Columns: Your soapbox

We've already established that every journalist should strive for objectivity, to keep his or her own thoughts out of the story. But there is someplace where your opinion is not only allowed, but encouraged -- the column, if you are lucky enough to get one.

While you can use this medium to share your faith, I would advise you not to turn it into the "sermon of the week." Almost no one will read it. You need to create a following by writing a column that people will actually look for when they open the newspaper or log on.

Here's where the old adage "write what you know" comes in handy -- fashion, politics, humor, whatever. Then write interesting things about your topic each week, not necessarily spiritual things, just interesting things. People will begin to follow your column, and when the opportunity is right, you can bring up your faith.

In my case, I wrote a humor column. I worked for a rural weekly, and my editor told me I needed to write a column each week. I asked what it should be about, and she said, "Anything you want."

Since I had been raised in the Chicago area and then married a local dairy farmer, I started writing a humor column about the adventures of a city girl learning how to be a farmer's wife. In the rural community where I lived and worked, the column caught on.

After about six months, I started to insert my faith wherever I could -- a Father's Day column about my father passing his faith to me, a Christmas column about the real meaning of Christmas, etc. Soon everyone knew that I was a born again Christian. They seemed to be O.K. with it, probably because they felt like they knew me, and I wasn't a "stuffed shirt" Christian.

Then one day a horrible tragedy involving a local 10-year-old girl shook the entire county, and I was able to share my faith, and hers, in a huge way. I'll share the details in my next post.