Drawing Inspiration from God the Creator

Why do we create? There is so much we can learn about our gifts in the Scriptures. Here is some encouragement from God’s Word for creatives about our talents and how to use them.

Creator and creators

“Artist” is more of an identity than a profession. We hold our creations close to our hearts. We’ve formed, developed and carefully crafted them. The work is arduous and requires a lot from us. We may have even described some of our pieces of artwork as our “baby.” And just like no one dares to stand between a momma bear and her cub, the same wrath can come from an artist whose work is misused. After all, we came up with this idea, and worked diligently to make it into something tangible and meaningful. It is our work.

Then we remember that we serve a very big God, the Creator of all things. The Scriptures paint a beautiful picture of God as the great Artist. We are His work. Genesis 2:1 says, “The LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” He had been on quite a creating binge, and it must have been tiring for Him, too, because he decided to rest the next day. Of all that He made, humans are His most prized possession. He took human beings and created them in His image (Genesis 1:27) with tenacity and love—and purpose too, to shine a light for goodness in the world.

Sound familiar? By no means am I saying we are God, but we might be able to relate on a much smaller scale. This is how we might feel about our own works of art. With everything we create, we feel tremendously invested and proud. We want it to be great and bring profound meaning to our hearts and the hearts of others.

Gifted to Create

God has given each of you a gift from His great variety of spiritual gifts.  Use them well to serve one another. Do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God Himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies.  Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to Him forever and ever! Amen.

1 Peter 4:10-11

We might continue the pattern of this passage by adding:

Do you have the gift of painting? Then paint as though you were designing the sunset. Do you have the gift of songwriting? Then craft lyrics with your whole heart and melodies that encourage all who hear.

Our artwork and talents are not exactly our own.

Our gifts and talents come from God, who gives from His great variety. Of all the gifts God has, He has chosen to place in each of us specific ones best suited for the role He would have us play. He has given us something that belongs to Him—and He doesn’t want to see the gifts He placed misused, either.

There are many passages that remind us that we are the Lord’s, and our gifts are His. 

“Know that the Lord, He is God! It is He who made us, and we are His; we are His people, and the sheep of His pasture.” 
—Psalm 100:3

“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago.”
—Ephesians 2:10

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights…”
—James 1:17

“There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us.”
— 1 Corinthians 12:4-6

We create because God has given us the gift to create. What an empowering thought!

I think you can see the picture that’s being painted here.

Scripture tells us although we have gifts and talents IN us, they do not belong TO us. Our gifts are not meant to be hidden or hoarded. We create because God has given us the gift to create. What an empowering thought! For many of us, it doesn’t even feel like we have a choice NOT to create. The art waits inside us, asking to come out. So instead of asking “Am I qualified?” or “should I even create,” the question becomes: What does He want me to create? When? And for whom? Let’s ask God for wisdom when we create using the gifts He has given us:

Prayer: Father, thank you for the gifts that YOU have placed in us.These gifts fully and wholly come from You and are a part of Your nature that you are allowing us to experience. First Peter says that You have given us a gift from your ”variety of spiritual gifts.” From Your vast array of options, You have matched each of us with specific gifts, unique to Your plan for our lives. Help us to use these gifts in ways that will please You. Reveal to us when to create, what to create, where we should show our work, and who should see it. Amen.

What encourages you to create? Leave a comment below and let us know!

Ranika Chaney is the Engagement Manager for Engage Art. Louisiana born and bred, Ranika graduated from Loyola University New Orleans with a degree in Communications-Broadcast Journalism and Sociology. Ranika loves public speaking, spoken word, reading and has a bit of an obsession with how the brain works. All of her loves find purpose and joy as she rears her 5 beautiful children. Once her little ones are tucked into bed, Ranika enjoys dancing (like no one is watching) and singing (like no one else can hear).