GUEST POST by Christy Tennant, International Arts Movement (Part 2 of 2)
Christy serves the movement as Director of Public Relations: Global Community | Musician | Actor | Writer

In the summer of 2005, I was selected to teach English as a Foreign Language at a university in China, and one of the reasons they selected me was because I had a background in theater. They wanted me to stage a play for the students I would be teaching. I laughed privately at the irony that I had given up theater in order to serve God as a missionary, and what he wanted me to do as a missionary depended on my expertise in theater arts. After that summer, I came back to the United States and continued to prepare to go overseas, not quite getting that God still had a plan for my artistic passion. But over the next two years, my path continued to cross with people working in the arts who were also devoted Christians. They were both excellent at their crafts, whether painters or writers or dancers or actors, as well as devout in their faith.

In 2007, I reconnected with Laurie Horvath, who was hosting wine and cheese gatherings for female NYC-based singer/songwriters. Her husband, Bryan, had become the Executive Director of International Arts Movement. Over the course of several months, with meals at their home and Starbucks meetings with Bryan and Mako Fujimura, I had a moment that I call my “Signs” moment. At the end of the movie “Signs,” many seemingly unrelated things come together for one great purpose. That was how I felt after those months of meetings. I realized that my passion for the arts, married to my passion for making the world a better place by serving people, could be the very best way for me to serve both God and humanity. I accepted a position on staff with IAM and have been growing consistently in my own artistic career ever since, even as I devote much of my time each day to building up a movement of artists and creative catalysts around the globe.

In 2009, I began noticing that I had a desire to act again. I started to pray periodically about how that might look in the bigger picture of my role at IAM and the work I do there. Then, a few projects literally came to me – a new stage musical, which turned into a recording project; a short film shot in D.C.; a 48-hour film challenge. After several years off-stage and off-set, it felt wonderful to be back in front of the camera, going through my lines and hitting my marks. I rejoined the actors unions and got new headshots, and am now very excited about what the future holds, both in my role at IAM as the host of IAM Conversations, as well as possible future roles on stage that are yet to be determined.

I think the thing I have continued to marvel at over and over is that God loves the arts. He loves creativity, and he honors those who long to serve him vocationally as artists. I feel God’s pleasure when I sing, when I dance, when I act. There is incredible joy and freedom in realizing that God actually appoints some people to be artists, and that being the best artist they can be is their holy act of worship.

That is my hope in everything I do: that the fragrance that rises from my life, both on stage and off, is a pleasing offering to the God I love.