What’s the First Stage of Creativity?

Sep 21

-An exclusive excerpt from Allen’s new book-

As I shared in the last reading (Six Stages of Creativity), it’s important to know the various stages of creativity. We’ll take our time going through them in the coming weeks—with several readings on each stage.

The first stage is Curious. But what does that look like?

Picture it like walking into the pages of a story where everything is new and possible. Before you lies a whole world waiting to be explored, discovered, and experienced. Much like Eden was meant to be for Adam and Eve.

This stage widens the range of what’s possible. There will come a time to narrow the options and decide what’s next, but that time is not now. This is where you enter the playground of imagination, questions, and wonder. A time of “what if?” My good friend Bart believes we should always have an outstanding question for God. What a beautiful doorway into knowing God–and ourselves—better.

To do so, we must create space for what could be. As Frederick Buechner puts it in his book Telling Secrets, “Our original shimmering self gets buried so deep we hardly live out of it at all…rather, we learn to live out of all the other selves which we are constantly putting on and taking off like coats and hats against the world’s weather.” I like that. In this stage, we toss off what no longer reflects our true selves and try on possibilities and ideas that resonate with our original, shimmering selves. Allow yourself to spend time with ideas you’re wrestling with or can’t quit thinking about.

Beautiful words fill my mind. I am speaking of royal things. My tongue is like the pen of a skilled writer. (Psalm 45:1 NCV)

Curiosity fuels creativity. Without curiosity, we get bored and go stagnant. This leads to predictability and sameness. But when we ask good questions, stay curious, and retain a sense of childlike wonder, we grow. The stagnant pool becomes a fresh stream. So before you create, be curious. Before you do the work, be in wonder. Rather than assume you know how it must be done, ponder what’s never been done.

Mark Twain famously observed, “You can’t depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus.” As your imagination grows, you’ll begin to see not just what is but what could be.

This reading was crafted to encourage your pursuit of story and creativity with God. Your donation makes this crowd-funded initiative possible. You can support it via PAYPAL (or by check to Allen Arnold at PO Box 62841, Colorado Springs, CO 80962).

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Amanda Dykes