I was introduced to Beth Morey through the Story 101 course. Beth has a heart for the hurting, and writes powerfully about fighting through the pain of the past. She is also a talented artist, and the creator of an online course, ‘Made’, starting in September, with four months of workshops, exercises and prompt specifically to explore this topic of how Christianity and Creativity intersect. It looks to be arty and thoughtful and awesome. Over to her for the first in my Christianity and Creativity series:
Beth’s work in progress
When I am asked why I write, why I paint, the reply is simple.
I do it because I have to.
I bleed soul words and press my heart to canvas through a laden brush, and it puts my heart back in order.
And like many, if not all, artists, I long to provide for my family’s needs with my creative work. But if it didn’t work out like that — if I never made another thin cent from what I create — I would do it anyway. I would have to.
Creativity, for me, is life.
There was not always space for creativity in my life, and those years were dark and shivering. My heart spent that time enslaved to compulsion and addiction and depression. And recently, when my sweet son entered my life and took all my time for his own (as children should), I found myself shivering my way toward that dark place once again and realized anew how very important it was for me to make time for writing and making art.
Creativity is health and sanity. It makes me better in all the other dimensions of my life as a wife and mother and friend and more.
When I paint, I often find myself experiencing the curiosity of painting my own heart’s portrait, painting my inner self into being. And it is life.
There is something in me wired for creation. I think there is something in each one of that leans toward glorious creation, although that looks as different as each person does.
These somethings, I believe God must have placed them there in our souls. I think that it is gift, a gift of healing and enjoyment and delight. Something that helps me find the miraculous, excruciating beauty in both the blessings and the heartbreakings of this life.
And it is something that leaks mystery. Why did God place this gorgeous need to create in me? Why writing, and why mixed media art?
I don’t know. And I’m not sure that it matters.
Because what I do know is so much more important:
That God heals my heart and others’ through my words and paintings, that often it seems that in being creative I am etching His words of life deep into my soul. That it is beautiful, and God is beauty, and it is life, and God is life so this drive to string words and drench my world in color — it must be His. All His.
And Jesus, isn’t He the master of all artists? Again and again and again, for goodness sake, we see Him making banquets of wholeness and redemption from less than nothing. Perhaps that’s another form of needing to, reflecting the work of Christ as that one paints healing and that one redemption and that one hammers homecoming.
This creating, it is power and it is Spirit and it is miracle. And so often when I paint or write my creative space turns into a sacred threshold upon which I enter into so much wholeness — for myself and others.
Creativity is coming home.
Beth Morey is a writer and the mixed media artist behind Epiphany Art Studio> You can purchase her art from her etsy online shop. She is also the author of the creative healing workbook, Life After Eating Disorder: How to Have One, and the force behind Made, the collaborative ecourse on art + faith (www.madecourse.wordpress.com). Beth writes about finding the beauty amongst the ashes of life on her blog (www.bethmorey.com). She lives in Montana with the Best Husband Ever, their son, and their three naughty dogs.
Over to you:
- What is creativity to you?
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You are right on the mark Beth, since we are his creation and his children some of his creative qualities definitely exist in us. We were made in His image, and he is creative and therefore a bit of that must have rubbed on us.
Beautifully expressed, Beth. To create is indeed Divine and draws us nearer to God’s heart, intentions and purpose for our lives. I can really connect with “creative space turns into sacred threshold upon which I enter into so much wholeness – for myself and others”. My own creative journey has been just like that. May you continue to pour out your soul in painting images and words to bring inner healing for yourself and to bless the recipients of your art.
‘it puts my heart back in order’ – could have been the entire post, it encapsulates it perfectly. Not everybody ‘gets’ what we create, but I know when that divine transaction has taken place in the heart.
Thanks Beth & Tanya
I think there are many different ways that people are creative. You bless people by putting paint onto canvas and words onto paper while others paint on hearts through their kindness or their service … sometimes their words are unspoken but heard loudly through their selfless actions.
Beautiful words, Beth. Absolutely beautiful! Thank you for sharing.
Beth – creativity is Divine! “In the beginning God created….” and “we are made in His image,” so of course, creativity is spiritual DNA. Those of us fortunate enough to dabble in it see a part of God – a spark of creation. God made things beautiful – he looked around and saw that is “was good.” How fortunate we are to participate in something that has its roots in Genesis! I believe that people that create without the faith connection are losing a great blessing in their life – we are not better because we sense a connection to Him, but we are most certainly blessed to create with purpose. Thanks for your thoughts and your transparency. May the God who gifted and graced us continue to allow us the strength and courage to passionately explore the body-mind-spirit connection through various art forms!