By Katie Ginn
With Sabrina Howard (left), who painted the cover of this edition based on a photo by Joe Ellis.
I recently read about King David fleeing Jerusalem as his son Absalom stages a coup in 2 Samuel 15. (Side note: I haven’t watched Amazon’s “House of David” series yet, but David’s life absolutely deserves the TV treatment.)
As David gets out of Dodge, he crosses the Kidron Valley (v. 23), then continues up the Mount of Olives (v. 30). Centuries later, Jesus would cross that same Kidron Valley to that same Mount of Olives – specifically, to the garden of Gethsemane at the foot of the ridge – to pray before His arrest.
Let’s take a closer look at the parallels:
- David is Jesus’ ancestor.
- David is an Old Testament “type” of Christ, a symbol of the Savior that was coming. (I don’t have the space or the seminary training to flesh this out here.)
- Both David and Jesus cross the same valley, to the same ridge, or “mount,” while being betrayed by men they love.
- Also, both betrayers (Absalom and Judas) die in an incident involving a “hanging” (Samuel 18 and Matthew 27, respectively).
I had never noticed the foreshadowing in David’s crossing of the Kidron Valley before. And I never thought about that last bullet point until I was writing this!
How cool is it that God reveals Himself to us in this way – not through some cosmic memo of cold, hard facts, but through a beautiful work of literature, complete with symbolism and parallelism? He didn’t have to do this, y’all. He certainly didn’t have to include all the connections between Old and New Testaments that make His Word so rich. To top it off, everything in the Bible is true! No mere human could make this stuff up.
Even before God’s people had the complete nonfiction epic we know as the Bible, they had the poignant emotion of the psalms of David. Before that, they had the most stunning portable church ever, the tabernacle. Before that, they had God’s creation (then far less polluted by our industrial “advances”).
The point is, God has always been a God of art and beauty. That’s why I’m so excited to bring back the MCL Arts Issue. Yes, we’ll be doing this every year!
Our Cover Story focuses on five artists who seek to glorify Jesus in their lives and work. In our Feature Story, you’ll find information on all kinds of artists, museums, and arts organizations in Mississippi, both Christian and secular. (I’m not here to debate whether or how often Christians should consume “secular” art. I absolutely see a place for it, though I do seek to guard my heart and mind as the Holy Spirit leads.)
About the cover: Artist Sabrina Howard worked from a photo taken at Belhaven University’s Bitsy Irby Visual Arts and Dance Center. I knew Belhaven would be the perfect cover location, as they’re accredited in all four of the major arts: visual, music, dance, and theatre. You’ll also find an interview with Belhaven’s 2025 Angie Thomas Writer’s Scholarship winner, Owen Jarvis, who hopes his craft will cause readers to “ask the right questions.”
Also in this edition, you’ll find articles about the connection between art and mental health, “the lost art of wonder,” and Laura Leathers’ experience dipping her toe into theatre – during her military career!
In our daily lives, it’s easy to treat the Christian walk like a series of to-do’s: Bible reading (whether it sinks into our spirit or not), work, dinner, etc. Routine is fine, and often necessary. But if life is starting to feel like that cold, dry memo, see if you can add a splash of art.
Take a Saturday to visit an art museum – or doodle something yourself; it doesn’t have to be “good.” Visit the Briarwood Arts Center in northeast Jackson, which offers everything from a book club to line-dancing classes – for free! If you don’t have spare time, listen to worship music or an audiobook during your commute or household chores.
We serve a God of art who created both sides of our brain. Whether we’re chopping vegetables, filling out paperwork, or singing an aria, he is weaving our stories into His tapestry, and I’m so grateful.