My three black ink pens are in a row on my old wooden, writing desk. I shut my door, turn my phone off, and sit at my desk. I open my crumpled notebook and flip through pages of ideas—many of them scratched out. I notice the spans of time between each creative ideation entry have grown over time. First I had ideas daily, then weekly, then monthly. Even before I begin to write, I wonder what happened… Am I doing something wrong? It seems as if I haven’t had any ideas to write on lately. Why? It seems as if I’m not producing a lot, and the scarce ideas I am producing, aren’t good enough.
How often is it that we believe that we aren’t creative enough? Or we believe we hit a wall? We feel “stuck.” We have a glimmer of hope that we may have something to offer, but to continue and potentially fail is too much to bear.
This isn’t only in writing; it’s in all creative endeavors. It’s easy to be sparked by inspiration, and then never pursue it. But at what point do we feel such an ache inside ourselves that screams for us to move on something? It’s also difficult to fight for revelation even when nothing comes easily. I have to believe the Lord is the one who encourages us to move into abundance. He is the one telling us to hold onto hope. A hope that as we follow the inward calling that the Lord has put on our lives, He will bless us.
In partnering with the Lord in this season of creative work, He has revealed more of His nature to me. Each new revelation from the Lord changes us. Our perception of the character of God often dictates what we receive from Him. In this season, these are three points I feel the Lord speaking to the creative generation:
Don’t Operate Out of a Position of Lack:
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.” James 1:2-5 NIV
In our creative processes, we are able to partner with God at any moment. We can open the door to endless wisdom. We hold the key. When we say, “I just don’t have any good ideas” or, “I feel like God hasn’t given me any ideas” we may be passively approaching creativity. We may also be passively asking for wisdom. If God has called us to create, following through and believing the Lord will use what we create to change lives takes faith and requires wisdom. Believe that the ideas are there. Persevere. Create.
God Gives Abundantly More than We Ask:
“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever!” Ephesians 3:20-21
We have to realize that God’s paradigm for abundance is far greater than we know. Jesus was never “not enough” when He paid for the ransom on mankind. He healed all that asked. When Jesus multiplied the five loaves of bread and two fish in Luke 9, even after feeding the crowd of five thousand people, there were twelve basketfuls left over. God loves to provide. When God promises to partner with you in your creative passions, trust that He will provide in both the imaginative and the practical.
The Law of Sowing and Reaping Applies to the Creative:
“Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.” 2 Corinthians 9:6-8
The Law of Sowing and Reaping applies to everything. It isn’t constrained to finances. If we sow good habits like exercising and eating healthy, we should expect our mental and physical health to be positively impacted. Contrastingly, if we sow into a couch-potato lifestyle, we shouldn’t be surprised when we reap laziness.
When we carve out time regularly to work on creative endeavors, we can expect to reap the benefits. We should expect to receive greater revelation on how we see the world and more tools to articulate that revelation. We should also expect to hone our skills by crafting the revelation we receive. Set aside this time. Sow joyfully into your gifting and calling. Reap the fruit of your labors. Live in abundance.
