There’s no time to get creative like spring. Nature bursts into dizzying color all around, and those many delicious rainy days beg for something to be splashed across a canvas. What a brilliant opportunity to hunt for gifts! This month, let your inner artist loose. Whether you’re 100% comfortable with your creative prowess or you can’t draw a stick person, a slice of beauty is just waiting to be made by you. Don’t worry about the “audience;” there doesn’t even have to be one. In the words of John Reuben, “I create for the Creator, not to impress you.” Step away from the need to impress and lean into the ability to experiment. The entire season is ripe for the picking!
Some April gifts to point you toward
Book: A Million Little Ways by Emily Freeman
If you only ever read one book on creativity, let it be this one. Good luck figuring out which excerpts to tweet, though: it’s packed with quotable truth. Freeman gently leads both the glad artist and the one who wonders if there’s even an ounce of creativity in her to a space ready for making. The result is a biblically-based celebration of what it means to be created in the image of God.
Inspiration: The 100 Day Project
Back in 2015, The Great Discontent formed an experiment. They asked, “What could you do with 100 days of making?” And then people responded over the next few months by posting their stuff to Instagram, day after day after day. The responses included everything from drawing dreams to creating new recipes. Why not jump in this April with 100 days of documenting doing something you love? Yes, you’ll need to plan and give up something (maybe an extra 15 minutes of sleep), but the outcome is always worth it. If you’d like a little inspiration, search #100dayproject on Instagram. Then get making!
Idea: Sharing the Gospel with Henna by the International Mission Board
This concept just makes me giddy. I adore the intricate designs women put on their skin to dress up for special days or to make themselves feel beautiful. Why not put a Jesus spin on it? Missionaries around the world have begun using this as a fabulous creative outreach tool, and it might be just the time to follow their lead! This website offers a ton of looks that go along with Bible stories and characters (I think my favorite is Eve), along with henna history, storytelling tips, ink recipes, and even practice sheets for drawing.
Scripture Art Resource: Lifeway’s Bible Journaling Workbook
What a cool (and free!) little download! A gifted Jesus-loving girl walks creative hopefuls through the basics of how to merge art and Scripture. Print it out and host a little friend party or work at your own pace. If you need some ideas on how to fill your Bible up with color, just search Pinterest for “Bible journaling” or go to Illustrated Faith for products, blog posts, devotionals, and online classes. Get ready for a whole new world of beauty!
Way to Start: However Your Little Heart Desires
Listen, friends, it doesn’t have to be pretty. Just get started. Don’t worry about looking cool or producing something useful or making it perfect or doing it right. Just get started. Sometimes I have to give myself permission to step outside of the lines. Just get started. Figure out a creative way of seeing it. Just get started. Throw in a different color or texture or food. Just get started. Do it backwards or upside down or with your eyes closed. Just get started. The more permission you give yourself to stretch the normal parameters of adult thinking, the easier it will be to consider yourself creative. Just get started. The world is waiting!
The Dwelling Place 
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