deeperthanwar

I'm in a time of transition again.
I've been noticing for a while that the shop I was working in is a little slow on walk in business.  This is partly deliberate - the owners wanted the shop in a more residential area, with a different feel to many of the tattoo shops you see downtown. 

It's also become clear that there is a clash of values between myself and my boss.  I've mentioned on here before that I'm a Christian, and many of my clients are too.  As a result, we often talk our faith and political outlooks. 

While it's certainly not been my intention to offend anyone, some of these conversations seem to have had that effect.  It's important to me to provide a place for my clients to speak freely, regardless of what's going on in their lives.  So, now, I find myself making the decision to leave the environment I was in, where that wasn't possible.

Right now, I'm looking for potential shops to work in.  I had an interview on Monday at a successful studio that's just moved to Mississauga.  I'm waiting to hear back from them, and I have an interview on Friday at another Queen Street studio.

I'm not really sure where this is going to end up, but I know it's going to be good.  I have been holding off on appointments for the first couple weeks of March just so we can get a better idea of what's going on.  What's for sure is that by the end of the month I will be established

I'll keep you up to date.

I've been asked by a good friend of mine to write an article for a magazine in the UK.  It's aimed at youth and young adults, most of whom are not Christians.  The aim of the magazine is to show what it really means to be a follower of Jesus.   Here's what I came up with; let me know what you think...

------

I've had quite a few jobs.
I've flipped burgers at McDonald's.  I've poured pints in a nightclub.  I've stacked shelves at the Co-Op.  I've even made the perfect espresso at Starbucks.  
But that's all behind me now.  I'm all grown up.  I have a wife and a daughter.  So I work in a steady, sensible job.  You know the sort of thing - get older, settle down.  Can you guess what I do?
 
I'm a tattoo artist.
 
So, how did I end up doing this, you ask.  Well, the funny thing is that I believe God gave me the idea.
See, I'm not only a husband and a father.  I'm not only an artist.  More than anything, I'm a follower of Jesus Christ.  A Christian.  Some years ago I made a decision to trust God with my life.  I asked him what He wanted me to do.  And the strange thing is, that I ended up as a tattoo artist.
 
For some people, that might sound like something God would never tell someone to do.  Isn't even getting a tattoo against the rules for a Christian?
 
The thing is, though, that Jesus isn't about rules.  In fact, he's totally against them.  
When Jesus walked on the Earth, he broke pretty much every rule that the religious leaders of his time held to be important.  He healed people on the Day of Rest.  He chose followers who weren't considered clever or holy enough to be Holy Men.  He even hung out with criminals, tax collectors and prostitutes.  The outcasts of the day.
You know why?  Because Jesus cares about relationship.  He wants to know us personally.  Even if that challenges what we might think about Him.
 
And that's why he led me to be a tattoo artist.  Not because he thinks that tattoos are right for everybody. And not only because He wants me to enjoy the creative gifts He gave me. But because as an artist, I get to talk to a lot of people, one on one.  I get to form relationship with them.  I get the opportunity to tell them about how Jesus has changed my life; about how he changes my life all the time.  Not only that, but the fact that I am a follower of Jesus and a tattoo artist challenges what people think of Him.  Which is what He wants.
 
And maybe, just maybe, because I love tattooing.  And God loves me.