Creativity is God’s gift to us.
Using our creativity is our gift back to God. –Julia Cameron

As I wrote in my last post, I often choose a “sacred word” as a theme for the new year. Sometimes I actively plan my word, and occasionally it seems as if the word is given to me. Focusing on a single word helps me to reflect more deeply on some aspect of faith or life.

For 2021, my sacred word is creativity. Being at home so much during the pandemic has made me think a lot about my life. I observe that throughout my life I have participated in various arts: music, writing, painting (sort of) and nature photography. Many times I have seen these things as “hobbies” — and yet, these creative pursuits have given me so much joy in life.

When I think about creativity and spirituality, especially Christian spirituality, various questions arise. For example, why is it we call God the Creator and yet — in my experience at least — not make the connection between the Creator and creativity? Wouldn’t creative-type gifts be a gift of the Creator? And isn’t God called Father because he created us all? Do we think of Father God as being a creative type? (To even say “creative type” brings a lot of stereotypes into my mind that probably aren’t true.)

Was Jesus creative? How could he not be creative, if he was “one with the Father”? But, why have I never thought about this before?

The Holy Spirit could be easily seen as the inspiration behind spirit-filled artists. Indeed, an artists or writers might see the Spirit as the spiritual force that inspires their creativity, what some call their muse.

Was I the only one that did not make these connections between God and creativity before? Was it my upbringing or the people who I hung out with that made me miss these ideas?

But it’s not just these questions (and others) I want to explore with this theme of creativity. I want to DO creative things. I want to paint and write and take photos and reflect on life in new ways. I want to make ordinary household chores more creative in how I approach them. I want to look for creative expressions and creative solutions to old problems. I hope to learn from other creative people what creativity is all about.

I don’t know where all this will lead, but I’m planning on enjoying the journey.

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. — 1 Cor. 10:31 (NIV)

Until next time, Amen!