My dear friend Elyse recently loaned me a book called Art and the Bible, written by Francis Schaeffer.  It was less a book and more an essay, and I read it in one sitting.  Let me tell you, it was refreshing to have someone explore so many ideas related to the Christian worldview and the value of art.

The idea that stood out to me the most was this: the Christian world view has both a major and minor theme.  The minor theme is that the world has revolted and is revolting against God, that Christians will never be perfect this side of heaven.  The major theme is that God is at work redeeming the world.

What does that mean for the Christian artist? It’s okay for your art to show both themes too.

Why does this matter to me? Because, as a Christian artist who has suffered from OCD, I’ve sometimes wondered if my responsibility to my faith meant that I needed to focus only on the positive.  The answer is no.  It should be emphasized over the minor theme, but the minor theme has its place in my writing too.

I wish that all Christian artists realized this. We need more gritty, raw Christian art and fewer poems about rainbows and puppies.  If you have art like this– especially written work– you should submit your work to Crux Literary Journal.  We’d be thrilled to take a look.