by Michael Maciel

Prayer MUST be creative. That is its one, essential aspect. Without that, there is no possibility for the power of God to move through us. It might move to us, and through our devotion it can move from us to God, but those two movements, which are also essential, are nothing unless our relationship with God is first and foremost creative.

Saying that God knows what we need before we ask is the same as saying that we don’t have to tell God how to do what we ask. God knows the “how.” It is our purpose and our role in this relationship to know the what. That is our purpose in God’s plan.

The purpose of our lives is not to acquire more and more things but rather to explore the full range of the potential of things. An artist isn’t so much interested in the number of paintings she produces as she is in perfecting her art. One painting or a thousand—it doesn’t matter. What does matter is the purity of the expression—the communication that comes alive in the medium. Does it express the spirit?

We are creative beings. This is the Good News. Jesus shows us how to be creative expressions of the infinite potential of God rather than merely collectors of ideas. The “rules,” which is how most people interpret the word “law,” are there to help us be more creative and not just blind replicators of what has gone before. Crystals replicate. Living things explore the full range of possibilities built into them by their Creator.

God waits to see what we are capable of doing. We are the means by which God discovers God’s own infinite potential. God needs us. We are God’s extensions INTO the world, not just to see what’s there, but to see what can be there.

It’s true that there is nothing new under the sun, but the possibilities are endless.