Story Ideas for Church Newsletters

Chruch newsletter stories can offer inspiration and encouragement.

Newsletters keep people informed, so it is no wonder that churches publish newsletters for parishioners. Newsletters allow a church to spread the word on recent news events taking place in the church, wedding, birth and baptismal announcements, financial information, attendance and a host of other information that keeps the congregation informed and invested in the community.

1 Humor

Use a humorous story as an attention grabber. Most people like to laugh, so aim for the funny bone. Include jokes that involve children, such as the one where the Sunday school teacher asks her class of five year olds if there is a commandment on how to treat sisters and brothers. A little boy quickly stood up and proudly said, “Thou shalt not kill.” For adult humor, try the story about the mother that tried to get her son out of bed for church over his protests that they don’t like him and he doesn’t like them. The mother replied with, “Nonsense, you are the preacher.”

2 Mission Stories

Many churches support missionaries that travel the globe. Stories from the mission field are inspirational and intriguing, especially when they revolve around hardship and recovery. After the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, many stories of survival appeared in the news and many more in the churches that served the people there. Interview missionaries supported by the church and people in the congregation that have served in the past. Sharing the different life experiences that missionaries see offers parishioners that have not known hardship a new perspective.

3 Fiction

Look on the bookshelves at the local department stores, book stores and library and you will find Christian fiction. A short story can help the young parishioners deal with everyday temptations or a couple seek help with their marital problems. It can encourage giving through tithes, meals to the elderly and visits to the sick. An inspirational story can act as a sermon played out on paper.

4 News

Include stories about the people that keep the church running -- who they are and what they do. Interview the groundskeeper, the secretary, the music director, and staff behind the scenes. Consider writing about newsworthy events taking place in the church, like a change of staff or purchase of some equipment. The newsletter should give people the opportunity to discover more about the church that they support.

Vickie Van Antwerp began her career as a technical writer for a consulting firm in 1987. Now a freelance writer in her fields of interest, her writings appear on southjersey.com, youandmemagazine.com and in "The Phelps Connection" and "The Storyteller." Van Antwerp holds an Associate of Arts in liberal arts from Gloucester County College and certification as a surgical technologist from Lenoir College.

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