Going into the Void

Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedThank you for your prayers.

One of the most important things
a creative person can do is understand
positioning.

Positioning is a key idea from the world of marketing.

Positioning is knowing how you relate
to others in your field,
and what makes you unique.
If you want to make a difference in the world
you have to know your location in the marketplace.

What is it
that makes you different
from everyone else?

I had an intuitive understanding of this
when I wrote An Army Arising.
I was writing into a void that I saw in books
for Christian artists.

That void is best expressed in an X-Y graph.
My graph is based on a prayer by John and Charles Wesley
that they could unite “knowledge and vital piety.”
The brain on my graph represents knowledge,
and an emphasis on academics or intellectualism.
The burning heart represents vital spirituality,
experience, and the life in the Holy Spirit.

Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedWhat follows are descriptions, not judgements.
The groups in the each of the quadrants are positioned
based on their emphasis on spirituality or knowledge.

In the upper left hand section of the graph
are the majority of “evangelical” arts ministries.
I spent the first ten years of my career here,
but I always hit a dead end when I spoke in tongues
or told someone what God was saying to me.
Often this is where you will find the highest artistic skill,
because this is where "successful"
and "highly functioning"
people tend to go.
This is where you will find David O. Taylor, Jonathan Pageau, and the
organizations that have followed after Christians in the Visual Arts.
This group values credentials, connections, and degrees.
Too much intellect with not much Holy Spirit makes you dry up.

The lower right hand quadrant are the prophetic arts ministries,
the worship events, and big name charismatic arts leaders:
High on experience with God, but not deep in the Bible or theology.
And often, this is where you find a lot of immature faith
and underdeveloped artistic talent.
For a long time I lived and worked in this world, but I never fit in.
This group values emotional experience,
and measures crowd size, product sales, and big events.
Too much Holy Spirit and not enough intellect makes you blow up.

The lower left hand quadrant is where
grandma’s church craft group hangs out,
or where people in the creative industries go.
Not much Holy Spirit or Bible.

And that leaves the upper right, what I call the “VOID”:
Deep Spiritual Life and a sharp intellect
in submission to the Holy Spirit.
I discovered this quadrant by accident,
when I started “writing into the void.”
This is Belonging House International.
It is the place of tension and balance.

This is why we care what Bible translation we use.
It's why I read Greek everyday.
It's why I have two earned degrees in Bible and Theology
from top-notch schools.
It’s why I keep studying art and design trends.
And it's also why we speak in tongues every day.
It is why I go through my healing of trauma prayer regularly,
because my healing journey is never finished.
It's why we listen to God and not our own agendas.
This is why we try to value relationships, honor,
and put an emphasis on endless becoming.
This is the culture we have been trying to create:
a place of deep life in the Holy Spirit
that can stand
in a world going mad.

This really is why my writing and our community is different.
When you live in this corner of the graph
you have to learn to value fruit.
This is a slow growth proposition,
dedicated to long term transformation
in the lives of artists
and creative people
so that we can bring
long term transformation
to planet earth.
When you are filled with the Holy Spirit
and are deep in God’s word,
you grow up.

Honestly, it’s a lonely place,
because folks from the other quadrants
are always challenging you.
I have been blacklisted for speaking in tongues.
I have been uninvited to speak
because I was too intellectual and too charismatic.
And I have been accused of all kinds of interesting things.

In August I began rebuilding our website,
and it has led to scrubbing up our branding.
November is going to be about making some changes
before the new chapter begins.
Thanks for coming along for the ride and
joining me in the void.
I'm grateful that you take a few minutes each week
and read my writing.
Thanks.

Understanding your position
helps you understand how to present your work
and your message.
It is key to making change in the world.

He Never Fails,

A few days ago Nancy Lane chatted with me about her talk at Gather Us In. Check it out.