When writing for an evangelistic audience it’s important to pay close attention to your choice of words.  Listen to yourself with the non-Christian in mind. Think about talking to your neighbor who is allergic to the things of God. Concentrate on how to rephrase the following common Christian language in everyday, modern terms.

It may also be appropriate to remove the capitals in pronouns for God.  As Christians we are used to seeing His, Him etc but for an audience that is unfamiliar with the language of the church they can be very distracting.   Overuse of capital letters is a trap Christian writers often fall into.  While the reverent intent behind it is admirable, be sure  to as yourself if a capital letter is really necessary.

Remember, if you have been a Christian for a long time, this language sounds normal to you! It can sound foreign to others. Don’t turn people off — draw them close to Christ.

Anytime you write for an evangelistic audience, check to be sure that you haven’t used any of the following common Christian cliches:

* Rely on the Lord
* Looking back, I praise God for _____
* Spiritual warfare
* Power of his name
* God had a deeper lesson for me
* Total surrender
* Submission (refers to Christian growth concepts but in the language of our culture it is often negative- especially for women)
* Victory/victorious
* Bed of roses
* He became more precious to me
* Thirst for his Word
* Trials- Instead, refer to difficult circumstance.
* Prayer chain/prayer letter
* Over use the phrase  "The Lord" without identifying him
* I grew up in a Christian family-rather use "family who believed in God" or "family who went to Church"
* I was blessed with Christian parents (being a Christian has not been defined)
* Lord of my life
* Fellowship
* He touched me
* The Holy Spirit prepared me- In this age of increase spirituality, we must be careful not to talk about the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost unless we can adequately identify him
* I praise God for ____
* The Lord of directed/told me
* God has no grandchildren
* Mountain top/valley experiences- Perhaps use fears, depression, good days and bad days
* Overuse of the word SHARE
* Loving fellowship
* Sisters/brothers in Christ
* Feed his Word-use "study the Bible’
* Saved/ to save a soul
* I had peace- Define the "peace" , such as  "I felt fulfilled" or "there was sense of purpose in my life"
* Share in my walk
* In the Word
* Spiritual eyes
* Servanthood
* Christian community
* Appointment with God
* Look into your heart- Perhaps use "what are you feeling right now?"
* Burden
* Blessing
* Justification
* Righteousness
* Assurance
* Salvation
* Testimony
* Concern about my soul
* Plan of salvation
* Nudge of the Holy Spirit