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Wise-Hearted Ones: 3 Frameworks to Survive and Thrive As An Artist
205 Plays9 months ago
Wise-Hearted Ones: 3 Frameworks to Survive and Thrive As An Artist
Creatives talk a lot about artistic craft, but what about soul craft? How is our work connected to the larger rhythms of our spiritual lives?
As we see in the Exodus story of the Wise-Hearted Ones, God bestows not only creative knowledge and skill, but frameworks of support to sustain both work and spirit. What are these frameworks and how can we cultivate them? How might they make us better artists and leaders? Lisa Smith breaks down how spiritual formation and community engagement are integral to our creative growth.
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Download the free Wise-Hearted Ones Study-Guide: https://www.soulmakers.org/podcast-study-discussion-guide
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Transcript
Introduction to Wise Hearted One and Study Guide
00:00:00
Speaker
Hey, Lisa. Hey, Dan. This Wise Heart of One series is awesome. It's very packed though. If only there were a study guide or something to go along with it. Have we created one yet? We have actually created one, Dan. Yeah, we just created a study guide with lots of great questions, some word study, and a teeny bit of commentary so you can go deeper on your own or with a group of friends.
00:00:23
Speaker
So head over
Be Make Do Soul Makers: Mission and Creativity
00:00:24
Speaker
to soulmakers.org backslash be make do and download your free wise hearted one study guide.
00:00:42
Speaker
Hello, welcome to Be Make Do, a Soul Makers podcast where we explore what it takes to live out your call in the arts with spiritual wholeness and creative freedom. I'm your host, Lisa Smith, here with my producer, Dan ABH. Hello, everyone. And it is our passion to encourage you to become who you are created to be, make what you are created to make, and do what you are created to do.
00:01:08
Speaker
And here
Season 2 Wrap-up and Listener Engagement
00:01:09
Speaker
we are. We are almost finished with the second season of the Be Make Do podcast. I can't believe it. I can't believe it either. It's gone so fast. And it's been so fun. It has. It's been so fun. And you know, not only doing it, but we're getting the chance now to start to get to know some of our listeners.
00:01:28
Speaker
I know, I never thought a day would come when we first started it that we would actually get to meet some of our listeners that weren't our friends or people that we paid. Yeah, but it's awesome though because when we meet them, like we were at the Breath in the Clay conference three or four weeks ago and I was in Tennessee doing some things where we're meeting people all over the place.
00:01:47
Speaker
And it's like we have one conversation and it's like, oh, this is my new best friend. You know, like we so much instant contact, just amazing, amazing people. Yeah. And like immediate like being like comfortable when you meet them. Yeah. But I think we're sharing the same kinds of, you know, the desire to really connect with other artists of faith who really get it. And there's just this longing for support.
00:02:15
Speaker
and supportive community and people that you can kind of connect with and go deeper who really understand this call. It's really exciting. Yeah, it really, really is. And you know, I feel like we've talked about what we're hearing over and over again from the people that we're meeting.
Community and Resources for Artists
00:02:33
Speaker
The common threads are
00:02:36
Speaker
A, this is great that somebody else gets it, you know, and the need to connect with other people and then the need to connect with people over time to maybe pull together a group to go deeper spiritually or to just, you know, have encouragement and support in our art making so that we're not feeling so isolated and alone. And then resources, you know, great questions to dive deeper in and chew on and stuff.
00:03:02
Speaker
I think when we were at the breath in the clay, that was one of the most resonating things that I heard that was very consistent, which was the need for resources and the want for resources. And honestly, they deserve it. They deserve it.
00:03:21
Speaker
Yeah, absolutely. And I'm encouraged because that's exactly the right thing. That's so cool to hear that that's where these artists are. They're really serious about their art making and their call and they want to do it well and be supported. And that's so awesome because that's what we're trying to do with Be Make Do and with Soul Makers is start to
00:03:44
Speaker
resource those communities and pull people together and encourage people. And that's actually what this whole episode is about, about creating those structures and frameworks of support, both for spiritual disciplines, but also an empowering community and resourcing artists as thought leaders and emotional leaders and creativity leaders and imagination leaders.
Free Wise Hearted One Study Guide Announcement
00:04:10
Speaker
So I'm really excited that we have this episode queued up to share and to announce that we have actually created a study guide for the Wise Hearted One series, which you can download on our website at soulmakers.org. You can download that for free. And it's a great study guide with some good questions for you to reflect on personally, but even better,
00:04:34
Speaker
to get together with a group of your friends or some other people and dive deeper into this calling and this amazing story of the artist's call in Exodus. That sounds awesome. Yeah. All right. Let's get started. Let's do it.
00:04:58
Speaker
In addition
Role of Community in Skill Development
00:04:59
Speaker
to all the gifts of creative and spiritual skill and knowledge, God gave Bezalel gifts to sustain him in his work. Let's look at those frameworks, a community of support, a framework and structure in which to live and work, and the ability to teach and lead others.
00:05:20
Speaker
So the first part of the framework is a community of support. The gifts of wisdom, knowledge, understanding, and craftsmanship are only honed and developed within the structure of community. In many instances, people in the Bible are called to a solitary mission.
00:05:36
Speaker
But it's important to note that in this instance, they were not alone. A holy ab was called as Bezalel's assistant, plus a whole cohort of artisans who were also prepared and teachable, plus hundreds of patrons, donors who gave with the right heart as their hearts were moved, the Bible says.
00:05:57
Speaker
And they gave all that was needed to fulfill the task. They had the resources that they needed. Plus, they received the support, encouragement, blessing, trust, and freedom from the religious leaders like Moses and Aaron. One of the most important frameworks is our relationships. First, our relationship with God and then with others.
00:06:22
Speaker
To survive and thrive as an artist, the cultivation of empowering relationships needs to be the cornerstone of our creative practice. Perhaps especially for those of us who like me are introverted and prefer to work alone.
00:06:36
Speaker
Relationships are difficult, especially when we are solitary people. And yet, it's impossible to grow outside of relationships and community. As much as we may think we've developed our character, we don't really know until it's tested in relationship.
00:06:54
Speaker
As artists called by God to work in ways that engage people constructively both in prophetic and visionary ways, we must develop the ability to listen and to learn from many points of view, to treat others well and invite others into relationship with us.
Artists as Thought Leaders
00:07:13
Speaker
And like Bezalel and Oholiab, we must always be conscious of lifting up those coming behind us, considering how our work and experience might benefit other artists.
00:07:23
Speaker
Alongside the framework of empowering relationships is the framework of commitment to core spiritual practices. In both Exodus 31 and 35, the calling of the wise-hearted ones is immediately preceded or followed by the same reminder from God. You must observe my Sabbath. This will be a sign between me and you and for the generations to come so that you may know that I am the Lord who makes you holy.
00:07:51
Speaker
That's in Exodus 31. Then in Exodus 35, these are the things the Lord has commanded you to do. For six days, work is to be done, but the seventh day shall be your holy day, a day of Sabbath rest to the Lord.
00:08:04
Speaker
Sabbath commandment brackets the calling of the artist and the description of the work to be done. It's non-negotiable. Without Sabbath observance, the work cannot be done. Those who do not obey the command are excluded from future participation, which shows the extreme seriousness of this command.
00:08:24
Speaker
While included in the Ten Commandments, it's this along with the command to make no idols that God repeats over and over. It's not possible to remain in God's will apart from abiding in His presence. Only by regular Sabbath observance can the work be done.
00:08:48
Speaker
And this goes beyond just a once a week Sunday Sabbath. We're talking about something much bigger, about observing that the source of all of our creativity and energy and anything that we do in the world comes from God first, of that regular spending time with God.
00:09:08
Speaker
And any artist knows that creativity dies with a lack of rest, distance, quiet reset. Any Christian knows the spiritual life dries up without the same. Yet we're so driven by our ambition that we too often value productivity over time off. We're afraid if we leave the project for a while we'll lose our inspiration. It's a gift then that God commands us to stop.
00:09:38
Speaker
As much as artists are known for working outside the box, this only works well if there is a box to begin with.
00:09:45
Speaker
So the framework of the law, the covenant, the holy observances, feasts, and acts of worship outlined by God to Moses, the clear understanding of the purpose for which they were building and whose vision they were ultimately working to accomplish, all of that gave Bezalel and Holyab and the wise-hearted ones a framework in which to happily work and live.
00:10:09
Speaker
God provided for them not only with spiritual gifts and companions, but with a structure of support to keep them healthy, happy, and productive. It's not enough to say that we must live a Christian life and follow the teachings of Jesus in our work. It's the daily practices that make up a life and the daily practices that make up our faith and our faithfulness.
00:10:33
Speaker
This is the practical how-to when it comes to being formed in the way of Jesus. And for soul makers, this is where our work stems from. Our convictions, principles, ethics, and moral conscience inform our vision. Our daily quest must be to know, honor, and nurture this part of our lives. To engage in soul craft with the religious commitment we have to our artistic craft.
00:11:01
Speaker
By discovering and developing rhythms and practices that feed our spiritual character, we develop a framework to govern our lives to be grounded in something larger than ourselves, maintain right focus, and resist being run down or swallowed up by the challenges that face us.
00:11:18
Speaker
Finally,
Leadership through Storytelling and Hope
00:11:19
Speaker
Bezalel and Aholiah were given the capacity to teach and lead others. On top of all the skills and knowledge they had been given, they were also given supernatural capacity for this kind of relationship, to engage, encourage, mentor, develop, mobilize, and organize others, the wise-hearted ones, in a symbiotic relationship of teacher and teachable, giving the ability for courageous and innovative action.
00:11:47
Speaker
But beyond that, their work itself served to lead the community into the will and way of God. Have you ever considered your role as an artist, dancer, actor, photographer, writer, poet, whatever, to be one of leadership? Beyond helping people to do something, there's another kind of leadership we don't often consider. One of thought leadership, challenge, and inspiration.
00:12:16
Speaker
Writing in 2017 about the ways to prepare leaders for the next 10 years, Bob Johansson of the Institute of the Future advocated that one of the main leadership literacies needed would be the ability to instill and inspire hope. He wrote in his book, Leadership Literacies, over the next 10 years, the biggest negative disruptors will be young people who are hopeless and connected.
00:12:46
Speaker
The biggest positive disruptors will be young people who are hopeful and connected. He predicted that the direction the future takes depends on whether young people are hopeful or hopeless. And this is turning out to be extremely true. He advocated that leaders who want to be successful need to seed and nurture hope in young people.
00:13:12
Speaker
And interestingly enough, what he brings up as the most powerful way of connecting and communicating that hope is through gaming, because it's the most immersive experience you can have. You're involved in emotionally laden first-person stories. Stories. As we've been discussing throughout this podcast, stories shape us.
00:13:37
Speaker
This is a form of soft but incredibly powerful leadership. James K.A. Smith wrote, if you want to change how the world thinks, you first have to change how they imagine. That's why artists are our apologists. I'm excited that there seems to be a growing awareness of this because for the first time in a while, it's like the artists are getting their jobs back.
00:14:02
Speaker
I think that very rapidly artists will become integral to the spiritual conversation as fewer and fewer churches find that they have the language or tools to connect with a broader culture.
00:14:14
Speaker
And we are going to have to encourage each other fast to be equipped to do the work that we are called to do, because so few of us have been equipped to lead in the way that's needed. If there's an extreme need for hope, and if personal and immersive story is the most effective way to connect, the way people are finding most meaningful to connect and share that hope,
00:14:39
Speaker
then it could be that there is a specific calling for artists who are Christians in the 21st century to lead. These are the gifts, in addition to the gifts of the Spirit, that we as artists should pray for. This is what others should pray for us, and these are the ways we should apprentice ourselves in the way of the wise-hearted ones.
00:15:19
Speaker
In our next
Preview of Creative Expression in Christian Art
00:15:20
Speaker
episode, we're going to take a look at the sticky subject of idolatry. It's not uncommon to run up against people who feel the need to caution Christians in the arts because of all kinds of fears related to this topic. And sometimes that leaves a creative feeling confused, stifled, or stuck. Because what is and isn't okay to make?
00:15:40
Speaker
So we're going to juxtapose the story of the golden calf in Exodus 32 with the story of the tabernacle making in Exodus 35 and see if we can untangle some of these knots in the next episode of Be Make Do, Idols and Altars.
00:15:57
Speaker
Thanks for listening to Be Make Do, a Soul Makers podcast. If you want to go deeper, be sure to visit soulmakers.org and download our free Wise Heart of One study guide with questions for personal reflection or discussion with a group, plus word studies and more.