by Blythe Daniel @ByltheDaniel

One of the things I hear from writers is: “I have a hard time building followers. It’s just not me.”

And while I hear the heart behind this comment, I think we are missing the true intent of followers.

When I want to understand why I feel a certain way about something, I go to scripture. Is this just me feeling this way, God, or did you already speak into this situation?

John, someone who spent a considerable amount of time with Jesus and knew Him well, shared this sentiment that I haven’t been able to let go of as I think about the topic of feeding people not focusing on followers.

 “and a great crowd of people followed him because they saw the signs he had performed by healing the sick. Then Jesus went up on a mountainside and sat down with his disciples.”
John 6:2-3  (NIV)

People followed Jesus because He offered them something they couldn’t get on their own. He was a carrier of his Father’s love and the one who could heal who was sick or what was messed up or broken. People came to Him because of what He did and what He spoke that changed their lives.

His disciples followed Him but most of them, if not all, deserted Him in his final hours. There were far fewer disciples than followers. Disciples are the ones we are intentionally building into and discipleship is an important part of showing others who God is to them.

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But Jesus wasn’t building followers for the sake of building followers – He came to build our faith.

Perhaps we need to focus more on building the faith of others and the way to do that is to engage with the followers who see us. The hunger is there. How are we going to feed people and not just build followers?

Some ways that we can effectively build the relationships (followers) we are entrusted with are:

1. Focus on pointing people to the Father not to yourself.
2. Give testimony and glory to God for what He is doing in your writing.
3. Show people the book (or writing topic), opportunity, or scripture that is manifesting in your life.
4. Remain humble and ready to serve the people God puts in your path.
5. Build genuine relationships that serve God not each other.
6. Celebrate what God is doing in others and show His faithfulness is not limited.

What we say when we write a newsletter, create a social media post, write a blog post or article will attract people when it’s less about us and more about what God is doing or can do in them. Drawing people to remember that God is very active in our lives today. He has good plans for His children. We are his ambassadors and are called to create intentional relationships to show others who Christ is, not who people may think He is or make Him out to be these days.

Paul shares “that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors.” 2 Cor. 5:19-20 (NIV)

As those who are announcing, representing, and sharing Christ in who we are (in-person and online) to others, let’s not forget that Christ cared more that followers trusted the Father, the one who sent Him, rather than how many were following Him.

When he withdrew to rest, He wasn’t concerned if he would lose followers. His time with the Father allowed Him to minister to His followers. He knew the places that His Father directed Him to go, and the followers came because they were attracted to what Jesus was saying and doing to point them to eternal life.

May it be with our writing, speaking and engagement with others. Let’s shift our focus to being followers of Jesus and feeding followers the Bread of Life, Jesus Christ.

Blythe Daniel is a literary agent and marketer and has been in publishing for over 20 years. She has written for Proverbs 31 Ministries, Focus on the Family, Ann Voskamp, and Christian Retailing. She and her mother Dr. Helen McIntosh are the authors of Mended: Restoring the Hearts of Mothers and Daughters (Harvest House Publishers).

www.theblythedanielagency.com; www.ourmendedhearts.com