unconditional creativity [part 2]

“Creativity is intentional but not conventional.”

I was driving back from dropping my girls off to school and these words popped in my head.

Creativity is intentional. Intent on what? God's creation or God's constant creativity is extremely intentional. Psalm 19 says that the skies proclaim the work of His hands and they pour forth speech. They display knowledge – and yet – they use no words.

Is it possible to be so intentional in the Spirit that it looks absolutely and totally motionless to the world? That it looks almost uncreative?

What is the difference between “Spirit” intention as opposed to “physical/flesh” intention?

Is it similar to the difference between being and acting (or doing)?

To think that “being intentional” is getting something accomplished is a bit conventional. It sounds more like striving to me than being creative. It has the sound of conditional creativity rather than unconditional creativity.

What is our intent in creativity? This is important.

Creation (or God’s creativity) is intent on creating and sustaining life. Our ecosystem exists and is ‘being’ in order that we humans can live. “They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.” (Psalm 19 TNIV)

Creation is being creation by sustaining life for us. Quiet, consistent, ever changing, yet ever the same. This is probably a paradox to the world, but not to the Kingdom of God. I wonder whether if this is just one of God’s examples for what it means to be people of the Spirit, people of the Wind, people of the Kingdom of God.

We have no speech yet our voice (our being) goes out into all the earth (humanity). Our being is our spirit – THE creative presence placed within us by God. It is intent by its very nature and design when connected to the Spirit of Jesus. Every aspect of Jesus life was intentional. It wasn’t something He had to set as a goal. It was a natural response to the deep union He had with His Father. We are called to do very little but be the creative presence of God’s action in the world around us. If we seek first being His Kingdom people: people of Spirit and Truth – all of this will be added to us, right?

There is favor in being.
There are results in acting or doing.

Which do we want? To whose glory is our creativity and our intentionality?

I imagine it would require a deep union between us and God in order to be intentional in what Dallas Willard calls the “art of doing nothing”. Our intentionality is focused on being, not doing. It’s not a plea for the pacifists or the activists. It’s a plea for those in the gray area….it’s a plea for the people of God’s Kingdom – those born of Spirit.

My hope is that God would create in us a voice (a creative spirit) so strong that our being not our words or actions speak in such a way that it “goes out into all the earth, to the ends of the world.”

That we may say more in our loving silence and being than either our actions or words could ever say.