Are you creative?
I remember when I was young when I played with Legos I was more likely to follow the directions on how to make a boat than to create my own unique Lego sculpture. And thus I began to label myself as “not creative”. However, I did make my own clothes for my Barbies, wrote plays for my friends and I to act out, and played for hours in our 5 acres of woods imagining it as my own little kingdom…so had I mislabeled myself?
the variety of delicate flora on forest floor
Do you believe that God is creative?
I studied Biology in college and was overwhelmed lab after lab of God’s amazing creativity (analyzing the intricacies of DNA was mind-blowing. dissecting a shark was phenomenal. breeding fruit flies, not so much).
blending of hydrogen and oxygen that is a force strong enough to cut through rock
Now that I have three boys, I am in awe of how He took the same raw genetic material and created three very different human beings with three distinct purposes.
ability for life (and cute button noses) to be created in the inmost places
If God is creative and you were created in His image, did you know that you ARE creative?
All of us create everyday, whether we label it as creativity or not. Did you plan a meal for your family? Did you figure out a way to get your toddler to stop throwing a tantrum? Did you choose what clothes you would put on today? Did you figure out a way to answer an inquisitive preschooler, while changing a toddler’s diaper and keeping a newborn from crying?
Then slap on the label…YOU are creative!!
ability for life to adapt to its surroundings in unique ways
I would challenge you that perhaps you have creativity that is longing for an outlet. Starting this blog has been a creative outlet for me. A place I created to express and share my thoughts.
Maybe you have always wanted to learn a new skill. I urge you to find a class. Sign up! Or find a woman in your church to teach you. I once joined a group from my church to learn how to knit and we met monthly for 5 years. Through that experience I gained so much more than just a new skill.
Encourage your children to create.
I’m not a big fan of messes. In my mind, creative activities = crafts= BIG MESS. But it doesn’t have to be that way. The other day my 5-year-old had a friend over. For each of them I folded 3 pieces of paper in half, one inside the other, stapled the fold. Got out some colored pencils and let them write their own books. His friend wrote his own Star Wars version of Eric Carle’s “Brown Bear, Brown Bear” called “Light Saber, Light Saber, What do you do?” My almost 2-year-old loves those “Do-a-dot” paint markers . I use a sharpie marker and draw a shape or simple picture, he “creates” by filling that shape/picture with “dots”.
Be inspired by others who create
I recently learned about the band, “Ok Go” However, these guys are beyond a traditional band. Their music videos are performance art. Check them out on YouTube. If you don’t like secular music just turn down the volume and be amazed at the creativity demonstrated. Be inspired. (Authors note: stick to the following videos…”Here it goes again”, “White knuckles” and “This too shall pass.”) If your preschooler or school-age child watches them, they may be inspired to create their own video. I have let my 5-year-old borrow my iPhone and make his own videos with his Legos (another “non-messy” creative activity).
Being a God Centered Mom (aka GCM =), does not mean that I have to live alone in the mountains and pray all day long. In sackcloth, perhaps. Brown sackcloth. In a cold stone room. With one small window. Solitude and simplicity is not the only way to be God-centered.
I would argue that to truly be God-centered we need to dwell on His creativity, His creation, and His ingenuity, and in His image… GO CREATE!!
majestic mountains the remind us of our position
What do you create? In the traditional or nontraditional sense? What have you always wanted to do to express yourself creatively?
(I would like to thank Ryan Smothers & Jonathan Deatherage, students at Dallas Theological Seminary who are teaching a class called “Engaging the Culture” at our church, for providing the inspiration for this post and introducing me to “Ok go”. Nature photos were taken on our trip to Banff in 2008. 4D baby picture is of my first born.)
LOVING your new blog! Leslie shared the address with me! I’m fully expecting you to speak at the next Sally Clarkson conference…I’ll be there with my fog horn to cheer you on! 🙂 Thanks for sharing some encouragement, advice, and transparency….look forward to reading more!
I never would have considered blogging to be a form of creativity, but now after six years of blogging, it definitely has been a creative outlet. We often define creativity in a small box labeled: she can sew, she can draw, she can scrapbook, etc. I love how you point out that we are creative! Since we were created in the image of God, who is creative by nature, that means we are creative as well. Such a great post! Thanks!
thanks so much for your encouraging words! creating the sentences you posted even brought God glory…amazing isn’t it!
I love your thoughts here – we were created in the image of an extremely creative Creator! As adults, we often lose our creativeness and imagination – we need to find ways to allow these characteristics that God has blessed us with to blossom into something beautiful!
perfectly said ashley! Discover your giftedness. Maybe you are a great problem solver? like to make spread sheets? whatever it is you are creating and God is glorified!
I never thought of myself as really creative. Thank you so much for this post! 😀 He made us all uniquely different. Love the picture with that cool tree!
glad it spoke to you! isn’t that tree amazing?
loved this! Never felt super creative because I get a lot of my card ideas from other card makers… but when I make them my own, then I know that I am creative, too!!