This month I will be swamped with projects so I will not be able to dedicate as much time to the site as I would like. So we will be revisiting some of the best posts from Dream Anvil’s of the past! This post originally appeared on the Dream Anvil back in February of 2012.
Sometime last week my sister introduced me to The Piano Guys a pair of gentlemen who “put a new spin on classic stuff and a classic spin on new stuff.” Their music is fantastic and moving, and I immediately became a huge fan. However, what really caught my eye was a quote at the beginning of their One Republic/Beethoven mashup, it is something that I have always thought since I was a lad, and part of the inspiration for this blog. It is quote from Beethoven and it goes like this, ”Don’t only practice your art, but force your way into its secrets, for it and knowledge can raise men to the divine.” For those unaccustomed to my outpouring of love for God and creativity, a warning. I am about to get all spiritual up in here!
Take a moment to dwell on that quote from Beethoven. ”Don’t only practice your art, but force your way into its secrets, for it and knowledge can raise men to the divine.” The beauty and simplicity that this one statement encompasses has been on my heart all this week. It is the summation of the creatives journey. We practice and practice. We throw ourselves against the reins, trying to find a way to make things better. Then at last we break through and there is joy on the other side. The joy of Creation itself.
I would bet that most of us could sit down at an easel, or a typewriter and just bang out something. Just off the cuff. A short work of little to no consequence. A daub of paint here or there. The artist cannot remain satisfied with this approach to their craft. She is seeking something a little more pure. Something beautiful, grand. Something that reaches across the void between the paper and the heart and touches the emotions of the audience. Most artists can tell you that there is a lifetime behind each work. We spend our days practicing, trying to elevate our skills to bring forth the imaginings of our hearts. We toil not for the praises of man, but for ourselves. We pursue something elusive, something that cannot be seen, something that cannot be grasped. We pursue our passion, our craft. We are trying to bring forth our very dreams.
We spend many nights in frustration trying to get it right, trying to find the right rhythm, the right phrase, the best line. It’s not always easy. The secrets of our craft have to learned. They have to be teased out with experience and patience. Each piece is new, unique, and brings with it a whole new set of challenges. But eventually it will happen. The doors open, and we finally break through, and we just “get it.” We find the rhythm of our soul, we express the phrase in our heart, we capture the line seen only in the minds eye. And for a moment everything just works. There are moments when I am writing where my heart swells and my fingers just fly across the keyboard, and I am raptured away by the joy of creativity.
I love to watch others achieve this, to see their joy expressed as they bring forth their own dreams. When you watch Steven Sharp play the cello, or John Schmidt play the piano it is marvelous. Here are men who love what they do. You can tell they are pouring out their joy as they play. And do you know what it reminds me of the most? Worship.
You see I believe that we were made in Gods image, and that God is the ultimate creator. We can never achieve His greatness, the vast complexity of His work nor can we imagine how much He loves us. We can never be elevated above God with our creations, for we are part of His creation. But I do believe that when someone finally breaks through and experiences that joy of creation, then we are in communion with God. For a moment we catch a glimpse of His splendor, of his overwhelming awesomeness. I love the opening verses of Genesis, where God creates the world. I imagine Him experiencing such joy as He forms the world, a joy that we get to experience a fraction of here on Earth.
I do not know the religious views of The Piano Guys, and this post isn’t about that. It’s about the joy all creators feel. And it is something all of us can feel! You see, we were made to express more than just the humdrum of life. Wake, eat, work eat, sleep, repeat. There is so much more to life! We are built to seek out joy, to express ourselves in ways that go beyond words, beyond colors. We are built to communicate with emotion, with a joy that reflects the absolute joy that God felt when he made the universe, and the same joy he felt when he made you.
That same awesome creator can still be found today. Much like the artist trying to break open the secrets of our art, God waits patiently, knocking on the door of your heart. Will you let Him in? Will you give yourself over to the God of creation, the Lord of Lords, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit? He wants your secrets, in exchange he offers freedom, and a joy and a peace that surpasses all understanding.
I worship a marvelous God, one that loves to create, and one that loves us more deeply than you or I could ever imagine. Sure I worship Him as I sing in church, but I will also praise Him with my art.