Everyone can be creative…regardless of how loud they declare, “I’m just not creative.” You can be! Creativity is part of God’s design within us and when we express our God-given creativity it can make our soul come alive.
Creativity in youth ministry happens anytime you think about a new way to serve your students. Creativity isn’t limited to music, graphic arts, or preaching a message. It is also found in conversations, written letters, and when you think about how you can better help the teenagers that God has entrusted to your care.
We each express our creativity differently, however feeling frustration in our creativity is common to everyone. Here are a few ideas to recharge your creativity and discover joy within your soul:
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REFUEL: An uncomplicated guide to connecting with God by Doug Fields
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KEEP AT IT
For most people creativity doesn’t just happen–it takes time, sweat and tears. The best creativity usually appears beyond the first brainstorm. Ideas need to be revisited, reshaped and refined. It’s VERY difficult to be creative when you work at the last minute. Work ahead of time so the deadline pressure isn’t looming over you (A few people work well under pressure, but most people don’t). Creativity takes hard work.
STEP AWAY
When you stare at something too long you can loose focus and perspective. When you hit a road block, if you can’t fight through it, stop and work on something else. Go for a short walk, read a few blogs, finish off that sudoku puzzle, or go thru your music collection and sing a few songs. The key is to do something DIFFERENT than what you were working on. When you come back, you’ll have new perspective and hopefully you’ll discover a great solution.
TALK IT UP
Creativity is personal, but don’t keep it private. Share your ideas with a few others and request feedback. You don’t have to move in the direction of the feedback (creativity doesn’t always come from consensus), but you might hear an idea that you’d never have on your own. Make time to have conversations and your creativity will be recharged
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REFUEL: An uncomplicated guide to connecting with God by Doug Fields
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DISCERN “GOOD ENOUGH”
Figure out what excellence means for your particular project. "Good enough" lies somewhere below perfection and above mediocrity. We can’t afford to make an idol of perfection or let mediocrity become a justification for laziness. Both extremes are a waste of time and energy and not honoring to God. Find the balance that is "enough."
GET INSPIRED
Spend some time focused on things you love and admire even if there isn’t a "direct" benefit to a project. When our minds are engaged with interesting stuff, we’re stretched to think differently. We need new ideas! A regular influx of inspiration will fuel your creativity.
work + perspective + conversations + "enough" + inspiration = recharged creativity