Owning My Love Affair with Church Drama

Shortly after college I began a journey into the world of Church Drama, which I was neither prepared for nor qualified to embark on.  I was a Ministerial Studies student trying my hand at a creative craft that people are known to spend years perfecting.  What I learned, I learned on the job – always wondering in the back of my mind if I was just one script away from being told things weren’t really working out.

The people of my home church, Northwest Assembly of God, were gracious enough to allow me opportunity after opportunity to perfect the gift that God was shaping inside of me.  I can’t remember a script that my Senior Pastor chose to shelf, or a service concept the staff wouldn’t put man-hours and money behind to see through.  Because those precious people believed in me, mixed with my amateur attempts at scriptwriting, there were moments of real beauty and authenticity in our services – moments that made something come alive in me, compelling me to write better so that I could more effectively serve the church I loved.

It’s been many years since I wrote my first script, and my writing has gone in many different directions since then, but I am still more passionate than ever to see this medium used in the Church.  I have forever been ruined for a well-scripted, well-placed dramatic illustration that gives life to the truth of Scripture.  There is something about the flesh and bones of a story that connects the dots and moves the heart in ways other modes of communication just can’t.

I began the process of publishing these monologues and scripts traditionally with Lillenas Drama, but happily became distracted with the life God was allowing me to live. I got married, moved away, became a mom, and then moved back – but I’ve come full circle in wanting the opportunity to make these pieces available for use in other churches. I’ve decided that maybe – just maybe – this space would be the best space to make that happen.

Over the next several weeks I’ll be sharing these monologues and scripts in weekly posts that will be catalogued (and continually updated) on the church drama page.  If you’re one of my regular readers, don’t be alarmed. I promise this project will not hijack the entire blog (you might even enjoy the break from my regular content!). If you’re a pastor or drama director in a local church – it’s my hope that you might find these pieces useful, and that one might move your congregation a little closer to the place they can hear and accept the message God wants to share with them, through you.