7 Awesome Ideas for Connecting Faith to Your Other Five Senses

I sat on the rocky shore and gripped a small book in my hands, consuming its pages like a hungry teenager devouring pizza. A few days later I would return to Dallas changed—and not just from the mineral waters at Ouachita State Park.

Madeline L’Engle and her book, Walking on Water: Reflections on Faith and Art, gave voice to the questions simmering in my subconscious. Does art matter to God? What do our bodies have to do with faith? Does God care about physical things too, or just spiritual stuff? L’Engle’s book catapulted me into these questions and I began a journey that became this blog. 

Today, I want to introduce you to some of my traveling companions, in case you’re interested in a similar journey—an artist, an audio journal, a short-film series, a prayer idea, and the two books I’m so glad I read. You might not agree with everything they say, and that’s ok—I didn’t either—but, the way they think about faith and the other five senses is just so good that I had to share. 

1. Makoto Fujimura

Makoto Fujimura’s abstract art calls viewers home—home to life as it was meant to be when God created the world, home as it will be in the new Heaven and New Earth. Fujimura’s integration of art and faith earned him the “2014 Religion and the Arts” award from the American Academy for Religion.

• Get it: Stroll through his online gallery, read some of his essays, or watch “Golden Sea,” a six-minute documentary about one of his recent paintings. 

Walking on Water – Azurite by Makoto Fujimura

2. Mars Hill Audio Journal—Ken Myers

I met Ken Myers in 2013 during Arts Week at Dallas Theological Seminary (DTS). His lectures on “Creation and the Ordered Imagination” planted the seeds for my blog. In his audio journal (Mars Hill Audio Journal), he interviews artists, philosophers, and sociologists (just to name a few) who are exploring the connection between Christianity and culture.

• Get it: Listen to his four lectures from DTS Arts Week. Check out free downloads of his audio journal before purchasing the digital subscription ($30 for the year–six issues).

3. For the Life of the World: Letters to the Exiles

These ingenious short-films will inspire you think about faith, culture and how we can worship God through our work, families, and relationships.They are the coolest combination of art and theology I’ve ever seen. 

• Get it: Watch the three-minute trailer, then buy the DVD series for $25 and watch it with friends.

4. Praying in Color: Drawing a New Path to God

This book is not just for artists (I can testify to that!). It’s also for people who find praying difficult or those who just want to pray more creatively. Drawing on her liturgical background, Sybil Macbeth explores how line and color can help us wait before God in prayer. 

• Get it: Amazon for $13.86 (Kindle: $8.49) 

5. Walking on Water: Reflections on Faith and Art

This book considers, from an artist’s point of view, how we know God and invite others into knowing him. If you’re remotely creative or interested in art, this book is gold. 

• Get it: Amazon for $13.99.

6. Desiring the Kingdom: Worship, Worldview, and Cultural Formation 

Do your “head” beliefs ever have trouble making it to your “heart”? James K. A. Smith’s book tackles this problem. Smith draws on theology, philosophy, and anthropology, but don’t be intimidated—his writing is speckled with stories from media and culture.

• Get it: Amazon for $15.84 (Kindle: $12.99)

7. “Church Appropriate Dance Moves”

Ok, so I realize that “Church Appropriate Dance Moves” probably won’t change your life…but, next time the dance floor’s thinning out, at least you’ll have a couple extra tricks in your pocket. 

• Get it: Youtube video by ChurchFeulLLC.  

Which one of these will you check out? Share your answer on Facebook or Twitter.