Frequently Caught Errors

Please edit your post and fix these before you submit:

  • “Bible” is always capitalized when referring to the Word of God. The term “biblical” is not. 
  • Leave only ONE space between sentences. (If you grew up with the 2-space rule between sentences, this was before digital publishing.)
  • The words pastor and pastor’s wife are NOT capitalized unless used as a title. E.g.: Pastor Mark Hensley (YES) … the pastor said … (YES)
  • “A 7-year-old boy” is hyphenated. “The boy was 7 years old” is not hyphenated.
  • The word “ministry” is NOT capitalized unless used in a title: St. Mark’s Women’s Ministry held their first event (YES). The women’s ministry at St. Mark’s held its first event (YES). To have a great youth ministry … (YES).
  • Sunday school is not a proper noun, but Sunday is. Unless used in a title, here’s the correct capitalization: Here’s a great Sunday school idea!
  • For quotation marks, please follow this guide: https://www.thepunctuationguide.com/quotation-marks.html#adjacent-punctuation
  • For ellipses, please leave a space – 3 … ’s – and a space. If you want to … feel free to … you get the gist …
  • For scripture quotations & references, please follow this format: “For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.” (2 Timothy 1:7)
  • For scripture quotations & references, please include the translation/version with the correct abbreviation: NIV, KJV, etc.
  • Worshiper and Worshipper are both correct, but we prefer 2 p’s. So keep it consistent: worshipped, worshipper, worshipping. (Yep, 2 p’s, please.)
  • For comma rules, please follow this guide: https://www.iue.edu/student-success/coursework/commas.html
  • The most frequent comma error we see: apples, oranges and bananas (INCORRECT) … apples, oranges, and bananas (CORRECT) … yes, in a list there IS a comma before the “and.”
  • Please be mindful to not begin 3 sentences in a row with the same word. Let everyone toss in their ideas … Let everyone decide on their … Let everyone take some time to … (INCORRECT)

Check out these 3 articles for examples of what we love. Each one shows clear formatting, practical content, and a strong progression from a need to a solution:

For a strong progression from need to solution, try this:

  1. Grab Their Attention: “If you’re looking for …. “
  2. Gain Their Interest: “Try this _________    because it’ll do this___________.”
  3. Give The Solution: “Here’s how …” (clear, logical instructions with headings and bullet points that help the reader apply what you’ve learned.)
  4. Get Them Dreaming: Remind them how great it will be if they do _________.
  5. Grow Their Confidence: Reassure them & remind them they can be successful