20170216 Creativity

Philippians 4:8 (NIV)  Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

I make no secret of the fact that I consider Philippians to be one of my favourite books in the Bible to read.  The profoundly deep description of Jesus’ life, example and ultimate sacrifice for all mankind as found at the beginning of Chapter 2 is a passage I go back to again and again.

This week, however, I am focusing on this particular verse in Chapter 4.  It is part of Paul’s closing words in his letter to the church in Philippi, and it is part of the summary of all that he has been exhorting them to do in their service of God.  For classes in our school, for interactions in the yard, in our communications with one another – this verse provides us with an excellent framework as we approach these times of engagement, one with another.

It is with this verse and the guidance it provides that I have been pondering creativity and its expression. There was a time in the darker, distantly historic recesses of educational practice where teachers would actively discourage students from being creative.  The suggestion that there was an advantage to using your imagination as part of how you learnt was unheard of.

I am thankful that this is not the approach of the modern classroom.  I am particularly thankful for very practical reasons.  My parents’ family, of which I am the oldest child of eight, contained ten highly creative individuals.  Imagine how miserable the dinner table discussions of my youth would have been if we had all come home from school having been discouraged from expressing ourselves creatively, if our thinking had been reduced to, say, only mechanical and logical processes (I should emphasise here that these two examples are important to learn, but only a subset of the ways we should be trained to think).

The dinner times of my childhood were characterised by lively discussions, in which the creative outlets of my parents and siblings were celebrated, encouraged and explored.  We were variously flautists, pianists, vocalists, painters, sculptors, a textiles expert, clarinettists, a saxophonist, story tellers, orators and comedians all ‘holding court’ during those discussions, discussions that have been ongoing for several decades.  Our extended family gatherings now resume these lively times, with our spouses, respective children and their significant others all adding to the dynamics with their own creative gifts.

Creative ability is in all of us – developed or not, hidden or on show for all to see – God gives us a small glimpse into His very being – as the creator of the universe and everything in it, I have a strong sense He delights in the creative endeavours of each one of us.

In many households, we have lost the art of dinner conversation.  Busy lives and packed schedules don’t allow for those times of free-flowing chatter, good old-fashioned ‘mucking around’, having fun just for the sake of it.  The challenge is to find those times in the safety and security of our family times together so that our children have the space to explore their imaginations, their creative thoughts and activities with the people the people trust the most.

Paul’s exhortation in Philippians 4:8 gives us a clear context and framework for these times together – I particularly like the use of the words lovely, admirable and excellent.

When I was fifteen, my youngest brother was born.  When I was twenty, he was already drawing the most complicated time machines you have ever seen … and he could spend an hour without drawing breath, telling you how it would all work.  It was actually ‘lovely’, seeing and hearing a young imagination pushing the boundaries, problem solving, with a great sense of hope for the future. In his teens, he was an extraordinarily talented clarinettist. These days, this creativity has applied itself in his life to the most amazingly rigorous IT networking and infrastructure solutions in the place where he works.  He will attest to the fact that the freedom to think outside the box as a youngster was the key to his current success.

Here’s my challenge to all of us – I include myself in this.  Can we find an hour, maybe two, each and every week, to sit with our loved ones in the privacy and serenity of our homes, take a breath and enjoy an opportunity to create, imagine and ponder together?  If these experiences can happen at home, the challenges in the classroom to goal set, to postulate, to think creatively – inherent requirements in all curriculum areas these days – will become more instinctive and a whole lot easier for each of our students.  It is my prayer that these times will be possible for each family in our community, and a deep blessing to all of us.