Aug 8, 20233 min read

Are You a Creative?

CREATE!

Are You a Creative?

For generations, the word "creativity" has been limited in the public square to conversations about children and its impact in their development and growth. With the power of art as a driver, curriculums have transitioned to using more sensory and engaging tools for learning. But something happened after high school graduation. It is as if turning eighteen moved our motivations from sensory to survival mode as we left the security of family for the challenges of life's reality. Somewhere, somehow, as a society, creativity died after childhood. Or maybe it was just asleep (?). Today, we see the innovation invading all ages and stages of life, and I am here for it. The generations coming of age today are living and will live a different life - one where ingenuity is not only a part of their daily experience, but their daily thought process. Older generations like mine are being challenged to rethink the concept of survival to include creativity, seeing it not only as a vehicle for mental wellness but for financial wellness as well. All of us have been forced to engage the idea of creativity in new and different ways, but not everyone is a Creative. So, how do you know if you are a Creative?

Living as a Kingdom Creative

People have any of a thousand different beliefs of ideals to which they can align their creativity, but since this is GOD 'n Me and over here our rock is Jesus, we'll stick with Him.

So, are you a creative for Christ? Let's find out...

Do any of these Christian Creative identifiers sound like you?

You feel overwhelmed by the vision, but still believe.

Your prayer time regularly transforms into planning sessions.

There is a cycle of time in your life (morning, evening, day, week, month, season) where you can almost set your watch to an overflow of new concepts or get clarity about pending projects (Mine is in the morning right after I wash my face.)

You actually started the project. Thinking only does not make you a Creative. Creatives create.

You never feel you never have enough time to get that idea done, but the time you have you cherish.

God grows a dream that excites you into a multi-phased vision that is well beyond your capacity to pull it off, sometimes even before the initial dream has begun.

You see the potential for improvement or expansion in your completed assignments. Too often we mislabel creativity as an opportunity to expose the need for improvement in other people's work.

Correction or expansion has its value, but if all your effort is spent scrutinizing the work of others or identifying how your way is better, you are not being creative. You are being judgmental.

These are just some of the examples of what life can look like for a Kingdom Creative. Now that you have some framework, it is time to accept who you are and get to work.

Accepting Your Identity

Like the life cycle of so many other words, overuse of the word creativity is starting to dilute its impact in conversation, but you should never let it dilute its impact on your life.

In other words,

being creative and being a Creative are not the same thing.

Being creative is usually a call and response experience ignited by a need for an immediate solution. Once the problem is solved, you move on to the next. But living as a creative is to live on assignment.

Your passion is centered.

Your conversation is vision-focused.

You are mission-minded. Your actions are not intermittent, but intentional.

You are uncomfortable with becoming a change agent for Christ and yet you put yourself and your ideas out there so that God (not you) can establish the work of your hands.

Not everyone is called to be a Creative. We all bring value to the Kingdom in our own way. If this sounds like you, hello family!

If you want this to be you, welcome and get ready. Next week we unpack how to navigate the overflow of creativity in you.

In the meantime, remember I love you but God loves you more.