Only 4% of all Americans have a biblical worldview and only 10% of Christians see the world with a biblical lens. (There’s a test link below to check ya self!)

We tend to wear bifocals—partially seeing things as spiritual and seeing other things as secular or non-spiritual.

We limit spirituality to salvation and sanctification. As long as we are well versed in personal piety and individual salvation, we think we’re good. But most Christians have no clue how to engage culture in politics, science, economics, TV, music or art. We tend to leave people to their own devices there.

We subscribe to views like, “Politics and movies are evil or of the devil,” and we don’t touch them. Leaving them to be dominated by non-biblical worldviews. Or, since we don’t have a philosophy or filter, we do it the way culture says to…chasing vain ambition.

Most professing Christians have no idea how to direct their careers with biblical lenses, but instead of praying for and offering solutions we usually just shake our heads and dismiss these “sellouts & compromisers.”

We are missing out on the gospel’s power of redemption and glorification in all things.

Read the full article.

Christians with Bifocals is a post from: Creative Social

Ira Glass on Storytelling is a post from: Creative Social

Unfortunately, that’s too rare a commodity. A lot of people in our industry haven’t had very diverse experiences. So they don’t have enough dots to connect, and they end up with very linear solutions without a broad perspective on the problem. The broader one’s understanding of the human experience, the better design we will have.” – Steve Jobs, 2003

Read the full article: Steve Jobs: The Next Insanely Great Thing

What Is Creativity? is a post from: Creative Social

Check out these other articles written about Ponyride and the man behind it:

How Can the Foreclosure Crisis Have a Positive Impact on Our Communities?

Phil Cooley Hopes To See The Packard Plant Transformed

Detroit’s Renewal, Slow-Cooked

The Ponyride Website

Ponyride “A Creative Incubator Community” is a post from: Creative Social

But does democratized culture mean better art or is true talent instead drowned out? This is the question addressed by PressPausePlay, a documentary film containing interviews with some of the world’s most influential creators of the digital era.

If you like the film you can support them by rating it on IMDB. Thanks!

PressPausePlay is a post from: Creative Social

“Goldfish Salvation” is a post from: Creative Social

The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they reveal knowledge.
They have no speech, they use no words;
no sound is heard from them.
Yet their voice[b] goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.

A Creation Murmuration is a post from: Creative Social

Dorothy Sayers had a few things to say on the subject of the arts & vocation…

“The artist is called by God to communicate a vision that she sees, or an understanding she has gained, through the medium of art. Sayers does not count any opportunity to edify as a genuine call; she compares artistic creation for the purpose of edification to mixing a medication for those whom one looks down upon. Instead, she writes, ‘You’ve got to come galloping out shouting excitedly: “Look here! look what I’ve found! Come and have a bit of it – it’s grand – you’ll love it – I can’t keep it to myself, and anyhow, I want to know what you think of it”’. This excitement to share, rather than a compulsion to ‘make up a dose’, is the mark of a genuine call.”

and also…

“Artistic creation is a necessary part of the vocation; a contemplative who is not also a craftsman is not an artist.”

All this was the fruit of a discussion between her and Lewis. What do you think?

Read the entire article at Transpositions.

Creativity & Vocation is a post from: Creative Social

Mountain & Snow is a post from: Creative Social

Art is not art while it is still in your imagination. It must be realized. This means that it must be expressed in a physical form. Dance, design, photography, film, sculpture, writing, music, writing a program, or starting a business. Realization happens through work. Effective art is also not easily accomplished. It is a continual effort. You must practice, and practice, and practice. You must submit yourself to criticism by your audience. You must not settle. The Bible states that we are saved to good works. This means we are all called to produce, but also to produce excellence. Christians should endeavor to be the best, the most creative in our fields because we are not only created in the image of our creator and creative God, but also because we have the special revelation of God. The Christian Gospel is the story of history. It is the story of Jesus Christ, who died and rose again and who restores a dead creation and dead creatures.

2. Art is about redemption.

Quite literally, creativity is about imagining something and then producing it. It is about creating something that wasn’t there before. If you ultimately believe in the restoration of humanity from the fall through the redemption of man and of creation, then creativity for the Christian is specifically about imagining the redeemed world, and then working to produce that world.

3. Art is about others.

Art is a communal activity. Once something beautiful has been experienced it is not enough to keep it to ones-self, it must be shared. If you imagine a better world and have worked to produce it, then you are very naturally sharing hope and meaningful experience with others.

Christian Creative: A Manifesto is a post from: Creative Social