Steven Colborne's Blog, page 32

Don’t Just Write into the Void: Read Other Blogs!

Even though I’ve been blogging for over a decade, I don’t consider myself an ‘expert’ (because I’m not sure there is such a thing). However, I have learned a lot, and I do get frustrated because 90% of bloggers simply write articles, with no thought of promoting their work. They get next to zero readers. And so they get despondent and give up. So many bloggers will write one or two posts, get disappointed that their work isn’t being read, and so abandon their writing endeavours entirely.

No! This is not good, because so much great writing gets lost. You need to view WordPress as a community. We have an amazing tool called the Reader, which if you weren’t aware is like a search engine for WordPress blogs. You can choose ‘tags’ to follow, in accordance with your interests, and you can read and comment on other people’s blogs. This is what people in the WordPress community should be doing!

I’m not an advocate for ‘aggressive’ blog promotion, even though I have been guilty of doing it sometimes. By ‘aggressive’ I mean liking lots of posts without really reading them properly. What I usually do is follow lots of blogs that look interesting, and then when the new posts from these blogs come into my inbox, I read them and then decide whether to continue following them or unsubscribe. I have to be selective, of course, because no one has the attention to follow hundreds of blogs in an engaged way.

I do try to regularly read blogs carefully and thoughtfully and offer honest reflections and encouragement in the comments. And you should do this too! Because if you build relationships with other bloggers, you will have a deeper level of engagement, make friends, and perhaps your blog following will subsequently grow, which will give you the motivation to keep writing.

Also, just get a few basics in place. Make sure your blog has a profile photo, as this will appear in the emails that go out to your subscribers and when you comment. Otherwise your blogging efforts look half-hearted. Also, spend a bit of time putting together a menu with an ‘About’ page, a ‘Contact’ page, and some other pages perhaps, and learn a bit about how to customise your blog. WordPress support has loads of useful articles about this! So you have no excuse not to.

Don’t just expect to post into the void and for people to discover and read your blog, it doesn’t work like that. Take advantage of the amazing resource that is the WordPress Reader, always be kind in your comments, and see promoting your work as just as important as writing. This is if you take your writing seriously!

*Steps down from soapbox*

Discovering the Qur’an

Muslims believe the Qur’an is a perfect revelation from God, and the Qur’an describes itself as an unassailable Scripture which falsehood cannot touch from any angle (Surah 41:41-42).

Since I read the Qur’an, and was powerfully moved by what I read, I have tried to encourage my Christian friends to read it. I have had very little success. I understand on one level, because Christians feel a profound fear of doing anything which might compromise their faith or draw them away from Jesus. Also, the way the media often portrays Islam can lead Christians to be frightened of and resistant to the religion.

But what if the Qur’an really is a perfect revelation from God? What if the claims it makes within its pages are true; that Islam really is the religion above all other religions, and that it contains the clearest direction for humankind when it comes to matters of faith? Is it really wise to simply disregard the Qur’an based on hearsay, without having read it?

Before I read the Qur’an for the first time, I prayed about it. This seemed wise, because surely if we go to God with a humble heart and ask for His direction, He will not guide us in any way that is detrimental to our spiritual health. God directed me to read the Qur’an, and what I discovered was a life-changing Scripture more beautiful than I had ever imagined.

I would like to invite you to read my short book, Discovering the Qur’an, which was birthed from the notes that I made while reading the Qur’an for the first time. The book highlights some of the similarities and differences between Christianity and Islam, and also tells of some of the things that surprised me about the Qur’an, as well as some of the things that left me feeling confused and needing further direction.

I have just made Discovering the Qur’an available for free as an eBook from all digital retailers. This includes Amazon Kindle, Apple Books, Rakuten Kobo, Barnes & Noble Nook, and various other retailers and libraries. To view a retailer choice page for the book, which has links that will direct you to your local store for the retailer you choose, click here.

Do you need help with writing, publishing, or promoting a book?

Having self-published more than a dozen books, I have learned a lot about self-publishing and the publishing industry in general. My books have been purchased or downloaded many thousands of times, and with more than a decade of self-publishing experience I’m now in a position to help other authors to write, publish, and promote their books.

Tealight Books is my publishing imprint and has now been developed to incorporate author services. Some of the things I’m able to help authors with include the following:

Refining and developing an idea for a bookFinding the right editor for your bookBuilding an author platformOptimising a blog for book salesBlog promotion and marketingCreating an author websiteBook cover design and interior formattingDistribution of books and eBooksBook promotion and marketing
…and much more!

I’m looking to work with individuals at any stage of their book publishing journey to help clarify and achieve their goals and make an impact in their chosen genre. My expertise is mainly in non-fiction, though I’m open to working with any author who is producing work that is groundbreaking or interesting.

Visit the Tealight Books website to learn more.

I’m offering a 20% discount on my service fees until the end of February 2022, though I can only work with one or two clients at a time so space is limited. I’m open to working with authors anywhere in the world, and I can accommodate different time zones and preferred methods of communication.

With any questions, or with an expression of interest, please email steven@tealightbooks.com. It would be great to hear from you.

I’ll Carry Your World

Coldplay are a rare band in that they are hugely popular and also good! I love their music so much and hardly listen to anything else these days. I find it interesting that their lyrics, though they (frustratingly) don’t always make sense to me, often reference God. I also heard Chris Martin, the band’s lead singer, saying in an interview that songs sometimes just ‘come down’ to him — more evidence that he’s aware of the existence of God.

Coldplay song titles like ‘Higher Power’ and ‘Church’ and lyrics like “I know Saint Peter will call my name” point to the singer’s (Catholic?) faith, though I haven’t heard him profess to being a Christian in an interview. I’d love to talk with him about the spiritual aspects of his music — I would have lots of questions about his lyrics!

Anyway, I thought I would share my current favourite Coldplay song with the hope that it brings someone reading this as much joy as it has brought me. There are very few Coldplay songs that I don’t love, but this is my current favourite and I’ve had it on repeat since I discovered it recently. The song is called ‘Atlas’. It’s a beautiful video as well. Enjoy!

I hope you were able to view the video in whichever region you’re in (I know sometimes embedded videos are restricted by YouTube). If there’s a song that you’re in love with at the moment, please leave a comment and let me know so I can take a listen. Blessings!

StevenColborne.com

Greetings, friends! I have some good news to share. I made my book God’s Grand Game available for free as an eBook recently and it must have been featured somewhere because more than 800 people have downloaded the book in the last 3 days. I’m so happy about this because as an independent author with next to no budget for promotion it can be very difficult to reach an audience with my books. The Kindle store has more than 18 gazallion books in it (did you know?!) and without advertising, books tend to languish in the realm of invisibility. So I’m really pleased.

If you’re an author, I definitely recommend making a book available for free, even if it’s only for a limited time. I know it can feel painful to do this — you’ve laboured over your work and you know its value — but seriously, if you don’t want your book/s to be near non-existent this is one of the few promotional tactics at your disposal. Use it wisely!

I also wanted to mention that I’ve updated StevenColborne.com. It’s now the most simple of simple websites as it just showcases my books. I was using the site to promote this blog, my YouTube channel, my music, and various other of my online endeavours, but a wise person once said that it’s always good to focus on your biggest passion and what you would most like to be known for rather than diluting your online personality so much that people don’t really understand how to relate to you. So I’m focusing on being Mr Books (I will always be Mr Blog as well, of course, but that’s all part of the same shebang — writing!).

I’m currently reading Bart Ehrman’s book Heaven and Hell as part of my research for my work-in-progress book, Divine Justice. Ehrman’s book is really interesting, I do recommend it. You will likely disagree with some of it if you’re a Christian, but it’s still a very good read and the footnotes have given me some ideas for further research for my upcoming book release.

Make sure you get a free copy of God’s Grand Game if you haven’t read it yet and I’ll no doubt be posting again soon, perhaps with a book review of Heaven and Hell. Peace be with you!

Housing Update

Friends, I haven’t posted in a few days as I haven’t known what to write. Much to my surprise, on Tuesday morning I was spending some time in prayer, and God directed me to go back to the flat. I had been in the hotel for two nights and had booked a third night in another hotel, but apparently God had other plans.

The situation in my flat leaves me feeling continually on edge, but it must be that God wants me to be here for the time being at least. I am continually in a state of preparedness to leave again at short notice, but it could be the case that God wants me to stay here and that it’s safer here than being homeless. I’m taking things one day at a time.

Thanks again to everyone who has prayed for me. Prayers for my safety and for a clear way forward would be appreciated. I know I’m not in a terrible situation compared to many people, and I count my blessings each and every day, while praying for positive breakthroughs.

I don’t want to bore anyone by sharing my woes on here too often, but your support and friendship and prayers are truly appreciated and have helped me enormously. I hope to go back to posting about the research I’ve been doing for my Divine Justice book, as I have been working on this when circumstances have allowed. It’s interesting how my life circumstances feed into the matters I’m contemplating while undertaking this research — truly, God has a plan and is the best of teachers.

Sometimes in life I feel so utterly wretched and broken that the only thing I can do is just surrender. I pray and I beg and I plead with God to lift my spirits but I find myself swamped by despair. God is infinite in wisdom and knows me better than I know myself, which gives me some comfort. I only hope to be a recipient of His mercy in this life, and especially in the next.

Thank you for reading and peace be with you.

Donations

I slept well last night but woke up feeling anxious. My circumstances are presently quite comfortable, but there is also a great deal of uncertainty. I have stayed in this budget hotel for the last two nights (tonight will be my third night). I have been praying to God for clarity and direction, and I know that God hears every prayer, so I am trusting Him to show me a positive way forward in the coming days.

One thing I felt prompted to do yesterday evening is set up a Donations page on this blog. What I am hoping is that kind donations from readers of this blog, coupled with sales of my books, will provide enough of an income to keep me from having to sleep on the streets. When I have the stability to do so, I’m going to focus on promoting my writing. I feel what I have to say, and what I have written about in the 400+ articles on this blog and in my books, is of value to some people. If this is true, I’m hoping some readers will help me out with some financial support in return. As I mentioned yesterday, I have already received two very generous donations from readers. This is hugely encouraging.

There is a strange atmosphere in the air at the moment. Everyone seems tense. London is ‘edgy’ at the best of times, but things at the moment feel darker than usual. I think the effects of everything related to Covid are beginning to really take their toll on society. Even though the shops are open (or, at least, most of them are in this area), I have a feeling that things will become even more unstable in the coming weeks. At present, I feel it’s best to live in the moment and take things one day at a time, and I’m mindful of this famous passage from the Sermon on the Mount:

“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”

(Matthew 6:25-34 ESV)

I hope to reassure you that if you’re feeling troubled at the moment, you’re not alone. Stay focused on the things of God, as this is surely the most stable footing to be on. Read the Scriptures and spend time in prayer. God is in control and His plan for creation will come to pass — He is absolutely unstoppable.

If you are in a position to lend me some financial support at this difficult time, please visit the donations page. Everyone who donates will receive a gift. Thank you so much!

The Days are Evil

Wandering the streets of London during the night recently has provided ample evidence that we live in truly evil times. One random stranger offered me cocaine (of course, I declined). Other strangers were full of aggression and cursing. People are so far astray, it seems, that sometimes to even mention the existence of God seems inappropriate — it just comes across to these people as an empty word; they do not realise that God exists and is their hope. Nevertheless, I try to mention the name of God and His ability to turn difficult situations around at every possible opportunity. God guides whoever He will, and leaves to stray whoever He will.

Tonight is my second night in the hotel. There is relative calm here. It is well-organised and clean and on the whole very quiet, though there are still door slammers (what’s with all the door slamming?!) and cursers, as well as people who look guilty and are perhaps up to some kind of mischief. The receptionists have been friendly and helpful. I slept soundly last night, except that this morning I experienced severe anxiety and it was a struggle getting up and facing all the uncertainty of my present circumstances.

I feel very grateful to have received financial gifts from two readers of this blog. For the last few months I have been struggling to get out of my overdraft and am on a very tight budget. These gifts caused me to feel a great deal of relief. I have been praying today about the best course of action to take in the immediate future, and I hope that by tomorrow, when I am due to check out of this hotel, I will have a clear plan. I have to trust that God will protect me and not give me over to the will of evildoers. As the Qur’an makes clear, evildoers never prosper. Psalm 37 is also a great encouragement in this respect.

I thought I would elaborate briefly on why I’ve been finding my neighbour so difficult to live with. Some of the things he does include folding the carpet in the communal area in strange ways so as to cause a tripping hazard, screaming loudly and aggressively when I am in earshot (he pretends to be screaming at his cat, but I believe he does this to try to hurt me emotionally), slamming the doors extremely loudly, playing music so loudly it can be heard at the end of street, stamping on the stairs as he walks past my flat…. he is far, far astray and his behaviour is unnecessary and very wicked. I have felt as though he is continually seeking a physical confrontation, and this is the main reason why leaving the flat recently felt like the wisest option.

I’m not sure what I will do tomorrow. I need to check out of this hotel by 12pm unless I prolong my stay. The thought of returning to the flat tomorrow pains me, but if I do go back I hope that God will guide and protect me. The most important thing is that I am in right standing with God and that He will save me from the fires of hell of judgement day. This is my petition to God and my overarching ambition.

Peace be with you all and thank you for your support.

The Many Ways God Blessed Me Today

It’s around 10pm UK time as I type. I wanted to just post a reflection on the ways that God has blessed me today, even as my personal circumstances have been challenging. I want you to know that your prayers for me have not been in vain and that I’m currently feeling relaxed, grounded, and positive.

There’s a YouTube video I’ve been watching on repeat in recent weeks. The video features ultra-minimalist Ethan Freckles (pictured), who lives a nomadic lifestyle and survives by foraging for discarded food items in trash cans. He sleeps outside every night. You can watch a short interview with him here.

I thought of Ethan this morning, as I was considering how I would be able to sustain myself with a very tight budget in the coming days. And then, God surprised me with a little miracle. I was walking along one of the roads here in South London and there was a bench on which was an array of discarded rubbish, including mostly near-empty fizzy drinks bottles. Among the bottles I noticed a surprising sight — a sealed tub of noodles! This must have been someone’s intended packed lunch, as it was tightly hand-wrapped in cling film. To begin with, I felt a little uneasy about the possibility of picking this up and taking it for myself. This is partly because society instills in us a fear of germs and such, and I didn’t know what ingredients were in the container or where it came from. I was also concerned about stealing. But while I was walking off and leaving the pot of noodles among the discarded rubbish, I thought of Ethan Freckles and how surely this noodle surprise was a blessing from God. So I picked it up and put it in my bag!

I’m delighted to say that when I had the noodles for dinner this evening they were absolutely delicious, containing large pieces of chicken, some vegetables, and a lovely sauce. I really enjoyed them! Thanks be to God. Mr Freckles would be proud of me!

I was a little early arriving at my hotel this afternoon and my room wasn’t ready yet, so I took a walk around the nearby shopping area and found a bench on which to rest. My shoulders were sore from carrying my heavy 40 litre backpack all day, and it was nice to just sit and rest for a while. After sitting on the bench for around 20 minutes, I noticed that literally in front of my eyes there was a lamppost on which someone has stuck a notice about a drop-in service for homeless people! The service is run on Mondays by a local church. I took a snap of the notice with my phone, thinking how this was obviously an answer to the prayers of the incredibly kind readers of this blog.

And this wasn’t the end of today’s blessings. The room I checked into in the hotel happens to be kitted out for accessibility, which means that it’s very spacious. The bathroom is huge! I love having the space because in the past I have been prone to panic attacks. And of course everyone enjoys a bit of extra space in their accommodation as it creates calm and peace. Thanks be to God!

I was feeling quite anxious earlier and spent some time in prayer, and listening to the Qur’an. I was in floods of tears listening to surahs about the inevitability of the day of judgement, and the way God is going to put right every wrong. I thought about my neighbour, who has been behaving so unkindly in the building where I’ve been living, and I was comforted knowing that while he lives a life of lies and aggression on Earth, he will one day face God and be called to account for everything he has done. I know that to some Christians it might seem unkind of me to be comforted knowing that judgement is coming, and I have also been mindful of Jesus’ teaching about loving our enemies and praying for those who persecute us. I have yet to reconcile my understanding of the emphasis on justice in the the Qur’an with the emphasis on forgiveness in Christianity. This is partly why I’m writing my work-in-progress book titled ‘Divine Justice’ — to discuss these issues.

I wanted to say a huge thank you once again to everyone who read my posts today, and especially everyone who prayed for me. Three blog posts in one day is unusual for me (I don’t think I’ve ever done it before) but it has been an unusual day in many respects. I appreciate your support so much and please do keep me in your prayers. I’m going to say a prayer tonight for all readers of this blog as well. May God bless you abundantly for your kindness.

So do not be harsh with the orphan and do not chide the one who asks for help; talk about the blessings of your Lord.

(Surah 93: 9-11)

Update on Housing Situation

Huge thanks for your supportive messages and prayers, means the world to me.

After I published my recent post this morning I met a friend for coffee. She had some good advice, to attempt to find an alternative place through the housing association I currently rent from. They work Mon-Fri, 9-5, so I will have to contact them Monday morning.

In the meantime I found a reasonably priced hotel in my local area which I have booked for two nights. I can’t afford it and will be going into my overdraft but I think it’s the right move. I have done a lot of walking and haven’t slept so it’s a huge relief to know I will have my own room and a bed tonight and tomorrow.

I will be carefully considering all your suggestions and thanks again for your support! I might write a longer post with a bit more of the backstory this evening.

Thanks be to God!