Worship

African-American and white figures on there, different races and different people. But in this case, there was only space for two murals and figures we could work with.

WHY IS IT THAT THERE’S ONLY SPACE FOR TWO MURALS THIS TIME AROUND?

GARRISON: It’s just mostly budgeting, costrelated.

WHAT MAKES THE NEW MURALS ICONIC?

ARNOLD: The fact that it’s art deco in nature and that is important to me because I am a Dallas native. I grew up going to the Dr Pepper plant, and I thought it was a very beautiful building. So the fact that they kept some art deco spirit in this property is a big thing. Secondly, it’s considered a Dallas landmark and a gift back to the community. It’s also nice to hear from people coming up to us and identifying the mural in some way that was personal to them. Everyone always has a story that starts out with, “Hey, when I was a kid,” and they basically take ownership of the mural, and that’s very rewarding to us. GARRISON: Yeah, that’s one of the more enjoyable aspects to this type of art is that it’s not in a gallery space, it’s not in a private residence, it’s not in some high-rise office building, it’s available to the public and everyone. Even if people weren’t living at 5 Mockingbird, they felt like it was so personal to them. When you’re up on these metal lifts painting and someone takes time to stop, slow down and take a break from looking at their phone and finally give us a thumbs-up, it made us feel so good to know that people were appreciating the murals that we were restoring again. There’s also a lot of traffic on Mockingbird, so I’m sure it was a good show for everyone to see the process unfold and play out.

WHAT DO YOU HOPE FOR PEOPLE TO TAKE AWAY FROM THIS NEW MURAL?

ARNOLD: I want them to slow down, smile, ask questions and reflect. GARRISON: And if they get a chance in their busy schedules, to pull in and look for some of the hidden objects in the art.

DO YOU THINK THIS MURAL WILL LAST FOR AWHILE?

ARNOLD: It’s possible. That’s the goal!

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By ERIC FOLKERTH

The answer, my friend

Spirit cannot be controlled, it just is

“For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.” (1 Corinthians 2: 11)

It’s been an awfully windy spring in Oak Cliff. I’m sure you have noticed this. For Christians, late spring and early summer lead us into a season we call “Pentecost.” Pentecost is celebrated as a moment God’s Holy Spirit comes mightily upon Jesus’ disciples, and they become the primary leaders of his movement. As such, it’s a season when we think a lot about God’s ineffable Spirit and how it moves among us.

One of the most fascinating linguistic truths of the Bible is that the word for “spirit” and the word for “wind” are the same. This is true for the Hebrew word (Hebrew Scriptures) and the Greek word (New Testament). And to be clear, in both languages, it’s not sort of like the same word. It’s exactly the same.

Is there any better metaphor for spirit than this? God’s spirit is a like a wind blowing among us. Sometimes, we encounter seasons of life when the wind feels distant and faint. At other times, like our spring weather this year, it blows strongly and powerfully.

The truth we must acknowledge is, we do not control it. Just like the wind, spirit is a bit of a mystery. We cannot make spirit happen, and we cannot keep it from happening. Just like the wind, spirit blows in and through all people. Spirit is beyond our understanding and comprehension. Spirit enlivens all things.

I believe that spirit is the driving force behind all creativity … art, music, science, technology. Spirit moves in and through all things.

One of the worst things modern Christians do is pretend they have some exclusive ownership over God’s spirit. This tends to reduce God to something small and sectarian, rather than the broad and expansive spirit moving in and through all living things. I tend to think it’s why so many folks are turned off by the idea of religious insinuations. It’s because we religious folks have foolishly pretended we control God’s spirit. As the Gospel of John says: “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit” (John 3:8).

I went to my first live concert in two years last month. A friend and I saw Shawn Colvin at The Kessler. It was so good to see live music again, and to hear this amazing “desert island” musician of my life.

There is such a beautiful presence of spirit in live music and art. It’s also in science, and of course, we hope and pray it’s in our worship services too. But we don’t control any of it. As any good musician will tell you, music flows through them, not from them. This is true for all of us, whatever our calling and vocation.

As ancient wisdom puts it, “Bidden or unbidden, God is present.”

I cannot truly know the depths of your heart, and you cannot truly know the depths of mine. There is a mysterious spirit present in each that is beyond our logical comprehension.

We Christians would do well to remember this. Far too often, we get preachy about other people, pretending we understand their lives, their pains, their sufferings, their histories. (Non-religious folks do this too, of course.)

Spirit is ineffable. It moves where it will. And rather than pretend to control it, perhaps our calling as people of faith is to listen for it, to respond to it, and to trust in it in all of our days.

ERIC FOLKERTH is Senior Pastor at Kessler Park United Methodist Church. The Worship section is underwritten by Advocate Publishing and neighborhood businesses and churches listed. Call 214.560.4212 or email sales@advocatemag. com for advertising information

WORSHIP

BAPTIST

CLIFF TEMPLE BAPTIST CHURCH / 125 Sunset Ave. / 214.942.8601 Serving Oak Cliff since 1898 / CliffTemple.org / English and Spanish 9 am Contemporary Worship / 10 am Sunday School / 11 am Traditional

GRACE TEMPLE BAPTIST Come to a Place of Grace! Sunday Worship: English Service 9:30am / Spanish Service 11:00am 831 W. Tenth St. / 214.948.7587 / gracetempledallas.org

CATHOLIC

ST. CECILIA CATHOLIC PARISH / StCeciliaDallas.org / 1809 W Davis St. / Saturday - Bilingual Mass 5PM; Sunday – English Masses 7:30AM & 11AM; Spanish Masses 9AM & 1PM

DISCIPLES OF CHRIST

EAST DALLAS CHRISTIAN CHURCH / 629 N. Peak Street / 214.824.8185 Sunday School 9:30 am / Worship 8:30 am - Chapel 10:50 am - Sanctuary / Rev. Deborah Morgan-Stokes / edcc.org

EPISCOPAL

CHRIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH / ChristChurchDallas.org Sunday School: 11:15am /Mass: 9am & 10am English, 12:30pm Español Wednesday Mass: 6pm English, 8pm Español / 534 W. Tenth Street

METHODIST

TYLER STREET CHURCH / Join us @tylerstreet.church / 927 W.10th St. / 214-946-8106 / Study of God’s Word Contemporary / Anderson Hall Sat 5 pm / Traditional & Worship Sunday 10 am Tylerstreet.com

KESSLER PARK UMC / 1215 Turner Ave./ 214.942.0098 I kpumc.org 10:30am Sunday School/11:00 Worship /All are welcome regardless or race, creed, culture, gender or sexual identity.

NON-DENOMINATIONAL

KESSLER COMMUNITY CHURCH / 2100 Leander Dr. at Hampton Rd. “Your Hometown Church Near the Heart of the City.” 10:30 am Contemporary Service / kesslercommunitychurch.com

TRINITY CHURCH OAK CLIFF / Love God. Love Others. Make Disciples. Sundays 10:00 am / Worship & children’s Sunday School 1139 Turner Ave. / trinitychurchoakcliff.org

PRESBYTERIAN

PARK CITIES PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH/ 4124 Oak Lawn Ave Sunday Worship 9:00 & 11:00 A.M. To all this church opens wide her doors - pcpc.org

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