For more information about Mary and her ministry through visual journaling, read my interview with her.

You can read my interview with Mary by clicking here or explore more of Mary’s visual journal on her Flickr page.

Mary Freeman is a well-read, mom-of-three from Georgia, USA… I love people from the South: there is an frank realism and open-hearted truth about them. Mary did not disappoint… She shared with me about her art… About how God used it to heal her heart-wounds… About how she shares that with other women… About moving her youngest child off to college this year… About her own lingering insecurities over calling herself an “artist”…

I came away with over an hour of recorded interview and a sense that art really CAN change people… That artists really DO build the Kingdom of God… And most importantly, that God places great importance on what we do to touch the hearts of people in the way we practice our gifts.

Mary has always kept a journal… But a few year ago, with a desire to dig deeper into her own heart-wounds and invite God into those areas of hurt, she began experimenting with layering images, patterns and text into journal pages that captured words and feelings in a more coherent and impacting way.

As she shared this experience with her friends, the opportunities to share the technique with other women began to open… First, in a retreat setting…

“We were combining visual journaling with the practice of solitude… there were 80 women in the room and no one spoke for over an hour… It was amazing…”

Opportunities to combine journal demonstrations with small-group counseling followed and she is setting up now to begin teaching workshops in the church she attends…

Along the way, Mary started taking the mixed-media techniques that she used in her journals into larger formats…

“The painting has several layers because I would paint something and be totally unhappy with it, (then) cover it and begin again. The finished painting was really a happy accident…”

Undeterred, Mary created the image you see on the right… And more after it…

If you were to visit Mary’s photostream on Flickr, you’d see that her large-format work has evolved to include the top of her worktable.

“That project made me realize just how much fun the bigger (paintings) can be… Standing on a bench and splashing paint everywhere…”

Since being a Christian is at the core of Mary’s identity, she has no problem acknowledging that her gifts come straight from God and that her life (including her creativity and artistic work) has the ultimate goal of deepening her relationship with Jesus… She passes this transforming experience along every chance she gets.

“Being a Christian is someone I am, not something I do.”

Mary speaks a “heart-language” that is very familiar to me… So, I asked her about her favorite author… I smiled as she began to rattle-off a list of who’s who in Christian counseling: Brennan Manning, John Eldredge, Larry Crabb… writers with differing methodologies but the similar theme:

Your heart matters to God and wholeness is possible…

Mary’s creativity and work echo that truth… and the key: God rewrote the text of my life when I opened the book of my heart to His eyes…

If you haven’t checked it out yet, go take a look… Mary also has an inspiring blog that combines her work with story-telling and personal meditations…

Jason Tockey is an amateur photographer who’s gorgeous sunsets first caught my eye back in the spring. I’ll be talking with Jason about his art and a vision he has to connect artists in an online community… August 23.

Mary Freeman is a mixed-medium artist who created striking collage work for visual journaling. She also does seminars to teach her techniques to other artists and hobbyists in her community… September 6.

Troy Rowe is a professional portrait and event photographer who is using his considerable gifts to serve children at a local foster-care home. I’ll be talking with Troy about this unique ministry and other ways he uses his gifts… September 20.

Hannah Krohn is a dancer and dance teacher. I’ve worked with Hannah in some of my own projects at LVC. She has a great gift and heart and we’ll be talking together about unique ministry and missions opportunities that dance has opened up for her… October 4.

Jim Holt is sketching his way through the Bible… I found his pen and ink sketches on Tumbler.com. I’ll be talking with Jim about this project and his insightful visual blog… October 18.

Philip Davis is a graphic artist and photographer. We’ll be talking about an interesting project that he’s working on as he designs through the book of Psalms… November 1.

My Kingdom Is Not Of This World. John 18:36, VerseVisions X Collection. Mixed media on canvas. Copyright © 2010 by Mark Lawrence. All Rights Reserved. Used by permission.

I want to thank Mark and the other artists who share their work in our Flickr group. If you photoshare on Flickr, why not join us?

Mary Freeman is a mixed-media artist who shares her work in our Flickr group. Check out Mary’s photostream, which includes a number of interesting projects.  If you photoshare on Flickr, join our group and contribute regularly.

“They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength… they shall rise up on eagle’s wings.” -Isaiah 40:31

Almost a year ago, I started to feature artists who use their gifts in ministry and worship. As I am beginning to work on my book, I’ve decided it’s time to bring that back.

When I first spoke to Kathie Luther, I was really energized by her story, her conviction and the way she described her ministry.  As I continued to follow her photos and get to know her in the year since, I’ve also developed a deep respect for her as a woman of insight and wisdom. Here’s the original post:

Kathie is a mixed-media artist up in northern Michigan, with a broad scope of skill that covers painting, sculpting, textiles and photography. If you visit her photostream on Flickr.com, you’ll see examples of the many artistic interests and skills that Kathie has honed in her years teaching art to children, teens and adults.

Kathie first discovered a love of art in her high school biology class, where assignments required her to draw specimens. This, combined with her love of nature, inspired her decision to study biology and art at Northern Michigan University. She soon chose art as her major area of study and eventually received a degree in art with emphasis in sculpting, casting and pottery.

After college and making time to become a wife and mom, Kathie found herself teaching art in a K-12 Christian school and later began holding classes for children and adults in her home. As with many gifted teachers, Kathie is also a perennial student and through the years picked up painting, photography and digital media.

Her painting always tended to be inspirational in nature, but began to take on a more prophetic tone about five years ago. At that time, her themes and imagery began to trend toward symbolism and eschatology (related to the end times). You see a lot of that in the images that we’ve been featuring on the site.

For the record, I grew up and studied theology in a non-charismatic tradition, so I know that some of you can’t help but raise an eyebrow when I use the word “prophetic,” but what we’re talking about, simply put, is the idea that God still speaks. It doesn’t seem like a big stretch, in our media driven culture, that He would chose to speak visually.

Kathie told me that she doesn’t have a formula for creating a painting. Sometimes she wakes up and paints the images from a dream. Other times, she will trace the shadows created by imperfections on the canvas until an image coalesces. She has even done some of her painting during worship while the musical people in the room were singing.

And that is the kind of thing we love to hear.

Kathie continues to paint and create works in other media and teaches summer classes in the art center adjacent to her home. She holds summer art shows where she talks to the patrons who visit about the reality of God’s love and the ways that He still speaks. She reminded me of a prayer that King David prayed long ago:

Show me your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths;
guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior,
and my hope is in you all day long. - Psalm 25:4-5

Kathie still prays that prayer. After talking with her, I do too.

You can check out Kathie’s art on Flickr. She also has prints, postcards and some original paintings for sale at her eBay store.

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Kathie Luther is a mixed-media artist from Indian River, MI. She works in oil and acrylic painting, digital painting, as well as a variety of textiles, sculpture and photography. Her paintings feature escatological themes and bold, often biblical, imagery.

Kathie teaches art to adults and children in her art center and has prints and original paintings for sale.

Check out Kathie’s Flickr photostream and eBay store.

Read more about Kathie, her art and ministry here.