Within my first week in New York City as an Arts Ministry intern, I found myself sandwiched in the corner table of a Thai restaurant, deeply engaged in theological conversation with Kenyon and Maria while practically bursting with excitement about what the next four months of my life would entail. Little did I know that this conversation would contain one of the most influential pieces of wisdom I would take away from my entire season at Redeemer. After a brief ‘get to know you’ session, Maria went on to elaborate upon the amazing particularity of God’s delight in us as artists. She described a friend’s passion for needlework as an integral piece of her existence, explaining that God places these meticulous details into our image to rejuvenate and renew our hearts. I tried to mask my inner excitement with serious nods of agreement, but the newly introduced truth behind this statement rang in my ears for the coming months.
In David Taylor’s For the Beauty of the Church, Barbara Nicolosi also focuses on the specificity of artistic giftedness, saying “every one of us has to become an artist because the practice of art makes us focus on the details. Whether it’s gardening, or cooking, or needlepoint, or whatever it is that you do, everyone has to master the details of a craft in order to keep their life vibrant and their perception of God in the ‘tiny whispering sound’ keen.” The encouragement we receive from this reality is that even our smallest forms of self-expression shed light on the glory of our Father. In the Arts Ministry’s most recent gathering of The Living Room, we discussed the artist as theologian, reveling in the fact that God is even more committed to our artistic flourishing than we are. This means that every seemingly inconsequential piano recital, bouquet arrangement, incomplete song, dance class, embroidered handkerchief, or passion for painting ultimately brings joy to our Creator. We can now relax in our enjoyment of these gifts, no longer regarding them as superfluous or selfish, but as important and full of purpose.
Rachel Rogers
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Thank you so much for this encouragement! I am one of the probably countless people who were told growing up, "Get your head out of the clouds", or some variation of that view. As a consequence, I never pursued my artistic desires. And how I regret it now.
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