John R. Rice on Christians studying language and literature

"There are three great needs in writing and speaking for God. They are clearness, force, and beauty. No one has a right to speak so he cannot be clearly understood. No one has a right to speak for God without trying to make himself forceful to get results. And no one has the right to speak or write for God without trying to make what is being said attractive and charming. So to get a good speaking style, to make oneself easily understood, to make oneself forceful and effective, every Christian worker ought to study language and great literature. It is not wasting time to sharpen the axe if you are going to chop wood. It is not wasting time when you get ready to serve God, to serve Him acceptably and to reach the greatest number of people possible with the Gospel. I am all for special training in language and in literature for all who go into full-time Christian work."

He also says,

“I did not know when I majored in English and took Shakespeare and Browning and Tennyson . . . that I was preparing my mind and coloring it and getting ready to understand truth better, to speak more fluently and charmingly.”