Alleluia, Christ is Risen! Periodically, on my Patreon account I give my patrons the opportunity to ask me any question. I did this in March, and only received one response, from Benjamin Chua. "What have you learned after writing twelve books?" I've been thinking about the answer to that question for over a month. In over thirty years of vocational ministry, and eighteen years of ministry to artists, and four years of concentrated Zoom ministry, I have learned a lot. And like all the great lessons in life, I learned them by making mistakes. My writing tends to be in the "devotional" genre, and therein lies a big problem. People put their "practical" or "secular" life in one box, and their "devotional" or "spiritual" life in another. This is often why our Christianity doesn't work. Christianity is not spiritual, it is practical. When we have a problem, we think like a heathen and try to fix it ourselves. Your Christianity applies to Sundays and your devotions, but your heathen thinking applies to work, bank accounts, and your movie choices. This is what the Bible calls being "double minded." This is why the New Testament says again and again, renew your mind, transform your mind, and change your thinking. So I want to connect spiritual practice with practical life in this series. The Resurrection is real, not spiritual, and the life of Jesus in us works mightily through us. And the first lesson I have learned is this: Show up. Nothing happens to the person who isn't there. If you feel overlooked, ignored, or alone, it might be because you stayed home. When I was a student, one of my teachers said that 90% of the ministry was being present. 90% of life in the arts is being there. Two weeks ago I went to Design Week London. It was great to go back to the world I once lived in. And all I wanted to do was go up to the various designers and ask them if they needed help. When you are there, in somebody's face, and you make yourself a servant, people give you work. It's very simple. People don't get work by sending C.V.'s and resumes. They get work by showing initiative, taking the place of a servant, and showing up. Employers who have tasks to accomplish are looking for people who can help them get the work done. When you show up and make it clear it isn't all about you, people are drawn to you. It happened to me in an art supply shop recently as well. There is nothing worse than being offered work and not being able to take it. I love to work. There is power in being present. That's why I take the time to go places. When you go places, the presence of God in you goes with you too. And so do the angels who have been assigned to you. I have this funny pattern of going some place right before a terrorist attack, a war, or a significant event. My life is a prayer, and showing up in these places is part of bringing the Kingdom. This is why God asked me to sit at the British Film Institute. After a year and a half, people have begun to talk to me. I've been there long enough that people see me as trustworthy. And in that moment of being there, they will ask me a question. And the questions are very good. If you want to make a difference, show up. He Never Fails, Christ
Thanks to everyone who bought my new book, Artists at a Shift in Time. If it touched you, please leave a review on Amazon. When I show up, I drink coffee. Thanks for helping out.
Very good I received that word today. Today I am showing up where Gid wants me yo be