Content is king

I've got an iPod so small it can double as a bookmark. I can watch movies on it. I can stream endless movies, music, lectures, and other media on my laptop and even on my phone. If I wanted to pay for it, I could have more cable channels than I could surf in an hour, let alone during commercials. I've got a big screen on my wall and a small screen in my pocket, and both of them are useless unless there's something to watch on them. Content is king.

Creating media used to be the realm of commercial ventures with budgets that could purchase small islands in the Pacific. Now anyone can film and publish a movie worldwide with a phone. Even the large studios and the interest of people with large money can barely make a dent in the content glut. Now everyone can jump in the fray to create content to keep our screens flickering and our subwoofers bumping. But is it worth consuming?

Eventually, you have to ask yourself how many hours of your life are you willing to give to watching bicycle wrecks, college pranks, and the lancing of severe acne. At some point you'll want to take something worth hearing on your iPodded run. What good is a Kindle-style reader if there's nothing worth reading? All those gadgets are useless without input, and they have little value if their output isn't worth hearing. Content is king.

We need good content. That's where you come in.

The need has never been greater for gifted individuals to create content that is valuable, beautiful, provocative, interesting, and reflective. If you are a creative person of faith in Christ, consider how essential it is that you create. You have allowed God to invest in you, constructing in you a paradoxically unique yet universal perspective on life. Inside you beats a heart that has seen redemption in brokenness, purpose in bleakness, and questions even in hope. God wants the world to see through your eyes. But there's just one thing: Do a good job.

Don't dip your pen in the tired cliches of church talk. Don't merely rubber stamp the "Christian" adjective before everything you do. That's a marketing ploy that makes you look as authentic as a plastic dashboard Jesus. Create from your perspective of faith, and let God flow through who you are. Let people see through your eyes, and go at it with both guns blazing.

Content is king in this world of ubiquitous media. You are so necessary. There are endless screens to fill and ear buds to ring, and you've got an angle that needs reflected. Do what you do well, and you'll be in demand. We've seen enough mento bombs on YouTube. Bring us your craft.