Christian fiction matters to you and your readers
To repeat, Christian fiction matters to you and your readers. Your witness may be crucial. Time is short. The final harvest is underway. What’s your part? Why is the Lord calling you? As the end of the age approaches, we need to get our priorities straight. He has commanded us to be witnesses.
The quote below, from Writing In Holiness, talks about the seriousness of our call. Of course, this assumes that you are a committed believer, born of God, living a transformed life of service to your Lord. If you are not, you need to fix that problem. Time to do that is running out. The Bride of Jesus the Messiah will be leaving shortly. The number of heathens who will be saved is nearly complete.
The tools of our work are not carnal but supernatural [II Corinthians 10:4]. We are different from heathen (non-Christian) authors. Not only are our criteria different, but our process is very different from non-believing writers. This is serious ministry done in obedience. If it’s not, you’re writing out of your flesh. Scripture is clear, the world and the flesh are at war with the Holy Spirit. We write in service to our Lord, dependent upon His wisdom, guidance, and anointing. … We are required to learn our craft. But the work is a ministry of the Kingdom of God for His purposes.
Bergsland, David. Writing In Holiness: While Keeping It Real (p. 1).
Christian fiction matters in a Western Civilization which no longer believes. We went to a concert last Saturday by a local college choir and orchestra containing the Christmas portions of Handel’s Messiah. Try to imagine a work this powerful being written and released in our culture today. How many of our current leaders would leap to their feet spontaneously for the Hallelujah chorus?
How does being a good witness apply to your writing?
It all depends upon your relationship with Jesus. If you’re a new creation who has offered yourself as a living sacrifice to Jesus, you want to be sure that your book accomplishes His purposes. As we prepare for Jesus’ call to join Him in the clouds, we want to do what we can to be available. If the Holy Spirit can use us to save one of the last ones before we go, wouldn’t that be wonderful?
How does that change what you are writing now?
Hopefully, not much. But if that is true, what you are writing is extremely unusual. It’s been a long time since I read any fiction which brought me to worship. That’s one of my most treasured reading experiences. That’s what I try to give my readers. My prayer is that you join me in this effort.
Christian fiction rarely reaches this level. Most authors do not seem to believe this level is even possible. But that may simply be my cynicism. Here’s another quote from Writing in Holiness:
Most often these so-called Christian tales are vague allegories about good morals. The hero or heroine learns through trial to be a good, moral person. We all know this is impossible in our real world. No one ever cleans up their own life and comes to know the Lord because of their superior intellect. People only accept the Lord as the result of a direct touch from the Holy Spirit, and a new birth from God. The Holy Spirit is the only way to actually change your character for the better. Otherwise we are stuck in the Old Testament righteousness through law and God clearly knows that will never work. That’s why He sent Jesus. Bergsland, David. Writing In Holiness: While Keeping It Real (p. 4).
It takes a lot of prayer & trust
to make powerful Christian fiction
It’s amazing how the Lord can use someone like you or me to write anointed tales that touch people deeply. The Spirit needs to anoint the writing to the individual reader. If you think that just happens because you’re such a great writer, a little repentance is probably in order. As someone said, all of our work is as but filthy rags, or something like that. If you’ve been walking with the Lord for very long, you’ve surely learned that.
Yes, you need to be interceding for your books.
This is especially true, while you are writing. None of this works without the Holy Spirit. Of course, this seems quite difficult to implement for most nominal believers. Is your church cessationist? If so, you need to talk it over with Jesus. His opinion is the only one that matters. Remember, Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He doesn’t change. He never canceled the gifts of the Holy Spirit. They’re good at least until the Rapture. Once the Church has been pulled, we’re not sure how things will operate with the Jews. But for now, they work, we need them, and the Holy Spirit will provide them as needed.
Please don’t write your books out of your intellect and emotion. Don’t try to figure them out. You need to make them real. Christian fiction matters when it shares reality. The reality is that Jesus truly rules reality. We need to help our readers realize that.
The problem is that intellectual productions of reality miss the heart. You need the spirit, neither emotion nor worldly wisdom. There are so many nuances to the movings of the Lord by His Spirit. His ways truly are higher than ours—far beyond our small ideas. To bring in Truth, we need the author of Truth to anoint our writing. All we can do is ask for the anointing. Only He anoints. So, we move on in faith—and He does wonderful things.
Thank you so much, David. This is timely and providential for me! Would you believe I just got back to writing today—after weeks of deliberating? I’m grateful for your essential reminders and your book. I’ll keep this post on my phone to refer to. Happy and wonderful Christmas to you and Pat:) Thank you again!!!
God bless you,
Lara
Thanks for the encouragement. Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year to you also, Lara.