Do you ever feel like you’re failing those around you if you haven’t found success within your skillset and passions? Creativity is a gift I believe I have and one of my favorite outlets for expressing myself. But I’m constantly asking myself, “What are you doing with it?”
The Apple Doesn’t Fall Far From the Creativi-Tree
My oldest daughter is like me in a lot of ways: her sensitive spirit, her love to laugh and joke with others, her indecisiveness, her coordination (or lack of, at times- sorry, girlie!), and, probably most dominantly, her creativity. She LOVES to create. Her ability to make something out of nothing amazes me and far surpasses my own. She loves to bake, experiment with new recipes, write stories and songs, make creative cards for people, draws detailed pictures, and come up with cute little characters. Man, she reminds me so much of my younger myself, and in some ways, myself today. She has wild dreams and plans, that she holds with all the optimism in the world. I don’t ever want her to lose that!
What I Haven’t Done
In some ways, I feel like I’m failing my daughter. I’m often consumed by the pressure to make something of myself using my creative outlets, so I can prove to her that she can follow her dreams and pursue the interests she loves. I tend to look at my life and see the things I haven’t accomplished, instead of what I have. For instance, I don’t own my own bakery as I once dreamed and I haven’t published any books, so how can I even call myself a writer?
The Truth About Your Gifts
There’s so much harm in viewing success that way. God didn’t give me the gift of creativity so that I could make a name for myself. He didn’t promise success by the world’s standards. He gave me (and you) the gifts that He did so that we can use them for His glory.
Though it’s not always profitable, I continue to use my creativity. I bake for my family, friends, and neighbors. I write notes of encouragement to others. When God lays something on my heart, I share it with the world through my words.
I try to seek God’s wisdom daily as to how I should use this life He’s given me. As I listen to His voice and leap when He says to, I learn to trust Him with the rest. This is what I can teach my daughter: that no matter how she uses her gifts and talents, no matter where life takers her, she should continue to seek God’s will through it all. I want her to daily surrender her gifts to Him and realize that her creativity is a connection to the ultimate Creator.
What areas do you feel like you’re gifted in or passionate about? How do you use them in your day to day life?
"Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established." Proverbs 16:3 ESV
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In