Missing In Action

I just want to apologize for not blogging much over the past three and a half weeks. I have been working on some major web-design projects for some churches, I have just moved to a new apartment in Arlington, Va, and I have been working on a major update of the website that will make the administrative tasks much easier. As the site continues to grow it becomes more and more difficult to administrate changes and additions. The updates that I am working on should aid in allowing me to control the thousands of pages on here much easier. In the meantime, it is going to require me to migrate all of the content into the new system that I will be using.

Anyways, I just wanted to apologize to everyone for not working on the blog so much lately. Once everything gets done, I will be able to blog very regularly. Thanks everyone.

Updating the Style at the Baptist Muse

Many of you have probably noticed that I haven't been on the forum or commenting on the blog much this week. I am working on massively overhauling the style and file systems here at The Baptist Muse. The organization of this site is completing chaotic due to the fact that I really didn't know what I was doing when I got started. I am know trying to remedy that by revamping the theme and moving some files around. Starting tomorrow or Thursday, you will probably see some strange things here. By Saturday, I should have the updates complete and then be able to jump back into the swing of things. Thank you for all of your support!

Site Updates To Tickle Your Fancy

I'm really excited to announce some major updates to The Baptist Muse. Over the course of the past week, I have implemented several major and a few minor changes to this website. You will notice a new rating system for each blog post, a new rank structure at the forum, a new awards system at the forum, and the biggest update of all...an Independent Fundamental Baptist Church Directory in the resources section of the site. If you haven't taken advantage of these updates yet, be sure to check them out.

Forum Rank and Awards Systems

If you haven't posted anything at the Forum, what are you waiting for? The Baptist Muse Forum is a growing community where you can post questions and share thoughts about any topic in the world. And Now you will achieve rank for the more posts that you post and you can receive medals and recognition for your accomplishments through our band new awards system!

You'll start out as a private but you can work your way all the way up to Five Star General! You will also be able to complete challenges that we have posted to earn Challenge Ribbons. It's a great way to connect with others and it's loads of fun!

Check Out The Awards Here!

Check Out The Rank Structure Here!

Also, keep in mind that this week our weekly give away is being based solely on posts at the forum! You could win a free book just for checking it out!

Independent Fundamental Baptist Church Directory

I have implemented a thorough listing of Independent Fundamental Baptist Churches in each of the fifty states and the District of Columbia. Swing by there and make sure that your church is listed and properly updated. If not, just stop by the contact page and let me know what I can do to fix it...and I will....usually right away!

Check Out The Church Directory Here!

Blog Posts Rating System

I have also just implemented a rating system so that you can grade each of the posts at the Blog. You should notice the little star rating system at the bottom of each post. Leave one star if you didn't like a post and five stars if you thought that it was fantastic! Don't worry about being nice, just be honest! This will help me to understand which topics are the most entertaining or useful for you and will help me to improve the quality of the content here. Thanks in advance for the input!

There you have it! Those are this week's updates at The Baptist Muse. Be sure to check each of them out and be sure to leave some feedback so that I can continue to improve the quality of the site!


Thanks for being the best readers in the world!


In Christ,

Nick

First-Rate Christian Wallpaper

This page is a collection of christian wallpapers that I have been and am continuing to collect from around the internet. I am contantly looking for more images to add to the collection so please email me any pictures that I could add to this collection. Thank you in advance.

Newest Resources and Site Updates

Here at The Baptist Muse, I am constantly striving to add new links to top quality Independent Fundamental Baptist websites. I have categorized these links into an organized database over at the 'Resources' section of the Baptist Muse. Just click the 'Resources' button at the top of any page to check it out. That section of the website includes links to sermon downloads and podcasts, creation science articles and videos, King James Only resources, and much more! And the best part is that this section of the site is constantly expanding! In fact, here are a couple of links that I've been able to add just this week.

Hook Publications

We are excited about the opportunity God has given us to produce and market Christ-honoring materials. It is a fact that people make life-changing decisions based on the books they read and the people they meet. For that reason we want to get good books and Godly music into their hands. The materials that target the youth are particularly designed to give young people an alternative to secular entertainment. Our goal is to promote Jesus Christ, the King James Bible and to change lives. To this end, we are committed. We hope you enjoy the materials that our family has to offer.

Way Of Life Literature

Established in 1974, Way of Life Literature is a 31-year-old Fundamental Baptist preaching and publishing ministry based in Bethel Baptist Church, London, Ontario. Wilbert Unger is the Pastor of Bethel Baptist. The founder and director is David W. Cloud. At this web site you will find thousands of books and articles that we have placed here for the edification and protection of God's people. Be sure to check out the Way of Life Encyclopedia of the Bible & Christianity and the End Times Apostasy Database. The goal of Way of Life Literature is to stand for the truth of God's Word without compromise, to preach the Gospel, and to produce well-documented materials to strengthen New Testament churches in these apostate days.

A Team Effort

As I continue in my efforts to expand the usefulness and thoroughness of The Baptist Muse, I invite you to join with me. I welcome suggestions, ideas, or tips of any kind. If you are a pastor and you want your sermons listed, if you are a webmaster and you want your site added to our database, if you are a nobody like me and you just happen to know of a great website, sermon podcast, Christian wallpaper, or any other resource that I might be able to add to the site, then please email me or leave a comment.


In Christ,

Nick

Freelance Chrsitian Writers: Write For Us

If you are reading this article “Write For Us” , it’s probably because you are interested in writing for The Baptist Muse. Great! :)

I would like to develop a team of writers, preachers, godly wives, Christians, bloggers, [insert title here], and of course I'm always looking for quality content to publish on the blog.

If you’re a writer and an Independent Baptist, you're looking for a place to publish your work, and you can give great advice or write a great article about life, Christianity, finances, or whatever, get in contact with me.

What I Am Looking For

Please take some time to read the posts already published, so you get the idea of what The Baptist Muse is about. I'm looking for well-written posts/articles that Christians and Americans will be interested in reading, as simple as that.

If you would like to suggest a resource for our “resources” section, please leave me some comments also.

If you’re looking to get a little more exposure to your own blog and want to get your name out there, writing on The Baptist Muse should help you do just that.

Rules And Guidelines

Here are some basic “rules and guidelines”. Common sense really. ;)

• 500 words minimum
• No images, I will add one
• Spell check before sending your post(s)
• If you’re not sure, send a sample of your work. (I don’t bite :) )
• I reserve the right to edit your post (h3 and strong tags, punctuation, grammar)
• Include a byline/signature (with 2 links max)
• No affiliate links
• No links to questionable websites

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me through my email. Please put “Write For Us” in the subject line.

Thank you very much,

Nick - The Baptist Muse

Mozilla Firefox and The Baptist Muse

Well, folks, on Wednesday, I overhauled the commenting system here at The Baptist Muse Blog to a new system called 'Intense Debate.' For the most part, this new commenting system is much sleeker, cooler, and easier to use than the blogger system that I was previously utilizing. Some of my faithful readers have, however, found a few bugs in the system. Actually, we have found one.

If you use Internet Explorer, there is a good chance that the system will not let you comment anonymously from the main page. You can comment anonymously from one of the post pages, but not from the main page. You can also login to the Intense Debate system and you will be able to post from the main page which is actually an interesting option.

The system is designed to track people's commenting, allowing them to grow in reputation as they leave more comments and as other people vote on the quality of their discussion. You will notice the little thumbs up and thumbs down at the side of each comment. This tracking system will allow you to leave comments at other blogs that have the system installed and be able to track them all from one place.

Of course, they are just getting started, so they don't have a huge number of blogs using it yet, but they are making such rapid forward progress in their design work that I don't see why they won't continue to grow in popularity. They have a great design that is basically fueled by inviting users to critique it and make suggestions.

The situation with Internet Explorer reminded me of some of the reasons why I no longer use it. I had found many images and sections of web pages (especially Javascript) that do not display correctly in that browser. Since I have switched to Mozilla Firefox, my Internet experience has been much more enjoyable.

Firefox is a free web browser that has basically been designed by the public so as soon as people notice glitches in it, it is fixed and it automatically updates itself. I have never had a problem viewing a web page since I made the switch and I can say that The Baptist Muse looks much different between the two browsers. I am not joking when I say that the site is best viewed in Mozilla Firefox.

An Overhauled Conversation System

As many of you have probably already noticed, I have changed and updated the commenting system here at The Baptist Muse. You can now leave comments without having to leave the page. That means no more bouncing over into the blogger comment system every time you want to communicate over here. Simply select the comments link at the bottom of the post and watch as the comments box slides open beneath the post. You can even leave comments without ever leaving the main blog page. Go ahead and leave some comments and try it out.
I was even able to keep most of the comments that had already been posted from the old blogger system that I had been using. I say most and not all because a few of the comments did not survive the import process that I used to get them over. I tried importing them several times, but each time I lost about 15% of the comments that were on here. Oh well, I guess.

This also allows me to advertise the number of comments at the bottom of each email update that gets sent out! I am having a little trouble with this particular feature right now, but I estimate that I will have it working within the next day or two!

This comment system is so much cooler than the old one! I will definitely be needing some feedback on this because I am sure that their are some glitches that I have missed. Please let me know so that I can fix it right away. Thanks.

Also, let me throw in a funny story that I heard on Paul Harvey today while I was driving. Supposedly this is a true event that took place. A man walked into a post office and robbed it at gunpoint. He was able to get a good sum of money and then he escaped. The police had nothing to go on and the culprit got away scott free.

While he was there, however, he noticed that the receptionist at the counter was quite attractive and he actually developed an infatuation for her. He returned several days later with a bouquet of flowers to ask for her forgiveness and to invite her on a date. Stealthily she triggered the silent alarm. A few minutes later he was arrested and hauled off to jail. What a moron!

New at The Baptist Muse - The Book Club

As many of you have probably already noticed, yesterday I launched The Baptist Muse Forum. I would like to invite you all to swing by and check it out. One of the key features within the forum is the section entitled "Book Club." I have set up a system where we as a community can select a book each month to read.

I'm am very excited about the book club and am looking forward to seeing who will join in with me in reading a book each month. I invite you all to jump in and read some of the books that will begin showing up in this forum.

According to the rules that I set up, we should spend the first three weeks in February selecting our book for March. Since, however, the month of February is almost over, I am going to select a book of interest to me (How self serving, right?) to get things started.

Of course, next week we will begin the selection process for April's book. I invite you all to get involved. I am not going to be the one selecting the books in the future. Everyone else is. I am going to have you all contribute a book idea and then we will all vote on them as a community to determine which one we are going to read. For more information about the selection process check out the rules over at the post entitled "Welcome to The Book Club."

I am trying to expand the genres that I read to include history, biographies, cultural studies, leadership, spiritual, and classic fiction (I prefer not to read any fiction that has been written within the past 100 years). I am most concerned with expanding my knowledge base and growing as a person while also trying to find books that are not boring but rather enjoyable and easy to read. I invite you all to join me on that journey.

By Duty Bound : Survival and Redemption in a Time of War

For the month of February I have selected a book entitled "By Duty Bound - Survival and Redemption in Vietnam" by Brig. Gen. Ezell Ware, Jr. When I read the back of the book, I became so captivated that I just knew it had to be the next book that I read. Allow me to share that with you and I think that you will begin to see what I mean.

"The inspiring true story of a black soldier who left the segregated South - only to land in a struggle for survival alongside a racist white captain in the jungles of Vietnam.

"Raised in Mississippi, Ezell Ware was determined to excel beyond the limits put upon him. Having grown up without running water, electricity, or sufficient food, he wasn't daunted by the hardships of military life - and became the top recruit in his marine training class. Eventually he earned a chance to join the Army's helicopter pilot program and ralize his dream of flying. it was a role that would change his life...and the life of an unlikely brother in valor at the height of the Vietnam War.

"Downed by enemy fire, Ware and his badly injured captain endured a three-week trek through hell, with one canteen and little defense against countless deadly forces. But when his captain revealed his membership in the KU Klux Klan, the situation took a turn that surprised them both - and set Ezell upon the road to becoming a general.

"A unique memoir of heroism and humanity, By Duty Bound captures a crucial chapter in American history - through the eyes of one of its most remarkable witnesses."

The Baptist Muse Topsites

I am very pleased to announce the addition of another new segment on The Baptist Muse website: The Baptist Muse Topsites. The purpose of the Baptist Muse Topsites is not simply for me to track the number of hits and page views that websites get. The main purpose is to allow Christian web site creators a free means in which to gain some traffic as long as their site meets my Independent Baptist Criteria.

There are so many resources on the internet for Independent Baptists to utilize but it is so difficult to find them all. It doesn't take long to learn that you can create the best web site on the Internet but that it is next to useless if you can't get people to visit it. This is my attempt to bring together some of those resources in an effort to encourage the continued development of Christian websites and to allow Christian internet users to find solid, Biblically sound internet content.

P.S. If you sign up for The Baptist Muse Topsites it enters you into the contest for a $25.00 Give Away on Valentine's Day. In fact, it is worth five tickets for that drawing.