How many Christians do you know who read more fiction than nonfiction? On October 22, 2015, Barna Group released a research study article titled, "The State of Books and Reading in a Digital World" (accessed 2022-04-09). It turns out that 35% of practicing Christians would rather read Christian nonfiction, with just 18% preferring Christian fiction. Why? They link this finding to the fact that 34% read “to grow and develop spiritually.”
35% of practicing Christians would rather read Christian nonfiction, with just 18% preferring Christian fiction
Fair enough. That’s why I read Christian nonfiction too. However, I forget a lot of what I read, and you probably do too. But a good story—whether Christian or not—stays with us, and it has the power to get at our heart in a way that statistics and information simply can't. We were created for story because we were written into a story—God’s story. Our life is a narrative, entwined with the narratives of others and that of creation, all in the midst of the Grand Narrative—the Epic Love Story—of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
We have a need for story to shape us and not simply gratify us. What if we thought about and read fiction differently? What if instead of using it simply as either a means of escape from reality or to gratify ourselves with a good story we let it change us from the inside out? This has inspired me to help shape the perspective Christians have toward fiction. My hope is that through conversation linking fictional stories we read to our own spiritual formation, we will come away with ideas we can implement with God on our journey of becoming more like Christ. Story can impact our spiritual journey if we let it. That’s what Fiction that Forms Us is all about. We see fiction as valuable, not only in its artistic form but also in what it informs us about our world and life. If we are open, fiction can be not only formational but also transformational. God can use it to inspire, beckon, and lead us on a transformational journey.
I am a fiction writer who is passionate about learning how to become more like Christ and living it out. It’s one thing to know a doctrine and another to embody it. For example, we know Christ taught us to love our enemies. But do we actually love them? There seems to be a disconnect among our mind, heart, and body. How do we get from knowing it to envisioning, desiring, and actually doing it? This is what I long for, and I believe this is where story can help us.
Story draws us in. When we enter into an inspiring or transformative story, we often either identify with a character or a character elicits our empathy. When we write, read, and engage in story, we are fulfilling one of our roles as image bearers. Story, through characters’ lives, draws upon our imagination and gives us a vision for a different kind of life, the very thing Jesus came to teach. He said, “Metanoeo.” This means to repent, to literally turn around. In other words, it means another kind of life is available.
To turn our vision for another kind of life into reality, we need to bring our heart and body into it. And we must pray for God’s inspiration, provision, and grace. Our world is constantly forming us spiritually, but rather than be spiritually formed into the destructive ways of the world, we want to be spiritually formed into Christlikeness. We do have to put in effort, and we can do so by practicing spiritual disciplines. Yet, we are utterly dependent on God’s grace to use our offerings through these practices to grow us in Christlikeness.
Life is all about aligning our real stories with the Real Story of the Trinity. We want to know and become like Christ so that we can come to the Father through the guidance and power of the Holy Spirit. Fiction can spark our imagination, draw out our desires, and give us examples of ways to change.
In Fiction that Forms Us, we delve into a character’s life within a story-world and discuss the character’s transformative growth and/or virtue. If it inspires us, hopefully it gives us a vision of what our life could be like and draws out our desire to grow in similar areas that the character did. In order to grow, we look at ways we can be similarly transformed so that our lives can reflect the person and life of Jesus. I hope that through our conversations about various stories on the podcast the Holy Spirit will give you a vision for a more holy life, fortify you with provisions, and give you grace in your efforts on this journey in becoming more like Christ. Amen.
