Creativity

"God who created us continues to work creatively in us." 
- Eugene Peterson 

I decided about 2 years ago to begin to reinvent my life as I knew it.  I stopped just filling up a calendar (letting being busy give me worth), and only put the events that really mattered to me and my family.  I decided to fully embrace being a mom, full-time, because that is now my number one calling and that is enough.  I decided I had to stop expecting a job-title give me my life's purpose, and to just needed to show up everyday and be who I'm created to be, wherever I am.  My husband and I have decided to live simply, we are minimizing our closets, our cabinets, expectations, our wants.  We now live on less. We want less distractions and more time and energy to do what brings us life and joy - not a life of "to do's" and pressure to buy or keep up with what someone else thinks we should do.  It's been refreshing, fun, convicting to see where we've mistakingly put priorities.  But we've have had to dig deeper into our creative selves to make it work.  And it's been worth it.  

Through this change we have produced things - music, bicycle saddles, crafts, jewelry, presentations - all things we love and are passionate about.  We hear a lot of people say "Wow.  You did that?  I don't have a creative bone in my body!"  And I catch myself saying that to others who draw, or bake, or produce something I can't.  
But folks I've realized this is just wrong! We have to stop telling ourself this lie! We've got it all wrong.

Creativity isn't just something tangible that we can (or can't) produce - 
It's how we survive!

We are creative...
- in our dailyness, the mundane, our routines (I doubt anyone has the same way of making their way out of the door every morning!)
- in how we welcome and show hospitality.
- in the ways we rebuild, dig our way out of a pit, find light in the dark, dark times.
- in how we let go of worries, even just for a moment.
- in how we create space for others to tell their stories.
- in how we hold, teach, and care for children.
- in how we listen to the sages share their wisdom one more time.
- in the songs we sing, when we hum and dance when no one is looking.
- in how we fight for justice and what we hold dear.
Our unique creativity is found in the way we laugh, grieve, love, hope, and doubt!


Creativity is webbed in all of us, because our Creator, our God placed it in each of us.  It is sacred and meant to be shared.  The Native American culture teaches that the spider’s web weaves beautiful designs of its life.  The web has hundreds of intricate patterns which catch the morning dew. It’s beautiful!  They believe the spider, doing what it’s designed do, and whispers to us all to create.  


How much more then are we called to create in our everyday lives?!  
Not just produce, but create.  And it will be beautiful.