"In the Beginning God CREATED the Heavens and the Earth." Genesis 1:1
As a
Stay-at-Home Momma of two, I’ve seen my share of “art” work. Scribbles on the
wall. Paint splattered and dried to tiles on the kitchen floor. Chalk drawings
covering nearly every inch of our sidewalk.
Playdough pieces clinging to carpet fibers. Glue. Glitter. Stickers. Scissors.
Scrap paper. Yep, that’s my house living with two kiddos who love to create. I bet many of you can relate.
Most of the
time I find myself grumbling as I clean up their artistic scenes and
frustrated when they want to drag out all the craft supplies. Sigh, groan,
eye-roll. Don’t they know what an inconvenience it is to get all that stuff out
and clean it back up?
No. They don’t
know. It’s fun for them to create and it occurred to me not so long ago that
they are doing just exactly what God wants them to do.
God wants
them to make a mess? Ha! Maybe. God wants them to create because when they
create they are creating with Him, the One! A beautiful thought, right?
Our God is
creative. He is the creator! With His words He fashioned the universe and all
its contents. He sculpted un-countable varieties of life in all shapes, sizes, and
colors. He continues to create to this day with each changing of the season,
wedding union, the birth of child, and in the heart of someone inviting Him in.
Our God is a creative God and we are made in His image. We create! We build, design, write, draw, cook, craft, forgive, love, clean, decorate—all aspects of creating.
When I stop grumbling at the mess my children have made and look, really look, at what they’ve fashioned, I’m amazed. I clap. I hug them. I hang their work on a wall for all to see. Being made in the image of God means many things, but for that moment, staring at glittering globs of glue, my children are reflecting a portion of their Creator. They’ve created with Him.
How beautiful is that?! The ONE, who is the All-Creator, allows us to create alongside of Him!
When we stand in front of the stove preparing a meal for our family, we create with our God. When we clean up a mess, we create a clean environment with our God. When we bring life into this world, we create with the One. When we sit with our children and finger-paint, or glue, or color, we create alongside our God. He must clap for us. Cheer for us. Brag on us. We do that for our children, right?
So this week, let’s ask God to give an awareness of Him, how He works in us, through us, and around us to create! How creative can we get?!
About the Author:
Hannah Conway is the author of The Wounded Warrior's Wife and Wedding the Warrior. She is an Army wife
of more than a decade, mother of two, writer and speaker.
A Kentucky native,
Hannah lives near Fort Campbell where she and her family are currently
stationed. She holds a BA in History from the University of Colorado at
Colorado Springs and is active in ministry, Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS), as
well as the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW), and My Book Therapy
(MBT).
About The Wounded Warrior’s Wife:
Battles Raging Within Are Those You
Must Fight To Win
WHITLEIGH
CROMWELL dreamt of a happy life with her newlywed husband. Army Private First
Class COLLIER CROMWELL loved God, his wife, and his country, though the
military demanded he pay a high cost.
When an
unexpected deployment during the height of war sends Collier away for another
year, their lives tumble down a path marked with struggle, and fatalities. War weary, and faith crippled, Collier brings
home a war of another kind leaving Whitleigh staring at the shattered pieces of
their broken marriage.
Are
there wounds too deep, and marriages too broken that they’re beyond even God’s
ability to restore?
My girls are grown now and have families of their own, but when they were young my mom gave me some very good advice. Ignore the mess and spend time with the girls. It won't be long and they will be gone and you will be longing for some of that mess again.
ReplyDeleteAnn, you brought tears to my eyes! You're right. I'm still learning to ignore the mess and actually jump in to make messes with them. They are growing so fast, and I'd rather be with them than standing over them with a pointed finger.
DeleteThat is so true. It is easy for me to just see the mess they are creating versus seeing they are Creating! I need to keep that in mind next time. :-) Those are great thoughts for teachable moments for us but also for our kids - to remind them how creative God is and how our work reflects Him.
ReplyDeleteBTW - Your new book is awesome! Almost done!!
THANK YOU MICHELLE!!! :) :) BTW...let's get our kids together soon so they can make a mess! Ha! :)
DeleteMy kids always loved to create. Even is all I gave them was a jar of buttons, fun to see what they could design :)
ReplyDeleteNow I look forward to when the grandkids stop..
Hahahaha Deanna!! :)
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