I recently rediscovered how much I love drawing with charcoal. It’s a traditional drawing medium, and it’s fun. It produces beautiful texture and above all it’s messy. Really messy. As you apply charcoal to paper, it turns to powder and gets everywhere. One day when in college, a classmate asked a friend about me, “Why …

Continue reading "God’s Beautiful Mess: A Christmas Meditation"

One year ago, I had a phone call with a woman from Mission to the World. I wanted to serve, but I didn't know where or how. I told her, “Here I am, send me!” I wanted to spend my summer serving the Lord and sharing the gospel. As a ballet dancer, I also understood …

Continue reading "The Bridge of Dance: How Ballet Became a Surprising Gateway to Faith in Japan"

The GCAMM Conference (Global Consultation on Arts and Music in Missions) took place September 11-14, 2023 at Southwestern Baptist University in Fort Worth, Texas. Past conferences have been in Nairobi, Kenya, Chiang Mai, Thailand, and Singapore. It is the largest gathering in the world of missionaries serving the body of Christ through the arts: music, …

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I gathered with thirty or so others on the top floor of an art space in West Tokyo for a performance of “HOPE” between Good Friday and Easter. The wind blew a light rain through the window as a man danced beneath the dull orange glow of the setting sun. Through the hour-long performance, the …

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• “No!” the owner exclaimed as Alana Essex stepped inside the share house. Alana had just landed in Tokyo and was anxious to get settled in her new room. She had doubted her decision to come to Japan right up until she boarded her plane yesterday, and the first words spoken to her after she …

Continue reading "She Couldn’t Resist: A Nashville-Bound Songwriter Follows God’s Call to Japan"