Creators! Let's Create!

I went to church with my grandsons on Sunday. This was the first time the church was fully opened since the pandemic began. Opened, with the exception of limited seating that was maxed out and distanced. What amused me the most was when we walked up to the front doors, tables were set up outside with these bowls of wrist bands on them. Each color had a specific meaning for each one's social desires: Red = “So glad to be here, but please keep a safe distance”; Yellow = “Ready to chat but prefer not touch”; Green = “Ready for hugs & handshakes”. I’m sure introverts loved the red ones; the non-huggers, the yellow ones; and, the social butterflies, the green ones.

I liked that creativity. I also appreciated the thoughtful way the rows of chairs were spaced a good distance apart with two seats between families. Creativity seems to have been a major plus during these times. Sometimes a crisis becomes a strong driver of creativity and innovation. We’ve witnessed it on many levels – families who became creative within their family dynamics – more outdoors activities, indoor games, creative projects and creativity and innovation at national, state and in educational levels here at the start of another school year.

Anyone who spends time on social media has probably noticed that hidden between the political rants and Covid fears are more interesting posts sharing someone’s latest craft-work, recipe, a talent being shown off, or a Facebook Live inspirational talk or some other kind of hilarious situation – many of which have gone viral. Most represent small, but important moments of creativity. I’ve seen many of my friends completing jigsaw puzzles. One couple was so creative that the 1,000-piece puzzles became an opportunity. When they placed a piece, they would offer up a prayer. 1,000 pieces meant 1,000 prayers.

The examples of everyday imagination we see on our timeline may not strike us as creative-with-a-capital-C. Clever family photos, meme creations, or Zoom singalongs may not be the best-of-talents, but we can’t let comparison diminish their value. If creativity is a light, it does not have an on/off switch. My view is that creativity has a dimmer switch, growing from a tiny bit creative to a little creative to creative enough to light up the whole room. I’ve seen that in the way my own family has come up with creative work spaces for school projects and backgrounds for videos.

The truth is we are ALL creators because we were made in the image of OUR Creator. Erwin McManus says: "Creativity should be an everyday experience -- as common as breathing. We breathe, therefore we create.” And on another level of creativity is everyday we have the opportunity to not only create beauty in others by the way we speak to them, but we have the opportunity to create environments conducive to turning darkness to light, animosity to tenderness and kindness, hatred to love and sadness to joy!

So, CREATORS!!! Let’s CREATE!!! Let’s get our “creative” juices flowing and start creating beauty and life with OUR words AND actions! Wouldn’t it be great if we could look at OUR creations, and, like God, say, “It is very good!” (Genesis 1:31)

Like Father.....Like Sons & Daughters

That 3-1/2 to 4 hours between Frisco, TX and Tulsa, OK gives me plenty of time to think about subject matter for my FB posts. This trip back to Tulsa didn't disappoint. As I gazed at the beautiful blue skies with puffy white clouds, the trees, and pastures abundant with cattle -- I thought "Father God -- You are such an awesome Creator!" And, I thought about His magnificent genius in creating you and me -- IN HIS IMAGE (Genesis 1:26)! Now that's something to think about! I don't think that scripture means "look like Him" as much as "act like Him". We should bear the family resemblance.

In Genesis we read that God spoke things into being. He said, "Let there be light" and there was light. He said let there be skies and earth and stars and moon and there were skies and earth and stars and moon. By what He said, things were created.

So, doesn't it make sense that if we’re made in his image and He created with words, we are creators with our words also? Proverbs 18:21 says that “death and life are in the power of the tongue." The example I thought of was a young woman we knew, who was so near and dear to us. She grew up with people telling her she was stupid, that she'd never amount to anything, that she was lazy, and a hopeless case. That resonated within her for years and years. Those people were creators. They created a world of pain, hurt, disappointment, inferiority and rejection in this young woman, but all was not lost. One day, she came into our lives. Immediately we began to create beauty and life as God would. We started speaking into her "You are beautiful, you are worthwhile, you are smart, you are funny, you are valuable, you are precious, you are packed with potential and accomplishment. The more we spoke into her, the more she started believing and becoming all that....and more.

Everyday we have the opportunity to not only CREATE beauty in others by the way we speak to them, but we have the opportunity to CREATE environments conducive to turning darkness to light, animosity to tenderness and kindness, hatred to love and sadness to joy! So, CREATORS!!! Let's CREATE!!! Let's get our "creative" juices flowing and start creating beauty and life with OUR words AND actions! Wouldn't it be great if we could look at OUR creations, and, like God, say, "It is very good!" (Genesis 1:31)