Full or Partial?
-An exclusive excerpt from Allen’s new book-
What would you say the first glitch was after God created Eden?
Many believe it was when Adam and Eve ate from the forbidden tree. But it happened before that disastrous external action.
The initial glitch occurred internally, when Adam and Eve chose to believe a counterfeit narrative that God was holding out. Rather than bring their questions about the serpent’s spin on reality to the Creator of reality, they placed themselves over God by deciding what was true and how best to manage their future.
The serpent was playing to their desire to create their own reality where they would be gods. It was the same twisted desire that earlier led Lucifer to place himself over God. The coup failed and he lost everything, including his creativity, as he became untethered from the Creator. Now, this fallen being can only de-create. He seeks to destroy our union with God, and one of his key tactics is to sabotage our efforts to create with God. After all, he grasps the power and the potential behind our calling more than we do.
The enemy’s goal is to steal and kill and destroy (John 10:10). This applies to every aspect of our lives, including our creativity. If a person were coming against us in this way, we’d issue a restraining order and stay on high alert. We would take it far more seriously than we do this far greater threat from the enemy. If you feel your creativity is opposed as you seek to create with God—that’s because it is. You have an enemy who opposes all you are doing with God.
The only antidote is Jesus. In the second half of John 10:10, Jesus counters it with these words: “but I came to give life—life in all its fullness” (NCV). We deeply desire fullness in what we do. But we usually encounter the partial because things are glitching both around and within us. As a result, we’re rarely fully present to anything or anyone. That is the tension.
Does the fullness Jesus is describing also apply to our creativity—or is that just wishful thinking? Other than Jesus telling parables, do we see a focus on his creativity?
That’s a really good question. The answer may surprise you.
(From The Creativity Glitch: How to Stop Being Stuck, Find Your Groove, & Create with God. Copyright © 2026 Allen Arnold.)
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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