I’ve been writing music under the moniker Daniel and the Sparrows for about nine years. Now when I started, I had a fixed concept of what it would look like when I “made it”. If I could go back in time and give myself one piece of advice, it would be to hold the image of success with open hands.
I’m not denying the importance of self assessment or the value of having a keen sense of self awareness, but it’s important to have the right metric to assess our success appropriately because honestly, I think we have it all backwards. So I took the first step in redefining my idea of success- asking myself why. And like a slight turn in the rudder of a boat, the answer can steer the entire journey of my life in a different direction.
Regardless of whether you create out of a desire to worship, an outlet of self expression, or out of an innate appreciation of beauty, the fact that you’re exercising your gift in a way that edifies, is an act of obedience. I remember taking Genesis, one of my favorite Bible classes in college. Our professor told us that Genesis 2:15 doesn’t actually read, “...Adam was placed in the garden to tend and to keep it”. The correct translation is to take what was originally thought to be a feminine ending to the words to be an exclamation mark in the Hebrew text, or an emphasis. The translation renders close to, “God placed Adam at spiritual rest to worship and obey!”
So, while our reasons will vary vastly from artist to artist, there is no doubt that there is a fundamental calling we all have as believers that is a part of it- and that is to be obedient and to worship. The hard truth is there is a lot of noise that reiterates the prevalent lie we tell ourselves - that being an artist in the Kingdom of God is not enough. We feel the need to justify our existence by how successful we are. Enter my story.
Close to a decade ago, I felt the world-altering conviction to pursue a life of art and music. I was resistant. I did not think I would be one of the lucky few who could continue more than a few years of a mountain high, let alone raise a family doing art. But God gently gave me a promise that if I were to seek first His kingdom, He would provide for me. Since then, making money with my music became nothing more than a variable. Don’t get me wrong. It’s a very important variable, but it hasn’t been something that controlled us. There have been many times where we’ve had to trust in the Lord to provide in real ways. But always, He comes through.
So why do I bring that up? Because I have stopped lately and wondered at others around me with seemingly shiny success while others tell me outright that they can’t believe I succeeded. Had I? It depends on my why.
My why (and your why too) stems from the unique way God has created you as an artist and as a person. When you respond to the goodness, greatness, and grace of God with art, you are ascribing and reflecting the glory of God. Is this not our purpose as the crowning climax of His artistic expression? Is this not what we were made to be?
So today I wake up and remind myself, as often as I can, that I have succeeded. Not because I’ve a certain number of followers or any other metric that can be quantified, but because I said yes to the calling. If some day down the road I wake up rich and famous, I’d like to think that I would feel no more successful than a decade ago, when I sheepishly decided to obey the Lord’s prompting.
At the end of the day, if God has provided you with the freedom to create the way He wired you to, and if you have been a faithful steward in refining the gifts He has given you, and if the people around you are brought closer to God because of your Art, then my friend, you have succeeded.
