Manifest guests on matching creative expression to God’s mission

Nathan Brown
Book editor
Signs Publishing Company

Dwain Esmond and Terry Benedict are guests of the Manifest Creative Arts Festival (March 20-23, 2013). They are attending the festival in their roles as vice-president for editorial services at Review and Herald Publishing Association and as founder and chief executive officer of The Shae Foundation. Dwain’s worked with the Seventh-day Adventist Church’s Message and Insight magazines and written three young adult devotional books. Terry’s helped produce blockbusters (including The Terminator), TV commercials for major brands and, now, documentaries.

What does creativity mean to you?

Terry: Everything. It’s one of the essential ingredients for life. Without it, we die. Yet there seems to be this insatiable desire to cut it out of educational curriculum even when the science says otherwise. Even Albert Einstein credits his imagination for developing his complex theories.

Dwain: It’s the capacity to use one’s knowledge, experience and imagination to generate new ideas or solutions to problems.

What’s the most creative project on which you’ve worked?

Dwain: Making dinner for my family—what can I say, I’m a foodie. Now, back to the question. I’ve worked on redesigns for several publications at Review and Herald, and I’m now recasting the ministry of Insight—it’s bold.

Terry: To me, projects are not creative, people are. My goal is to use my artistic bent and create an interesting image even for the most boorish subject. There are no bad stories, only bad storytelling. Once, I had to find a way to film an old Underwood typewriter for a documentary and make it come alive as the metaphor for a deceased newspaperman. I spent five days filming the guts of that typewriter—the action of the gears, keys spanking the paper and the ink soaking into the textured paper. Anthony Hopkins provided the voiceover.

Where do you find inspiration for your own creativity?

Dwain: Much of my creativity comes from what I read in God’s Word. I focus on how God approaches challenges. Beyond the Word, I’m an observer. I find inspiration in the “soup” of everyday life.

Terry: From my Creator. It’s part of my faith walk. I have to trust He will deliver the inspiration needed.

What’s the most important element in turning good ideas into real-life creativity?

Terry: Making time. Life is filled with so many distractions, all in the name of multitasking. Creativity doesn’t like to be rushed. Good ideas usually come from a steady stream of cogitative thinking that help the ideas germinate and grow.

Dwain: There’s no shortage of good ideas. The difference between those whose ideas become successful and those whose ideas do not is hard work. If you believe in your idea, check it with God; if He green lights it, pursue it with all you’ve got.

Why is creativity important for the church?

Dwain: God gave us this capacity to develop new ways to introduce others to Jesus Christ. Creativity is at its best when it’s employed to God’s ends. When the church’s creativity is matched to God’s mission, we’re using it as God intended. We should never forget we were created for God’s glory.

Terry: We can only give honour and praise to our Creator through our God-given creative spirit. If we want to touch others, give hope and make a difference in the world, creative expression of truth unlocks the portal to our soul.

www.artsmanifest.info

Manifest award winners on how the arts influences their faith

Josh Dye
Bachelor of Arts student
Avondale College of Higher Education

Anna Beaden (young achiever), Josh Bolst (filmmaking), Nathan Dalton (filmmaking), Shelley Poole (fine arts) and Sara Thompson (writing) were among the winners of the Manifest Creative Arts Festival competitions in 2012. The festival returns this year—entries in each of the six competitions close March 8, 2013. Looking for inspiration? The five explain the relationship between their craft and their faith.

You’re passionate about your craft. Why?

Shelley: Art allows me a space to reflect, to problem solve and to heal. Painting can be rewarding, but it’s also confronting. Sometimes I’m singing at the top of my lungs, at other times I’m crying on the floor.

Sara: I love creating characters and situations that reflect our life’s experiences. Finding different ways to express these experiences is challenging, but having someone thank you for writing something that brought them closer to God is rewarding.

Nathan: Filmmaking is stressful, compromising and heart breaking, yet somehow therapeutic. There’s something special about making something that doesn’t exist elsewhere.

Josh: Operating video cameras in church from a young age sparked my interest in film, and now I love having the opportunity to portray important concepts through a medium our culture relates to.

Anna: One of my favourite ways to express an idea is to compose a piece of music, but it’s the lyrics that most interest me—if they’re profound and meaningful to my life, I find them faith building. Words in songs are easy to memorise. Keeping uplifting, positive lyrics in my head has a positive affect on my life.

What role does creativity play in your faith journey?

Anna: A lot of people talk to God, but sometimes we don’t spend enough time listening. For me, songwriting is listening: sometimes I spend hours at the piano reading through my Bible and waiting for inspiration to come. Singing the verses helps bring them to life—they become much more than words on a page.

Sara: I write to help make sense of the world around me. In a spiritual context, it’s my way of connecting to God as a form of worship. Writing then becomes a team activity.

Josh: I use film to share my faith. Creating films that lead people closer to God is exciting and rewarding and something that helps me connect to God on another level.

Shelley: Creating art is a means of hanging out with God in a deeply personal way. Reflecting on artworks helps complete my picture of God in a way that reading books and hearing sermons rarely can—it’s a kind of communion. Painting brings things from the periphery to the forefront of my mind and allows the Holy Spirit to speak to me.

Nathan: Filmmaking helps me explore people and experiences in rich, new ways. It’s a medium through which to share joys, doubts and questions. Someone wise once told me I didn’t need to make Christian films—my faith will seep into whatever I make.

How important is creativity and free expression in a Christian context?

Shelley: Creativity breathes God’s spirit into everyday situations, and it doesn’t have to be expressed artistically: it can be a problem-solving businessman or an encouraging teacher. Creativity is simply a way of thinking.

Nathan: The creative act of storytelling is powerful. It has the potential to say things that might otherwise come across as being preachy. I love the way Jesus often told abstract stories instead of giving black and white answers.

Sara: God created us to be creative. Expressing this creativity is a form of worship. It’s also an opportunity to be honest and vulnerable—like the way David wrote in the Psalms.

Josh: Creativity is a gift from God, and seeking to glorify Him with our talents is an important part of everyone’s Christian experience.

Anna: God gives us this gift to serve others, but no one gift is more useful or important than another. God wants each one of us to use our gifts for Him, no matter what they are.

Manifest Creative Arts Festival, March 20-23, 2013
www.artsmanifest.info