Launching a Writing Ministry

 

I’m seeking your advice on starting a Substack/blog. While I’m not a great writer and don’t have much to share yet, I see value in starting now to grow. Could you share any tips or resources that helped you as you began?

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At the moment, I am working my way through some items from my mailbag on this blog. Today’s question is an interesting one. Essentially, it involves knowing whether and how to begin a writing ministry. I have previously written about whether and how to write a book, but this is a different question. The answer lies within reach of more people. I do not consider myself an expert by any means, but I will give you my thoughts on the matter.

Six thoughts. Here goes.

1) The only way to be a writer is to start writing.

Writers write – that statement got me off the bench and into the game.

As a wide-ranging, long-standing reader, the idea of writing something myself naturally presented itself from time to time. Before social media, internet forums were a thing. I joined one, and often participated. From time to time, the conversations morphed into long-form discussions, and I felt that suited my desire to communicate context and depth. Occasionally, I even wrote stand-alone articles here and there. But in the main, all I did was growl that I could write a better post or book than the one I happened to be reading.

It dawned on me one day that I was no better than the members of my church who wanted to become soul winners but never did anything about it. They just postponed it with a vague, “Someday, I’ll get around to it.” Soul winners do not talk about witnessing, watch other people witness, or read about witnessing. They tell other people about Jesus. So it is with writers. They determine writing is worth doing, and set aside a regular time to do it, regardless of whether they think the result will be widely read or not.

You will never become a writer by contemplating it. Write something.

 

2) The only way to improve as a writer is to continue writing.

It is possible to do something regularly and never improve. It is not possible, however, to do something only occasionally and improve. Consistent, regular, scheduled activity is necessary for excellence in any endeavor. Paired with the analysis available by today’s online editing tools, and honed by friendly criticism now and again, there is no reason the typical thoughtful individual cannot become a decent writer. But you must commit yourself to putting in consistent effort and producing constant content.

 

3) The only way to have content worth reading is to study.

When I was younger, I thought my insights were brilliant. Little did I know… Over time, God, in His grace, brought me to see that the world does not need my insight; it needs His. The better I know His Word and understand His thoughts, the more benefits and blessings come to those within my influence. So I must study His Word.

I did not do this to become a writer. Writing was not on my radar at the time. I did it because I wanted to rightly understand the Bible, push back against those who would weaken the truth, and help His people. So I made a list of biblical concepts I did not understand very well, and set out to study up on them. I compiled stacks of books, took classes, watched videos, and built up my knowledge base. I then turned those into tools I used regularly or series I preached/taught to others. Music. Eschatology. Hermeneutics. Teaching. Jesus. Fundamentalism. Assimilation. Counseling. Systematic Theology. Old Testament types. Cults. Sanctification. Evangelism. Grace. Ecclesiology. Prayer. Faith. Heaven. Leadership. Marriage. Suffering. Money. Blessing. Worship. Standards. Wisdom. Faith. Character. Prayer. The King James issue. Alcohol. Love.Etc. And hundreds of detailed expositional sermons, working my way through an extended passage or book of the Bible.

Please do not misunderstand me. I am NOT saying you have to do this. God leads us along individual paths as we follow Him. What I am saying is that honing the ability to write without, at the same time, gathering things worth hearing is an exercise in vanity and a waste of time.

 

4) Because these two things need to mature – your writing ability and your depth of content – you should begin writing first for the immediate circle in which you minister now.

Thus far, it may seem I have given you two contrary pieces of advice. Start writing
immediately. Study or experience until you have something to say worth hearing. But the truth is, you can begin now, whatever age you are. Assuming you are currently serving the Lord, start by considering how you can use writing in the arena in which you currently serve. Do you run a bus route? Perhaps you could write a monthly newsletter for everyone who is in any way associated with that route. Do you teach a teen Sunday School class? Perhaps you could write a handout to go with each lesson, or summarize the lesson in written form and send it home with them. Do you work with seniors? Perhaps you could write occasional articles for them on things that matter to seniors – health, grandchildren, finances, scams, feeling useful, travel, etc.

You do not need to wait until your beard has gone gray and your reputation for wisdom has increased. Write right now and gear it toward the orbit you are currently in.

 

5) As these two things mature, widen your reach.

I am not even sure I should mention this one. This is more of a God thing than a man thing. Many years ago, an older preacher told me, “When you deepen your message, God widens your ministry.” The Scriptural equivalent is 1 Timothy 4.15. Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them, that thy profiting may appear to all. As you develop your capacity and ability to edify God’s people, He gives you more opportunities to do so. Your path will not look like mine. Neither will it look like what you currently expect. But the Lord will do it, and it will be remarkable to see in hindsight.

Again, do not misunderstand me. I am not asking you to crawl into a hole and close it off behind you. It is good and right to seek to advance your knowledge base, skill set, and opportunities to minister. But you will find that the doors the Lord opens for you along the way are better than the ones you lever a crowbar into and force.

Grow in Him, in your likeness to Him, in your knowledge of Him, and in your usefulness to Him. He will use it, rest assured.

 

6) Do not expect either monetary compensation or a wide and interested readership; expect to minister to those who will let you.

When I was a young man, I dreamed of the glorious future that awaited, the opportunities that would throw themselves at my feet once they noticed me. I have written elsewhere of how God beat that out of me. I am most grateful that He did. If I had had in those days the opportunities to minister that I have now, I would have accomplished little for Him while my pride marched me swiftly to destruction. But by the grace of God, my perspective has changed over the years. As Jack Hyles wrote in his poem, “Just Let Me Be Your Servant”: (Let Me Be Your Servant, n.d.)

 

I used to sit in college class

And ask the sluggish year to pass;

I had a goal to reach.

My mind would soar above the clouds

And dream when overflowing crowds

Would come to hear me preach.

 

And now I stand before the crowds,

With mind descending 'neath the clouds;

My goals are rearranged.

I simply want to fill your need;

So lovingly I gently plead,

“My dreams have all been changed;

Just let me be your servant.”

 

When you first offer yourself via the written word, it will probably be mostly ignored and rapidly forgotten. That is fine. The same thing happens with all ministry. You build a writing ministry the same way you build any other ministry – consistent effort regardless of apparent result. And as with all ministry, it is not going to make you money; it is going to cost you money. And time. And sweat. And tears. All of which your Saviour understands.

Thousands of years ago, God reached down to an old man and asked him to serve. In his prime, he had been arrogant. He had thought he was God’s gift to his people. Four decades later, when God finally deemed him ready, he was the opposite of proud – he was uncertain, unworthy, and filled with excuses. With deft care, God asked him not to do great things, but simply to yield to Him that which was in his hand: And Moses answered and said, But, behold, they will not believe me, nor hearken unto my voice: for they will say, The Lord hath not appeared unto thee. And the Lord said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod. And he said, Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from before it. (Exodus 4.1-3)

Do not insist, even in your mind, that God use you greatly. Simply offer Him what you have in your hand – the energy and optimism of youth, a godly life, a desire to serve Him and help people, and your pen – and let Him make of it what He wills.

 

Six Helps to Grow a Soul-Winning Church

 

Note: My life at the moment is in a bit of an uproar, which is not exactly conducive to good writing. I have decided to set my current book project aside for a bit. I have a number of questions that have worked their way into my mailbag and have been patiently waiting for some time. So for the next few weeks, I am going to try to answer some of those.

 

Today’s question comes from a young pastor. He has recently taken his first church. As with many such churches, it is struggling mightily. There are crises at every turn. But he does not simply want to respond to emergencies; he wants to build a healthy church for the long term. He knows, amongst other things, that this involves building a soul-winning church. I have had some success in that area, so he came to me for a few ideas, and it turned into a rather lengthy phone conversation. Here are the six suggestions I offered him in that discussion.

First, have a regularly scheduled soul-winning time.

I am aware of the argument that says Christians should always be soul-conscious, and that if we emphasize a regular soul-winning time, we risk developing Christians who witness only on Saturday mornings. I think it is a specious argument. For two reasons. In the first place, there are numerous things that a Christian is called to be and do constantly, and yet we embrace the wisdom of setting aside a specific time to do so. Prayer, for example. We are to pray without ceasing, but we still schedule prayer meetings. Such prayer meetings do not take away from praying without ceasing; indeed, I would argue they strengthen it. Which leads directly to my second reason I reject such counsel – I have never seen a Christian develop a soul-conscious heart without first disciplining themselves to attend a regularly scheduled soul-winning time. Perhaps you have, but I have not. I am convinced that regularly exercising the spiritual graces is the only way to develop them.

This regularly scheduled soul-winning time should be on the schedule weekly. Doing it monthly seems like an easier sell when it comes to participation, but such is fool’s gold. Nobody establishes commitment by choosing the easy route. In addition, this soul-winning time should be canceled only rarely, if at all. As a pastor, you must fight the urge to cancel important things. In fact, your refusal to cancel is a vital part of communicating to your people how important your soul-winning time is. For example, I do not cancel Operation Go (our name for it) due to the cold. If it gets down close to zero degrees, I either send people out on specific visits, have a prayer meeting, do a soul-winning training session, or take all my soul winners to breakfast. But what I do not do is cancel.

In addition, I think it is important that the pastor himself lead this soul-winning meeting. You cannot lead from behind. Be present. Be organized. Be brief. Be positive. Be consistent. Do not ask your people for a four hour commitment. Ask them to give you the equivalent of a regular church service – about an hour or so total, meeting included. Keep it on the schedule even if no one shows up. Announce it weekly. Be patient as the Lord convicts your people in this area. But by all means, provide them a regular opportunity to obey the Lord in this area.

Second, routinely preach about the necessity of Christians being a witness to the lost.

I track my preaching, every sermon, for a variety of reasons. This is one of them. I can tell you how often I have preached on soul winning in whichever service is in question, what the main idea of the sermon was, and what the text was. Every so often, I check. If it has been a few months since I last preached about witnessing, I put it on the docket.

Many years ago, I heard Clarence Sexton say, “We reap a harvest where we place an emphasis.” This is a key principle in the evolution of a soul-winning church. I am constantly looking for additional ways to emphasize personal evangelism. A standalone sermon is one way to do it, but a better approach is a sermon series. You could preach an entire series on the soul-winning conversations in the Bible, another on great soul-winning passages, another on the philosophy of personal evangelism, another on how the devil attacks soul-winning in a church, etc. A sermon series increases the impact of an idea. Instead of one tap with a hammer, a series of blows is landed until the point is driven well home. I long ago lost count of how many times a church member approached me privately and told me they had been under conviction for quite some time about becoming a witness. Preaching on it gives the Spirit ammunition for such quiet, deep work.

Third, personally train your soul winners.

While I am not opposed to bringing in a special speaker for a soul-winning training seminar, I think the best soul-winning trainer in your church should be the pastor. Many years ago, I wrote a soul-winning training manual and recruited a young man as my first victim. He had dyslexia and was painfully shy, which made the process both difficult and rewarding. I will never forget sitting alongside him on a living room couch in someone’s home as he walked them through the Gospel and they trusted Christ. I made a big deal about it at church, naturally. A few months later, someone approached me and murmured something about wanting to be trained to witness. I did, and upon completion, awarded them a personally engraved soul winner’s New Testament in the Sunday morning service. Now then, I suppose my wife and I have trained between 75 and 100 soul winners over these years.

Our process involves our own curriculum, eight one-on-one sessions about an hour long, some memorization, a lot of home practice, and a lot of role play. The majority of our trainees have gone on to become consistent soul winners. You may choose a different approach, but by all means, do something. Equipping them well removes their fear and builds their confidence in sharing the gospel. And it increases the number of soul winners in your church.

Fourth, require your staff and your deacons to be soul winners. This is not optional with me; it is too important. If you want to be in a position of leadership in our church, you must regularly be after people with the gospel.

Fifth, place the emphasis not on the number of people you see making professions, but on consistent effort. Our part in the Great Commission is obedience; the Lord’s part is the conviction that brings results. Let us major on our part.

For example, some years ago, I had a very nice church jacket designed. It had an engraved logo on an expensive Land’s End coat. I did not make them available for purchase, nor did I give them away. The only way you could get one was to attend Operation Go for eight consecutive weeks. I ended up purchasing dozens of those jackets, and it cost me thousands of dollars. It was money absolutely well spent. Our attendance at Operation Go not only increased, but it also increased permanently.

Sixth, pray for laborers.

Jesus spoke often of prayer and modeled it as much as He preached about it. But He only gave one prayer request. Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth laborers into his harvest. (Matthew 9.38) We ought to take this seriously. Go to the Lord and teach your people to go to the Lord in prayer about your church’s need for workers. Be specific. If you need an instrumentalist, pray that way. If you lack youth workers, take it to Him. But always be asking Him to send you people that you can develop into soul winners. This is the Lord’s will, and He will answer prayer given according to His will. (I John 5.14-15) The Lord sent us so many precious people over the years, men and women who developed into true co-laborers as we went after souls together.

If you will do these six things, prayerfully, consistently, patiently, for a few years, something magical will happen. You will look up one day and realize the Lord has given you the priceless gift of being part of a soul-winning church. Missions giving will increase. New ministries will be launched. Bus routes will be strengthened. The poor and the addicted and the imprisoned will have the gospel preached unto them. Your church will develop a culture, a spirit, of being after people with the gospel. It will be happier. It will be easier to pastor. And new people getting plugged in will catch the vision almost immediately.

It can be done, beloved. Your church can become a soul-winning church. I know it currently seems impossible. Ignore that. Put your head down and go to work. Pray. Lead. Motivate. Preach. Encourage. Commend.

It can be done. It needs to be done. And you can do it.

 

The Christ Conference 2026

     Last year, our church held The Christ Conference for the first time. Ten men. Twelve sermons. Every message about Jesus. The Lord blessed signally as pastors and people from about 25 churches gathered to sing and hear and proclaim Christ. This year, we are pleased to present The Christ Conference again the same time as last year, the Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday of Memorial Day week. The dates are May 26-28, 2026. 

    There is no charge for the conference. Lunch will be provided each of those days. Due to the cost, motel rooms will not be provided this year to visiting pastors. We would kindly ask your church to bear that expense. We will be happy to bear all the other costs associated with the conference. We do ask that you register if you are coming from out of town so we know how to prepare. You will find a QR code for the registration page at the bottom of this post. 

    We will run two preachers each morning and two more each evening, twelve sermons in total. The only instruction each preacher has been given is to bring us a message about Jesus.  Ten men will be delivering the messages this year: Jim Appel, Chris Birkholz, Matt Boyd, Tom Brennan, Jon Brown, Steve Damron, Donald Link, Cole Mahle, Mark Rogers, and John Uit de Flesch.   

    I've been attending conferences all my life, and holding them as a pastor for three decades. While I cannot promise what this year's Christ Conference will be like, I can honestly tell you last year's conference was the best conference I've ever held as a pastor. The special music touched our hearts. The congregational singing was breathtaking. The spirit was sweet. The fellowship was encouraging. The messages were varied, interesting, and convicting. 

    If you have any questions, let me know, and I'll do my best to answer them. Otherwise, I hope I get to spend some time with you that week as together we look squarely at Jesus. 

The Christ Conference. Ten men. Twelve sermons. Every message about Jesus.

They ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ. Acts 5:42