When I was little I spent my summers building forts and climbing trees.  I dreamed of having a treehouse that I could make cozy, where I could go to think and dream and imagine.

We had an attic in my house growing up that was right off of my bedroom. I would set it up to look like a cozy room.  Another version of the fort.  Even in my closet, I would try to create a makeshift mini “house”, complete with lighting (flashlights) and furniture (pillows).

Something deep inside me from my earliest years has wanted to create and transform.  I get an immense amount of joy and satisfaction from recreating a space to make it more inviting and homey.  It’s why I had so much fun this past weekend “building” my girl cave (or fort!) in the basement (see prior post).  I don’t conjure it up.  It’s just a part of who I am at my core.

Several years ago in the middle of a painting project, I had an aha! moment.  God is creative too.  His creativity shows up not only in the beauty of nature and the magnificence of the uniqueness of each and every person, but in the way He works outside the box, in ways that amaze us.  I realized that I received my creativity from God as something that He also possesses. That’s why I feel Him smile when I create.  Every creative endeavor since then has had a whole new meaning for me.  He and I share those times together.  He creates with me and gives me ideas that seem to come from nowhere, free of being contrived on my part.  He gives the inspiration and I just let it flow.

We were all created in the “image of God”.  That means that all of us have something deep within us, that thing that drives us, that brings us great joy, that touches other people’s lives, that also is a characteristic that God possesses.Are you good with numbers?  Numbers have special meaning to God.  Are you an organizer?  God loves order.  Are you good with people?  So is God!  Is the medical field your calling?  He is the Great Physician. Are you a born leader?  God is the King.

What is it in you that when you do it, you feel alive?  What is something you do that benefits those around you and comes out of you so naturally that you barely have to think about it?  Think about it for a minute…I guarantee that at its core, it is something that you and God have in common.  Something that He wants to share with you and that will only deepen and transform your relationship with Him.

See who you are and what you were born to do in a whole new way.  Know that it is a characteristic that was passed down from your Father.  And if you invite Him to join you each time you use that gift, ability or talent, He will take what you already have naturally and multiply it in ways you never thought possible.  And instead of you taking all the credit, you genuinely realize where it came from and give Him the honor He deserves for it.

Sense God’s smile today.  Do your thing – that thing you both possess – with Him.  I promise you that you’ll both have a huge grin on your faces…

Genesis 1:27 – So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.

Colossians 3:17 – And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.