Sometime last year I came across a book titled “This I Believe,” edited by Jay Allison & Dan Geidman. It is based on the 1950’s NPR series by Edward Murrow, and is a compilation of essays by both remarkable and normal everyday people about normal everyday things - the things that they believe in. And the invitation is open to everyone to participate. ( www.thisibelieve.org) And so I took pen to paper, actually keyboard to lap, and started to sort out what I believe in………….

This I believe:
We were made to be creative to make new, to fly with our imaginations and soar with God.

I believe in putting words on paper to bring a new idea to life. I believe in putting colors on a canvas to express what is in the heart - one’s most joyous joy and deepest sorrow, breath holding expectation, the safety of a mother’s love or the frightening depths of despair.

And there is an expectation - a waiting for something new in the young - caterpillars turn into butterflies, puppies turn into loyal companions.

But until that metamorphosis happens, it is an unknown. What comes out of that new thing is a surprise - God’s surprise - only God knows.

I believe in the hope of a new creation because I have known despair. I have gone to sleep with the veil of despair my only companion. And I have known of the sharp cutting edge of the light of hope tearing the veil to shreds . I believe the antidote for the poison of despair is creativity because in creativity there is something new, something to behold, something to hold on to, something to draw one up out of the depths, something………………..

Only God knows what the possibilities are and what the results will be, but we mere humans have been given the gift of hope - hope that this creation of God’s will not be denied.

Scripture tells us we who believe in Christ are a new creation - in Christ - the old has died and the new is reborn - there is trust and hope in that creative process - God’s creative process…

That hope is the certainty that all WILL be well with my soul.

God created - in six days he kick started the world - saw what He had done and called it good.

When I cannot be creative, when I cannot think of a new idea or make something new - or even want to - I’ll know that I am dead.