If you’re reading this, the chances are you like to read blogs and listen to podcasts. Otherwise why would you be visiting this blog?

I admit, I’m an information junkie… I listen to around 15-20 podcasts a week (ranging from 30mins to over an hour each) and read a similar amount of blogs. There’s great benefit to being a learner, a reader, a listener… and there’s also some danger. The Bible says that “Knowledge puffs up” (1 Cor 8:1), so we need to be careful to keep on learning but without allowing that new knowledge to make us proud.

So if you ever listen to podcasts (talking about podcasts from another church than your home church), or read blogs regularly, the points below will be vital for you:

1) If you get more excited about listening to a Brian Houston/Joyce Meyer/Mark Driscoll message than a message from your own pastor in your own church, you have an issue.

It’s so important to remember that even these globally-recognised communicators are still speaking in a local context, to a specific group of people, within the mandate God has given them. They’re not primarily speaking to you in your situation. You are in your local church for a reason, under that leadership for a reason and God wants you there and the likelihood is that you probably need to hear what your pastor has to say.

2) If you like it when you hear preachers bad mouth other churches, preachers, Christian groups, you have a SERIOUS problem.

Now, there are instances when pastors have to protect the church from false teachers, but when anyone publicly attacks a fellow believer based on anything short of blatant heresy, they’re out of order. So often, believers attack fellow believers based on secondary issues and that is shocking. We’re on the same team!

3) If you only ever listen to or read the perspective you already have, you are missing out.

Proverbs says that wisdom is found in many counsellors. Why? Because no one person has all the answers, or all the correct perspectives. If you are going to listen to podcasts or read blogs regularly, it’s important to understand that whoever you listen to, I don’t care how famous they are, they still don’t have all the answers! What one preacher says to do in his context, in his city, to his people might not necessarily be the right thing to do where you are.

4) If you are listening to others and reading other people’s blogs more than seeking God for yourself by reading His Word and talking with Him, you’re trusting man, not God.

It’s so easy to be caught up in the information available today that we miss the revelation God has for us waiting in His Living Word, the Bible. A podcast is no substitute for a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. A podcast is definitely no substitute for being in a local church. I’m not saying it can’t be a part of your personal Christian discipleship, but don’t let it be the main thing.

Having said all that, I’d love to know what podcasts/blogs you tune in to each week… Feel free to leave a comment and let me know…

- Dave