Create

Create: to cause to happen; bring about; arrange, as by intention or design.

My friend Jon and I got together earlier in the week at one of his favorite coffee shops in Denver for a chance to catch up on life. Jon's a good friend, an so there is always the opportunity to share what's going on in my head. Thank God for a wife and friends who allow transparency, take risks in relationship, and celebrate openness and honesty!

Sipping away at my cup of chai (yes, I was drinking chai...gotta problem with that?), he asked the greatest question of the night: what brings you life when the mind overwhelms you? It would probably be helpful at this point to explain a little about the "battle of the mind" to clear up any confusion. I have this special ability to zone in on my fears, worries, and insecurities with so much concentration that it almost drags me entirely into a steamy, boiling, sticky pit of soul mud. I tell my students it's called the "death spiral". I think there are a lot of us who can think outselves to death by unconsciously over-concentrating on those things we fear.

Back to his question...

I have lived my life in the past several years with a sense of God's grace that has been new and fresh. In short, I have felt "kept" by God whereas in the past, I would have felt that my struggles in life may have put some distance between us. The embrace of God has been more real to me that it ever has! I have sensed his embrace when life has been all I imagined; I have sensed that same embrace when it hasn't.

At this point, our conversation switched directions slightly. I began to think about some of those things I do that bring me life. For example, I feel really alive when I am doing my photography. I love capturing images of creation, particularly images of humanity alive and a part of the natural landscape. I enjoy capturing the personality of people in an image as well as capturing the personality and creativity of God in the details of creation.

I also feel alive when I am writing. This is only a recent discovery for me, but there's something invigorating about forming words and phrases into concepts and thoughts to express what is on my heart and mind. When I write, I am writing for myself as a way of self-expression. Some people speak, some people paint, some people take photos, some people mold clay, and some people write. It's all creative.

I mostly, though, feel alive when I am investing in the lives of others, whether they be family, friends, or people I don't even know. I enjoy contributing to the lives of others, and I relish the vitality they bring to mine. There's something about this life-giving/life-receiving experience that we share as people that also strikes me as being creative. My biblical world-view teaches me that the earth -- and everything in it -- is the result of the creativity of God. Somewhere in his supernatural spirit, he dreamed of humanity and put his power to work at forming flesh and bone, breathing life into us with his breath. When God imagined beauty and life, he imagined us and the universe we inhabit.

We are the living creativity of God.

And because we are made in his image, it is only natural that we are also creative. Since the creation of his masterpiece, the Father has been re-creating, transforming, and molding his creation, seeking to bring Life from where it was taken. Jesus. When we give our lives to bring life, healing, and mercy to those around us, there is something within us that is satisfied with living our lives in alignment with his. I find that I am furthest from the "death spiral" in my head when I am living allied with his life and his dream for humanity. Being able to imaginatively create sets us apart from the rest of creation and gives us one of our greatest indicators of our purpose for living.

"In the beginning, God created..."