thoughts on creativity
January 8, 2009
“Creativity is more important than knowledge”
-Albert Einstein
Over the past month I’ve turned my focus more internally to see what I might find. It’s easy for me to find a new activity and become so engrossed in it that I lose site of the more important things. And this blog was becoming that distraction for me. Not that I regret it or think anything negative of it. Because my blog was, and will remain, a great tool for me to share who I am. But it’s important for me to stop and look around once in a while at what my desire each day is set on.
The week before Christmas really took a toll on me. I was under a heavy workload with a tight deadline and all I could focus on was just making it through one more day. I didn’t want to stop and enjoy the day for what it was. I was taking time for granted. I was being selfish with how I spent my time. And then I had to get all the pre-travel plans in order. Not that any of this is worth mentioning, but it felt like a heavy load to bare.
Can creativity really be lost once we’ve found it?
Why do I feel so empty and unable to make anything worthwhile?
Sometimes the easiest answers are always the ones we don’t see. But when I drift away on some rickety float in to the middle of self-doubt I don’t see anything but negative space all around me. A void. Yet the simplest things like a child smiling or the sky at sunset can turn my heart from red to green. And then I feel free again to accelerate in life. Because the real truth is God doesn’t care if I believe in Him or not, He believes in me. And He is always there with me, not judging me or dictating my life, but offering me a greater way to live. He’s giving me the choice! Wow! I don’t know of anyone else who is so patient, so loving, and so creative in the ways He chooses to show His love for me.
One final thought. While visiting my grandparents over the holidays I had the great fortune of looking at old slides from when my grandparents were still young. Things seemed a lot simpler in those pictures. Those moments captured in time. And the way my grandfather narrated the whole presentation, it made me want the simple things in life. Not that this is some sort of New Year’s resolution, but more of a shift in my soul, my spirt.
12 Responses to thoughts on creativity
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carol brinker says:
Wow! That was good. It is funny, because this morning I was thinking about how much I love my dogs because they don’t know if I am cool or not. I have recently, kind of,reconnected with an old friend who to the world is wayyyy cool, he owns a gallery and is just..cool! And I get all self concious about him, b/c me and my dogs think I am cool, but..whatever. And then I thought”carol you big dummy..forget about the dogs, GOD loves you and doesn’t even care if you are cool…He just loves you” So that was a great entry for me to read.
Have a groovy/blessed day!
Csrol -
Thanks for this post Kyle. As you know from some previous conversations, I’m in a similar place. So often I expect to find God in the next big thing… and more often than not, He’s been waiting for me in the simple things all along.
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This is such a great post Kyle! Thanks for the information. I couldn’t agree more.
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great stuff kyle. its funny, i’ve been feeling the same way. life is more, much more, than the bullshit we seem to be chasing every day. most days that feels like our tail, and around and around we go. great perspective. one we all need to remind ourselves of more often. otherwise, life has a way of doing it on its own.
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“the real truth is God doesn’t care if I believe in Him or not, He believes in me.” Amen…and thank God. Appreciate it Kyle.
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Not only does God love us in creative ways (which I think is the coolest thing ever!!), he has blessed us with the ability to be creative. It’s funny how easy it is to lose sight of the goodness in life and the blessings we have, to get caught up in the busyness of living… but He loves us so much that there is always a way to get it back.
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Kyle, while I’m sure we can all relate to some of the feelings and thoughts you’ve expressed here, I think I’d be doing everyone a disservice if I didn’t point out a couple of areas where I think your theology is in error.
You mentioned that God is not there judging you or dictating your life. First, on the idea of God not dictating your life, isn’t that what living out the Christian life is all about? As Christians we are given (or dictated) laws which reveal the character of God and to which we are to conform ourselves. This is not to say that our conformity is the means of salvation from judgment, but we are dictated how to live our lives.
Second, on the idea that God is not there judging you, I think one of his titles is actually “judge” (2 Tim. 4:1). I understand that you may be referring to the fact that we are blameless before God because Christ’s righteousness is imputed on us, but it sounds like you are saying that God does not judge. And if he doesn’t judge then salvation is pretty cheap. We are humble and grateful because we are saved from a terrible judgment: God’s judgment.
I’ve tried to keep my criticism here centered on major theological issues. I don’t want to go around knit picking every semantic misstep. But since you’re writing for the whole world to read, I think it’s important that you paint a biblical picture of God. The picture you’ve painted above comes across as very human-centric, while the Bible definitely comes across as God-centric.
Keep up the good work. I’ve enjoyed reading.
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Thank you for sharing a moment in your life. We lead such busy lives and sometimes we forget to stand still for a moment and remember who we are, who’s image we were created in and who fills us with life, every day.//
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@Carol – hahaha. That’s awesome. I love how dogs and God have this unconditional love for us.
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@Mike aka penitentman – as always it’s great to have your support and comments on here. Hope you can find time today to admire the simple things.
I like the effortless way you transition from thoughts on design to thoughts on God.