Creative Writing as Ministry - 1. Introduction

 By. Sophia B.

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As a Christian writer who has written nonfiction articles, fictional stories for devotionals, and poetry, I have often asked myself if my work impacts people’s lives. I majored in Christian ministry for my undergraduate and graduate degrees, which causes me to question how creative writing compares with common ministry fields. Maybe you have similar questions as a writer. Can we serve Christ with our writing, and will it make a difference for His Kingdom?

Writing and Ministry

I am not the first to articulate doubts about the writer’s place in serving Christ. Harold N. Englund, a minister, and writer for Christianity Today noted in 1962 that people are more likely to feel like servants of Christ if they are preaching or counseling rather than writing (par. 2). However, as he emphasized, writing is ministry since “[t]he Christian writer can reach many who will be reached by no other kind of minister” (Englund, par. 1). Believers who seek to glorify Christ through their writing are just as much a minister for Christ as any believer.

Life-Changing Words

Books and other forms of writing do make a difference in people’s lives. For example, C. S. Lewis’s conversion “began by acknowledging respect for those writers he considered truly great (people like George MacDonald, G. K. Chesterton, Samuel Johnson, Edmund Spenser, and John Milton) in spite of the fact that they were Christians” (Bell and Dawson 1). These writers not only influenced Lewis to trust in the gospel message but also shaped a man whose works have reached countless others. As Janice Elsheimer states in The Creative Call, “[o]ur gifts are not from God to us, but from God through us to the world” (Elsheimer 3). Writers can use their skills for the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31).

A Look Ahead

If you are like me and have also struggled with understanding how writing is ministry, then this blog series is for you. In the next three posts, I will include examples of how the major forms of creative writing, including fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction, are a form of ministry and can impact people for the sake of the gospel, discipleship, and for ministering to people who are suffering. 

Works Cited

Bell, James Stuart, and Anthony Palmer Dawson. From the Library of C. S. Lewis: Selections From Writers Who Influenced His Spiritual Journey. Shaw, 2004.

Elsheimer, Janice. The Creative Call: An Artist’s Response to the Way of the Spirit. WaterBrook, 1984.

Englund, Harold N. “Writing Is a Ministry.” Christianity Today, vol. 6, no. 25, 1962, https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/1962/september-28/writing-is-ministry.html.

The Bible. New International Version. Zondervan, 2011.

Read the Next Post in the Series, about Fiction, Here.

Find the Entire Series Here