Your Creativity is Not in Vain

Does it ever strike you as odd that the first attribute we see for God in scripture is creativity?  When I first pondered this truth, I was enormously excited, yet somewhat puzzled.  I definitely err on the side of creativity, particularly in the area of music.  I love to compose and arrange!  I’m the girl who stacked a recording of Baby Shark with more than 8 different sound effects.  Get me in the creative zone, and I’m in my happy place!

  Sometimes we tend to think of creativity as inferior or useless, with its worth completely subject to the values of the beholder.  A sketch of baby Yoda can be a masterpiece to some and a piece of trash to another.  There are millions of self-published authors, doodlers, and YouTube channels featuring young creators seeking recognition.  Anyone can label themselves an artist—so is it anything more than a whimsical dream?

  As an artist, the first chapter of the Bible is affirming and awe-inspiring.

  “In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth.” – Genesis 1:1 (emphasis mine).

  The first verb in the entire Bible is the past tense of create.  The first thing we know about God is that He is a creator.  The first action we are told about is creating.  The Holy Spirit could have begun the inspired Word of God by describing God in any way He desired, yet He chose to highlight God’s ability to create beauty.  Isn’t that incredible?

  But it doesn’t stop there!  The first job God gave to Adam was to tend the Garden of Eden and name the creatures—a very creative work, indeed.

  I sincerely believe that we are designed to mirror the majesty of our Lord through creativity.  I believe our desire to create beauty is a God-given desire, and using that desire for the glory of Christ is pleasing to our Lord.

  Is pursing creativity a meaningless, whimsical, and unrealistic path?  Absolutely not!  Both classic hymn writers like Fanny Crosby and modern ones like Keith and Kristen Getty have poured their lives into the production of beauty through lyrics.  Bach and Yiruma alike have offered the world their music.

  The journey of an artist is not always as beautiful as what they create.  Most of the classical composers that we revere today were rejected in their days.  Mark Twain’s literature was destroyed.  Lyrical gems in the poetry and songwriting world have been tucked away in journals and only discovered years after their authors passed away.  Jim Elliot, one of the most inspiring missionaries of all time, faithfully kept a journal.  Did he ever imagine his words would one day be in print for thousands to read, touching hearts and being an instrument of God to draw others to the mission field?

  God can do great things with our creativity; however, it is true that we may never see the fruits of our labors.  Like Handel, our friends may ridicule our music to our face.  Like Jim Elliot, we may never expect our writing to reach beyond our own eyes.  We may be rejected and discouraged.  But God is able to use even our broken pieces to create something truly beautiful.

  God is a potter: He molds us like clay.

  God is a painter: He paints the sunsets in the evening.

  God is a musician: He gives the birds their carols and the oceans their tympani.

  God is a giver of only good and perfect things, and He has given each of us the ability to create.  Be encouraged, reader!  Your creativity is not in vain!

  In what ways has God given you the ability or desire to create?  What would you tell an artist/creative who is discouraged?