I remember a couple of years ago visiting a church where the Call to Worship was a video plastered on two large screens of a young woman reciting a spoken word piece about coming to Christ. I was moved to tears by the words, the energy, and the incorporation of this art into worship. "Thank you, God, for seeing me," I remember whispering.

Art speaks to and from the heart and spirit. It's not just for the artist but those who come in contact with the art. It can be a vessel for and of God's message. Something awakens when we hear or see art. 

And when I hear or see authentic art in a sanctuary or a Narthex, when it comes alive, then I begin to feel more at home, knowing God is there too. I don't believe I'm alone in this. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of artists who love Christ who are wanting to "come home" but haven't found the space in the worship service to spread their multi-colored wings. 

That's why I was excited to attend a one-day conference yesterday, "The Breath and the Clay: a gathering on faith, art and culture." Here we would be, those who hunger after God -- who are artists on some level -- learning, sharing, discussing and creating in community. 

But as I left the conference after a day of speakers and a couple of workshops, I felt uneasy. Somewhat restless and agitated. "Lord, what is it?" I finally asked as I was driving home (the feeling has been there for months, usually arriving on Saturday). "What are you saying?"

"What is it you want?" I heard in my heart. I began to meditate on that as I continued to drive and tears welled in my eyes. I knew then, as I have for awhile, that God has me on a path where I'm desiring more than a worship service to attend, which, on some level, is all I have known. 

Worship is something in which I want to participate. But not as a member of the choir, or on the usher board, or taking up offering. Those services are wonderful for the persons who are called to them. There are others who experience a different calling to worship, which is what I'm experiencing. It's a desire to worship God with what He has given us. It's an offering of the artistry that we want to lay before Him.

You might be thinking, "Great! Bring your painting to church when you come, then." But what about artists incorporating their artistry with Sunday's worship service?

Of course, worshipping God with art isn't necessarily a church thing. But we shouldn't exclude art from Sunday's service. When we separate who we are from our worship in community we deny ourselves and others the gift of worshipping God in spirit and in truth. "Do it on the weekends or in your free time" can no longer be acceptable to the Christian is who seeking to live his/her life in full communion. Yes, there is a time and a place for everything, but if God is the Master Creator, how can we then place creativity outside of worship? 

As we grow in our awareness of the awesomeness of God, I don't think we can continue to limit our methods of worship, but rather pray for guidance and discernment on how to be who God has called us to be, not just outside of the church but inside as well. 

I remember as a child, there being some Sundays when we didn't follow the "order of worship" because the spirit was so high. When I would ask my father about this on the way home, he would explain to me how sometimes the singing and testifying are the sermon. I wonder if most Christian leaders today see church as something "to order" and do instead of allowing space for the Holy Spirit to show up.

For the artist (not all but those in this category), our desire is to give God what we have been given. Perhaps there isn't a church that will allow me -- a nonprofessional painter -- to come with my paints, brushes, canvas and easel, and paint while the choir is singing or the liturgical dancers are dancing or while the others are worshipping in the way they feel led. Perhaps the pastor or leaders will feel it is distracting or self-serving or unnecessary. But for the artist who is looking for church, coming together to find ways of incorporating art into the worship experience isn't a luxury or an afterthought, it is a necessity. A calling from God.

For over a year, I've been struggling to identify my frustration with church. Yesterday, after a full day, I accepted that I and many others are looking for a church that has room for who we are as artists. A church that looks into our eyes and see our heart, who understand that to worship the splendid and fullness of God takes all of us with our different talents and gifts. We are looking for a space to learn and grown and be supportive of who God has created us. Art should not be something left to do outside of church. Our art is the Holy Spirit's gift. That is what we want and are required to bring and share in worship. 

This need and desire to have a full worship experience are bubbling up for many. It's a movement towards wholeness. I'm thankful to be on the journey, to have moments of clarity, to see God's hand in it all, waiting patiently for believers to rise up, to take up our mats, and walk...

I'm off now to worship… to paint what the Holy Spirit inspires.

Other articles on visual arts in worship:
Theological Artist Adds Visual Texture to Worship
Visual Arts in Church Making the Invisible World Visible
Are you interested in how visual artists can serve the church?

Valentine's Day can either be considered a blessing or a burden. One day which Western culture deems necessary for us to pour our love onto someone else by way of flowers, chocolate, candlelight dinner and love poems. The pressure to "get it right" if you're in a relationship (and especially a man) and the pressure to "pretend you don't care" if you're single (and especially a woman) can be all too much. 

That's why, on Friday (Valentine's Day), as a single woman, I spent more time than usual talking to God about my "love life" and talking with friends who check the same marital status box as I do on questionnaires. Of course, all single women who love Jesus don't think the same but I was amazed that some of my friends and acquaintances and I had some of the same "secret concerns." What it in darkness must come into the light...

Here are some of our secret questions and concerns about being single. I'm not sharing to "break code" but as a way to liberate myself and others from the lies we hold on to. I hope you will add your own confession that we might learn and grow from one another, and release the chain of deceit that keeps us from being fully loving and fully loved. On top of that, it's actually kind of humorous, when we enter the safe space of community, to think of the myths you've been carrying as truth! Silly us. :-)

Here's what I consider the top 5 "secret concerns" single Christian women have:

1. What if God has bad taste?! If you're single and search your heart, you may find this paralyzing thought floating there: What if God wants me to be with someone to whom I am not attracted? I know, I've wondered and feared the same thing. But, would God really want you to be with someone with whom there is no attraction?! Doesn't God want us to be with someone we feel a connection to and chemistry with? God knows what we're attracted to better than we do. I think we can stop being fearful that the one we aren't attracted to is the one God has His eye on for us! Yes, God may "test" us when it comes to judging others but connection and chemistry naturally happen. It's a part of how God has wired us. We must honor that, in a healthy way. God will give us our heart's desire. Our job is to make sure that desire is in line with God's will.  
2. What if I end up an Old Maid?! This one may not be a "secret" like we may wish. Some of us feel that we're always going to be single. We've been single for so long that we believe this is just the way it's going to be, and we settle. But seasons change. They always do! Just because you've been single for how ever many years doesn't mean that God doesn't have someone for you. We're in this season for a reason and it doesn't mean that reason is negative or some punishment. God doesn't always wait because we're not ready and we need to get our act together. Sometimes God chooses to wait because He knows we're enjoying ourselves fully in this moment. Sometimes God is saying, "Go ahead, add another stamp to your passport." Or, "Sure, Sweetheart, sleep in today and do the chores later." Things God might not say as often when we're married and a parent. Whatever it is -- be it we need to work on our finances or to give us more time to enjoy our freedom -- God gives us time because He knows best. It's time we enjoy and embrace our season of singleness knowing eventually we will be in a different one. Being present, after all, is the true gift of life whether single or in a relationship.
3. What if there are no single men who love God like I do?! Well, every relationship is different and no two people love the same way. Our looking for someone who loves God the way we do may be unrealistic. I think what's important is to be in relationship with someone who is passionate about his relationship with God. Someone who desires and makes steps to grow closer to God. One of the strongest ways I communicate with God is through poetry. Am I expecting "the one" to be able to do the same? That's unfair and limiting. But, I can hope and expect that God will send me someone who loves and desires to walk closer with Him. Someone who will bless me and whom I will bless by our relationship with God. Can we believe that God will send us someone who doesn't know Him already? I guess that's for each of us to discern. For me, I've come to realize that while walking this spiritual path, I want someone who can (and wants to) walk beside me. 
4. What if I become a Jesus Freak?! OK, let's be honest... one of the fears, especially for the Christian who is a "none," is that loving Jesus first and wholeheartedly will make you a "Jesus freak." So many hold back their love of God 1) to keep room for "the one" and 2) to not appear odd and too religious. But here's the deal, it's okay for God to be our first love. It's more than okay. It's natural and desired by both our spirit and God. Not only that, loving God first and with our whole heart is the gateway to what we are looking for in a relationship in the first place! That security, sense of being, intimacy, ecstasy is all right there in our relationship with God. And the bonus? There is no rejection! No, "I'm sorry I can't make it…" No, "Well, you're really not what I want…" God wants to be with us more than we can imagine! It's a whole kind of love. The kind that, honestly, a man -- no matter how much he loves us -- can't completely give (and ladies, we need to stop expecting him to). So, go ahead, love God with all of your heart and mind and spirit. Dive right in like you would the person you've been waiting for. And trust that when the person God has for you shows up, you will be able to love him more because you learned to love God first. Now, there's nothing freakish about that.
5. God can't possibly care as much about my love life as I do, right?! Interesting how we can trust God with our jobs, health, finances, spiritual gifts but when it comes to when, how and who to date, we think God has no idea of how to get that right. We go to self-help books, dating sites and friends. None of that is wrong but when it's our first and only option we have to wonder why we aren't where we want to be in our relationships. God cares about our love life just as much as He cares about our ministry and gifts. God wants us to be happy and full of love. God wants us to experience the depths of love which romantic relationships offer. That's why I have come to understand that our love life is too important to not have God orchestrate. Romantic, enchanted love is a sanctuary all unto itself. We desire that sense of connection with another and it's available and real. It is also necessary, not only for the couple, but for the world to know God up close.

Single or not, our lives including our relationships are vessels for God's love. Once we call out the myths on which our fears have been feasting and let God in our hearts a little deeper, then I believe miracles will happen. That miracle might not show up as the man of our dreams, but true miracles are about a change in perspective. God's timing (and choice of mate for us) is perfect. It's not always easy to wait, especially around Valentine's Day, but I believe what God has for His daughters is worth it. In the meantime, let's put more emphasis on and joy into what God has called us to do and experience in our single season -- no matter our age -- buy our own chocolate if we want to, and be conduits of His love. After all, it is Love that will save this world. Love already has. 

On Friday, I had the opportunity to sit in on the closing session of the two day A.M.E. Zion Board of Bishops Preaching Institute, held at Livingstone College in Salisbury, N.C. If you've been reading this blog you know I'm not a preacher or Biblical 
scholar. Yet, my profound interest in the future of the Church automatically draws me to places where others are diving into the conversation. 

So, after attending a Go Red for Women breakfast at 7:30 a.m., I drove to Salisbury. And though I arrived late to the auditorium full of African American preachers, I found a perfect seat on the third row. My red dress in a sea of dark suits. 

I caught the end of Dr. Richard Chapple, Jr.'s lecture on styles of preaching and could not help but to smile when he talked about the "third space" (not his words) of scripture. How we can discern what is left unsaid when we pause between the words and lines of sacred text. It is not just in the words but in the silence where God speaks. What does God say in the pause? That can be a blog post in itself, but what was most profound to me, as I recognize and try to provide space for others to look at the changing church, was what Dr. William Curtis shared in his closing session, "Church of 2050." 

So much of what we talk about with the emergent church has been about what's happening now or how the church will need to change in the next 3-5 years, as if we're working on a short-term strategic plan. Or, some who envision the church in 15-20 years. But what about society in the age of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Artificial Superintelligence? And how will the church address the needs of that time? Needs we haven't seen or imagined before?

Of course I find it interesting that on Wednesday I had the opportunity to play with the Da Vinci Robotic and hear a lecture on the improvements coming to medical science and machinery. And on Thursday I attended a reception honoring innovation and the recipient of the award has come up with a new drug not yet approved…

What I'm getting to is that today AI is alive and well right (no pun intended), so why aren't more of us thinking and talking about the ethical and social issues and implications that will come with that? How does the church and God deal with this change most of us in the church haven't even begun to think about!? How do we, as Christians, stay true to the call of our spirit in a time where we will (and may be now) working with machines that look like us, that can't get sick, that do not want for anything than a mechanical upgrade, that will not need God in the way we know it? 

There was a heavy cloud filled with fascination, complexity and uncertainty that landed on the crowd listening intensely to Dr. Curtis. Many pastors are having challenges bridging the gap between Gen Z / Millennials and the Silent Generation / Baby Boomers, how can they begin to think about what's happening 40+ years from now? And, will this even be a concern in the African American and browning communities where the digital and economic divide continues to widen?

Naturally, as I drove back to the city where I live, I thought about Dr. Curtis' lecture. I pondered the questions he posed and had questions myself. Once I arrived home I researched what others are saying about AI and found Dr. Curtis commentary to be accurate, all of which led me to what I believe to be three great truths that we are called to embrace now more than ever:

1. God Call into Prayer -- I believe that the power of prayer is and will continue to be the greatest power we can harness. As long as we have breath (which is the breath of the Spirit), we have the ability and need to commune with God in prayer. It is this power that will prepare the world for what God has in store. Just as our grandparents prayed for us even before our arrival, God is calling us to be in prayer for the future of this world! There are silos that are needed for this purpose only and I am hopeful that they exist. 
2. God is Love -- I was disturbed when the movie "Her" came out. It saddened me to believe millions of dollars could be spent and made by developing a story of someone falling in love and developing a relationship with a machine. We long for connection and as we are in the age where we are connected to more information quicker than ever before there is no replacement for human/soul connection and the love of God. The more we advance and think that we are getting a better deal in life with more stuff, the more we risk closing God out and the essence of what is essential. And as long as there are 100% human beings on this earth God will be the fulfillment of that Love and God will never leave or forsake us. 
   
3. God is Wisdom -- We have a habit of limiting God. We believe that God is just one step ahead of us. Sure, God knows our future but just by a day or two because we might decide to switch something up and catch him off guard, we feel. We begin to become fearful and feel inadequate as we think of the Church of 2050 because we cannot fully grasp what will be required of us (do we really believe?). How can we be true Christians in a digital age where "others" have no "real" connection with God? We begin to believe that if we can't imagine it than maybe God isn't ready for it. As if God is following our creative path. Makes you laugh, right? If we believe in God than we know that God is not only ready but is aware even before anything has come to us. So it is our faith that will allow us to face the needs of the changing congregation and the changing church. We cannot begin to see what is coming but we have got to believe in a greater wisdom than our own, than AI, than GRIN (genetics, robotics, internet and nanotechnology).

I am profoundly thankful to have heard Dr. Curtis and to share with friends and colleagues in that learning and transformational moment. It is now time that we put on greater thoughts, that we stretch, that we pray even more diligently and sincerely, not out of fear but out of a desire to fulfill God's purpose in our lifetime, and to be guided and used as vessels for what's to come. 

No matter what changes we go through on this earth, God does not and will not change. It is our thoughts about God that will widen to encompass all that God is. What we know today is that God is Truth and Love and Wisdom. Will you believe that in 2050? We know that God will protect and provide and make a perfect way. 

We will have moments of confusion followed by moments of clarity, moments of chaos followed by moments of creativity. This is the life we behold. This is the life we are called to honor.

What a mighty and creative God we serve! "And it does not yet appear…" (I John 3:2) 

As I continue to reflect on this past year, I can only be thankful for the mercy and grace of God.  There were times when I honestly felt I would not come out of this storm. Times that found me literally screaming for God’s help. I longed for the days when my biggest problem was rent or utilities or gas money. But there is something totally different about dealing with the struggles of those you love most in this world and having to stand by feeling helpless as the drama unfolds before your tear-stained eyes and your weary soul.

BUT, this is the place where you truly experience God’s grace and mercy. This is the place you begin to seek Him with your whole heart. This is the place where revelations meant for you are revealed to you. And these revelations aren’t meant for you to pull someone else through, they are designed to build your faith, to strengthen you, and to let you know He hears you and He understands. It is here we learn to “Let God Be God.”  Those four words carry tremendous weight. When we allow God to be who He says He is, circumstances can change in an instant. Or the circumstances may not change, but we are able to rest in His promise that He will never leave us nor forsake us, that He is our God.

My favorite hymn, “How Firm a Foundation,” was one of the rocks I hid behind during the storm. The words of the last verse say everything I need to know during hard times.

The soul that on Jesus has leaned for repose,
I will not, I will not desert to its foes;
That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake,
I’ll never, no never, no never forsake.

I listened, sang, recited this verse many times-and found it to be so true.  Lines 3 and 4 spoke to me because it felt like all hell was seeking to destroy me. But through it all, I learned to lean on Jesus.  Are there times even now when I want trust in my understanding? Absolutely! And each time I do, I am reminded that I am no match for any problems without my awesome Heavenly Father. I am reminded to “Let God Be God.”