Do you love writing? Are you passionate about exploring life and faith through stories? Perfect! Our Christian Short Story competition is your chance to reflect on Scripture and bring it to life. 

Our 2026 competition winners have been announced, with winning stories and honourable mentions available for you to read below.

We'll be back in 2027 with another competition, keep your eyes out!

2026 Winning Stories

This year’s competition was inspired by the Lord’s Prayer, inviting participants to explore what Jesus’ words mean when they’re lived out in everyday life.

Entrants chose a specific passage from the prayer—such as “Give us today our daily bread” (Matthew 6:11) or “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors” (Matthew 6:12)—and explored its meaning through a practical, real-life context.

The stories were encouraged to show how these timeless words can shape the way we live, respond to others and follow Jesus today. Creativity and originality in how the theme was expressed were also an important part of the judging.

First Place

"A Proud Father"
- Kate Fuller

Read the Winning Story

Second Equal

"Soft Landing"
- Sheila Lee

Read the Runner-Up Story

Second Equal

"The Liturgy of the Streetlight..."
- Mathiah Maran

Read the Runner-Up Story

Honourable Mentions

"What's in a Name"
- Phillip Donnell

read here

Honourable Mentions

"Providence"
- Josh Mackay

read here

Honourable Mentions

"The Shepherd Never Left"
- Bob Hines

read here



2025 Winning Stories

Entrants were invited to bring Matthew 5:37 to life through an original story, exploring the meaning of “Let your yes be yes and your no be no” through their own creative lens. The winning entries are featured below.

First place: 

Simply Yes, by Sophie Stocker. 

This beautiful and original story held our attention from start to finish and was well deserving of its first place. Sophie painted a sensitive picture which tugged at the heartstrings while skilfully getting the message across.

Read Here

Second equal:

Escapism, by Sheila Lee

Many of us might have seen ourselves in these characters. This well-written, fast-moving story had a most satisfactory ending, and conveyed its message without preaching. Well done, Sheila!

Read Here

Third equal:

Remaining True to Yourself After Times of War, by Bob Hines

Bob was a master storyteller who knew how to capture the attention of his readers. This was a fairly simple war story with an engaging
opening paragraph which quickly drew us in. It communicated its point with realism and sensitivity. Congratulations, Bob!

Read Here