“Listening to my life for whatever of meaning, of holiness, of God there may be in it to hear.” ~ Frederick Buechner

On the heels of yesterday’s post, comfort met me through the thoughtful ponderings of my friend, Ann. At Holy Experience of Listening, you can sense the rhythm of this writer’s heart:

“Indifferent to the lateness of the hour or the weariness of the body, I need to come and sit here, press these keys and watch letters shuffle into words on the screen. It is my streak across space, falling into words and landing softly.

I tell no one of these rendezvous with 26 letters. Like the Perseids, this act of dancing with curves and lines occurs in the out-of-the way hours, unbeknownst to they who call me daughter, friend. Day dawns, the bell tolls, and I slip away home.

Every apprentice knows, painfully so, of the chasm to be crossed in the journey towards skill. Loose and awkward, my knitting of words is not something to be paraded. And who would understand?

“You are the mother of six—you don’t think your life full enough? And writing? Maybe gardening, baking, quilting…but writing? What kind of a product is that?”

But as Ann says, writing is not about product, but process. Listen further as she shares a timely insight from Henri Nouwen:

“Writing is a process in which we discover what lives in us. The writing itself reveals what is alive. The deepest satisfaction of writing is precisely that it opens up new spaces within us of which we were not aware before we started to write…To write is to embark on a journey whose final destination we do not know.”

Why do we keep returning to the midnight oil? Does anyone understand those of us who, day after day, are drawn to probe and ponder?

Probably not, but according to Ann, that’s okay.

Thank you, Ann. Keep writing. Someone does understand!

“It’s no secret that Christian artists feel isolated at most evangelical churches today” ~ Mary Yerkes

In a recent post on Artists and the Church, Mary Yerkes draws from her own 20-year struggle with churches that encouraged involvement with primarily the performing arts. “The literary arts are nonexistent, and those churches that do recognize literary art, reduce it to a few written testimonies in church newsletters,” she writes. Consequently, if we aren’t performing artists, we’re apt to feel left on the fringes, isolated, and “lacking a sense of place” in our home church.

Have any of you felt this?

Rather than become critical, cynical, or leave the church, Mary shares how we can resolve our inner conflict on the matter:

1. Understand that creativity and art is a gift of God, whether it is acknowledged and received by members of your church or not.

“Then Moses said to the sons of Israel, “See, the LORD has called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. And He has filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding and in knowledge and in all craftsmanship; to make designs for working in gold and in silver and in bronze, and in the cutting of stones for settings and in the carving of wood, so as to perform in every inventive work. “He also has put in his heart to teach, both he and Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan. He has filled them with skill to perform every work of an engraver and of a designer and of an embroiderer, in blue and in purple and in scarlet material, and in fine linen, and of a weaver, as performers of every work and makers of designs. ~ Exodus 30:30-35

2. As artists, gifted by God, we have a biblical responsibility to develop and nurture our talent.

3. Every believer is to be actively involved in a local body. Whether we feel we “fit” or not, God calls us to actively participate in a local body of believers, to faithfully pray for our pastoral leadership, and to invest our time and resources into our church body.

4. Community is a non-negotiable for Christian artists. We need to interact with other Christian artists to thrive. If we’re unable to find other artists within our church bodies, I believe we need to seek God to connect us with Christian artists through other local and national organizations.

5. Work to introduce more diversity in the arts into your local congregation.

Whether or not our particular giftings are understood or appreciated, we still have a responsibility to express them as He leads. Thank you, Mary, for posting on this important topic. I’m sure it will help many.

Check out Mary’s blogs: Away With Words and Releasing the Artist Within.

Art, when it is honest, questioning, and captivating, has a unique and ineffable quality that leads us toward God.” ~ Brett McCracken

“We must never forget that art is not a form of propaganda; it is a form of truth.” ~ John F. Kennedy

“Risk being unliked. Tell the truth as you understand it. If you’re a writer, you have a moral obligation to do this. And it is a revolutionary act—truth is always subversive.” ~ Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird

“A work that aspires, however humbly, to the condition of art should carry its justification in every line.” ~ Joseph Conrad

“To send light into the darkness of men’s hearts; such is the obligation of the artist.” ~ Robert Schumann

This from Utmost Christian Writers:

“We have received some excellent entries for our Novice Christian Poetry Contest, but we had hoped for a much greater response. The number of entries has not met our expectations. All prizes will be awarded in this contest regardless of how few poems are entered. The deadline for mailing your entry is August 31.

This major contest for Christian poets dispersed almost $4,000 in cash to poets of Christian faith in April 2006. This contest is for poets who are unpublished.

Total Prizes: $1750.00
FIRST PRIZE: $500.00
SECOND PRIZE: $300.00
THIRD PRIZE: $100.00

HONORABLE MENTIONS (12): $50.00 each

BEST RHYMING POEM: $250.00

Don’t delay! Deadline is August 31, 2006. $10 entry fee.

For guidelines, go here.

Congratulations to Violet Nesdoly of Surrey, British Columbia, Utmost Christian Writers Foundation’s International Christian Poet Laureate. Violet was selected from a number of applicants by the Utmost Board of Directors. Violet serves as Poet Laureate until Spring 2007.

“Small numbers make no difference to God. There is nothing small if God is in it.” ~ Dwight L. Moody

My friend, Mary Yerkes, has an excellent post at The Artist’s Way, entitled, “Writing for Publication is a Marathon, Not a Sprint.”

I’m entering into a new phase in my writing. Initially, I spent every free moment working on a new devotional or article for publication, neglecting my health and, sometimes, even my husband (blush). Granted, we all push a little harder with a deadline looming, but that should be the exception not our standard mode of operating. I was running on full steam every day–not a sustainable pace.

I’ve suffered mental and physical exhaustion from simply sitting at my computer for too many hours a day, all in an effort to “produce.” Like Mary says, “it’s easy to get caught up in the publishing machine and measure our success by the number of clips we have or how much work we produce.” But that’s not God’s intent. Burning the candle at both ends is never healthy or productive in the long run.

If writing is a marathon, maybe we need to pace ourselves. For the rest of Mary’s enlightening post, go here .

“The 7th Annual Writer’s Digest Short-Short Story Competition is accepting entries! We’re looking for fiction that’s bold, brilliant … but brief. Send us your best in 1,500 words or less. But don’t be too long about it—the deadline is December 1, 2006.”

The Grand-Prize winner will receive $3,000 (that’s $2—or more—per word).

PRIZES:
First Place: $3,000
Second Place: $1,500
Third Place: $500
Fourth Through Tenth Place: $100
Eleventh Through Twenty-Fifth Place: $50 gift certificate for Writer’s Digest Books

For more details, go to Writer’s Digest , then get busy!

In case you haven’t heard, there’s a vibrant, growing online community for all professional creative types called Godly Creative People. Natalie Jost, the site’s founder, describes the forum:

“Godly Creative People is a website community for all types of creative professionals (and those still learning) to come together in Christ’s name. The original site began as a rough idea in the Fall of 2005 and has grown to more than 80 users and about 10 regularly contributing authors. Members’ talents range from music to art, to computer arts like graphic design and web design. Most have websites or blogs of their own and come here to get away for a bit and learn, or help teach something new to others in the creative arena.”

GCP’s Mission:

“Our mission is to teach, encourage, and strengthen one another in our pursuits of creative success, while honoring God in the process. Members and authors, though diverse in their worship, will come together in the basics of the Christian faith. We work to support one another and the world around us by using the gifts God has given us in service to His purposes and to ultimately make each of us truly godly creative people.

Everything we do here is based on the parable of the talents found in Matthew 25:14-28. Even though Jesus was talking about money, there is a strange and appropriate coincidence that the biblical word used is talent, the same word we today use to talk about the unique abilities God has entrusted to us (in the same way He trusts us with money). And, as with all parables, we know that money in this case is probably not all Jesus was referring to. Everything God gives us, from money to spiritual responsibilities to creative talents, should be used in a way that brings honor to God and increases his “fortune”. We should want to invest those gifts, whatever they are, in a way that will bring the most value back to God, and in the process, help others to learn how to do that as well.”

GCP includes an artist’s forum, creativity questions, prompts, and weekly inspiration, along with other valuable information. Also, if you’d like to contribute an original article for consideration, stop by GCP today for guidelines.

GCP has other ideas in the works, such as a newsletter/magazine with interviews, tips, and “business advice for those looking to turn their creative talent into a career.” Meanwhile, you’ll find super inspiration from talented writers such as Mary Yerkes. Check out her latest piece entitled An Artist Looks at Psalm 42.

As a member of GCP myself, I promise—you’re gonna love this place!

“Each of us has been given a gift and when we do not use it we will be filled with despair.” ~ Jan Karon

“I just write from the heart. I’ve never thought of myself as a regional writer or a southern writer or a Christian writer. I am a Christian who writes.” ~ Jan Karon

Author Jan Karon, at age 50, left a successful advertising career to move back to her home state (North Carolina) to begin writing her Mitford novels. Completely free of profanity, sex or violence, these nine novels sold over 27 million copies and made the New York Times bestseller lists. Amazing, isn’t it?

I’ve always wanted to meet this author. How did she manage to write such an endearing series, and what sparks her imagination? My heart discovered these answers, but so much more, when I heard Karon speak last December at the Washington National Cathedral. No, I didn’t attend—the video clip is online. Her topic: Wrestling With and Writing from the Heart.

Karon testifies to absolute faith in Christ, first of all. She admits that writing isn’t always easy. What surprised me is that she wrote her first novel at age ten, only to ignore her calling for forty-one years! As she turned her life over to Christ, she felt that ‘burn’ to write again. Karon had to trust God to lead her in the right direction, inspite of publishers’ rejections, and even when she believed she was writing the wrong kind of book.

“It’s a battle I must fight daily. Life is the most interfering obligation. But one gets momentum. You’ve been lumbering along like an elephant, and suddenly you can run. You get a little lift and you take off.”

Check out this delightful author for yourself! The audio and video version of Karon’s lecture is available on this page. Just click which mode you prefer at the top of the article there.

Meet Jan Karon

Tickets are now on sale at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta for the Louvre Atlanta exhibit which starts October 14th, 2006. Advance reservations are suggested. Admission for Louvre Atlanta will be the same as the current Museum admission (Adult, $15; Seniors/Students, $12; and Children age 6-17, $10). Admission includes the audio guide tour, as well as general admission to the High’s permanent collection and other temporary exhibitions.

  

“Louvre Atlanta is an unprecedented partnership between the High Museum of Art and the Musée du Louvre in Paris that will bring hundreds of works of art from the Louvre’s collections to Atlanta. Built around specific themes and periods, the High will present a series of long-term special presentations of art from the Louvre from October 2006 through 2009.”

To reserve your Atlanta tickets, go here: High Museum of Art
Enjoy a virtual tour of the Musee du Louvre, largest museum in the world.

  

Just found discovered this:

“After extensive clinical testing and three double-blind studies, my CreativiTea has proven that certain blends of herbs positively affect creative performance in artists, writers, engineers, scientists, and other creators. My proprietary recipe will soon be available to the general public in stores and on the Internet.”

“Two brain-juicing flavors of my CreativiTea are already available in special test-markets in the northeast: Earl Grey Matter and Mornin’ Stormin’ (both highly recommended before brainstorming sessions).”

For more info guaranteed to make you smile, check out Chris Dunmire’s CreativiTEA today! I don’t know the guy, but he’s definitely creative. Enjoy.