March 2010
Alone in my room
For more than a dozen years, I have spent my days in a 10 x 12 foot room on the third floor of the triplex owned by my parents, who run a business on the first floor. I am otherwise alone in the building. It may sound a bit like prison but it’s actually my haven: my office, crafts studio and recreation room all in one. 
Naturally an introvert and fairly disciplined, I’ve never reconsidered my decision to work at home. I enjoy the quiet and the solitude, which help me focus and be creative, whether I’m writing an article or designing a baby quilt. However, the distinct lack of face-to-face interaction with coworkers, employers, suppliers, or customers greatly reduces the potential of meeting people with whom I can share my faith and be a witness.
How do I reconcile this with my passion for evangelism and local missions? How can I tell others about Christ when I spend 80 to 90 per cent of the average weekday by myself?
We need to include the arts as an integral,
intentional component of our worship
and precursor to mission.
As people made in the image of a creative, Artist God
we are imbued with God's powerful, creative spirit-
but we need to use it.
We are invited to be co-creators with and
for our God in this broken, beautiful world-
but we need to practice.
The Arts in all forms are not merely an
addition, entertainment nor simply decoration.
The Arts engender awareness: of self, of others, of relationship.
They bring us into the moment and invite, even evoke, a response.
They can communicate truths in a fresh way.
They help us to see more deeply into our own situations,
and the realities of others.
They call us to explore our own experiences with new eyes.
They pose questions and present issues.
The arts can open anew the 'hearts of our eyes.'
