Who am I? Who has God created me to be? This is a question that I have always been asking myself. I have always loved to paint, draw and do artsy stuff. It’s all really cool but I was not sure why God had given me these abilities. People have always told me that doing art is not going to get me very far in life. People have said that it is a good hobby to have but it is only a hobby. Is this true?

I Have struggled with this idea my whole life. Is this only a hobby? Do I need to just to grow up and start being an adult? The hard thing with this idea is that I know that I was created with purpose. God did not make a mistake when He created me! He made me to be an Artist! Doing art and creating art makes me feel alive in a way nothing else does. When I am in the process of creating something I experience God in a different way then other times. There is a different type of connection that we have. God is a creator and I am reflecting Him in creating something beautiful that reflects him. Here is a great excerpt from the book “Art for God’s Sake: A Call to Recover the Arts” By Philip Graham Ryken:

“Art is an imaginative activity, and in the act of creating, we reflect the mind of our Maker. Like God himself, said Abraham Kuyper, we have ‘the possibility both to create something beautiful, and to delight in it.’ This is true of all artists and indeed of all people, but it has special significance for all Christians. Because we know God as both our Creator and Redeemer, we seek to display his beauty and grace in our life and work.”

What I have realized is that the art God creates through me is something more then paint, canvas, textures and forms put together to create something that people like to look at. It is something that God is using to reflect Himself, His Beauty, His Grace and point people to Him through it. Art touches the heart in a way that other things cannot. This is why God has created me to be an Artist, so that others may be blessed and see God through my art! I still don’t know how it is all going to work out but I am OK with that. God knows how He is going to use it. My job is to not neglect this ability and allow God to keep creating art through me. He will bring the people that He wants to be blessed through it. He’ll get the art into their hands in order to reveal Himself to them or draw them closer to Himself.

We all have different gifts and abilities that God has blessed us with. God has a purpose and plan for that ability/talent. God is so much bigger then we are. He is perfect and has a plan to use everything He has given us. Are you allowing God to bless people through your ability?

Jon