Ways Artists Can Interface with God’s Mission (part 1)

Dilemma of the Century

Lilias Trotter faced a fork-in-the-road ultimatum: do I become an artist or a missionary? In his incredible book, Rembrandt is in the Wind, Russ Ramsey explores Lilias’ encounter with this challenge. Ramsey says,

Ruskin’s [Trotter’s art mentor] pursuit of Lilias was not just about her art, but of her singularity of focus. The potential he recognized in her could only come to fruition if she devoted herself wholly to her craft. But he felt Lilias’s ministry was competing with her art, and in truth it was. He told Lilias if she would devote herself to art, “she would be the greatest living painter in Europe and do things that would be immortal.” He wanted her to choose between her ministry and her art—forcing her to face the crisis of her life: What role would her art play? (199)

Ramsey quotes her diary where she grappled with this in saying, “I see clear as daylight now, that I cannot dedicate myself to painting in the way that he means and continue to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.”

Ramsey goes on,

Lilias made up her mind—she would give herself to serving the poor, and in whatever role her art played, she would use her creative instinct and imagination to create places where the downtrodden would find respect, support, and, if God allowed, Christ himself. (199)

Here is the incredible thing. That was in the late 1800s. This dilemma—do I become and artist or a missionary—has plagued the 20th (and now the 21st) century. And it is the fork in the road I have wrestled with throughout my adult life.

I write this to relieve you of the pressure of that dichotomy: do I choose arts or missions? Take heart. God’s kingdom is not made up of such compartments!

Throughout three blogposts, I explore a plethora of ideas I would give myself if I were age 18 again—a wonderful age of ignorance and un-marinated dreams of an arts career. I will focus on three categories: first (this post), I will consider the essence of being a unique artist in God's kingdom; second, I will dive into the arts that contribute to the expansion of God's kingdom; and third, I will examine the role of the arts in establishing God's kingdom.

You, the Artist

The pressure is on! You’ve just begun art school and you love Jesus. What do you do?!

1. Focus on your Christian growth. For you as a person, Jesus must always be the center! Understand that being a Christian is not at odds with being an artist. The first attribute about God recorded in the very first book of the Bible is that God is a maker. And you were made in His image. Making is an attribute endowed to each and every person. The concept of “artist” is relatively new in the scope of world history. All are makers. Some are particularly gifted in what are called the “arts.” Regardless, those who follow Jesus ought to devote their lives to abiding in Christ…no matter the profession or hobby. Always growing. Always giving. Embed yourself in a local church community where you can interface with the gospel, the church, the mission, and Scripture. Be poured into. Pour yourself out.

2. Understand yourself in relation to various groups. Being a person, a Jesus-at-the-center person, requires us to adapt to all kinds of situations. God doesn’t just make us believers though. He places us (**see below) in all kinds of groups (mom, co-worker, elderly, etc.), gives us all kinds of statuses (foreigner, artist, Christian, etc.) along with a variety of roles (a group’s expected behavior for those statuses). Recognize you might be in one group one morning (playing music on the church worship team) and another group immediately after (in the studio with non-believing friends). We are constantly ebbing, flowing, dancing, dare I say “performing,” in these relational tides. Relax. Navigating this might be one reason you’re overwhelmed. Simply ask, “what does God require of me in this situation with these particular people?” And what does Scripture already explicitly say about each role (dad, child, worker, etc.)?

3. Hang around people you want to become. Be it: professional, spiritual, relational, etc. Cross-pollinating with those of different interests was monumental for me. While my creative posture would pull me more inward, toward myself, non-artistic community forced me outward. Surrounding myself with mature Christians helped loosen my idolatry of art-making and the romanticized ideal of the starving, isolated, woe-is-me artist propped up by larger society.

4. Be the person for others to become. Being a disciple of Jesus means it permeates every facet of our lives. It means a life of incarnational generosity. Over time, it means people naturally gravitate to you. Aim to be imitate-able.

5. Drop the comparison game ASAP-as-possible. There are a kuh-zillion different ways God has gifted artists. Enjoy and learn from other artists. Become known as someone who blows wind into other artist’s sails.

6. Cultivate your usefulness: this skill will compound into a generous well of blessings to others with your talents over the course of life. It’ll tee you up for serving others.

7. Pursue excellence with your craft. Excelling in an artistic craft is one way to cultivate usefulness. Get further training. Western society tends to suppress the curiosity itch. Youtube alone has so many free resources for artistic development. Whether you consider yourself a professional artist or arts are a “hobby,” keep scratching.

8. Expand your vision of how God uses the arts. I found Todd Saurman’s, The Worship Wheel, valuable for this. How could you make art for yourself? For God? For others? Is there a need in your community your arts can meet? You don’t have to always stay in one lane.

Todd Saurman, The Worship Wheel, Mission Frontiers

9. What kind of person (cough…I mean artist) are you? Being an artist is simply the journeyed expressed overflow of who you are. Are you more apostolic, pastoral, evangelistic, prophetic, or a teacher (see Ephesians 4 and APEST)? Do you have a passion for expanding or establishing God’s kingdom ? Do you feel more at home with academics? Or alongside the outcast? What do you secretly brag on about yourself or hope people discovery about you? One way to find beauty and freedom as an artist is to lean into your natural gifts, not away from them. I have found the Five Fold assessment useful. Additionally, spending time list all the gifts from Ephesians 4:11-16, 1 Corinthians 12:1-31, and Romans 12:3-16. Which do you naturally enjoy doing and gravitate towards without anyone telling you? Are you more of a leader or follower?

10. What is your story? The more you dive into your stories, the more you cultivate your unique artist vantage point. How does your story inform you as an artist? What high and low life moments shaped the person you are today? Who have been the hero’s and villains of your life? And how has that impacted you? Situating yourself in an overarching narrative provides the rationals behind why you do what you do and think the way you think.

11. Multiply yourself. God gives to us so we can give to others. Don’t be an arts hoarder. Train others in what you know. Give away everything you know.

In part 2, I will look at arts to extend the kingdom.