5 Signs God Is Calling You As An Artist

What if the first person filled with God’s Spirit wasn’t a priest or a prophet—but an artist? We open Scripture and discover a remarkable blueprint in Bezalel’s story, then connect it to the quiet, unmistakable ways the Holy Spirit awakens creative calling today. If you’ve felt a steady tug to make, a rush of ideas, or a deep peace when you create, this conversation gives language and courage for that journey.

We explore five clear signs of a Spirit-led art calling. First, being called by name—identity awakening before confidence. Second, being filled with the Spirit not just for ministry roles but for wisdom, understanding, and craftsmanship. Third, the heart-stirring that invites you to show up in the studio without pressure. Fourth, the power of community confirmation, where mentors, friends, and audiences echo what God is doing and even resource the work. Finally, assignment: how creativity becomes a place where heaven meets earth, just as Bezalel’s work formed the tabernacle for his generation.

Throughout, we share how internal guidance replaces the need for audible signs, why joy in the process is diagnostic of the Spirit’s activity, and how to discern feedback as confirmation rather than coincidence. You’ll hear practical encouragement to start with your current skills, grow in excellence without perfectionism, and let your yes open doors you couldn’t script. If your art has ever carried peace into a room or sparked hope in a weary heart, you’re already tasting your assignment.

If this resonates, subscribe to the Thriving Christian Artist channel, share this episode with a creative friend, and leave a review with the sign that spoke to you most. Your story might be the confirmation someone else needs today.

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Chapters

• 0:00 A New Covenant Way Of Calling
• 0:34 Bezalel: The First Spirit-Filled Artist
• 2:01 Sign 1: Called By Name
• 3:04 Sign 2: Filled For Creative Purpose
• 4:21 Sign 3: A Holy Heart Stirring
• 6:07 Sign 4: Confirmation Through Community
• 7:46 Sign 5: Assigned To Build God’s House
• 10:10 Your Yes, Next Steps, And Resources

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:00

Hey, if you've ever wondered whether God is actually calling you as an artist, listen, you're probably not imagining it. Today I actually want to show you five signs right out of God's Word that the Holy Spirit uses to awaken that calling inside of us, starting with the very first artist that God ever called by name in the Bible. So let's get started. You know, throughout the Bible, God calls people in really two primary ways. In the Old Testament, he often speaks externally, even audibly, like he did with Abraham and Moses and Samuel. But here's the cool thing. In the New Testament, something shifts, and this is huge. Jesus promises the Holy Spirit, He calls him a helper who will speak to us and lead us and guide us and reveal God's will to our lives from the inside out. In fact, Jesus promised in John 16, 13 that the Holy Spirit would be the one that would guide us into all truth. So this is super important for you and I as artists to understand. In the new covenant, God's calling on our life comes to us primarily internally, like a stirring or a prompting or this sort of deep sense of identity or assignment that just won't go away. Here's the really cool thing for us as artists: before you ever see anything in the Bible like Pentecost or, you know, Jesus breathing on the disciples, even before Acts 2, when, you know, the Holy Spirit is there and moving in power, God actually gives us a preview in his word of how the Holy Spirit starts working in creative people. And that preview, that first demonstration, if you will, is actually found in the story of Bezalel in Exodus 31. Now, now get this. The very first person in the entire Bible to be filled with the Spirit of God wasn't a king, it wasn't a prophet, it wasn't even a priest. It was, guess what? An artist. I believe Bezalel's story for us as artists becomes this sort of blueprint of how the Holy Spirit awakens creativity, stirs the sense of calling, and even empowers us for kingdom work today. Again, especially for us as artists. So the first sign that God might be calling you as an artist is that God calls you by name. Now I just love this. It's so deeply personal for all of us, right? In in Exodus 31, it says, See, I have called by name Bezalel. In other words, I mean, think of that. Before Bezalel ever lifted a tool or learned anything artistically or was an expert in anything, God had already, by his grace, chosen him and determined that he was going to be an artist. And today, you know, God does the same thing for you and me, not always with an audible voice, but with that deep, peaceful, inner sense of knowing, that knowing that you've been seen and that creativity is not just some little side thing that you do, but it's really a deep part of who you are. Listen, that's not random. That's God's calling on your life. And in fact, when God calls you by name and you start to really wake up to that fact, your identity starts to wake up long before you feel confident. And that sense of being awakened inside, that that's proof that God is up to something and calling you to something deeper in his kingdom as an artist. Now, the second sign that God might be calling you as an artist is that God fills you with his spirit for an actual creative purpose. I love this passage in Exodus 31. It continues and it says, I've filled him with the Spirit of God and in wisdom and in understanding and in all kinds of craftsmanship. Again, this is God doing the filling. And I love it because it's the first time in scripture that anyone is said to be filled with the Holy Spirit. And again, this is not a prophet, a priest, a king. It's an artist. Now just think a minute, think about the nature of the Holy Spirit and how the Holy Spirit works. We know in Genesis 1, he was hovering over the chaos and waiting to bring beauty and life and order. And here we have him in Exodus 31. He's filling an artist to bring beauty and truth and goodness and meaning to the world. And in the New Testament, he's filling believers to create and to prophesy and to communicate God's heart. Listen, if creativity is coming alive in you and ideas are stirring around or your imagination is flowing, and you really feel this sense of God's pleasure when you create, that in itself is a sign of the Holy Spirit's activity inside of you that you're being empowered for something greater than just yourself. Now, the third sign that God might be calling you as an artist is that God starts stirring your heart, moving inside of you to draw you toward creative things and to draw you toward artistic expression. Listen, I love it in Exodus 35. It says, everyone whose heart was stirred came to do the work. Listen, that stirring from the Lord, it doesn't feel like pressure. It actually is an invitation from him through the Holy Spirit. It's that feeling like you're not fully yourself unless you're doing that artistic thing that you love, unless you're creating in the studio. It's that that longing, that sort of inner pull, if you will, that says there's something here. Pay attention. Go for it. Lean into this. Listen, here's the wild thing. That's not just you, that's the Holy Spirit stirring you. He stirred Bezalel, he stirred the artisans that Bezalel was working with. He stirred the community around Bezalel. God's calling on our life as artists always begins with that inner stirring. In other words, that that feeling drawn to create. And that happens long before you understand why. Or again, have all the confidence or skills you need to actually do the thing that God's called you to do. Now, the fourth way that God confirms his calling on your life, and this is really beautiful, he confirms your gift through others. And that's how you can again start to get an idea that, hey, maybe this is this is God doing the calling on my life to be an artist. See, Bezalel didn't have to stand up and say, hey, everybody, I'm an artist. Like recognize me and give me the title. No, Moses, who was a uh the leader in in Bezalel's life at that time, publicly affirmed him after being moved on by the Lord. And guess what? The people responded. They actually brought materials. In fact, the Bible says in Exodus 36 that they brought so much materials for the project that Bezalel was called to do that that they had to restrain them from giving. I mean, that doesn't sound like the picture of a starving artist, does it? They they believed in his calling, they recognized the anointing on his life and they started supporting him in the thing that God had called him to do. And so when God calls somebody, he usually confirms it through community. And so for you and for me, it may be things like, you know, people start saying, Well, gosh, I love your work, or man, I see something special of that, or every time I hear you sing or look at your work, it moves something in me, or man, I can really feel God speaking. You just start recognizing that God is speaking. Listen, when your creativity starts impacting others, even in what seems like small ways, that's not a coincidence. That's a confirmation from the Holy Spirit that you're going in the right direction. See, here's something really, really important about calling that I've learned over the years. God usually starts stirring our heart internally, but he almost always starts confirming it externally through godly people in our life. He uses them to echo, if you will, the thing that's already stirring in your heart. And I love that confirmation because it's just a safety valve, if you will, in our life to let us know that we're on the right track. So if you're sensing a call from the Lord, you know, artistically, and others have been encouraging you, whether it's your friends or leaders or family or you know, anybody else in your life, and you start seeing things that are like, wow, this is really like God's really opening this up. Again, that's not coincidence. That's part of how God starts to confirm his call on your life. Now, the last sign that God may be calling you as an artist is that God assigns you to actually start working in his kingdom. And I love this because again, it's never just about ourselves, it's about doing our work for the glory of God and seeing his purpose is established through our life. I mean, again, think of Bezile. He wasn't just called to make random things, he was called to create a place where God's presence would dwell, the tabernacle, the ark, the holy of holies. Get this, his creativity literally built the environment where heaven met earth in his generation. And here's the cool thing: that same Holy Spirit that filled Bezalel now is filling you and me. And our art carries the atmosphere of heaven and the transforming power of God. And it's got the capacity to bring peace and hope and beauty and the presence of God into people's homes and galleries and hearts. And that's not because we're just great artists, that's because the Holy Spirit is feeling filling us. And so when your creativity becomes a place where God's nature is showing up, that's a calling, that's an assignment. And that's how the kingdom of God is designed to work in our lives. So here's the truth: if your heart is stirring right now, if your creativity is being awakened inside of you, if you're starting to see other people responding to what you're doing creatively, if you've starting to sense that, hey, there's something more to this, maybe God's calling me. Even if you don't feel qualified, even if you know I don't have everything I need yet, listen, it's because the Holy Spirit is calling you and drawing you to step deeper into this calling as an artist. Not someday, not one day when you get better or after you fix everything or you become perfect. No, now. Listen, my friend, you are God's workmanship. In fact, the Bible in Ephesians 2.10 calls you his poema, his poem, created to create with him for his glory. Listen, your art is not your identity, it's not everything you are, but nor is it separate from your spiritual life. It's part of your spiritual life. And listen, it's how God has designed you to carry his kingdom into the world. It's the place where heaven meets earth through the work of your hands. Listen, I don't know about you, but that is super exciting. And again, the best part, God's not, God's not looking for your perfection or your qualifications. He's only looking for your yes. Hey, which one of these signs actually spoke to you the most today? I'd love for you to maybe drop me a comment, let me know which one of these, maybe all of them, spoke to you. And and also how I can encourage you and even pray for you. I'd love to read the comments and just see what God's doing in people's lives that are watching these videos. And speaking of videos, if you're wanting more information and more teaching on creativity and your calling as an artist in the kingdom, please take a moment and subscribe so you never miss any of the great content that I'm producing every week right here on the Thriving Christian Artist channel. And hey, lastly, if you're ready to go deeper and start growing in your identity and your creative purpose and your walk with the Holy Spirit as an artist, be sure to check out all the great resources that I've got for you below. I've got courses and tools and a global community of artists who are walking together, all in this same spirit led calling as artists in God's kingdom. Listen, you don't have to walk it alone. You don't have to try to figure it out all by yourself. We're in this thing together. And it's my great joy to be able to encourage you in everything that God's called you to. Hey, my friend, thanks again for being here. And remember till next time, you were created to thrive. Bye.