A New Creation

Last Night I did my new presentation on what may be my favorite verse in all of Scripture, 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old has gone and the news has come.” I was trying to think of a good painting to do with it. I’ve already done butterflies and frogs exploring the metamorphosis concept of complete change, but that wasn’t quite right, So I went at it a completely different way.

First off I did something I almost never do. I started with a white surface. I usually speed paint on black. I started off by doing a very simple line art self portrait. What the congregation may not have realized is I was really gobbing on the black paint. Then I added some sky blue around it. What they didn’t know. was it was my intent from the beginning to wreck the painting. Taking paper towels I smeared it into a cloudy mess and then quit. When I began to speak, I spoke of how we basically start as a clean slate, but then life happens and we sin and we get splattered by the effects of sin and it makes a mess of us. I then talked about what it means to be a new creation in Christ—the way He transforms and renews and redeems us.

At the end of the message I painted a picture of Jesus over the mess. The reason, when Christ redeems us, He allows us to put on His righteousness. The finished project was a little less successful than I like. For some reason my surface started to warp and it was falling out of the easel. Speed painting while holding your surface with the other hand is not easy. Nonetheless, the painting which took a total of about 8 minutes for both phases demonstrated what it was supposed to demonstrate and I was pleased.

Here’s the point, in Christ there is grace and forgiveness, but there is also transformation. Your past does not dictate your future. You can be redeemed. God can take your life and make it into something new. He can take the best of you and make it better. He can redeem the rest of you and turn it into a powerful testimony. God created you and He can also recreate you and when He does (and He will if you ask Him) you will be a new creation.

Lead, Follow or…

I once heard the story of a person passed over for a ministry because “the more traditional Christians might not respond well to his creative approach.” Needless to say, I resonated with this story.

A couple thoughts came to mind. In a world where everything humanity knows doubles ever 1.5 years, a creative approach is not an option for the church, it’s a necessity. How else will we take the unchanging message of the Gospel to a rapidly changing world? Our declining numbers in the church prove this to be true.

But here’s the other thing. If a person has been a follower of Jesus Christ long enough to become a “traditional Christian” I think one of the following must be true. They should be qualified to lead. If they don’t feel the call to be leaders (and not everyone does), they should have been under the authority of Christ and the local pastor/body of Christ long enough to be amazing followers able to follow their leaders into new and fertile mission fields or at the very least they should be able to get out of the way.

Now when I write get out of the way, I’m not meaning they should leave the church or that they are irrelevant or unnecessary. I’m simply stating that they should have the spiritual maturity to realize that just because something does not appeal to them, does not mean it will not appeal to someone and that they should stand back, allow the effort to proceed, pray that it bears fruit and not get in the way of what God is trying to do. Of course I’m not talking about righteously opposing something unscriptural, that is a mandate for us all. I’m talking about opposing things because they’re not the way we’ve always done it. If we only do what we’ve always done, we’re doomed or at the very least way off task.

Truth be known, a lot of this has been caused, in my opinion, by the way we view our leaders in the American Church. We’ve started to see them as employees to be hired and fired at will, based on whether or not they take us where we want to go. My next words will sound cold, but it’s not about you and where you want to go and your pastor is not your employee. Your pastor is called by God to take you where God wants you to go. Of course there are checks and balances in place to ensure pastors don’t abuse power, but if you are opposing your leaders because they are taking you where God wants you to go, who are you really opposing? Check yourself.

I used to say the church exists for those outside it, to reach people beyond it’s walls and while I still consider that (as well as worshipping God) to be our primary purpose, I have mellowed just a little. Ephesians 4 calls out five gifts that were given for the purpose of leading the church: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers. Now one might think these are the people who are supposed to do the work of the church, but that is in fact not the case.

The job of church leaders according to Ephesians 4:12,13 is “to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” Translation, your church leaders’ jobs are to help YOU to do the work of ministry, build up the body (reaching out and discipling), uniting the body behind Jesus, and teaching us to follow Him until we become like Him. Their job is to help you find and do your job to the glory of God.

Once you consider how many different people and different jobs there are that could be being done, you will gain a greater realization for the need for creativity in the church and especially in church leadership. And once you start to do your God-given assignment, you’ll see that you want people to do one of three things…

Lead, Follow or get out of the way.

Which one are your doing and are you getting in anyone’s way?

Prayer Request and another Request

Hi everyone,
Well, it’s here. This is the week I take A Night AMOK, Pix of JC before a live audience in its entirety for the first time. I’ve done all the elements in ministry before but now’s the time to see how they work as a cohesive unit. I’m really excited, but I could also use your prayers. Please pray that people show up ready to receive Jesus. Pray that the Spirit will prompt anyone who is on the fence about coming and that God will be glorified. For those who don’t know A Night AMOK: Pix of JC is an evangelistic program that uses art, video, storytelling and more to paint a picture of the real Jesus. During the program, I will be painting six different works of art live, all of which share part of the story of Jesus ending with an invitation to receive Jesus. I’ve been preparing for this program for years and I really can’t wait. Please pray for me, this whole event and especially those who will be coming. If you’re in the vicinity of eastern PA, I’d love to have you come and check it out this saturday at 7:00p.m.

The promo video can be seen below, but first my request. I really want to take this presentation beyond the walls of my church. It’s suitable for churches, camps, conferences, youth events, evangelistic meetings and more. First, could you pray that I get opportunities to do just that. Secondly if you could envision this being a blessing for your church or event, would you consider bringing me in to do the program and lastly if you know anyone who may be able to help me get this out there, agents, event producers/promoters, etc. would you please have them contact me at amokarts@aol.com.

Thank you,
Dave Weiss
amokarts.com

A Night AMOK

My new presentation, A Night AMOK: Pix of JC is now available for booking. This evangelistic presentation is an evening of art,music and ministry. In the program, I paint a variety of pictures live, accompanied by videos, music, story telling and the Word of God. It’s all designed to paint a picture of Jesus, a true, scriptural, real picture of His amazing love on people’s hearts and minds. Check it out.
For more information on A Night AMOK:Pix of JC, click here and if you’d like to bring me in to do A Night AMOK, you may contact me at amokarts@aol.com.

Below is a sample:

I Can

I love doing art ministry workshops but there is one thing that always drives me a little crazy. I have to spend so much time telling people they can do art. Maybe they got a bad grade or someone told them they had no talent and they gave up. They tell me they can’t draw a straight line or a stick figure. They say they don’t have a creative bone in their bodies. The first one light be possible but the second is certainly a lie. I’m not saying you will be a professional artist or that you’ll ever sell a painting or hang one in a gallery or a museum, but I will tell you this, you can do what God is calling you to do. So if you have an image in your head that you think might be from God, stop worrying about what the nay sayers or the critics or even your loved ones will say. Pick a medium and create that image. Do what you feel God is leading you to so.

He may have given it to you to show you something very personal or it ,may have been give to share with the world. It may bless millions or speak to one heart. Don’t worry about all that stuff now just be obedient and express it. The obedience is up to you, everything else is up to God.
This doesn’t just apply to art. We all face areas of life where we feel insufficient. These are the times when the little voice comes into your head and tells you you’re not good or smart enough or just not enough in general. Do yourself a favor. Don’t listen to that voice. The truth is you are not enough and neither am I but that’s okay because you are not alone, God is with you and God is enough. You can do whatever God wants you to do, because He will do it through you.
You can do it!

I’ve needed to be reminded of this myself recently. It appears the job that I have had for the last 11 years will soon be going to part time and this gives me a good deal of fear. On one hand the job is what I have used to support a good part of my ministyr not to mention my family. On the other hand, I have this vision from God to use my creative gifts to share the love of Jesus Christ with people and to go into the church and encourage and empower people to use their gifts to serve the Lord. It’s my dream, my vision and my calling, so what do I do. Well I can listen to the voice that tells me I can’t, that it doesn’t make sense or I can trust the One who called me in the first place. I choose to do that and say, through His power, “I CAN.”

If you have a church or ministry who you believe might be able to benefit from what I do, please contact me at amokarts@aol.com

Bible Reading Guide
An important part of following God is knowing what He wants and a great way to know what He wants is to read His Word. Follow this plan and you will finish reading the Bible in a year.
Job 38-40; Matthew 1
You can also download your own chart here.