As a pastor, I wouldn’t write anything that I would consider “formal,” such as articles, papers, or books. After seminary, papers became a thing of the past, but they taught me both good and bad habits. Seminary papers are often meant to be technical and, to be honest, are not the most enjoyable to read. They can be tedious because they are so precise and focus on the minute details of a biblical text that interest scholars, but not most other people. It can take a while for a newly minted seminary graduate to break away from that style of writing when preparing his sermons. If you’ve ever heard a message given by one of these young men, then you know exactly what I’m talking about.

I began leading a church as their pastor after my first year of seminary. I knew I wasn’t ready yet, but the church was small and needed someone to guide them, and my pastor was confident that with his help and guidance, I would be okay. I found that the combination of experience with the congregation, time spent in seminary classrooms, and hours spent reading had a positive effect on me. The reading assignments and papers I wrote had focus and purpose. They reflected the idea of the pastor-scholar, the shepherd who invests deeply in his studies so that he can frequently emerge to tend to the sheep with loving care and deep devotion. Being a scholar is a lot of work, and so is being a shepherd of God’s sheep. But merging the two is a joyful labor that offers the best of both worlds.

I write all of this because it was in this laboratory of the local church that I truly began writing in a different way. In serving my local church, I was writing—but not on exegetical minutiae; nor was I producing the emotional devotional material typically found in church newsletters. Mainly focusing on expositions, my writing aimed to merge the deeper thoughts of the biblical text with practical applications and illustrations. Making hard concepts understandable for the person in the pew was a labor of love.

I have once again begun writing for this blog because I need to continue honing my writing. I write for the Voice magazine and constantly edit the content we create. But writing takes a certain amount of practice and discipline if you want to become a decent writer. I want to grow in this area, and so I need to write every day, if possible.

Our world is shifting from humans to machines. Artificial intelligence, like social media, is changing our environment. People have shorter attention spans, read less, and possess less patience for anything longer than a few brief sentences. This has also impacted how people write. Younger generations struggle with spelling, at least without the aid of auto-correct. Many can’t write in longhand (cursive). Additionally, crafting sentences that flow smoothly and are readable is becoming increasingly rare. I often read news articles from major outlets that are filled with typographical errors. Just yesterday, I read a scholarly journal article packed with misspelled words. This reflects both poor writing and inadequate editing. I mention this not to throw stones but to encourage you to personally combat this tide of dehumanization. Read books. Write. Sharpen your craft if you are a pastor.

If you’d like to sample some of my more formal writing for the IFCA International magazine, The Voice, you can read it here. I have written the first article in each issue for about six years. I am greatly indebted to the many fine writers we feature, which makes our magazine an excellent blend for the church of the pastor-scholar ideal.