champions for the arts

each winter nancy beach and the willow creek association pull together a group of 30 "arts champions" chosen from all the over country to participate in conversations around the use of arts in the church and our call to ennoble, connect, equip, and refresh church artists. last week we met in orlando and brainstormed how to best accomplish this purpose in the context of a stressed economy when outward mission is still so very critical.

while most of our churches tend to swing the pendulum wide, the truth is that the gospel is both attractional and missional. jesus used compelling storytelling methods - while lifting up the great needs of all God's children across the world. i want to be part of a church that greatly understands the need for both - and invests itself in the passionate and relentless pursuit of making disciples through the combination.

willow always treats us to an inspiring field trip during this gathering- this year's being EPCOT. thanks nancy and team - for including all of us in the adventure. visit www.towardwonder.com for information on this year's arts conference - inspiration and innovation on a much larger scale.

transformations and fresh starts

everyone needs a fresh start in some area of life. i love the idea that yesterday's failures don't have to be today's extra baggage. i love that we don't have to be stuck in same-'ol, same-'ol... and that God's grace is ever prodding us towards the new thing, the fresh start, the way where there seems to be no way. it's why i love makeover projects. fresh looks cause us to view our lives in fresh ways. UNSTUCK!!! (hey, i think there's an upcoming message series at ginghamsburg on this very subject...)

i've been part of a mini-makeover team (husband clark, friend robin, + kim) who in the last year have transformed my brother's 7-room coffee house in granville, ohio in our "spare" time. i most recently recovered four chairs to finish one room. see the photos at the bottom of this post- a glimpse into the new look at www.riverroadcoffeehouse.com.

recently a couple from ginghamsburg -walt and debbie toney- offered up a large amount of pottery to be sold and profits go towards THE SUDAN PROJECT. the potters who made this pottery already had their work featured at river road... so we struck up a deal to sell this larger amount right there at river road. it's a win-win-win scenario. my brother gets added inventory (which was needed), the toneys get to give a larger gift than they'd orginally planned, and the people of SUDAN will benefit greatly in the end. God is good!

christmas eve in the lobby

our artist/makeover team designed the lobby experience this year. we used blue lights and twigs to complement the worship theme "eyes wide open~christmas can still change the world" (see adjoining christmas eve message by mike slaughter). chandeliers by chad, trees by robin, centerpieces by brandon, bistro tables by heather, high-up jobs by lori, various tasks by laura, blue gels by rachel and coordination by kim.

alternative christmas

creating environments is at the core of my passion...so when it's time for christmas i feel excited and open for new, nontraditional ways of expressing the joy of the season. this year as i set out to create environments at home and ginghamsburg i hear these words: everything you need you already have.

since mid november i've been soaking in alternative christmas environments. natural, ordinary elements gathered in non-traditional ways with an aspect of surprise on the side. i visited anthropologie - always a favorite spot for collections of natural pieces integrated in totally alternative ways.

during the thanskgiving holiday i spent two hours at a new favorite haunt in the iowa countryside called "sisters." i was so inspired i took pics: cuttings from nature + repurposed discards + new cool pieces. a delicious combination.

fast forward to my own home for the holidays. my self-inflicted rules: no traditional tree + no new purchases (i'm a horrible consumer.) my goal: to reflect a more sudan-esque and a less "north pole" feel. bunches of twigs, bittersweet, grapevine, pine needles and landscape burlap later an alternative christmas theme emerged... and i discovered that everything i needed i already had.