Hospitality is a Wonderful Gift…

This past week, I have been about 350 miles from home ministering at a wonderful church Bristolville Church of the Brethren in Bristolville, OH. I have a had a great time and have been truly blessed. I love what I get to do and I really love doing it. About the only difficulty is being away from home can be a little rough after a while. I come to miss my family. What makes it better is the hospitality I consistently receive. People welcoming me into there homes and making me feel at home. I couldn’t do what I do for very long without this type of hospitality.

This week, though was above and beyond. I stayed at this awesome bed and breakfast called the Liberty Raymond Tavern. (No it’s not a bar) It’s a historical building, built in 1840 as a dedicated stop for a stage coach line and part of the underground railroad. It’s a gorgeous place and quite comfortable. But what it really made it stand out were owners Bill and Brenda Weiss. Yes we have the same last name, no I don’t think we are related, beyond the best relationship of all, brothers and sisters in Christ. These folks went out of their way to serve me and make me comfortable. It is clear that they use their wonderful place as a ministry, blessing many in a variety of ways. When I talk about 1 Peter 4:10 and using gifts to serve others, I am usually talking talents (and Bill and Brenda are talented people), but the passage does say “whatever gifts.” These two very talented people offered up their home as a gift to me and I am most appreciative. Add onto that an amazing gift of hospitality and you get a wonderful week. I worked hard this week, but I also rested well. I felt welcome and at home, not to mention blessed and encouraged. Thanks Bill and Brenda. I look forward to coming back.

So how about it, dear reader? This is another example of how we can use our gifts to be a blessing. How can you be a blessing today?

I Could Sure Use Your Help… Don’t Worry It Won’t Cost You Anything!

In a little over a month, I will be headed to Boise Idaho to be a part of the Creative Church Conference with my friends at VineArts Boise. I’ve been asked to be part of a panel discussion on blogging and social media and here’s where I need you. I have lots of things to say about how I use this blog and social media but what I need to know is:

How has this blog and the various other channels (Facebook, Youtube, etc.) of AMOKArts blessed or inspired you?

It would also be beneficial to know what I do well, what I could do better, how this blog could get more interaction, have greater impact, etc.

Please also keep me in prayer that I might be a blessing to everyone I can.

Anything you could give me would be most beneficial. Just leave your comments in the comments below.

What Are Your Goals for 2014?

One of the things of which I have been convinced is that setting goals, writing them down and sharing them is a great way to keep yourself accountable, focused and motivated. As we approach a new year, it’s a great time to set these goals and start working toward accomplishing them. So what are your goals? Here are a few of mine:

My primary goal continues to be to go earn my living as a speaker/artist/writer. One of the areas of weakness for me has been my website and marketing. For this reason a primary goal is to:

1. Make my website more for promotion of my speaking ministry:
• Should I create separate speaker site or merely create new landing page for AMOKArts?
• I need to fix the way the domain works on my website for that I can send a link that says http://www.amokarts.com/picturesofJesus, etc.
• I believe the best way to accomplish this is to AMOKArts and Beware of Artists to a self hosted blog and I am working toward this goal. I hope to accomplish this by January 15.
2. I am excited to be hosting a Creative Church Workshop (5/3/14) Because of this I will need to
• Create promo material and get to the printer by early (January 5).
• Outline and finalize workshop (March 1)
• Create workshop booklet (for sale?) (March 1)
• Work on booking the workshop in other locations (ongoing)
3. I am hoping to spend most of the year on a tour presenting my presentation Pictures of Jesus. This will mostly be weekend excursions though I hope to do at least one longer excursion, tentatively in May.
• Finish promo material (January 15)
• Make new promo video (January 15)
• Contact all local churches and churches in strategic areas for weekend tours and possible coast to coast in May.(January 31)
• Determine other weekends for short tours and promote in those areas as well
• Get copies of promotional materials to interested parties (January 15)
• Write Pictures of Jesus souvenir book (ASAP)
• Develop souvenir DVD?
• Look into Pictures of Jesus tour shirt (January 15)
• Create more paintings for sale as well as other merchandise (ongoing)
• Develop a better rate structure (ASAP)
4. My study emphasis this year will be on the Parables of Jesus with the goal of writing a book and expanding my presentation Story: Parables of Jesus book (year long study). (December 31) To go along with this work, I hope to:
• Create some merchandise to go along with the Parables of Jesus presentation(ongoing)
• Create a better promo piece for Story: Parables of Jesus and improve web page(June 1)
• Book presentation into at least one camp (March 1)
5. Create a presentation for a camp that has already seen Pictures of Jesus and Story (August 15)
• Possibly a new A Night AMOK: Tell the World???
6. Promote worship painting service to local churches and Social Media (March 1)
• Live worship event???
7. Develop a creativity workshop for schools and/or business and book at least one (Finalized by June 1)
• Finish Just Make Art short booklet (June 1)
• New idea/drawing book or game and other merchandise (June 1)
8. Submit Five Paintings to Licensing agent by January 15
9. Start artists’ small group at my home church (March 1)

As you can see, I have laid out a lot of goals for this year. You might also have noticed I placed dates on most of them. The reason for this is to help me to stay focused. Some of these goals are hard and fast others are just to give me something to shoot for. No doubt some things will move onto this list and others will move off but this is where I am starting. These are strictly my ministry goals. I also have personal and family goals as well.

So how about you. What are your goals?

Poconos CREATE Retreat has been postponed until Spring 2014

We’ve had a few cancellations and it was decided to postpone the event until Spring. Hopefully the new date will line up better with people’s schedules.
Thanks for your understanding…
Dave Weiss

I need a couple more people but that’s not why you should come to the Poconos CREATE Retreat

In just a few weeks AMOKArts will be holding it’s first ever CREATE Retreat at a camp in the beautiful Pocono Mountains. I need a few more people to make this happen, but that’s not why you should come.

You should come to the Poconos CREATE Retreat if you’re:

• Looking for a way to use your gifts to serve the Lord.
• Trying to find your fit in the Kingdom of God and your life purpose.
• Desiring to create great stuff in community with other creatives.
• Wanting to spend some time in nature.
• Needing some help to bring your vision to reality.

If you’re looking for any of those things, or more you NEED to be at this retreat.

Sign up on the Facebook page.
Get more details on this page or
Contact Dave Weiss for more information.

Why You Should Come to the Poconos CREATE Retreat

Come and join us September 20 and 21 for the Poconos CREATE Retreat at Pocono Mountain Bible Conference, Clifton Township, PA. It’s going to be a great couple of days as we explore the gifts God has given us and how we can use them to His glory. For details go to the Poconos CREATE Retreat on this sight or contact Dave Weiss.

You can also sign up on Facebook.

Creative Retreat Update

So who wants to come to a great retreat? Build your skills, get great ideas, challenge yourself to take your God given gifts to a whole new level!
https://www.facebook.com/events/201304226701569/

So What Are We Going to DO at Poconos CREATE?

So here’s what we’re gonna do. We’ll start off with a demo to set the tone, then we’re going to do a quick exercise tat will seem kind of random but will get your creative juices flowing. From there we’ll narrow it down a bit and start to look at application, i.e. how to use your gift in your context. Then we’ll have dinner, worship pick the Saturday topic, and hang out in a time of free creating or Fellowship. We’ll kick Saturday off with an optional hike out to a beautiful overlook where we’ll appreciate the work of THE Master Artist. Then breakfast and a day of creating culminating in presenting your work to the group. THe goal is to help you to connect with other artists, see new uses for your gift and ways to walk out your calling and your mission. You need to be at this retreat. Sign up here and contact Dave Weiss at amokarts@aol.com or go to the Poconos CREATE page for details

We’re a Week Closer to the Retreat… Are You Coming?

Well we’re another week closer to the retreat. I’m so excited for this… Why? Well have you ever felt like you’re the only one. Do people ever look at you and wonder how your gift can work in the church? Do you ever wonder where you, the artist, the creative fit? At this retreat there will be countless others that are in the same boat. We can encourage each other, build each other up, help each other out and share all kinds of great ideas to inspire each other, while we worship our Lord with the gifts He has given us.

Come and join us.

Creative Retreat Opportunity in the Poconos

I’ve wanted to do this for years and I finally have the opportunity. Friday, September 20 and Saturday, September 21 AMOKArts will be hosting Poconos Create: An Artist and Writers Ministry Retreat.
The cost is $150 and includes a nights’ lodging at the camp and dinner Friday, breakfast and lunch Saturday.
For more details go to the Poconos Create page.

I need a minimum of 15 people to do this event, so please sign up ASAP.

Overview
Poconos Create is an opportunity to explore and develop your creativity and how you can use what you have given to serve the Lord. It’s also an opportunity to network and fellowship with other creatives in a fun and relaxed camp setting. During our time together we will have several creative challenges to help you learn to create “on the fly”, collaborate, etc. Friday evening will culminate in a time of creative worship where participants have the opportunity to create in a worship setting. In our last scheduled activity Friday night we will select our topic of focus for Saturday’s activities followed by Free Create/fellowship time where you can connect with others in a creative setting.

Saturday begins bright and early with an optional hike to the lookout. If weather conditions permit, this site provides an amazing panorama of the beautiful Pocono Mountains. From there we will return, have breakfast and start creating. We’ll take the topic we selected Friday evening and develop ways to creatively express the topic in your context. You can work alone or in groups. We’ll finish our time together sharing what we created and a commissioning service.

Join us as we work together to develop and use our gifts to the glory of God.

Join us to CREATE!