Day 6 of Lent: God Delights in Your Creativity.

"You are my child, my beloved; with you I am well pleased."  Mark 1:11

Some Christians see God as one to be feared, a being that is hard to please and who will punish you if you do not do exactly as God has planned.  They think that God has planned all the events of your life without your input and God is overbearing, hard to please, and harsh.  Many may have developed this picture of God due to having parents who were this sort of person.  Also, some churches, denominations, and pastors have portrayed God in this way over the years because they were taught this is so and they perpetuate this myth.

To affirm that God is loving and kind and cares about our lives is adventurous thinking.  It is a radical approach.  It affirms that God gives us time and space to dream about what life could be like both for us and for all of humankind.

What if God seeks delightful creative companionship for your life?  What if God delights in the world and in you?  Consider the possibility that you are created to be a co-creator with God.  The words spoken to Jesus at his baptism are also spoken to each of us who desire to be in relationship with God.  "You are my child, my beloved; with you I am well pleased."

God loves you and delights in you.  Your creativity is motivated by love and delight, as is divine creativity.  We are meant to give joy and beauty and love to those around us.

Many of us need to experience healing in our relationship with God.  We need to let go of destructive images of God and embrace the gift of divine creativity.  We need to know that:

God delights in our creativity.
God loves me and you just the way we are.  We are God's beloved children.
God delights in our gifts and talents we use to serve God and others.
Our lives bring beauty to those around us.
Our lives bring beauty to the situations we encounter.

Prayer:
O God, who delights in all creation and whose wisdom moves the universe, let your wisdom-spirit dwell in us, inspiring us to dance and play and create in wonder and beauty and love.  With wisdom as our companion, let us bring your vision of what life can be like to birth in us, in our neighbors, and in the world around us.  Amen.