The Need for More - for His Glory & His Kingdom

There is a need for "arts" and "dance" ministry both within the ministries of our churches and out among the culture today (especially dance - which so much of  has been surrendered to the god of this world and many youth are being taken captive to his call in the arts arena).  This is one of the kingdom areas that needs to be represented or come on earth as it is (and will be) in Heaven - to the praise, honor and glory of God.  (I think we can all agree that there is certainly some stuff that needs to be "bound" and some stuff that needs to be "loosed" in the arts culture.)  There might be less need for "dance" or "arts" related ministries in our churches, if those of us who belong to Christ, would simply dance, create, teach, choreograph, sing, act, write, draw, etc, to reflect that we belong to Christ wherever and whenever given the opportunity or a platform to do so.  If we say we have surrendered "all", should not all our artistic gifts reflect this?  Praying for more sons and daughters and Christ-following artists to awaken to their calling from God to use "all" their God-given gifts to be salt and light to the culture, instead of compromising to look just like the culture. Praying for "the church" (the members of the body of Christ, including pastors, leaders, teachers, studio owners, etc.) to also be a part of His kingdom coming in the arts and His will being done in this area too as it is (and will be) in Heaven.  

I am fully aware that bringing restoration to the arts is not the "main thing" in our obedience to fulfilling the great commission - to share the message of salvation and make disciples of Christ (although the arts can be used as a tool to present the Truth of the gospel and to draw people into God's presence). However, I am wondering if God will say to those of us who possess artistic gifts, "Well done! You used all your gifts for my glory and my eternal purposes." This should challenge all of us to think about how God desires us to use our gifts and talents, and, as well, challenge those of us who have the resources and platforms to facilitate these gifts being used for kingdom purposes to consider if we are really doing all that God desires too? 

I believe our gifts (which all come from The Creator of all things and the giver of every good gift) will be used in Heaven, and, if so, perhaps we should prepare accordingly by using them for His praise, honor and glory here on earth!


Sing like Jesus is listening, because He is...

Dance like Jesus is watching, because He is...

Draw, Paint, Sculpt like Jesus is observing, because He is...

Write like Jesus is reading, because He is...

Create, Act, Perform like Jesus is your audience, because He is...


Romans 11:36; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Peter 4:10-11; Revelation 4:11


Artists in The Bible (excerpt from the book, "The Heart of the Artist" by Rory Noland):

"Maybe I'm biased, but I think God has a special place in His heart for artists, because so many are mentioned in the Bible. Being an artist was one of the first occupations listed in the early days of the Old Testament, along with agriculture and industry (Genesis 4:21). There are several references to teams of musicians (Nehemiah 10:28-29; Psalm 150:3-5) and other artists (Exodus 31:2-6; 35:30-35). The worship team serving in the temple during David's reign was made up of 288 vocalists (1 Chronicles 25:7). One of the judgments made against Babylon in the book of Revelation was that life would be void of the richness that artists bring (18:22).

Several artists are mentioned by name throughout Scripture. We can't list all of them, so I'll just touch on a few. David was a skillful musician and songwriter (1 Samuel 16:18), someone whom God described as a man after God's own heart. Solomon wrote over one thousand songs (1 Kings 4:32). Kenaniah was a great vocalist and a song leader (1 Chronicles 15:22). There's a group of musicians in 1 Chronicles whom I call the singing percussionists. Their names were Asaph, Heman, and Ethan (15:16-19), and they were vocalists who kept time for everyone by playing the cymbals. Bezalel was cited as a very gifted visual artist (Exodus 35:30-33)."

Some examples of dancers in the Bible: 

Miriam (the prophetess) led the other women in a victory dance (or a spontaneous dance of praise) after the children of Israel passed through the Red Sea (Exodus 15:19-20). The Israelite women danced at David's defeat of the Philistine giant, Goliath (1 Samuel 18:6). King David danced before the Lord with all his might while bringing the ark of the Lord in the to city of David (2 Samuel 6:14-16, 21).