Fight the temptation to hold back your “A” content for your own blog. Guest posts are your best marketing collateral, so don’t submit something less than your best. Once finished, send the ready-to-publish post to the blogger with a byline and link to your website.
Follow up. Depending on the guidelines, give the blogger some time (usually a week) before following up. When you do follow up, keep it positive and polite. You can follow up again a week or two later. If you don’t hear back in a month, tell the blogger that you’d like to take the article elsewhere.
Engage and promote. If the blogger posts your article, first thank her. Then, treat it as you would one of your own posts, if not better. Tweet it, share it, email it, etc. Post an excerpt on your own blog and link to the whole article. Interact in the comments and engage readers who respond. This is a must.
Repeat. Whether you succeed or not, start the whole process over again. If you get rejected, don’t get discouraged. And don’t let it be the last time you try to guest post. Sometimes, the topic is just wrong. Other times, it’s the wrong audience. Regardless, you need to guest post more than once for it to be an effective strategy. So, don’t give up.

If you’re interested in joining in and becoming a guest blogger on “Jon Stolpe Stretched”, please drop me a comment. I would love to connect with you!

Thanks!

Are you a blogger? Have you ever had others guest post on your blog? What tips to you have for guest bloggers?

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