Art for Ministry

The Race has given me the opportunity to work with many different ministries. I’ve helped with children’s ministry, co-hosted Beauty for Ashes events for women, helped brighten a city by painting murals, made jewelry for a women’s conference, and many more wonderful things. These are the easy ministries to tell people about back home. They are tangible and familiar, but what God has been walking me through recently is that ministry is anything I do that is focused on Him and sharing the Gospel.

This last week my team got together to pray for our day of ATL. During my time in prayer, the Lord told me He wanted me to do prophetic watercolor art out at a coffee shop. Then He gave me specific things to paint: a stormy sea, a field of wildflowers, a forest, and a night sky. 

At first I wanted to argue with God. I have loved experimenting with watercolors recently so I was excited about that, but this didn’t feel important enough to be considered ministry. But God told me the same thing a second time, so I obeyed and grabbed my supplies.

The coffee shop was busy when I arrived, but there was an open table near the front. I set up my watercolors and set to painting. As I painted each of the scenes He had shown me, He also brought scripture references to mind to go along with each one. When I finished a painting I wrote the scripture down on the back. I wasn’t sure who I was supposed to give any of the art to, but God told me to wait until He showed me the right people.

During my time painting, a young lady around my age had come up to my team and I asking if we were World Racers. Come to find out she had met a few of the other women on my squad at church the day before. So when she walked into the coffee show and saw us, she guessed that we were a part of their group. (We do have a certain look about us…) She is a believer who was studying in Russia before Covid. She is currently trying to get back to Russia, but is staying in Georgia until then. One of my teammates spent a long time talking with her and encouraging her. It is a special thing to come across other believers in our travels. 

As we were packing up to leave, God told me to give her one of my paintings. I was confused because she is already a believer and I had imagined God would have me give the art to random people on the street who aren’t believers yet. But He reminded me that believers need reminders of truth, that He wants us to pour into each other. So in faith I handed her the one painted with the night sky. The verse God gave me to put on the back was Psalms 147:4-

“He determines the number of the stars

    and calls them each by name.”

Then I wrote a short note about how the God of the universe knows the name of each star, so how much more does He know you by name!

As I handed her the painting, her whole face lit up. At that moment God told me not to mention the verse and note on the back; He would draw her attention to it when she needed it. So I don’t know if she read it yet, but I trust God’s timing.

This day of painting and creating was a joy for me, and God used it as my ministry. It was a beautiful time of prayer and quiet time with the Lord while I made something that will be an encouragement to someone else. I have the other paintings still, waiting for God to show me who He wants to receive them.

So remember, God can take anything and turn it into ministry, as long as our focus is solely on Him. Life with the Lord is never boring.