My mom is super artistic and creative. I have always loved the benefit of being her daughter, especially when I was younger and had art related projects for school. While it may come as a shock to you, (haha) I have been a notorious expert procrastinator. With school projects in particular, I usually waited until the last-minute to start and my sweet mom always came through for me, helping me along to the finish line with her natural teacher/artist skills. Now that I am past that stage, I have the thrill of seeing her impart that love for creativity, beauty and God’s awesome-ness that abounds in His creation all around us to my kids.
In the past I have looked with envy at people like my mom and thought, “man, I wish I were creative like they are. Major bummer.” I then trudged along with life in my little world of black and white non-creativity, painfully aware of how non-creative I felt.
I have come to realize, that this line of thinking is TOTALLY untrue. It is also TOTALLY unbiblical. What I now understand is that my definition of “creative” was off base. I really am creative, in my own unique, God-designed way. My creativity is not so much with a brush and canvas, or with color schemes and composition, but God designed me to get excited and to be “creative” with spoken encouragement, written inspiration, and with a heart that loves to engage and develop people to be fully alive in God.
He has taught me that I am creative not because I have certain artistic skills that our world dubs “creative” but because I am made in His image.
“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, then God SPOKE…’Let there be light…let there be sky…let there be dry land…let there be grass…let there be stars…let there be living creatures…let’s create man and woman, in our own image.…’
“‘So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them…” Genesis 1
We were marvelously created, fearfully and wonderfully made, skillfully wrought, in our mother’s wombs by The Creator of all things. The same God who spoke and there was light, who thought up all the mysterious sea creatures, and who knows all the stars by name, created you and me.
He created us in His image, which means that inherent in our shared humanity is the desire, ability and passion to be creative, to bring about something new that wasn’t there before. We were designed to bring new life, transformation and value to the things, people and places we influence.
It looks different for each one of us. Whether it’s in our own business ventures, our homes, our classrooms, our cubicles, our play-groups, our PTAs, our roles in outreach/ministry, or our secret hobbies that we are too timid to share with anyone else…in all these places we were made to be co-creators with God, bringing fresh hope to our world.
The purpose of our redemption (a life-surrendering YES to Christ) is not only that we have restored relationship with God (thank you Lord), but that we move forward into the world with that restored relationship as our foundation, our driving motivation, our source of life and hope for the world around us.
As we are in a life-giving, life-changing relationship with Creator God, creativity and new life is bound to overflow. In Christ, we are a new creation, destined to bring forth new life around us as He does His redemptive work in us.
We are free to fulfill what began as the first “Great Commission” God gave to mankind: to “be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth and subdue it.” (Genesis 1:28) In filling the earth and subduing it, we are caring for it and for the people in it with the love we have received from Him. As a result, our presence in the world should bring about beauty, new life, and a sweet-smelling aroma that is pleasing to God and refreshing to our world.
This is the essence of significant living: influencing the environment around us for the good as we live inspired by the Creator Himself.
For me right now, it means- giving thoughtful attention to my kids’ spiritual, physical and mental growth.
- that I nurture a world-view that encompasses compassion, action and love for people.
- that we foster within our home a fascination and wonder of God that draws them into a life of worship.
- that we choose love over fear in our relationships.
- cultivating my gifts of writing and sharing the Word of God with others.
- taking seriously my ministry of loving and serving those whom I share life in my community and church.
“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10
What does creativity look like for you? Not only the artistic kind, but creativity that inspires change, new-life, and beauty in the lives of those around in you?
I’d be honored and inspired to hear your reflections on this post and to hear how you are recognizing God’s creative Spirit at work in and through you. Please do share, we would all be better for it!