Anderson Pastor’s New Book Explores the Art of Writing/Living a Sermon

Greg Wilson/Anderson Observer

"Eventually, all things merge into one, and a river runs through it. The river was cut by the world's great flood and runs over rocks from the basement of time. On some of the rocks are timeless raindrops. Under the rocks are the words, and some of the words are theirs." – “A River Runs Through It,” by Norman Maclean.

Austin Carty was a writer long before he took to the pulpit.

A voracious reader, Carty, the senior pastor at Boulevard Baptist Church in Anderson, had published a collection of essays before entering seminary, but the seeds of his literary genesis are now an integral part of his life as both author and minister.

It was a path guided by a pair of writers not often associated with the pulpit, Stephen King and Anne Lamott. King’s “On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft,” and Lamott’s “Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life,” served as catalysts for inspiration in Carty’s own writing.

His latest book, “Some Words are Theirs: The Art of Writing and Living a Sermon,” which is scheduled for release next week, is at least in part an exploration of his personal journey as a writer and pastor. To prepare for it, he listened to all of his sermons since he entered the ministry full time, and there close to 500, and discovered hidden treasure that helped him better understand his life path and purpose.

“I think, with writing, a lot of times, we better understand what we're doing after we've written it,” said Carty. “There’s an Annie Dillard line that says you write it all, you discover it at the end of the line. I think I now have a better sense of what I do.”

C. S. Lewis said: “We read to know we're not alone.”

When folks tell their own stories in a personal and sincere way, even though they're not our stories, there is something about the sincerity with which they told it makes us often feel less alone,” said Carty. “I hope maybe this book might do that too for some readers.”

Carty arrived at Boulevard six years ago, while he was working on his last book, “The Pastor’s Bookshelf: Why Reading Matters for Ministry,” a well-received volume which challenged pastors to view reading books outside of the Bible as “a vocational responsibility-a spiritual practice that bears fruit in every aspect of ministry, from preaching to pastoral care to church leadership…”

Carty discussed the book and process of writing it in this interview with the Anderson Observer.