I hope that you're enjoying reading these blog posts, I heartily enjoy writing them, as they both give me something to do that's not wasteful, and provide an outlet to get some ideas onto paper that are jumbling around in my skull. I want to talk about self-expression and how it is that we as humans are expected to express ourselves. If you are human, you might think of self-expression as a beautiful thing, whilst you may not exactly agree or necessarily enjoy all forms of expression, I think there is something we must begin to take both more seriously and stop taking too seriously. If there was an easy way to describe this I would attempt to do that, however, because this is such a finicky thing for an observer to place his finger on don't expect a 100% well-baked thought.
While I will refrain from using too many "I think" statements, in the interest of persuading you to think about it for yourself, I will lean toward more confident statements. So don't let that sway you. Now, let's take a step back and try to separate into ingredients what it is about self-expression that is both so beautiful and very controversial. The first form that is thought of upon reading that sentence is the form that is expressed via art. While there are many different forms of art, we must take into consideration things that are not generally recognized as art. Business, for instance, and how one writes their emails, ought to be seen as an art form simply due to the fact that if we considered it an art form it would become higher quality as an overflow of the expression of professionalism. Not only would it allow for more personality and therefore more personableness, it would also create a desire within customers to keep coming back because they were either: Treated extremely well, or made to feel like they were known personally. This is an art-form that could use a little less rigid thought and scripted guidelines and would benefit from more freedom in the way that people are managed and directed.
The second form is the expression of our bodies as humans. This can be found in dancing, singing, laughing, crying, sex. This can also be found in unhealthy expressions such as alcoholism, abuse, depression, pornography. To the naked eye, it is not so obvious why any of these things are considered "bad or good" and one can definitely make the argument that too much of any one of these would give way to the chase of something that is very obviously not God. Yet the thing that we forget is that these are all art forms at some point. Some more obvious than others, but because they are expressions of our overflow of what we do as humans, they are still art. Some might click off of this because I seem to be making the case that art is acceptable. That is simply not the case, but I do want to make the case that we ought to consider it art nonetheless because then we would at least appreciate the power that all of these activities hold in our hearts. Just because we can make the argument that it is art does not automatically concede the fact that it is "good art", or "art we ought to check out."
If I were to tell you "hey you should check out this cool ritual my buddy and I did to summon an ancient Greek God, it was a pretty weird chat, but I think you'd like it." most of us would have the good sense to step away from that, and not check it out. However, that's because I am purposefully serving this blog to a Christian audience. If you were somebody who has not accepted their identity as a Son of God, then how would you be able to tell what's a good idea and a bad idea? Even if you have discernment about people, that doesn't necessarily mean you have any discernment spiritually, and that can be said for Christians and non-Christians alike. Yet if we have discernment we still may not see that a ritual is also a form of expression and art.
So WHY am I making the argument that art is all around us? Well, that much should be obvious; because it is. But the real question should be this: "Why am I making the argument that we ought to respect these things simply for the fact that they are art?" Because art inherently holds the heart, focus, and power that the creator holds, and that authority according to Genesis is immense. That would mean that our expressions have the power to subdue and rule over all the earth, and yet we don't realize that the creators are the ones in this world that are ruling over it. We must start to see each and every person as a creative individual that is specifically designed to have dominion over an art form that is precisely theirs. Then and only then will we conceive the value that every person inherently has, the beautiful and breathtaking thing that each of us not only has the potential to become but is. I believe as Christians that is what we should be spending much more time doing. Not calling people out and explaining why they're wrong, but instead providing guidance, a foothold, a foundation to their creative force, and the source of that force. To give someone power that great is one of the most generous things we can do, and it is also the most life-giving, loving action we can perform. So you, reader, go and be creative, write that poem you've always wanted to write, sing/record that song that's stuck in your head, knit that sweater for your kids, write that card or letter.
Express yourself, and walk in the authority that God is calling you to!
No comments:
Post a Comment