Are You Called to Write?
Lots of people want to write, but how do you know if it’s a calling on your life? How do you know if putting words on paper or typing them on a screen is part of God’s design for you?
Before answering these questions, it’s important to draw a distinction between skill and calling. Plenty of people are skilled at aspects of writing, from having a keen eye for grammar and syntax to sculpting a poem of unspeakable beauty. These skills are a gift from the Lord and are worthy of honing over a lifetime.
However, you can be skilled at writing but still not be called to write. A calling implies a caller, and for our purposes here, that caller is God. He calls people to specific tasks like writing or welding or web development because he has good works for them to do in their field that he prepared long ago (Eph. 2:10).
The result of these good works, no matter the profession, can be one or more of the following: the building up of the church, the flourishing of our neighbors, or the spread of God’s glory.
HOW TO KNOW IF YOU’RE CALLED TO WRITE
So how do you know if you’re called to write? Ask yourself:
What effect does my writing have on God’s people? Does it cause them to grow in maturity and be moved to worship? If so, you may be called to write.
What effect does my writing have on unbelievers? Does it cause them to consider their beliefs and question their assumptions? Do your words describe God in a way that makes unbelievers long for him to be real? If so, you may be called to write.
What effect does my writing have on my neighbors (fellow people)? Does it shine a light on the darkness in the world? Does it lead to their flourishing or further a cause that’s close to God’s heart? If so, you may be called to write.
I say you may be called to write if one or more of the statements above is true because calling is also about desire, ability, longevity, and so much more. Here’s how John Piper defines the calling to write:
“It is a recurrent, not temporary; long-term, not short-lived; compelling, not merely interesting; benevolent, not selfish; Christ-exalting, not self-exalting desire to write, which proves fruitful in the lives of others.”
I’ve read plenty of writing that doesn’t read all that well on the surface, at least in the technical sense, but for some reason it connects with readers in such a way that it moves their hearts closer to God. I’ve also read plenty of writing that’s good, sometimes even great, that falls flat on readers’ hearts and minds.
Calling then is God working through some people’s writing to draw other people to himself. “A divine calling to write is a calling from God, through God, and for God,” adds Piper. “Until the writing is for God, it is not a calling from God.”
If your writing is all about or becoming more about moving people to encounter and experience God—and readers have affirmed this reality—then you’re called to be a writer.
THE MYSTERY OF GODLY WRITING
Piper concludes:
“The calling to write is by all means a calling to influence and transform, awaken, instruct, delight. And it is a calling, therefore, to pray and trust God, because we can’t do that by writing. Writing must become an instrument in the hand of the Holy Spirit and his miracle-working power. So a person with the calling from God to be a writer is a person called to do in the lives of others through writing what only God can do.”
You may be called to write, but never forget that it is God—not you—who does the mysterious work of drawing others to himself. He may do that through your words, and if so, rejoice! But don’t forget that your words are powerless without him.
Grayson Pope (M.A., Christian Studies) is a husband and father of four and the Managing Web Editor at Gospel-Centered Discipleship. He serves as a writer and editor with Prison Fellowship. For more of Grayson’s writing check out his website or follow him on Twitter.