Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. -Romans 12:2

For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. –Romans 1:20

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. –Genesis 1:27

First Imagined by God

God is the root of all creation,
 His inspiration hangs in the air.
When we create we’re closer to God,
For, to create is much like a prayer.

Each of us is meant to be creative
 As the image of He who created all.
It pleases God when we worship Him
By answering His creative call.

But what we create we can’t truly own,
Not if we’re respectful of where it began.
For it had to first be imagined by God 
Before it could be imagined by man.

If we find pleasure in the act of creating,
We must find pleasure in sharing as well.
For, it is sharing that allows our creation 
To become part of the story He tells.

His story can be told in unlimited ways;
He can use anything to speak to man.
So we cannot lose sight of the honor
When our creation is used in His plan.  
Linda Troxell  © 09/08/2022

Have you ever had an experience in which you were with a group of friends and you were discussing a movie you had all seen, or a book you had all read, only to find that your take away from the experience was something very different from the others?  

I find it isn’t uncommon for me to understand things differently than the majority. It probably isn’t an unknown experience for any of us. I do think, however, that many of us will not discuss the experience for our fear of being seen as different. Unfortunately, this forecloses on our opportunity to explore the difference and find out something new about ourselves. 

However, it makes perfect sense that we, as humans, might be afraid to be different. Society does not reward the different. In fact, it tends to shun those who are different. We are social beings, we need community on every level of our life. Being alone in life is a fundamental and visceral fear for most humans.  

And that’s too bad. Because, I think it is part of God’s plan that we experience the same stimuli differently. He means for us to experience some things on a personal level; to experience them in a way that’s different from anyone else’s experience. It is part of how He establishes a personal relationship with each of us. And it’s one way that He delivers His personal messages. 

It’s brilliant, really. In this way, he can use one event, one book, one poem, or one song to deliver His personal message to millions of people individually. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. -Romans 12:2

I think I’ve heard it expressed best by Priscilla Shirer. When she speaks to a large audience, she begins her talk with a prayer in which she asks . God to split His words a thousand ways and send it out to each listener as a personal word from Him. 

It would be easier if God would just have a conversation with each of us, right?  So why doesn’t He? Well, it could be that He thinks that we appreciate more that which we must work for. But I don’t think that’s it. 

Just take a minute to think about how you might respond if God suddenly dropped into your mind, suspended the conversation that is always going on there, and said, “Hey, just thought I’d pop in to see how you are and to deliver this message.” Let’s face it, most of us would freak out because we’ve been trained not to accept the supernatural.

If we could all relax and accept the supernatural, I think we would find God talking to us directly more often. But until then, I believe God commonly speaks to us through our everyday experiences. His influence leads us toward activities that will serve to teach us what He wants us to learn in order to help advance His plan for us and the world. 

Included in the things God puts in our paths to communicate to us are creations He has inspired our fellow man to create. Things like books, music, art, media, lectures, sermons, and the thousands of other things we consume in our lifetimes. God uses everything we see, hear, and feel, everything we experience, to teach us, individually and collectively, everything we need to know about Him.  For God speaks in one way, and in two, though man does not perceive it. –Job 33:14

I don’t think that there is anyone who creates anything that does not know that God is part of the creative process. Of course, He is a part of everything we do. But beyond that there are moments in the creative process when His presence cannot be denied. Times when we have flashes of insight that, if we will admit it, could have only come from God. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. –Romans 1:20

And more rarely, there are times when creating suddenly flows from us effortlessly and beautifully. These times, I believe, are when God is allowing His presence to be known. It is God telling us that He is there influencing what we create to reveal Himself through our work. For me, these moments are sacred.

Some of us create what we create as a gift of worship to God. For others it is the act of creating  itself that is worship. The two are very different processes. For those who the process of creating is worship, God is the entire focus throughout the process. What they are creating hardly matters, the focus is on the presence of God. 

That is not to say that they have no interest in the finished product, but rather, that they trust God to lead them to create that which pleases Him. Sometimes these artists choose to put their work out in the world and sometimes not. God seems to leave it up to them. However, I think God is probably delighted when they choose to share. But He doesn’t require them to do so. 

On the other hand, for those of us who create gifts of worship, the end product is the focus. For, through what we create our worship becomes tangible. We are aware that the presence of God is the catalyst for our creative process and thus, fundamental to what we create. However, it is simply not the main focus of our process. 

Speaking for myself, God almost always requires me to share the gifts I create as worship. I think that’s because He can use all creations, not only mine, to speak to others and to glorify Himself. If we simply share our work in obedience to His call, God will decide how best to use them. After all, if our creation is a gift to God, then He must be allowed to decide how it is shared. And who could know better than He, just how our work should be displayed to glorify Him? So shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it. Isaiah 55:11

Many, many, people who create things are very insecure when it comes to allowing them to be seen. We live a duality of longing to share our work while being afraid it isn’t good enough to share. We dread the imagined laughter, criticism, and rejection that would surely follow such an act of hubris. This has been my fear since I first felt called by God to share what I write.  

For a very long time I told myself this was not so much fear as it was humility. God did not tolerate that for long. He straightened me out by showing me that my reluctance was not a demonstration of my humility, but was born of pride. Are you shocked? Anyone? I hope I’m not the only one who was unaware of this concept. 

At first, this seemed counterintuitive to me. I couldn’t see how pride would make me not want to share what I wrote. It seemed that pride would make me want the attention. But as I started being honest with myself, I began to realize that my reticence was never about humility or meekness, it was about the fear of being humiliated. My pride was so big, it would not allow me to even take the chance of being criticized. 

It’s endlessly fascinating to me how pride hides in so many places where we would never expect to find it. I wrote about this more fully in a previous blog titled “Is it Pride or is it Humility.” If you are interested, you can take a look at it. 

Somehow, admitting to my pride reminded me that my ability to write well was a gift from God. What I wrote was not ultimately mine as it was created through Him. Then it began to make more sense. For who sees anything different in you? What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it? –1 Corinthians 4:7

I’ve shared so much about my reluctance to share my writing, only so I can also share my solution. It began about 5 years ago when God called me to create a blog about how I became a Christian and my thoughts about being a Christian. This made me anxious because I was insecure about making my writing public. However, my anxiety wasn’t severe, “After all,” I thought, “Who would actually see it? 

Then, it quickly started to get a small following, I mean very small, but still, I didn’t know these people. What were they going to think of me? With each added follower my anxiety grew.  

Finally, after obsessing over this for too long, I remembered something I learned years ago that might be helpful here. I learned that once I gave a gift it i was no longer mine to manage. 

God taught me this many years ago when I was trying to be generous with those in need. I often gave my spare change, sometimes a little more, to someone who was asking and seemed as if they might be homeless. As generous as this seemed to me, I never really let go of the gift. I was holding on by trying to manage how they spent the money. I asked myself, “What if they bought alcohol instead of food?” “Maybe I should just give them food instead of money.” Perhaps you or someone you know might have struggled with similar thoughts.

God impressed upon me that it was not my job to control how the gift was used, it was only my job to give with a cheerful heart. He made it clear that once I gave a gift, it was no longer mine to control. On the surface that might seem like a no-brainer. And it is a no-brainer in its concept. But in practice, it’s not so commonly understood. For example, think of all of the parents who give their children money but then want to tell them how to spend it.

So, I invoked that lesson as my solution. I decided that every single blog post would be a gift to God as worship. if I gave them to God as a gift, they would no longer be mine to control. I know this solution may seem simplistic. You may be thinking, “How is that a solution? It’s not real, it’s only an idea in your head.” But, think about it, isn’t my fear just as unreal and only in my head as well? After all, I don’t even know these people, why would I care what they think? 

And I had a back up plan as well. If recognizing that the writing was no longer mine to control failed me, I would remind myself that my creative ability, as well as everything I create, is originally God’s gift to me. I would exhort myself to be grateful and honor those gifts. And I would come full circle by reminding myself that it isn’t my job to control the gift, it’s my job to give generously with a cheerful heart. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. James 1:17

Honoring God’s gift of creating includes allowing God to decide if our creations are good enough to be shared and allowing Him to direct where they go and who sees them. God can use our creations for a million different reasons, for a million different people, in a million different ways. We should be honored that He allows us to be a part of that mission. 

Most of my life I thought the term creativity was strictly limited to those who engaged in the activities that are traditionally considered as the arts. Activities such as drawing or painting, writing songs, singing or playing music. I thought only those who had talent for the “arts” were creative. And that clearly didn’t include me. I did not see my ability to write well as a talent. Thankfully, I finally learned that this view is entirely too limited. 

Because the truth is that we are all creative beings. We must begin to believe that. Because we are made in the image of our heavenly Father, who is the original creator, we were made to be creative as well. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. –Genesis 1:27

So, what do you say those of you who know you are creative but are afraid to share your creations for fear of the rejection that might result in living your life alone forever? –Too extreme? Maybe, but our fears take us to many extreme places– You need to realize your ability to create was first God’s gift to you . All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.
–1 Corinthians 12:11

And then, realize that your creations are not really yours but belong to the God of creation, our Heavenly Father. Begin to cheerfully give Him your creations as gifts of your worship and allow Him to decide if they are good enough–they are– and who they might bring closer to Him.  

And those of you who are thinking, “This doesn’t apply to me because I’m not creative.” wake up! it does! You are! You, and all of us, were created to be creative. God put creativity in the very fabric of our being.

Think it through, you like to sing, or dance, draw, or doodle, or play a musical instrument; you all do something creative. And if you don’t then you long to. You long to do  something creative. How do I know? Because it is deep in the spirit God gave to us all. He has filled them with skill to do every sort of work done by an engraver or by a designer or by an embroiderer in blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen, or by a weaver—by any sort of workman or skilled designer. –Exodus 35:35

You long to create and you long to share what you create. But you suffer from the same pride as I did. Maybe you are still in the beginning stage where you won’t even try because you believe you don’t have any talent. Get behind them Satan. Or maybe you are at the next stage where you think what you create isn’t good enough for anyone to see. You fear you will be judged and laughed at so you keep your creations to yourself. You know I’m right! 

Relax, I’m not going to ask you to do anything extreme. I’m only asking you to pray about it and ask God to encourage you. Ask Him to lead you to the creativity He put in your soul. And if you are already creating, whatever you create, give it to God and allow Him to decide what it’s worth and who needs to see it. Just think of it as an act of worship!

Let’s Pray:

Our Father in Heaven, 

Glory be to You for our ability to be creative. Glory be to You for all things created. And glory be to You for every hour of peace and joy we receive from our ability to create and our creations. Of course, Lord, You are the original creator and You made us in your image so we are creative as well. Please help those who are stuck, as I was Lord, with an idea of creativity so limited that they cannot see it as a gift You’ve given to them. Help us all, Lord, to understand our own gifts of creativity so that we might share what we create to glorify You and receive all the joy and peace that comes from the act of creating as well. Lord, help us to see creating as well as what we create as worship of You. Lord, help those who are afraid to share their creations to trust you. Lord, open the hearts of those who think their work is not good enough and fear rejection, to take the risk and allow their work to be seen. Help all of us , Lord, to give our creations to You, allowing You to determine the worthiness and knowing that You will never reject us. We pray, Lord, that everything we create can be used to bring others close to you and to advance Your plans for us and for the world.

We pray this in the holy name of Christ Jesus, Amen

Points for Pondering and for Prayer

Or

Perhaps for Putting Pen to Paper

What is your creative ability? Write a bit about it, how it makes you feel while engaging it and how you feel about what it produces,i.e you are proud of your creation, feel embarrassed by it, etc. 

If you think you don’t have a creative talent, think about what you would like to have as your ability if you could choose. Write a bit about why you would like to have it and why you think you can’t have that ability.

Now, think about the things that you enjoy doing, that come easy to you and which you feel good about. Write about what it (they) are and why you think they are not creative.

Do you have creations, pictures you’ve drawn or painted, songs you’ve written, an instrument you can play, a story or poem you’ve written…, that you don’t think are good enough to show to anyone?  Write a bit about how that feels and why they aren’t good enough.

Do you think you could give them to God as a gift of worship and then listen for Him to tell you what to do with them? Will you try? Write about what you will do to “try”, or why you won’t try.