The Thriving Christian Artist

Is Your Desire for Community a SECRET Sign to Start an Art Group?

• Matt Tommey: Artist, Best-Selling Author, Speaker, Entrepreneur and Artist Mentor

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That burning desire for artistic community you've been feeling? It might be more than just a personal longing—it could be a divine calling on your life.

In this heart-stirring episode, Matt Tommey challenges listeners to consider a revolutionary idea: the very community you've been searching for might be the one God is calling you to create. Rather than waiting for an invitation or disqualifying yourself with excuses about lack of expertise or resources, what if your burden for connection is actually evidence of a calling?

Drawing from powerful biblical examples like David, Nehemiah, and Esther, Matt illustrates how God consistently works through people who recognize a burden and respond with a simple "yes." He vulnerably shares his own journey, beginning with a 3:09 AM divine wake-up call in 2009 that seemed impossible at the time. Starting with just a few couples gathering in his basement, that humble beginning has now grown into a global movement impacting thousands of artists.

The beauty of starting a creative community lies in its simplicity. You don't need specialized training or perfect circumstances—just a willingness to open your home, studio, or meet at a local café. These gatherings create sacred spaces where healing happens, calling is discovered, and transformation occurs. What if your living room could be where someone reconnects with their divine purpose or even encounters God for the first time?

Ready to join this global movement of creative communities? Visit https://www.matttommeymentoring.com/smallgroup to register your group and access resources to help you get started. Take that courageous first step—the artists in your area have been waiting for someone just like you to say yes.

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Matt Tommey:

So what if the community that you've been longing for with other artists is actually a clue that God might be calling you to form one Now, before you start disqualifying yourself and saying I could never do that, I'm not a teacher, I'm not an expert, my house isn't big enough, my studio isn't big enough, I don't have what I need All the stuff. Listen, just take a deep breath. Take a deep breath with me, listen. We know that oftentimes God uses the burdens on our heart to call us into incredible things, not just for our benefit, but also to be a blessing to others. And I'm going to unpack today why the burden you may have for being a part of a small group might just be the calling of God on your life to start one in your area and see God use you in incredible ways to release his kingdom and raise up an army of artists with me today on the Thriving Christian Artist. All over the world, artists are awakening Painters and potters, writers and weavers, poets and dancers. Not chasing followers or fame, but sons and daughters called for such a time as this, transformed from the inside out, creating with purpose, releasing the glory of God and living in the power of God and living in the power of the kingdom. Right now, this is the Thriving Christian Artist. Well, hey, my friend, it's Matt. Tommy, super glad that you're here, whether you're a first-time viewer and listener, whether you're first time in a long time, or maybe you're a regular listener and you're here every week, twice a week, listening to all the content that I put out here to encourage artists in their creative calling. I'm super glad that you are here. Listen. I believe in this hour that God is raising up an army of artists all over the world, and it's not just about one person doing that. It's about all of us stepping into the creative call that God's gone on our life, not only to see his kingdom released, but also to be used as ambassadors of healing and restoration and joy and creativity and all the things that God wants to release, all of his nature that he wants to release in and through our lives.

Matt Tommey:

If you're like me and probably you felt like this, maybe you're feeling like this right now. Most of the time, we feel like we're disqualified for something that big, something that powerful. I can remember, you know, over the years, feeling a call and feeling a burden to see God do something with revival and see God raise up artists and see God move powerfully in the arts. But there's just something deep inside of me that says, yeah, that needs to happen, but I don't know that I'm qualified because I've messed up too much, or I never went to school for this, or I never went to art school, or I've not been doing it that long, or the facilities that I have don't work or whatever. And you know, you can just kind of see the Lord all through history sitting up there in heaven going yep. As soon as you quit disqualifying yourself, I'd actually like to release some grace on your life to do the thing that I'm calling you to do. Listen, can we just realize that when God calls us and when we say yes, that's the moment, right, that's the moment that the grace gets released, that's the moment that the doors open, when we start actually walking toward the burden and toward the call that we have.

Matt Tommey:

And you know I was praying about this this morning and just thinking about you. Know how to begin to invite you to be a part of this army of artists that God's raising up. And listen, some of you have listened to me for you know, 16, 17 years talk about this. This is not something new. But what is new is me really opening up the doors and saying guys, you need to be a part of this. I can't do this by myself. There are, there are artists all over the world who are much more talented, much more graceful, much more literate, much more qualified than I am to do this, but you know what literate, much more qualified than I am to do this.

Matt Tommey:

But you know what God called me to do this back in 2009, out of a dead sleep two mornings in a row 2009. It was, I believe, january, february. I was dead asleep at 3.09 in the morning. I woke up with a Jason Upton song in my head saying raise up an army, raise up an army, raise up an army, like Joel saw. And the second morning I went down to my studio and God said I've called you to be a father to artists. Go to the nations and raise up an army of artists. And you know what I saw in the days after that? The Lord began to speak to me in prayer and I began to see this global vision of hotspots, fires, of artists gathering all over the world, artists who were saying yes to this call of linking arms together and of being communities of healing and creativity and restoration and glory, wherever they were, and I have to be honest with you.

Matt Tommey:

When I began to see that, you know what, the number one thing I felt was Disqualified, disqualified. I was in. Number one thing I felt was Disqualified, disqualified. I was in probably one of the weakest moments in my life. I was in probably one of the places, financially, where we didn't have a lot. I was in a place where I didn't know exactly how to do it. All I knew, though, was that God was calling me to say yes. I felt a burden on my heart, I felt a calling from the Lord. I had no other information, and all I felt was hey, you need to do this, you need to say yes, and I'm telling you when you and I begin to say yes to the things that God puts on our heart, things really, really happen.

Matt Tommey:

I can remember a mentor of mine years ago in ministry saying this to me. He said Matt, he who has the burden, often has the call, and a lot of times we would say that when, when you were bringing up an idea like hey, if you think this is a great idea, you know you should probably be the one to do it. But I've learned this in my life. You know, that was kind of a funny thing that we, we would always say, but there really is a truism there. Kind of a funny thing that we would always say, but there really is a truism there. And I like to say it like this the presence of a burden in your heart is often the evidence of a calling on your life. And we'll say that again the presence of a burden in your heart is often evidence of a calling in your life. And I want you to forever separate yourself from this idea that somebody else ought to do it.

Matt Tommey:

Listen, can I just say you are that somebody. You are that somebody and you may say well, gosh man, I live in the middle of nowhere. That's exactly why you're the somebody, because there are other somebodies around you that are looking for community. There are other somebodies that are saying I think I'm the only artist out in this area, I think I'm the only creative person that loves Jesus and is going after this, and they may not even know that God is raising up an army of artists. They may not even know that God wants to use their art in their life.

Matt Tommey:

Listen, I promise you I talk to or I don't talk to personally, but I see hundreds of comments every week on our YouTube channel and on podcasts. We get tons of emails. We, you know, are always seeing thousands every year of comments on social media that are out there of people saying all the time I never heard of you, like, I didn't know that God wanted to use my art. I've been an artist all my life. I didn't know there were other Christians that were out there wanted to use my art. I've been an artist all my life. I didn't know there were other Christians that were out there.

Matt Tommey:

Listen, I promise you. I promise you that if you will be that somebody, god wants to use that not only for to bless your life, but also to be a part of a global movement of creativity and healing and glory that he wants to release in the earth. Now, if you've been listening to me at all, you know that I love to start everything that we talk about with scripture and I want you to understand this idea that what I'm talking about, when there's the presence of a burden in your heart, that's often the evidence of a calling on your life. I want you to understand that's how God has always worked. Let's start with Jesus, all right.

Matt Tommey:

In Matthew 9, 36, jesus said, or it says, you know, in the gospel there it says when he saw the crowds, he what he had compassion on them because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Now, what does that? What does that mean? G there's Jesus, all right, the son of God, operating as fully man in this realm. What he was moved with compassion, in other words, what there was a burden on his heart. And what did that burden move him to do? The burden moved him to heal and teach and feed them and do all the things that God, the father, had sent him to do on this earth. But it started with a burden. Look at David. Remember when David was out there, you know tending sheep and you know his daddy sends him up to take some food to his brothers that are fighting on the front lines against the Philistines. And all of a sudden he gets there and there's the whole scene with Goliath and he's like looking around, like why isn't somebody doing something right, goliath, and he's like looking around, like why isn't somebody doing something Right? And it says in first Samuel 17, 26,.

Matt Tommey:

It says who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God. In other words, what? Something rose up in David and he said I can't just stand here Like I'm not just going to, going to stand by and not let anything happen. All of a sudden, what? There was a burden, there was something that was getting woken up inside of him. And all of a sudden, what? God used that burden and David's willingness to say yes, to do what? To bring action out of his life. He went and found those stones, he threw it at Goliath. All of a sudden, the armies of Israel calling and burden and action that could happen for any of those guys that were standing there. But what was the difference in David? David chose to say yes.

Matt Tommey:

You could say the same thing about Nehemiah. Remember, in Nehemiah 1.4, it says when I heard these things this is Nehemiah I sat down and wept For some days. I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven. What he had a burden. He saw the walls that were torn down, he saw the state of things in the world and it, oh it, moved his heart. And what did he said? He said I'll go, I'll be the one I'll stand up. Esther did the same thing, right, Esther did the same thing.

Matt Tommey:

So over and over in scripture we see this pattern of God bringing people into a situation and allowing a burden to rise up in their heart and when they'll recognize listen, he who has ears, let him hear, right, he's got eyes, let him see. When you can recognize that, the burden on your heart that you think was just your need. Oh, I wish I had some creative friends. Oh, I wish I had somebody in my area that I could get together and talk about Jesus with, or maybe just create once a week. I wish I had somebody that would go through a book with me or we could talk about our faith and art together and just be a general encouragement. I wish I had that in my life.

Matt Tommey:

Listen, when you can realize that that's a clue. Hello, the Holy Spirit is allowing that to rise up in your heart in order to get you to say yes and listen when God shows you something. This is just kingdom truth right here. When God shows you something, when you recognize this burden and he shows you what could be, wow. It'd be great if, when he shows you you that he's giving you the opportunity and the authority to begin to move in that area? The question is not. Will God bless this? The question is not. Am I going to be bold enough, am I going to be in faith enough to say yes, even when I don't understand how it would happen in my life, even when I feel completely disqualified? That's the question. I feel completely disqualified. That's the question. And so the question for you is not can I find a small group? Are other artists really wanting that? No, the question is are you going to say yes? And so I think for all of us, if we can start realizing this ache for connections and for this longing to be around other creatives and that sort of thing, this is a clue that God is calling you to be the person that will step out.

Matt Tommey:

Now let me just say do you have to be an expert to start a small group of artists in your area? Nope, when did God ever call experts? When did God ever call people that were super qualified? In other words, you can look all through scripture. God never chose the people that were the most qualified. Right, moses had a stutter. Right, david was a shepherd boy. Right.

Matt Tommey:

You look at, you know all the disciples. These were guys that didn't get it right. But what were they willing to do? They were willing to say yes. So do you have to be a teacher to lead a small group? No, do you have to be the best artist and be better than all the other artists that you? Nope, nope. Listen, all you've got to do, and all God's calling all of us to do, is just have a heart for him, a heart for creativity, a love for people and a willingness to open up your home, open up a room at your church, open up your studio, sit on the back porch, get together in the garage, go sit in the park, go to the library. I don't care. I don't think God cares. You know, can I just tell you? I want to roll the tape back a little bit, because a lot of you see me now and you're like, oh, wow, you know, matt's got this big podcast and all these thousands of people that follow me and all these books and mentoring program and all this kind of stuff.

Matt Tommey:

You know where it started for me? It started with that call of God on my heart at 309 in the morning, and you know when I said yes to that, when I said yes to raising up an army of artists. You know how much clarity I had on what that vision would be Zero, zero, zero. But you know what I did, and this is the same thing I want to. I want to encourage you to do Number one.

Matt Tommey:

I started praying and I shared it with my wife and I said I said, tanya, I think God's calling us to to this I'm not sure how this is going to look, but I think God's calling us to this and so we put it to prayer. And as we put it to prayer, we felt like, hmm, there's a couple of other couples that we knew, that were creative and that loved Jesus. And we said, hey, let's just get together. And I think it was either Monday or Tuesday nights, I forget, but we would get together every Monday or Tuesday night in our basement and we would just talk about the things that we felt like God wanted to do, talk about the things, how God wanted to impact our area, talk about what an army of artists would look like. We didn't know what we were doing, we were not qualified right. I mean, we were just people that loved Jesus, that had a call, and we started to pray about it.

Matt Tommey:

Well, guess what? All of a sudden, a couple of weeks later, I had a lady. The Lord led me through a series of divine situations where I ended up going to a Christian art gallery in Northwest Atlanta. I met this lady. I told her who I was, what God had called us to do, all this stuff. Uh, it was a divine appointment. I said raising up an army of artists to her and she started like, oh my gosh. She said, matt, 14 years ago, god told me that I was going to be a part of raising up an army of artists, and you're the only guy that I've ever heard say that.

Matt Tommey:

Well, we met two weeks later and guess what, honest to goodness, she ended up giving me, handed me the keys, ended up giving me the art gallery that she had been operating out of for years with a group of Christian artists. And she said we prayed, we believe that God wants us to be a part of this movement. We're giving this art gallery to you. We're on board, let's do it and get what. Now am I going to say? This happened to you? I don't know, God could do even more in your life, but you know, I want to share this the simplicity of what we started doing. You know what we did.

Matt Tommey:

We just started gathering on Saturday nights and I started kind of putting out the word and I'd been through kind of a healing journey in my life, got healing some old wounds in my life and we just started sharing some of those other couples that I was there with. We started sharing, we started praying for people, artists. All of a sudden, artists started showing up. We started worshiping, we started having people come from all over the place and God birthed something a beautiful community of creativity that, uh, although in a different location, god, god, is using now many of those same people to be catalysts of creativity and community, still in their life, years and years and years later. Was it because any of us were qualified? No, was it because any of us had the exact plan? No, we just got together. We said yes, god provided the place, god provided the people. We just started getting together with faithfulness to share and listen.

Matt Tommey:

I say to you now, humbly God has started, through that simple yes, a global movement of tens of thousands of artists all over the world who for years have been now pursuing the call of God on their life through a simple yes. And so, my friend, if I could encourage you to do one thing. It'd be. Number one pray and ask the Lord. Lord, is this burden that I've been feeling for community? Is this a call? Number two reach out to some other artists that are in your area, other creatives, and you know, you may say, man, I legit don't know any other creatives. Well, you know what I would encourage you to do Reach out to somebody in your church. Reach out to another friend who loves creatives, who loves you, who would just pray about this with you and ask the Lord to begin to give you some strategy.

Matt Tommey:

Number three, I would say gather as simply as you can, and I'm talking about, you know, get a charcuterie board, get some donuts, get some cheese and crackers, whatever it takes. Get everybody to bring dinner one night to your house, to the porch, to the yard, to whatever it is, and just say what if? What if? I've been feeling this for years? And what if we just started together? Even at a local cafe, I gathered artists.

Matt Tommey:

When we moved to Asheville, I gathered in a bar. I gathered in coffee shops. I gathered in an abandoned building. I gathered at our church. When God gave me a studio there, we started gathering artists in a studio. For years we met as a small group of artists in my studio in Asheville and we would just get together every week. And you know what we did. We just shared what God was doing in our life. We would bring the latest piece of work that we were working on. We would pray for each other. I would teach a little bit. Sometimes we were reading a book together. Sometimes we were just meditating on scripture. Sometimes God would just highlight a person and we would minister to them that night, or we get into a topic or whatever it was. Sometimes we'd create together.

Matt Tommey:

Listen, can I just tell you it does not matter a hill of beans what you do. It doesn't matter what you do, it just matters that you're together. And it matters. Listen, friend, it matters that you're saying yes to the call of God and creating a space where healing and wholeness and community can happen. Listen, friend, this is the simplicity of saying yes that God wants to use in your life. It's the simplicity of you inviting others and saying you know what? I'm not going to wait any longer for that community to come to me. I'm not going to wait any longer for somebody to invite me to something. I'm going to be the one I'm going to step out scared. I'm going to step out not knowing, and I'm going to trust that this burden that God's given me for community and this desire to be a part of this, I'm going to trust that that is evidence of a calling of God on my life and I'm going to be bold enough just to step out and say yes.

Matt Tommey:

Now listen, if you've been getting, if you're on our email list, which I hope you are if not, you can go to matttommymentoringcom and jump on that email list. But every week we're sending out encouraging content all the time to encourage you in your calling. But if you've been on the email list for a while, you know that I've been encouraging artists all over the world to start creative communities. This year, as I prayed this summer, I felt like the Lord said Matt, I want you to begin to put out there, and believe me, for a hundred small groups of artists all over the world. And so we put that out on our email list. And guess what? As of today I haven't looked this morning, but as of yesterday, when I was looking at it, I think we've got 51, 52 small groups of artists all over the world. They're in Canada, they're all over the United States, they're in South Africa, in the UK, in Australia, in New Zealand, all over the place.

Matt Tommey:

But you know what? There's a lot of places where they're not. Now I can hear some of you right now You're going. Oh great, I'm going to go in there and look and see if I, there's a, there's a small group, I can, I can join. Not, I mean, if God calls you to join one, join one, right. But I believe, I really believe, that God wants you to do it, scared. God wants you to be the one to say I'll go, lord send me, I'll be the one in my community to raise up the flag to get two or three or five or ten other artists in my area and invite them into my home.

Matt Tommey:

And you know what we've done. We've put together a web page on our website. We've done. We've put together a webpage on our website. It's if you go to matttommymentoringcom forward, slash small group, all together, just small group. And there's a link right here in the show notes. We've put together a little short video of me kind of giving the call. We've put together a form there that you can fill out to register for free your small group and tell us which one of our resources that you want to use.

Matt Tommey:

If you're saying, matt, I don't even know what to do when we get together, listen, I've got a ton of books that I've written over the years. We just came out with the foundations course this year, which is changing hundreds and hundreds of lives of artists. We came out with a book for that. You can use any of those resources and just always say, use my books, use the resources that we have, as just an excuse to get together. It's just an excuse to say, hey, we're going to be going through this book, we're going to be going through the foundations course together. We're going to be gathering on Monday, tuesday, wednesday, thursday, friday, saturday afternoon, evening mornings, whatever it is, it does not matter, it does not matter, but just choose a resource, choose a time, submit the form and guess what. Your name and and, uh, your small group is going to show up on that global map. That's on that page, and we're together, together, going to raise up this army of artists.

Matt Tommey:

I believe this fall we're going to see a hundred and even over a hundred small groups of artists all over the world who are just bold enough to say yes to the calling of God on their life. To say yes, lord, I've been needing this in my life and if I need it, I know others need it, and I'm going to be the one to say yes and be a door opener for healing. Listen, what if, in your living room, in your studio, in your wherever, that was the place that somebody came to know the Lord, that somebody rededicated their life to Him, that somebody for the first time, realized that God had a divine calling on their life of creativity and wanted to use them in powerful ways, not only for them to live the abundant life that he promised, but also to be an ambassador of transformation to others? What if you were the reason your yes opened the door for that to happen in somebody's life? And what if not saying to that was the reason that somebody had to wait years for that to happen? What if God's got the timing on your life as the one to say yes?

Matt Tommey:

Listen, I just believe he does. I know, like you, probably. I believe the time short. I believe that God is raising up an army of artists. I believe that the harvest is white. It just like Jesus said, but the laborers are few. Pray that the Lord of the harvest would send laborers into the field. That's what I'm saying today. I'm praying that God will begin to move on your heart as you're listening to this, as you're watching this, and move on your heart to say yes to becoming a part of this global army of artists in your local area.

Matt Tommey:

And listen, friend, as you say yes to that. I can't imagine what God's going to do. Listen, I've always said God didn't choose me because I'm qualified. He just chose me because I was willing, because I would say yes. And look what he's done in our life over all these years. I can't imagine what he's going to unlock and unleash through your life if you'll say yes.

Matt Tommey:

So, my friend, go to the link that's right here. Find out all about starting a small group, register on our website, become a part of this incredible global movement and let's join arms and see God do an incredible work of creativity and healing and community. This fall inside of all of our homes and studios and communities. And listen, just by chance, if you're listening to this and it's like, wow, this is 2028 or whatever, sometime in the future, there's no time limit on this. All right, there's no time limit on this. I hope that you'll come and start one this fall, but I hope you'll keep going. I hope you'll keep coming back and registering.

Matt Tommey:

I hope that this will spur a global, massive movement of small groups that are just choosing to link arms together and say, hey, I'm in, I'm in, I want to be a part of this. I want to know that I'm a part of something bigger than just myself and I want to connect with all that you're doing, matt, and all that God's doing around the world. All right, listen, I'm going to pray and then we're going to get out of here. You got some praying to do. You got some some connecting to do to see what God's got.

Matt Tommey:

But, father, I thank you, god. I thank you right now that, through the power of media and through all these incredible platforms that you've given us, god, that literally tens of thousands of artists will hear this Lord all over the world. And, god, I pray by the Holy Spirit that you would raise up a burden in their heart, god, that you would light a fire in them again. Lord for community, for giving our lives, for laying our lives down for one another, that we might spur each other on to good works. That iron might be sharpening iron, that healing and transformation might happen in the context of relationships. So, lord, you know the people that are listening, you know the people that need to hear this message, you know the plans and purposes that you have for them and all I'm trying to do, lord, is agree with your spirit, to raise the flag and to give the call. Lord, you do the work, you do the work and, god, I pray that those who are supposed to say yes to this and move out, god, I pray they do it quickly and I pray, god, that you confirm your plans and purposes for them, god, with signs and wonders and divine appointments and supernatural grace in their life, so that your name would be glorified and that an army of artists would be raised up all over the world to reveal your glory in the earth. We thank you for that, lord, in Jesus' name. In Jesus' name, amen. Hey, I love you. My friend, listen, do what I asked you to do today. I plead with you.

Matt Tommey:

Also, if you know somebody who needs to hear this, do me a favor. Share the YouTube video, share the podcast episode wherever you're listening to this. Just send it to some people and say hey, I think God might be doing something in our area. You want to talk about this and? Um, use me up. All right, use me up, send this wherever you need to send it, uh, to inspire others, and I can't wait to see what God does in your life.

Matt Tommey:

This fall and beyond is. Together we raise up an army of artists. All right, I love you, my friend, Make sure you're subscribed right here, make sure you're getting all the email notifications, all the stuff, and remember till next time you were created to thrive. Bye, hey, my friend, before you go, make sure that you're signed up for the thriving Christian artists. Weekly, it's my free newsletter, full of spiritual encouragement, creative inspiration and practical tips to help you thrive in everything that God's called you to do as an artist in his kingdom. Every issue is absolutely free and it includes the latest podcast episode, featured artist spotlights, a worship song of the week and, again, tons of tips and encouragement and inspiration for you to keep you inspired and encouraged in everything that God's got for you as an artist in the kingdom. You can click the link right here in the show notes to join us, and it's a great way to stay connected. All right, love you. Bye.