By Justin Edwards
As we turn the page of history from 2010 to 2011, airō is approaching its one-year anniversary. Just last February, I believe God led me to develop this blog and it has truly been a blessing. The readership in the first year has been astounding, and I'm so thankful to see God using this website to edify the Body of Christ. The encouragement and feedback I've received over this past year has been overwhelming at times and has served to not only push me forward, but to humble me before the Lord Jesus Christ in awe and wonder of His marvelous work through His Church.
The blog has gone through many changes since its inception to provide you with the most valuable Christian resources and in a way that is hopefully most user-friendly. Formatting changes, additional pages of airō, Vodpod videos, and the LinkWithin gadget have all seemed to enhance the usability of the site and the richness of resources to strengthen the faith of believers and call the lost to repentance. And just in time for this giveaway, I discovered and added another exciting tool that should greatly improve the commenting experience on the blog.
This new commenting platform is called DISQUS and you will find the application below each blog post. I'm very excited about it as it will make moderating easier and should make commenting for the readers more interactive as new comments do not require the page to be reloaded. Should you subscribe to the comments by email, you will also be able to respond directly from your email inbox without revisiting the blog. You also have the option to reply to and like individual comments, so they will be threaded and discussions can stay on topic. Posting is very easy as you can reply as a guest or sync with a number of social networks or other sites. As DISQUS is growing with over 20 million users now, you are sure to see this platform appear on more blogs and websites in the future. Best of all, you can keep track of all of your comments at all the websites using DISQUS, which will help you respond to your various discussions on the web.
Now that brings us to the gift giveaway! As a token of my appreciation for the faithful readers of airō and the Airo Follow facebook page, many of whom I have grown to cherish as dear brothers and sisters in Christ, I would like to give you the chance to receive a free gift from me. Of course, new readers can absolutely enter to qualify.
Just follow these two simple steps:
1. Subscribe to airō through Google Reader or a similar RSS feeder. Simply paste the following URL into your preferred feeder: http://airo-cross.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default
2. Post a comment in the new DISQUS platform below before January 30th (valid email address required if you do not sync with another social network account).
The drawing will take place on January 31st.
You might ask why I'm asking you to subscribe to an RSS feeder? These news feeds have revolutionized the way we receive and distribute information on the internet. It enables website owners to easily push out new material to their readers and gives you a "one-stop shop" for all of your news sites, blogs, and websites by bringing all updated content from these sites to you directly. This keeps you from having to visit multiple sites looking to see if content has been updated, and also saves you time on days where new content does not interest you. I have found RSS feeds to be invaluable as they give me confidence I never miss updated content from the dozens of websites I follow. I highly recommend Google Reader if you do not already have a feeder or wish to explore another option.
The second prize will be a $15 gift certificate to Custom Tract Resource. I find this ministry to be the best tract resource on the internet and am pleased to offer this gift to you.
In pondering this gift giveaway for airō's one-year anniversary, I thought about doing additional giveaways throughout the year. So, Lord willing, I will be offering similar gifts to you in the future that will serve to strengthen your faith and equip you to fulfill your responsibility in the Great Commission.
Well, that's a wrap for this announcement. If you have any questions as to the details or need help subscribing to an RSS feeder, just post in the comment box below.
I can't thank you enough for being a part of this online ministry. The fellowship that takes place on Airo Follow has been truly edifying to me and many others. If you have not commented or participated much in this past year, I hope you might consider jumping into the discussions and fellowship with us here on the blog and on facebook. Of course, questions from non-believers are most welcomed and encouraged!
May 2011 be the year you seek the Lord Jesus Christ like never before, and may He be most glorified in your life in the days to come.
Soli deo Gloria!
