Meet Raven Smith of Los Angeles / OC

Today we’d like to introduce you to Raven Smith.

Hi Raven, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I’m California raised, born in Inglewood. I grew up playing in the streets and finding my own fun like most of us in L.A. But not in a crazy “I’m from the streets” way. From a “we played outside like children” way. We had good weather, so we enjoyed it. As a child, the most fascinating thing for me and my family was always movies and stories and books. It consumed me so much that it became a personality trait that people identified me by. “Raven always has a new book every week.” Not much changed as I got older.

And yet, I became an entirely new person once I came to Christ at 17 after struggling with an eating disorder for many years. God miraculously healed me from the disorder in a matter of minutes and I’ve been in pursuit of Him ever since then. Don’t worry, I caught Him, but it’s been a constant discovery of who He is and how His identity teaches me about mine. It was a completely new life. You won’t be surprised to know that my love for storytelling survived the transformation though.
In 2024, while working a barista job at a coffee and tea boba shop, the Lord visited me with a simple fact: “You’re going to leave your job someday soon.” My dream wasn’t to be making novelty drinks of course, it was to be a writer. I didn’t fully know it then, but He had me leave my job to pursue exactly that.

Whilst trying to figure out what my new income would be, I began posting online to grow a community for my writing for whenever I published my book. And as I navigated that learning curve, I also learned that I enjoy teaching the Bible. So my content slowly ebbed into a ministry where I teach about living with God in our daily lives and finding the childlike wonder as we discover who we are in Christ. That’s where I am today—teaching the beauty of the ordinary, and writing stories I would have loved when I was younger. I’m hopeful my book will come out soon. It’s a wonderful life. My dream. All because of Jesus Christ.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It’s definitely not been a smooth road. Some personal challenges I’ve faced have mostly been mental and emotional. Some financial.

Doubt, discouragement, lack of confidence, lack of resources, procrastination, impatience, lack of skill, etc. are all things that have brought me both delay and frustration. I think we, unfortunately, learn best the hard way, and I’ve come through some very difficult emotional valleys in order to achieve my ministry work with God. But the best of it has come from pain. This is one of the harder lessons I’ve learned. But such beauty is on the other side.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’m an unpublished author of a YA Domestic Suspense and Contemporary Fiction novel. I could have just said I’m writing a fiction book but it’s my hearts work and I’m excited about it. My stories are what I’m most proud of. I love that Jesus is also an author of something called life, so He knows what it’s like to be passionate about telling a beautiful life story.

On top of that, I’m primarily a content creator and Bible teacher on my ministry page on Instagram, where I’m building a community of Christians that love creative expression and learning the Bible. You can find musings and other resources there that encourage you to live well, which is mostly what I’m known for. I also host Bible Study’s every Friday!

As for what sets me apart, I don’t think there’s a common thing that I can pinpoint really, I experience the same things everyone else does and there’s many people that do what I do. If I were to choose anything different it would be the very boring and expected response that no one else is me. That alone is enough difference to make an impact anywhere.

We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
I’m not sure I believe in risk-taking. The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 15:58 NIV: “Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”

When you’re doing the work of God there is no risk. Everything you do is for the glorification of Jesus, edification of the people, and your own spiritual maturity. So in all things, we work at it with our full effort knowing that God will waste none of it.

Taking a leap of faith is never risky because there’s always a payout somewhere. Whether spiritually, emotionally, or otherwise, you will come out with more.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ravensministries/
• Other: https://substack.com/@ravensministries?r=7xt5lh&utm_campaign=profile&utm_medium=profile-page