I was raised ultra conservative Christian, but with some complex factors. Now that I’m breaking a lot of the mental shackles I accumulated along the way, I’m not quite sure what I believe anymore. I know God is there, and Jesus Christ. A lot of my works in progress have a very solid relationship with God as part of the main character’s life. But can I go on writing for the main characters with confidence for the Christian audience when almost everything I used to believe is on such shaky ground right now?
That’s such a good question, and a hard one to answer.
Your faith is always going to be growing and evolving over time. So we really can’t wait until our faith (and/or theology) are “perfect” before we begin to be obedient to the call of God on our lives.
If you feel God prompting you to write, and you’re confident enough in your discernment that it’s Him doing the prompting, then you can be sure that God also knows who you are and where you’re at, and it’s enough for the present assignment. Move forward and place your trust and your faith in Him.
However, if it’s you motivating the process… stop. If you just want to write because you like it, or it’s a personal dream of yours, stop and work out your faith first. There are many examples of man-made “Christian” books with tragic results for the author.
It’s not up to you to manufacture anything or to write “Christian” just to check the box.
Short answer: let God drive. If He’s prompting you to write, of course do it! Be humble and learn and grow through the process. If He’s not prompting you, then spend time with Him, let Him shape and heal you, get around solid Christians who will build you up, and then in due time you can return to your writing. Life is long. You won’t miss that much by taking some time (even a year or two) to really sort things out first.
(I hope this answer is helpful, I don’t mean to make any assumptions based on the limited context of the question.)
That’s very helpful, Brad. Especially the comment about life being long and it’s okay and important to take time. Thank you for your extensive input. 😊
I think you’re the only one who can really answer that at the end of the day. But I can tell you from experience that if you hold onto faith* and ask Jesus to help you find the answer to your questions, your understanding (and therefore your writing) will be stronger on the other end.
*(and keep studying the Bible because there really are a lot of answers in there and it’s better to hear them straight from God than through the filter of imperfect man)
Thanks, Jessie. I appreciate the answer. 😊
I read this a week ago and did not have an answer. Still don’t. Because one thing that you do not want to do is pretend when it comes to faith. Whether that is yours or a fictional character. It could come across as false piety, where one has a higher spiritual status than those reading because your character is perfect in faith.
Would like to ask a question. Doesn’t every person of faith have struggles or seasons of turmoil where there are grounds for faith being shaky?
I love being in small groups with pastors when they are not the leader, they are there as a participant. They show the real person, the one who has worries, unsolved problems, even fears. Might be some valuable characteristics to include in writing.