Frances Smit Answers God’s Call to Live and Write Her Faith

Born in Seoul, South Korea, Frances Smit and her family immigrated to the United States when she was seven years old. The family of seven worked hard to make ends meet, with her parents working multiple minimum wage jobs and her grandmother helping raise her and her siblings. Financial security was always a looming pressure for the family, and shaped Frances’ goals at an early age.

“I always thought growing up that I needed to get a good job, make a lot of money, and help support my parents.” – Frances Smit, Author and Catechist

Despite financial constraints, Frances was able to attend college at Virginia Tech through loans and the work/study program. She studied Information Systems and started her career first in programming, then system design and project management. College was also when she met her future husband. He was a Catholic and, for the first time, Frances was introduced to Christianity. 

Focused on building her career and married life, the amount of attention she gave to religion and God was minimal. She would attend Mass with her husband, sit and keep him company. She did not recognize it until later, but an undercurrent of spirituality was forming. She decided to begin OCIA (formerly RCIA). Then nearing completion, she stopped. She struggled with the scrutinies and being able to fully say yes to the beliefs of the Catholic Church. Then, after moving, she found herself starting the process all over again.  

“I really think it was the Holy Spirit unbeknownst to me…but the second time through RCIA, the day before I was supposed to say yes or no, I had a dream, and I did sense that the Lord was calling me. That might have been one of the first few religious experiences I had, and I learned one of my first spiritual lessons: commitment comes before understanding. Faith comes before understanding.” – Frances Smit 

Alongside her journey to the Catholic faith, Frances was also on a journey to become a writer. Reflecting, she realizes she always had a latent love of writing. In high school, she contributed to the school’s literary magazine and carried a journal to all her classes. Writing was something she valued, but with other needs and expectations, Frances did not fully recognize just how precious this form of expression was to her. In fact, it was not until after the birth of her oldest child that she allowed herself to rediscover this buried passion. 

She did not rush to publish or even share her work publicly, but she began to write regularly. As her children became older, Frances knew she wanted to return to work but was unsure in what direction God wanted her to go. Teaching had become a theme in her life, including Korean language teaching at Korean Martyrs Catholic Church, volunteering with faith formation classes and taking courses in Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, and serving as an assistant, lead, and substitute catechist and instructor at various parishes and Catholic schools including All Saints, Saint Jude, Saint Ann, and Christ the King Preschool at Second Ponce. Still, after prayerful consideration, she ultimately realized God was calling her to share her work as a writer.

“It just became clear that the Lord was saying, ‘I want you to write,’ and while I realized he had called me to write, I didn’t do it because it was so hard…There’s a lot of vulnerability in the sharing part. I had to work through that spiritual struggle of sharing a part of myself. You have to really persevere in your call. Even if it is hard, you have to keep going back to it.” – Frances Smit 

Frances’ first published works were dual-language children’s stories based on Korean folk tales, followed by day-in-the-life animal stories. She now shares her children’s works with grades K-12, engaging students with reader’s theatre and using her dual-language stories to highlight Asian culture. She has also become a spiritual author for adult readers. She began by posting personal reflections through an online blog and then interviewing others about their lives, bringing to light many underlying spiritual lessons.  

“When we go through things, we feel like we’re the only ones, right? But when you read someone else’s story, that witness and testimony are so powerful. Sometimes you recognize yourself in that story, and recognize our life struggles, faith struggles are very much universal. Just listening to someone’s story sparks recognition, and it gives you hope.” – Frances Smit 

Developing this new career in a long-loved passion has had difficulties, but Frances knows each new experience is a chance to grow creatively and in her relationship with God. 

“Sometimes you feel like your work, your voice, doesn’t matter. I feel like stewardship and answering God’s call, so much of it is getting out of your own way…So even if you feel like your voice is off-key or not that interesting, we need a chorus of voices to speak the truth, to point to the good, the true, and the beautiful.” – Frances Smit 

You can read Frances’ witness stories, reflections, and more here.  

Discover Crowned with Grace and Frances’ many children’s books.  

Learn more about Adult and Family Faith Formation and how your participation in the Archbishop’s Annual Appeal supports the growth of the Catholic faith.

Watch Frances share the significance of her book “Heung Bu And Nol Bu” below.