Soul-Mapping Guidelines
Through August and September, we’ve been (and will be) visiting various cities and hosting “Soul-Mapping” workshops in churches and homes.
Soul-Mapping is similar to journaling — but instead of only using words, we’ve used watercolors for self-expression. It’s a process of painting and art therapy techniques that help people process their emotions and relationship with God.
Since it’s been an encouraging and helpful tool, we’ve typed up guidelines for you to use! This is for anyone who joined us but wants to keep creatively connecting with God, or for anyone who couldn’t join but wants to give it a try!
Watercolors is a useful medium because no one really expects to be good at it, so no one feels any pressure. Also, watercolors are naturally expressive, because they can easily take up little or big space, and easily make solid or faded impressions. But color pencils, markers, and any other available tools are just as good. In fact, you can adapt this to be creative quiet time that works for you. Maybe you’ll even swap out your journal for a sketchbook!
1. Get comfortable, close your eyes, and pay attention to your breath. Breathe consciously for 1-2 minutes. Feel your stomach expand, and the coolness of the air as it leaves your nose or mouth. Notice any tension you’re holding and release it.
2. Whenever you’re ready, open your eyes and start to paint with whatever color you feel immediately and instinctively drawn to. Don’t overthink it!
3. Play around with other colors and how they relate to each other. See how it feels to make lines versus shapes or brighter versus faded colors. If you're using watercolor, let the water spread on its own a little. There’s no wrong way to do this.
4. When you’ve feel you’ve finished, stop and take a look at your painting. Can you name specific feelings? For example, in a dark swirl you might identify fear — or in a red streak you might identify anger or excitement. There will almost definitely be different feelings in different parts of the painting. Try to write down as many as you can find, or other words that might come to mind.
5. Look at your painting again, and imagine being inside it. Imagine you could walk around on it like a landscape. Where would you naturally be in your painting right now? Are you moving, or standing still? Then, take a pen and mark where you would be if you were in the painting. You can draw a little person or a dot.
6. After that, ask yourself — “Where is God in this painting?” Of course we know the theologically correct answer: God is omnipresent. But we’re trying to uncover how you feel about Him. So where does He seem to you? On the page or off? In the colors or in a clear space? Take your pen and mark where God is.
7. Listen to the Holy Spirit and/or talk honestly with God. Is God saying anything to you? Do any Scriptures come to mind? Is there something you’ve been wanting to say to Him? The Psalms demonstrate that God wants us to come to Him exactly as we are — even if we’re angry or hurt by Him. There is nothing He can’t handle.
8. After this, feel free to write down something He’s said, or write down a prayer.
9. Share your thoughts and reflections with a friend! This creative time might reveal difficult feelings or comforting reminders. Even if your friends can’t fix your circumstances, talking to them will help you feel less alone. Or maybe your friends have been struggling, and need to hear how God has been speaking to you!
