CREATE LIKE A CONQUEROR

Today’s Focus: You can create in confidence, because your ultimate victory over the enemy of your creative soul has been secured.

The truth hit me like lightning.

I was talking to a friend in ministry after a long day of rehearsals at church.

We were in the parking lot talking about ‘God stuff’ – you know, the deep-sounding, impressive conversations that Christians use to display just how Godly we are.

At some point, however, the conversation turned to love.

It was at that point, as we talked about God’s love, I realized I could not actually explain what God’s love felt like.

I’d been working in church for half of my life, serving in every capacity imaginable, and helping to lead people into experiencing God’s love.

My worship was one of duty, reverence, deep honor, and respect. But to feel loved in return? That was for the congregation, not me.

Years later, I found myself serving at a new church, but also at the same time working outside gigs as a freelance musician.

I often looked forward to my gigs as places to express myself – supposedly outside of the more restrictive and controlled environment of the worship platform. But the question returned as I considered the hypocrisy of that attitude.

Why was I ‘more free’ in outside gigs and not in my own place of worship? Why couldn’t I feel joy and love within my role as a worship musician?

The answer came from deep within. When I served at church, I was not playing like someone who was loved.

I was playing like someone trying to earn love.

My pastors had noticed that I was often timid and unsure in my musicianship. Rather than playing freely, I was trying not to make a mistake – because in my mind, making mistakes meant a loss of love.

In the battle for my creative self, fear was winning.

It was not until I realized that God’s love has nothing to do with my ability to perform that my playing and performance were free of those boundaries.

1 Corinthians 13:5 is famous for its declaration that love “does not keep a record of wrongs” (NIV). Or, as imagined in my mythical Creative’s Standard Version, “Love does not keep a record of bad creative decisions.”

I don’t know if I played better once that reality began to sink in.

But I certainly felt better as I played. A weight that had held me rooted to my piano bench emotionally was lifted.

To finally win the battle against procrastination, fear, trials, and self-doubt, you must surrender your worries and cares about the very thing you care so much about - your art. Your business. Your work.

Yes, God wants you to create. But He wants YOU more.

Your creativity will always be at its peak when it is accompanied by a sense and deep acceptance of God’s love.

Imagine yourself creating confidently, entirely free from judgment.

Free from the need for approval from the audience.

Free from self-doubt.

That’s what winning the battle feels like.

Romans 8:37 states that we are more than conquerors - and here is the key phrase that provides the key to victory - “through Him that loved us” (NIV).

Love - all-consuming, sacrificial, and committed despite consequence - is the weapon that Christ used to defeat death and the grave.

How much more will it defeat your creative anxiety and self-sabotage?

Lean into God’s love for you as you seek to win the battle for your creative heart. If He has already won the war, you have the advantage in every battle.

Fellow creator, you’re in a much better posture to win your creative battles. Here's what we've covered in this strategic study of Scripture:

• You’ve drawn up the plans.
• You’ve learned the value of letting circumstances train you to fight better.
• You’ve learned to anticipate the strategy of delay and doubt.
• You’ve set up your defenses.
• You’ve accepted that you are already victorious through God’s love.

You are now free to go and create like a conqueror.

If you'd like additional resources to help you live a victorious, creative lifestyle as a believer, we have a 7-day prayer devotional for creators, available as a free download. You can request it here.

APPLICATION FOR TODAY

In each activity you undertake today, remind yourself that Christ’s love makes you a conqueror, and then take on that task wholeheartedly, knowing that your efforts are in response to that love, rather than an attempt to earn it. Pray a prayer of gratitude thanking God for His love, and ask Him to continue to be your anchor, your shield, and your protector as you live and work for Him.