Yesterday I went back to spend more time with them to observe some of their ministry: story telling through henna artwork. Quite a few folks came out to become the media (or guinea pigs) for the artwork. Amazingly, some of the young women had just begun to learn the henna artwork only days before. If I didn't know that, I wouldn't have been able to tell.
There were three stories being shared yesterday: the Holy Spirit (God's Spirit), the woman at the well (Living Water That Brings Eternal Peace), and the man being lowered through the roof (Peace in Forgiveness).
The stories were shared with each group prior to the henna artists working on the volunteers. Some of the volunteers and artists practiced the story during the artwork while others engaged in conversation to get to know one another. Some worked in concentrated silence.
I learned that there was both an easy and a difficult/advanced pattern. Most artists chose to work from the easy pattern. After comparing and contrasting the two, I can see why. At the beginning stage, it would be fairly difficult, if not impossible, to attempt the difficult/advanced pattern.
Each artist did beautiful work. It was incredible to observe the patterns take shape and emerge into the story.
The atmosphere in the room was one peace, comfort, and fulfilled satisfaction. It was a blessed time of community sharing.
After the henna art is completed, it takes about a half hour for the henna to dry. It will then begin to crack and come off. The longer it stays on, the better (for a longer lasting pattern). Typically the resulting henna pattern will remain about 1 week before it fades away.
Stories and pictures are wonderful ways to connect with others. They are also a wonderful way to share God's story. I haven't heard of using henna art to share God's story with others before this, so I was intrigued. I find this to be a wonderful way of sharing time with another person and sharing the Good News.
Though I didn't exactly keep track of how long it took to do the henna pattern, I imagine that would depend on the expertise of the artist and whether or not one was doing the easy or the difficult/advanced pattern. It seemed that most were able to do the easy pattern in about 30 minutes, maybe less. Some may have taken more time. It was a new experience for most of the artists, so as they practice the different patterns, they might be able to do them more quickly. But, why would you want to? Part of the ministry is conversation and ministry of presence. Simply being able to be in contact and connection with the other human being and being able to pray for them unbeknownst to them and unawares is a wonderful ministry. That's my opinion. I don't know if that is even part of the plan.
The organization or ministry, as I mentioned earlier, is 10/40 Connections. You can learn more about them by clicking on either link in this blog post. Their mission statement from their webpage states: "10/40 Connections cultivates global community by equipping believers and by engaging in innovative ministries that fight injustice, empower children, and plant multiplying churches among the least reached."
Each time I heard someone share about what they have seen or done, I was inspired and encouraged. I encourage you to check out their website and learn more about them.
They also have a FaceBook presence if you'd like to check that out too: 10/40 Connections on FaceBook.
Because I was curious about henna storytelling, I searched to see what else I could find about the topic. I found a blogpost from Redcliffe College with an embedded 5:55 minute vimeo video showing Creation to Christ henna. There are related links from that source too.
Here is a "Henna and the Gospel" video by Mina Rowland from YouTube.
There is a Henna Evangelism website if you are interested in seeing more examples of henna art. This website also contains downloadable resources of the art if you are interested in trying this out for yourself. I was able to find the patterns that were used yesterday and included the specific links above in the post from this Henna Evangelism website so you can have a better idea of the patterns because my pictures of the patterns (as you will see) aren't as good as the real thing.
Here are some of the pictures I took of the henna artwork yesterday.
The patterns:
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| Peace Through God's Spirit |
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| Living Water That Brings Eternal Peace |
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| Peace in Forgiveness |
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| Peace Through God's Spirit--Advanced Pattern |
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| Peace Through God's Spirit--Easy Pattern |
The utensil:
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| the henna "pen" |
The artwork:
Group pictures:
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| all hands in |
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| all the volunteers and the artists
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The lead pastor at Burks UMC, Rev. Rowland Buck came out for some henna art too. He didn't want to miss out on the opportunity to tell the God's Spirit story at Annual Conference (Holston Annual Conference) that starts Sunday, June 8th (Pentecost Sunday). If you see him at Annual Conference, make sure you get him to tell you the story of the henna art to see if he remembers it!
Henna may not be your thing. That's okay. One thing I hope this post does is cause the creative juices to flow. How might you share God's story with another person?
Blessings on your journey,
Debra
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