Focus on the Arts

I write often about the more commercial aspects of writing and publishing.

That’s because I want authors to be able to make a living from their message.

I don’t want you to think, however, that I don’t care about the “soul” aspect of writing.

By this I mean:

• we write to express our deepest convictions and perceptions of the world
• we write to communicate–to touch the lives of others through words, to make a difference in the lives of other people who read our words.
• we write, too, to know what we think.
• we write because we love to play with words, to revel in the sound and feel and interplay of meaning and sound.

Art in general is a “soulish” activity. It points us to the transcendent. It often stirs up longings that cannot be satisfied fully by “ordinary” experience.

This week on the national radio call-in show, Midday Connection, hosts Anita Lustrea and Melinda Schmidt explore the various aspects of art and art-making, including the spiritual element.

I really enjoyed Ken Gire talking about his marvelous book, Windows of the Soul, on Monday.

Yesterday Kim and Jim Thomas explored art’s different forms and answered some insightful questions and comments.

Today classical guitarist Christopher Parkening talked about why His devotion to this art form is important in the kingdom of God. (I missed that myself, as I was teaching my class. Have to catch the podcast!)

Tomorrow Janice Elsheimer will enourage all of us to find or rediscover our own artistic gifts. I’m looking forward to that! And Friday will be a time of interacting with listeners about the impact of art and these broadcasts on their lives.Focus on the ArtsFocus on the Arts

If you missed any of these broadcasts, you can subscribe to the podcast or listen to the audios with audio streaming.

If the spiritual aspects of art interest you in any way, I invite you to listen in or catch the audio archives.