Created to Create: Welcome to The Blog!

Why does my art feel meaningless?

What’s the point of investing my time into this?

Will people even care?

Does my story even matter?

These are just a few of the questions that I have wrestled with on my creative journey as an aspiring author. Often, they have been discouraging and debilitating; the bane of many dreams. For so long, I felt isolated in these frustrations. But, as I’ve connected with other creative people, I have noticed that so many of us are asking these same questions. We share the same doubts and fears while, simultaneously, sharing that same overwhelming and unexplainable innate need to create. We collectively experience the tremendously sublime satisfaction of creating something beautiful.

Through the years, I have endeavoured to explore this tension between the doubt and delight that exists within the creative process. I needed to understand this divine joy I found in writing. At the same time, I needed to comprehend why I felt so debilitated by this crippling fear that my art was meaningless. At first, I intended to explore these notions separately, but I quickly realized that their conclusions are entwined in this truth:

WE ARE CREATED TO CREATE

This statement brought me back to the opening sentence of the Bible: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” (Genesis 1:1 ESV). It amazes me that this is the first thing God chose to reveal to us about Himself. Of all his characteristics, He chose to show us that He is creative. The intricacy and accuracy of every detail in our world, from the way our planet spins to how our bodies function, are evidence of careful design. An architect pieced together the land we stand upon. A painter splashed streaks of red and gold upon the sky to display a sunset. A chef made food taste so good. A musician conducted the melody of each bird in the sky. A sculptor carved canyons and erected mountains. A gardener planted the first trees and flowers.

And a storyteller gave it all purpose.

According to the Bible, God created this entire universe, not from nothing, but from a source of inspiration - Himself. This is evident later in the story, through the formation of humankind, where God declares, “'Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.’” (Genesis 1:26 ESV). We were created in the image of a Creator. Therefore, if this is true, which I believe it is, then our desire to create is intrinsic within us because we were designed by an artist. The divine joy of creating is innate in us because it is a reflection of the God that made us. He experienced this same delight as he stepped back to look at his masterpiece and said, “…behold, it was very good.” (Genesis 1:31 ESV). The process of creation is a divine experience because in it we are displaying and experiencing the character of God.

And I believe that there is a further purpose in this design.

As I wondered at this soul-satisfying enjoinment that creators experience through their art, another verse from the Bible appeared in my mind: “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all for the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 1:31 ESV). Through the creative process, we are, if we realize it or not, imitating the likeness of God. The delight we find amidst this is so satisfying because we are participating in the very purpose we were made for - to display the glory of God. Concurrently, we were designed to rejoice in the experience of being known by and loved by God. We were created for our Creator. This is evidenced throughout the entire Bible, otherwise known as God’s unfolding story, and is fulfilled in the personhood of Jesus Christ, who was there with God at the beginning of Creation and was sent by him in human flesh (as a carpenter) to redeem it.

This truth has massive implications upon our entire lives. And it should have an incredible influence on how we respond to our art and the creative process. This good news gives purpose and meaning to your creativity. We were created to create. We were crafted with unique creative abilities which we are called to steward well to serve others and bring glory to our Creator (1 Peter 4:10 ESV). The creative process is spiritual. It is worship. And where we place that worship matters.

Every creative person I know has a desire to share their creation with others. We long to engage in art alongside community. I believe that this desire is innate in us too. It is a reflection of our Creator who, in community with Himself through the Trinity, designed us in His image. However, I think that this desire to share our art with others is sometimes misplaced. We want affirmation from friends that we are skilled. We want our parents to say, “well done.” We seek approval from others in our field. We desire to influence the lives of strangers through our art. Now, these desires are not bad. There is an air of goodness to them. However, these desires become misplaced if you strip them down to their bones and recognize that they derive from a longing to glorify yourself and not the Lord. And we are all guilty of making gods of ourselves through art. Our sinful flesh demands it. It makes it so easy.

But it makes the creative process so much harder.

I believe that this is why so many of us feel as though our art does not matter or that it is not worthy of enjoyment. If we are producing art for the sake of self-glory, we are not fulfilling our calling to create. We were not made to be glorified, but to glorify God. As humans, we cannot handle the pressure of being god-like. We saddle the brink of a deadly cliff when we seek to find our worth, acceptance, and approval in anything other than the one who created us. We kill the enjoyment of the process. We kill the perfect purpose for our creativity, which is to worship God. The pressure we feel to “succeed” in having a wide-range of influence or a rich impact through our art is erased when we decimate the lie that our art is all about us and, instead, root ourselves in the truth that our creativity is intended for a higher purpose. It would not matter how many people you reach or how rich your influence is through your art. Rather, you would find divine joy in the simplicity of making something beautiful to honour the Lord.

I do not say any of this to discourage you. Truthfully, I hope that I have done quite the opposite. Because I believe that there is freedom for the artist in accepting these truths. For me, returning to this truth eases many of the anxieties and fears I feel about my writing. The pressure I have felt to write a widely successful novel is lifted as I accept the fact that God does not care about how many people my words reach. Instead, he cares about how I choose to use the gifts he has entrusted me. Do I use them to honour myself? To gain approval from others? Or do I use them to simply worship the God who is worthy to be praised?

You see, this is why I have felt called to start this blog. This is the place from which the idea for it was born. From a need to write. From a longing to encourage others facing doubt in isolation. From a desire to worship Jesus. From a need to remind you, Reader, and myself that your art has a purpose. That you have a purpose.

We were created to create.

And this probably won’t look the same for all of us. Not everyone is a musician or a writer. Not everyone exudes creativity in this way. However, we all still have this innate desire for creation. We all have different gifts and interests. For you, fulfilling this calling might mean cooking a delicious meal for a neighbour who lost a child. It might mean creating a lesson plan for your classroom, or building relationships and connections with people in your church. It might mean making some babies and building a home for them to thrive in (check out Genesis 1:28). Whatever our unique skills might be, each of us responds, in some way, to this call to create. To this call to worship through our art.

We were created to create for the glory of our Creator.

And I sincerely hope that you find peace in this today, just as I have.

(Note to Reader: The conversation in this article does not end here. This is just an introduction. It's my hope to have future posts that dive deeper into the different areas of this rich topic. I hope you will stick around for more posts from me as I embark on this journey of exploring my passion for art and faith through my writing to encourage others in their creative pursuits. Please know, Reader, that you are welcome here. No matter who you are. No matter your personal beliefs. I’d like to emphasize that everything in this post is based upon my own opinion, interpretation, and experience. I have qualifications, but I’d hardly call myself an expert. My hope is that in sharing my thoughts and story that you would find encouragement or inspiration through my words. If you have any questions or comments please feel free to contact me! I’d love to connect with you!)