I love art. I love photography. I love music. I even love the art of bonsai believe it or not. I think a lot of people love these things, too, maybe with the exception of bonsai. I have been thinking a while about these things, because I am very passionate about photography, and I am very passionate about missions. I have always tried to creatively combine these two passions of mine into one. I also think about all of the extremely creative people in our church – artists, photographers, musicians, etc. I believe our churches are missing out on a vast untapped resource.
Today, with websites like Facebook, Twitter, Etsy, Pinterest, SmugMug, ImageKind, etc., photography and art has been reduced to what can sell. Photography and art is so much more than that, though. Not too long ago in history it was the church that was leading the way in the world of art, because Christian artists understood that they were creating for the glory of their Creator – not to turn a profit.
I have a vision that our church can recapture the creative spirit within its membership in order to inspire others to reach the nations and work toward completing the Great Commission. I think it would be incredible to see the artists, photographers, writers, sculptors, musicians, etc. rise up in our church and decide that they were going to create first and foremost to inspire others to the purpose of the church – fulfilling the Great Commission. I completely understand that people have to make a living, so I am not saying it is wrong or a sin to make a profit on art. What I am saying is that we need to use these gifts and talents for God’s glory within the church and for the church as well. I believe that the church is just as much at fault, because the church has not made a space available for creatives to create.
God Call 