God Rested on the 7th Day and Made it Holy
“By the seventh day God had finished the work He had been doing; so on the seventh day He rested…then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy…” Genesis 2:2-3.
Why did God rest? The Bible isn’t overtly clear about this, but it does fit in with something that God does do an awful lot: give us an example to follow.
It’s Okay to be Weary
It is okay to be weary.
We are finite in mind, body, and soul in a broken world that sometimes takes more energy out of us than we can replenish.
There Are Seasons for Everything
One of the greatest debates of our time is when to start playing Christmas music. Some people like to start before Halloween and enjoy almost three months of a Christmassy season. To some people that ridiculous and Christmas music isn’t allowed to start until November. Still others find any Christmas music before December 1st to be absolutely intolerable!
Don't Idolize Your Work
The term idol usually brings up images of carved gods and goddesses, or perhaps a golden calf, or other images of things that people worship instead of the Lord our God. In essence, we usually view idols as something that exists in the physical realm to actually kneel before and pray to.
Our Works Should Show Love to Our Neighbor
The second commandment of the entire Bible is to love one’s neighbor.
Great! That’s kind of nonspecific!
No worries, there are a lot of ways to show love!
Our Work is for GOD, Not Man
Being diligent, obedient, and sacrificial in your job is serving Jesus. No, really! It says it right there in the Bible! You don’t have to have a direct ministry calling or go live as a hermit, only studying the Word, or become a monk or nun to serve Jesus. Unless He calls you specifically to something different, He wants you to be diligent in the job He has given you — be that creative or not!
The World Will Hate What You Make
The world by and large is not going to like or appreciate what you create. There’s no easy or delicate way to put that. In fact, it’s more Biblically accurate to say that the world is going to hate what you create. We were called and set apart by Jesus Christ to chase after His image, and the world really, really hates Him.
No, We Don't Have to Put Bible Verses Everywhere
…putting Bible verses or drawing little crosses into the things we create is not a requirement or a commandment, especially when it comes from glorified peer pressure. Indeed, God’s Word says nothing about needing to put Scriptural references into our work and it says a lot about the kind of work we are called to do.
We Are the Salt and Light of the Earth
I have a lot to say on the topic of salt. It seasons and preserves food, serves as a necessary electrolyte, and it is delicious. It’s a significant and important factor in our oceans, providing a home for numerous species of plants and animals. In fact, salt is so important that it is one of the five major taste sensations!
But the Bible asks a good question: what good is salt that has lost its saltiness?
We Can't Be Lazy
You’re in your pajamas. You’ve got your favorite streaming service on the TV. You’ve got some popcorn, some pizza, and a whole day ahead of you to binge watch the latest drama. And that’s great!
For a rest day.
For every day, it’s not so much a good idea.
Good Work Part 2, God Instructs Us to do Good Work
So, what exactly does that mean? I can’t really reinvent the rainbow…
It means that, in using our God-given abilities and talents, we strive to do good work. At the core of all we do, we should have our ultimate goals be to honor God in a way that pleases Him and encourages our neighbors towards His truth.
Good Work Part 1, God Does Good Work
God is the definition of Good. True Good, He can do nothing but good. Which means that all of His work, both in the creation of the world and in His actions after the Fall, are ultimately good.
What is, then, ‘good work’?
Don't Be Arrogant About Your Talents
Pride is one of the sneakiest sins. It creeps into everything, it’s sometimes hard to spot, and it causes a whole host of other sins and worries. Pride can even worm into our initially good intentions and cause major issues when we think we’re glorifying God!
Everything We Do is for the Praise and Glory of God
Everything we do, we need to do it for the praise and glory of God.
Everything.
But I Have No Confidence!
That’s okay.
Wait…aren’t you supposed to tell me I need more confidence in myself?
Nope, you don’t need it, Christian creative!
God Has a Plan for You
So, you’ve been created, you’ve got Jesus in your heart, and you have a drive, set of talents, or abilities that you want to use for some grand purpose…now what?
God Gives People Talents and Abilities
If God has a task He wants done on this Earth, He gets it done. Sometimes He uses miracles that only He can perform (manna from heaven, Exodus 16; raising Lazarus, John 11), sometimes He uses plagues brought about from His wrath [the famous 10 against Egypt, Exodus 7-12; tumors against the people of Ashdod, 1 Samuel 5:6], and sometimes He uses people.
God Created YOU
God creates, God created all things, and God created humanity. This is all good and this is all important, but how does it tie into encouraging you, specifically? Easy: God created you.
God Created Humanity
“If you put an infinite number of monkeys in front of an infinite number of typewriters, you’ll eventually get Shakespeare.” It’s a quote that’s meant for discussing statistics, rather than biology or creation, but it incidentally makes an important point. It lets us ask the question: how will the monkeys write Shakespeare?
God Created All Things
Have you ever taken a moment to really look at a platypus? Yes, obviously they’re weird on a surface level and strange in the fact that they are mammals that lay eggs and nurse young, but have you really stopped to look at them? Compared to, say, a beaver or a river otter, or even a capybara, they are weird.