Dan King, a.k.a. BibleDude, is Social Media Editor at HighCallingBlogs.com (HCB), helping bloggers in the network make connections and build community not only by dropping by their blogs with encouraging comments, but also through social networking tools like Facebook and Twitter. He knows how to make the most of those tools to introduce people to each other and share great material, lifting us all up with his positive spirit.
Ann: Dan, you wear a lot of hats—corporate training manager for a telecommunications company, active member of your church, Social Media Editor at HighCallingBlogs.com, blogger at bibledude.net, husband, father. Am I forgetting anything?
Dan: Umm… wow! I didn’t realize that I was so busy until you put it like that! I also like to think of myself as a student. I am studying theology/ministry right now, and I love it! In fact, as a part of being an ‘active member of (my) church’ I teach in a small Bible College my church started to train people for ministry and missions. In that role, I am also constantly studying in preparation for teaching. You might say that I am quite a learning enthusiast.
Ann: I asked L.L. Barkat how she did it all. I’d like to ask you the same thing: How do you do all of that and do it so well?
Dan: I saw that you asked her that question, and I think that it’s a great one! I loved her response, and I couldn’t agree more. I think that there is a synergy in everything that I do. Each ‘activity’ does not stand alone as a separate task. Like many bloggers, much of my content comes from the things that I am living through right now. It’s about what I am learning, teaching, and doing. Even my role with High Calling Blogs is one that just fits well with the kinds of things that I already do. But the bottom line for me is that I absolutely love what I do! That passion is what drives me… sometimes I just wish that I could do more…
Ann: Well, as the Content Editor for Family over at HCB, I feel it is my duty to find out a little about your family life. Tell us about what you love most about being a dad.
Dan: If I have to pin it down to one thing, then I would have to say that I like being the guy that he looks up to. I always think of that (old) Phillips, Craig, and Dean song that goes something like, “Lord, I want to be just like you, because he wants to be just like me.” Being a dad causes me to constantly think about whether I am showing Christ-like behavior. I know that he sees everything that I do, and it blesses me when I see him doing things that reflect a love for the things of God.
In fact, just the other night he got up out of bed because he wanted to pray for the children in Haiti who had to sleep outside in the cold that night. I know that he sees us praying and trying to be sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit, and it literally brings me to tears when I see him pursuing God’s heart like this.
Ann: Parenting can be so inspiring. But it can also be challenging. Not only that, but parenting challenges our work—and work challenges our parenting. Could you talk about that from a personal perspective?
Dan: This is an interesting question. I’ve tried very hard to keep the mindset that my work is my ministry. So I try to show my son that this is not only how I make money to support our family, but also that daddy needs to be there to help other people who have various needs.
I’ve also been very fortunate to have something that connects my son to my job once per year. He’s seven now, but he was diagnosed with Type 1 (Juvenile) Diabetes when he was 17-months old. He has sort of been adopted by our office as we join a major fundraising event every year to help find a cure. This kind of thing seems to connect him to my job and he sees how important it is.
Ann: Your family sounds intertwined with people who truly care and are involved in your lives—that kind of support and community is priceless. On a different note, this week at HCB we’re inviting people to write their love stories and link up as part of a mini writing project. Can you tell us a few highlights from your love story with your wife, Krista?
Dan: Wow… we could do an entire interview on just this one. Krista is my everything. She is my rock. One thing that I always found to be special about her is that she always believed in me even during times of my life when no one else did. That kind of unconditional love and faith in who I am builds me up like nothing else can. She has always stood by me and encouraged me. I think that she has shown me the Love of Christ more than anyone else I know, that even when I don’t believe I’m worthy she loved me anyway. When that kind of love happens in someone’s life, powerful things can happen. And in me it did… it was her walk with the Lord that helped me to find God myself.
Ann: Now that’s a love story! Okay, on a much lighter note, I have to be honest…since I haven’t known you that long, I don’t know the story behind your alias. What’s the explanation for BibleDude?
Dan: Too funny! There’s really not a lot to it. I’m just a Florida boy who grew up on the beaches and ‘dude’ was (and still is) a regular part of my vocabulary. So as a dude who loved the Bible, I just figured that another way to refer to myself as a Christian was to refer to myself as a bible-dude. I also don’t view it as a special nickname for myself, but as a title that many people can have. Heck, even you can be a bibledude if you want, Ann! Or would you prefer bibledudess? Regardless of how you use it, I really find great joy in being able to connect with other believers the way I do through bibledude.net. I know that it has touched others, and they (readers) have touched my life in ways that are hard to explain.
Ann: Ah, so that’s it! Dude, it’s beach-talk! Well, no wonder I didn’t “get it”—I live in the landlocked Midwest, where we just got about two feet of snow (*sigh*). But it sounds like I don’t need to be at the beach to be a bibledude…I think I’ll be a BibleDudette. I like that. And I’m so glad to introduce you to my readers, Dan, so they can get to know another member of the HCB team.
Get to know Dan King, bibledude:
Facebook: Dan King
Facebook Fan Page: BibleDude.net
Twitter: @bibledude
YouTube: bibledudedotnet
Vimeo: bibledude
Flickr: bibledude
LinkedIn: Dan King
Photos by Dan King. Used with Permission.
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“I know that he sees us praying and trying to be sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit, and it literally brings me to tears when I see him pursuing God’s heart like this.”
What an incredible testimony. I hope I can say the same about mine in a few years…
Me, too. I hope I am as real and honest in how I live out my faith with my family as Dan has been with his family…and that my kids respond to that, seeing the need to turn to Jesus for everything. They’re much older. I suppose I could ask them….
Thanks! Just last night he wanted to pray again for the children in Haiti. His bedtime prayer was: “dear Jesus, be with the children in Haiti, and help them have a fun night if they found their family.”
Ugh! I can’t tell you how much I love hearing his prayers like this, and I can’t help but to think that armies of God’s angels stand at attention when he prays like this!
I too loved the part about praying. Such empathy to consider other children!
And a lot of this made me chuckle (towards the end : ). He’s the perfect Social Media Editor. You’ve brought that out so nicely.
What female reader doesn’t want to be a bible-dudette?
I’m glad to be the “family” editor at HCB so I can ask nosy questions about marriage, parenting, balance and how that all works.
LOL! LL still gets a kick out of the fact that I call her “the poetry chick”! She’s a bible-dudette whether she likes it or not…
I loved the song that he mentioned…the father’s perspective of wanting to be like Jesus because the son wants to be just like him…so made me see my husband and son for a second…and then my eyes clouded up too much to see anything else!
Thanks for this intro…look forward to getting to know everyone better
I’m so glad you stopped by, Bina, and little by little you can meet more HCB folks. Did you see LL’s interview last Friday? And Laura Boggess’s?
Thanks for mentioning this Bina! For me being a dad is about knowing that one of my most important ministries, and my greatest legacy is in that little man that I tuck into bed each night.
And by the way… that song makes me cry every time I hear it…
You picked a great topic today…my hubby! Thanks for all the kind words baby!
I love my husband! I am always fascinated to see how he can manage to balance all these things so well and love Samuel and I limitlessly too; he earns my respect and trust on a daily basis. He brings out the best in me and those around him all the time. Dan has always been someone who strives to get people to think [outside the box] and put action to their faith. I have never known him to be a “status quo” person or a “pew warmer”. He is always looking for ways to learn and better himself and those around him. I love him for that.
Keep Rockin’ it like a Rock Star babe! L♥ve you au latte!
Okay… while I had to giggle a little bit at all of the comments about how people got a tear in their eye over certain responses, I must admit that I got a tear in my eye reading this one! Thanks babe (Krista)!
Wow…it’s great to hear how much admiration and respect you have for each other. You also sound like you have a ton of fun!
What a great interview! I loved learning more about Dan, and his family! What a passionate heart for God. We are so blessed to have Dan on our team.
I’m glad you enjoyed it, Laura–he’s a fun one to interview!
I am blessed to ba a part of this team with people like you ladies (Laura and Ann)! Thank you!
Wow. I cannot wait to get more aquainted with HCB and Dan. There was a lot to ingest here…but as I try to find some sturdier balance in my life here with my writing, blogging, photography and family I find hope in connecting it all as parts of a larger ministry…and the father thing! Wow. With an adult son on the Worship team and in youth ministry training I too know what it is to watch a son pursue God with passion!
I found more inspiration and a light at the end of my structure tunnel…moving toward the light!
Thanks Ann…Dan. Blessings!
Andrea~Hopeannfaith
Thank you, Andrea, for your comment, and I’m so glad you are finding your voice, your art, your expression. Also, I love hearing about the legacy of worship and faith in your son seeking God so completely!
Andrea… I’ve done some group projects over at my blog that have left me in awe at how beautiful Christian community can be online, and I see lots of the same happening in HCB. so I am really glad to hear that you are finding value in connecting as a part of a larger ministry. I know that I’ve found the same thing, and I look forward to getting to know you better too!
thanks for posting this. I’ve been following BibleDude on twitter and facebook for awhile now, and I’m blessed to know him. such an encourager to run the race set before us! thanks, Dude! I’ll be praying for your son and his type 1.
monica, a bibledudette
Hello, fellow bibledudette! You’ve known Dan longer than I have and enjoyed his encouraging words and personality! Always glad to hear from you, Monica.
MONICA!!! You rock dude!I’m glad that we’ve been able to connect like we have for so long. I still crack up when I see certain tweets between you and your husband…
Thanks for the prayers for my son. We have been relatively blessed as it relates to his diabetes, and I attribute that completely to prayer. So thank you VERY much for those prayers!