Erwin McManus shared the following powerful and inspiring message at Mosaic Terra Nova (MTN2014):
“What we are doing here matters!
You may think why create fashion when there is famine? Why create films when there is genocide?
You underestimate what you can contribute to humanity!
What we are creating this weekend will be so unique! There will be songs written and sang that have never before been sung before! It could be from this tribe that the next great designers come!
Humans are unique because we can materialize the immaterial. No other creatures do that!
All beavers create dams. There isn’t a beaver on the planet that decides to build a bridge.
Life is a creative act. It is what we do.
Bees build hives.
Ants build colonies.
Humans create futures.
Isaiah 61:1-6
The people of Israel once again found themselves in a terrible place with no hope.
In that moment, God spoke into their imagination a better future.
When we take on our relationship with God, we can imagine a world that has never been created. We can see what no one else sees.
Our soul’s texture absorbs the stories of things created.
God is saying: “I see a world where the oppressed experience freedom….”
What kind of world will you imagine?
What kind of world will you create?
What kind life will you live?
What kind of person will you become?
The artisan understands that the brush has been placed in their hands. We are not held hostage to fate or destiny.
In South Africa the government did not have enough guns to stop what was in the imagination of Nelson Mandela.
God describes a world where healing becomes the norm.
It is out birthright to imagine and create a world where healing comes to the broken places.
It is ok for art to express pain, but why is art considered inauthentic or superficial if it expressed love or joy?
Immaturity deals with our own pain.
Maturity brings healing for others’ pain.
Every human being experiences despair. You have to go deep to experience hope in the midst of despair.
Love is far deeper than lust and requires sacrifice.
Go past the bitterness to find forgiveness.
We create a world out of the universe inside of us.
We are to inspire others towards life and freedom!
Artists are great at re-purposing. They see new projects out of broken pieces.
God creates out of our imperfections. He can even bring broken people together to create something beautiful.
You don’t have to have your life all together to see your life come together.
We become God’s instruments to create good! Many of us here discovered that healing and hope was not coming from inside of us. Instead we found someone who saw all of our brokenness and still loved us. His name is Jesus, and He sees you just the same way.
God is working harder on you than you are working on that project this weekend! God is not finished with you!
You are His masterpiece, and humans are the material God has chosen to use for His greatest work of art.
