What is behind this show? There is something-an energy from your team-that I have been searching for all of my life. I must know what it is!"

His name was Ercan. He had sensed the commotion in the streets of Istanbul, but was unable to see, so he climbed a tree to watch from the shadows. The message he saw was so compelling that he had to find out what it meant. 
Our ministry team, Urban Poets, was debuting a multi-layered production consisting of dance, drama, art and percussion that expressed the human struggle to reach God and understand life. During the show, dancers and actors struck a giant canvas with different color paint.

An artist changed the marks and scribbles into a beautiful sunrise. The message had no cross or religious symbols and very few words (we used a soundtrack with voiceover in Turkish). But the images were powerful and clear. Beauty and pain were brushed against a captive audience through artistic passion and story. And the questions and conversations that followed were soaked with spiritual intrigue and hunger. 

A Turkish pastor stood close and voiced his surprise at the spiritual fervor of the people. "I can't believe how spiritually open people are to this presentation," he said.

The arts and faith have always been married, interwoven by intent and purpose. They both ask the basic human questions: Who are we? Why are we here? Where are we going? 

When Paul was scribing his first chapter to the Roman "saints," he spoke about God's invisible qualities- divine nature and eternal power being understood by what was made. In short, he was expressing to them the method by which God could communicate to us without uttering a word. He spoke through image. Through creation God expressed Himself, and His pictures are worth a thousand words. 

Somehow, God designed the human spirit to understand the invisible through creation. When we experience beauty or a story that illuminates our imagination, we are stirred in a deeper place than reason. We are creatures led by experience more than information. Like tuning forks, we resonate with the vibe of a spiritual experience. And whether we consciously seek it or not, we recognize when we've stepped into an eternal moment. Art doesn't explain or provide answers as much as it stirs up the questions residing in the corners of our souls. This creates a voracious hunger to know what-or Who-
is behind it. 

With time and effort the local church can develop this type of communication and become centers of cultural change.  
There are four qualities of the church that can catalyze an artistic movement:

1. Volunteer spirit. The church is one of the only places left where the spirit of giving and sacrifice exist. This quality resonates with artists because most are producing their art for free out of a passion for creativity. This volunteer spirit draws many artists to the church. It's a connection point.     
2. Spiritual themes. When language is made accessible to the outside world, themes like forgiveness, future, belief, relationship are extremely attractive to artistic communicators. They spend countless hours and years of life contemplating these themes through a fog. The church should be the natural place for them to explore these themes and find Truth.
3. Spiritual leadership. Fragmented and dysfunctional mark the artistic communities that house most artistic works. Our productions have been excuses to convert and mentor artist leaders within the church.
4. Cause. To be an artist is to have a voice, but so many have so little to say. The church can offer a talented artist something to die for. Something to communicate that has impact that is born in the invisible and evidenced in the visible. Connected to the message of Christ they can create a movement of freedom or a revolution that gives voice to an oppressed humanity. They can change the world.

The arts are the microphone to the world. If we can be trusted with the lives of those who were born to paint, act, write, direct, dance and design, we will take part in storytelling that draws people to God-our Creator.

The fire of our calling must sweep across this country and world to express the message that will cause people to climb trees and demand to know "what is behind this show?"