First Corinthians for Writers

Today's post is by author and editor Lori Hatcher. She will be teaching this in one of her workshops at the Asheville Christian Writers Conference (Writers Boot Camp) February 20-22, 2015. For more information, see her bio below.

By Lori Hatcher

There are different kinds of writing gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of writing service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of writers’ work, but the same God works all of them in all writers.

Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit the message of biblical wisdom, to another the message of publishing knowledge by means of the same Spirit.

To another, faithful blogging by the same Spirit, to another written words of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers of editing, to another publishing, to another distinguishing between commas, semi-colons, and colons, to another speaking in different kinds of social media languages, and to still another the interpretation of html codes. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and He gives them to each one, just as He determines.

The writing body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether bloggers or novelists, contract or freelance—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.

Now the body of writers is not made up of one part but of many.

If the blogger should say, "Because I am not a novelist, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. And if the editor should say, "Because I am not a devotion writer, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body.

If the whole writing body were social media experts, where would the copy editors be? If the whole writing body were non-fiction writers, where would the lyrical poetry be?

But in fact, God has arranged the parts in the writing body, every one of them, just as He wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the writing body be?

As it is, there are many parts, but one body.

The writer cannot say to the editor, "I don't need you!" And the proofreader cannot say to the publisher, "I don't need you!"

On the contrary, those parts of the writing body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honorable, we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no special treatment.

But God has combined the members of the writing body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers writer’s block, every part suffers with it; if one part receives the Christy Award, every part rejoices with it.

Now, you are the writing body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.

Based with reverent respect on 1 Corinthians 12:4-27 © Lori Hatcher

(Photo courtesy of pixgood.com.)

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The body of Christian writers is not made up of one part but of many. (Click to Tweet.)

Lori Hatcher is the editor of Reach Out, Columbia magazine and the author of two devotional books including the recently released Hungry for God … Starving for Time, Five-Minute Devotions for Busy Women. This adaptation (First Corinthians for Writers) is part of one of her favorite writing workshops, “The Day I Wanted to Quit—Tackling the Mind Games that Foul Writers Minds and Distort Their Perspectives.” Lori will be sharing this workshop at Writers Boot Camp. For more information on Lori’s workshops, visit her on her blog, Hungry for God … Starving for Time or connect with her on Facebook (Hungry for God) or Twitter (@lorihatcher2).