When I teach in seminars and university classes, I often ask people to raise their hand if they think they are creative. Usually a few hands go up, some hesitating as they do so. Then I ask, “Who thinks they are not creative?” Again, several hands are raised into the air, sometimes very emphatically. I know what they are thinking. “I’m not an artist or sculptor. I don’t write poetry or music. I’m not creative.”

I usually get a funny look when I ask the next question. “How many of you had a conversation with someone else today?” And I explain that the act of putting words into meaningful sentences is an act of creativity. Day in and day out we are constantly creating things.

We know that God is a creative God. We learn that from the very first verse in His Word:

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Genesis 1:1 NLT

God…our creative God…has built into each of us a level of creativity. Since He is creative, we who are made in His image are also creative.

Yes, there are different areas and different levels of creativity. Some may find their creative ability in art, or in music, or in the written word. And some have spent time developing that creativity so that they excel in their craft. The bottom line is…we are all creative. God gives us our skills and abilities to use for His purpose. I think of the men whom the Lord prepared to help Moses build the tabernacle. Bezalel and his apprentice Oholiab, who is also named by the God.

The Lord has filled Bezalel with the Spirit of God, giving him great wisdom, ability, and expertise in all kinds of crafts. He is a master craftsman…

Exodus 35:31-32 NLT

Our creative Lord has put in you the ability to create. It is yours to develop. English psychologist Edward de Bono helps us grasp this:

“Creativity involves breaking out of established patterns in order to look at things in a different way.”

Management guru Peter Drucker understood this in the business realm. He calls creativity “innovation.”

“Innovation is the specific tool of entrepreneurs, the means by which they exploit change as an opportunity for a different business or a different service.”

So, what does this have to do with you as you lead in ministry? Everything. If you continue to look at the work the same way every day, there will be a repetitive sameness to what you do. In the media realm this can be a pathway to mediocracy. It is the easy way. The path of least resistance. Yet there is nothing fresh for others to see or hear. What we need is a pathway to excellence that points people to Jesus.

The Lord explained this to Isaiah:

For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.

Isaiah 43:19 NLT

People today are living in a dry wasteland. Many go about their existence wandering in the wilderness without hope. Without a fresh outlook. Without Christ. We have the opportunity to creatively show them there is a better path that leads to the river of life found only in Jesus Christ. But we need to develop our creativity to give those lost souls a fresh look at our creative Lord Jesus.

Are you creative? Yes! What will you do today to develop and put to use the creativity God has placed in you?

God’s best…