Dealing With Creative Stress Towards the End of a Hard Time

Hello friends! Quarantine has thrown us all through a loop, hasn’t it? But, like Dom said in his introduction, there is light at the end of the tunnel, and wow, that light is brighter than ever before right now! Things are re-opening, some people are going back to church and work, and the end of this is in sight. Now, not everything is normal. I know you know that. If you’re an artist of any kind, it’s very possible that you don’t see normal coming back for a while. We’re artists, and we would like to come alongside you. Below is a mock conversation, which we've put together in hopes of helping you see that you aren't alone. I hope this post is a source of encouragement for you all!

Oh, hi Bella!
Hello Nate! How are you?

I’m doing great! How are you?

I’m okay, but I just don’t have an outlet for my creativity anymore! Dance is canceled, and I’m stuck with my writing- I don't know where to go next! How am I supposed to find inspiration when I’m just staring at my wall all day?

Yeah, that sounds hard. I kinda get what you’re saying, but the only art I do is music, and there is always practicing that can be done.

You’re right! I’m still working hard, but burnout is really a problem. I don’t have much space in my house to dance,

and everything’s carpet, which makes it hard. I try to make the best of it, but it’s nearly impossible sometimes!

Oh, yeah that sounds really hard! But things aren’t really so bad, I mean, it can’t last forever, and things haven’t been too hard in general, right?

Right. It could be a whole lot worse. And being stuck at home doesn’t completely ruin things. We can still use our gifts for God’s glory in our homes! Didn’t Paul write some of the epistles while he was under house arrest?

Great point! There were also some other really important people who did incredible things that benefited lots of people while they were in house arrest. The apostle John wrote the book of Revelation while he was in prison; John Bunyan wrote Pilgrim’s Progress, the Holy War, and a few other books while he was in prison; and even people like Shakespeare wrote King Lear while he was in a quarantine from the plague.

That’s really cool! I guess we just have to be especially creative during this time, but it’s definitely worth it.

Well, we don’t want to be too hard on ourselves to be extra creative, but that doesn’t mean that this isn’t a time to work hard to sharpen our gifts!

You’re right! I feel a lot better about that now, thanks!

You’re welcome! You know, you're not alone in feeling that way. It is certainly hard to stay creative and busy during this time.

Definitely! It was nice talking to you! Bye!

Bye!

While this was a mock conversation, it’s possible that lots of you are feeling the same way Bella described. Quarantine isn’t easy for any of us, but we can make it through if we keep our eyes on the end goal-whatever that may be for you! We should always remember that no matter what our form of creativity is, we can still find a way to use it to our creator’s glory-- in Exodus 35:35, we are told:“He has filled them with skill to do all kinds of work as engravers, designers, embroiderers in blue,purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen, and weavers—all of them skilled workers and designers.” This verse tells us that we were designed to be creative, and to work hard at it! There is always something you can do. We aren’t told to use our abilities under certain circumstances, we are simply told to use them. Psalm 150:4-6 tells us to: “Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe! Praise him with sounding cymbals; praise him with loud clashing cymbals! Let everything that has breath praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!” While if you are a kid and your mother doesn’t want you clashing cymbals in the house,we can still praise the Lord through music, painting, drawing, dancing, or any other form of art you are best at; these are all gifts that He has given you and you glorify Him when you use them. Don’t be discouraged by a virus! Your gifts can still be used for his glory!

A joint post between Nate and Bella