It's time for the traditional look back at the posts that I wrote last year. Here are the 10 most trafficked, with #10 being the most-read of 2019 of last year's posts here on the blog.

1. Discipleship Story: Phillip Slaughter (July 22) I asked several friends from different ministry seasons to send me their thoughts on being discipled or discipleship. I was thankful for all of their responses. You can read the series here. Phillip is the pastor at First Baptist Church in Mansfield, Arkansas, and his post was deeply encouraging.

2. Image Credit: International Business Times

   Calling a Facebook foul (June 1) I had noticed that my metrics from Facebook were significantly decreased. As I began to do research, I found that a LOT of people were disturbed by Facebook's selective algorithms. A study by Western Journal determined that Facebook's algorithm change disproportionately impacted conservative sites. This post was about suggestions on combatting this social media censorship.

3. More reasons people leave the church (July 23) I began this series way back in 2004, examining different reasons that people leave their church. This post examined another reason: "People sometimes leave their church today because they can't say "no" well. Unfortunately, their "yes" may consign them to a service sentence. It's all for good purposes, but their service over time eclipses their joy and enthusiasm." Read the whole series here.

4. Nuff Said: Tulsi Gabbard's takedown of HRC, the ideal length of every social media post, the danger of expectations, the myth of dying Christianity, and Bad Lip Reading by Joe Biden (October 19) My "Nuff Said" series is a brief commentary on a few articles that have captured my attention around the web.

5. Guest Post: The Difficulty of Being a Pastor by Phillip Slaughter (January 22) I need to ask Phillip to write more! His posts gather a lot of traffic (he's a great writer!). He shared this post on Facebook about the struggles of serving as a pastor, and after reading it, I asked him for permission to share it.

6. Pastor Church Staff Appreciation Month (October 4) With October being dubbed Pastor Appreciation Month by Christendom (or Hallmark), I wanted to highlight the importance of a church's staff team. This post examines eight ideas for expressing genuine appreciation for your church staff.

7. Make much of Jesus (June 12) I began a study of the gospels in January using the the Christ Chronological Bible. I finished in June. This post reminded me once again of the joyful privilege of knowing Jesus. "He is the most important relationship in my life. He is Peace, Redeemer, Hope, Wonder, Friend, Truth, Guide, Counsel, Director, and More. He is Beyond, Other, Faithful, and Love. He is Awesome, Fearful, Creator and Joy simultaneously. He is Power and Quiet, Clear and Veiled, Holy and Near." #MakeMuchOfJesus

8. The danger of "the" (June 23) I was also teaching through the book of Genesis in 2019 (and 2018). One of the things I'd become aware of is that our English translations use capital LORD to indicate when it was translating the covenantal name of God Yahweh. However, all translations use "the LORD." And yet, the article "the" is not in the Hebrew. This entry looks at how that simple omission may hinder our awareness of the intimacy of Yahweh.

9. Why do Christian women struggle with friendships? (August 10) Yes. I wrote a post about Christian women's friendships (or their struggle having them). I was nervous writing and posting, and the post received some deep comments. "My observation is that women have trouble making friends. Especially Christian women. It can't be just me that has observed this." I offered five observations and asked ladies to respond.

10. The Christian sniper (January 5) This was the most trafficked post in 2019. It's political. So feel free to avoid if you hate politics. "I have been most disturbed by Christian leaders responses (or lack thereof) to President Trump. I have been shocked and watched disbelieving from the sidelines as a parade of celebrity evangelicals have lambasted Trump. In addition, I've chafed silently over the spiritual shaming these leaders have given to the church at large." This continues to be relevant as I hear more Christian leaders (most recently a Christianity Today editorial) snipe at the President in the absence of urging us to pray for the President.

Which would you vote for as the best post of 2019?

I'd love to hear from you. You can also peruse the archives here to identify another post that you enjoyed and enter it in the poll below. I'd love to hear any comments about the posts as well!