There’s an overwhelming obsession with originality going on today.

Everybody wants to be an original. Or do something original.
This is especially true when it comes to any creative endeavor.

Writing.
Film.
Art.
Preaching.
Pretty much anything that requires even a hint of creativity.

Basically the line of thinking says that if something isn’t completely original, it isn’t a bit creative. Which translates into the idea that you have to do things no one has done before and say things no one has said before.

I’m not buying it. In fact, I’m increasingly finding the opposite to be true:
True creativity is fresh, but not always original.

Let me come at it this way. A truly creative sermon isn’t where you say things no one has ever said before (In fact, if you’re saying things that no one in 2000 years of Christendom has thought of, you shouldn’t be proud. You should be a little worried.) A creative sermon is one that takes a truth that has been heard 100 times and makes you feel like you’re hearing it for the first time. It’s not original to you. But it’s made fresh by you.

Truly creative movies aren’t movies that are completely original. They’re movies that provide fresh takes on themes that are in any great movie: conflict, loss, overcoming adversity, etc.

Perhaps the greatest enemy of creativity is the quest for originality.
There’s only one person who has ever created ex nihilo. We’re not Him.
Our creativity lies in making the original creation fresh.

Originality is overrated. Fresh is where it’s at.

I was recently reading Robert McKee’s book on the process of storytelling and came across a sentence that really challenged me. He was discussing the hard work of the creative endeavor and constructing fictional environments and he said:
Worlds are not daydreams but sweatshops.

It got me thinking on a different but similar vein about how we often misunderstand the concept of having a vision from God. For our lives, our ministries, and really for everything in general.

I think when most people think or talk about getting a vision from God, it’s more along the lines of a daydream. We associate receiving a vision from God with being passive. We think that God speaks to you with candles lit and music playing.

He often does. But that’s not where the vision comes to life. It’s simply the moment of conception. The vision really comes to life when the candles go out and the music stops. It’s when you have to get down to the hard work of actually making it happen. Visions don’t come to life in daydreams but in sweatshops.

If you’re a church planter, it’s in the hours you spend setting up your portable location just to be able to preach for forty minutes.
If God has called you to be a doctor, it’s in the years of school and interning that you have to endure to get those two simple letters, M.D., attached to your name.
If you’re a writer or filmmaker, it’s in the days and months of brainstorming, executing, and editing that it takes to make your project a reality.

Being a visionary or receiving a vision isn’t defined simply by what you can think of. My five-year old can think of a lot of things that have no chance of becoming real. Being a visionary has to do with what you can bring to life. God is the Creator not because He imagined or envisioned creation. But because He acted and brought it into existence.

Why should it be any different for the creation that was made in His image?

When it comes to our limitations, most people operate out of an if, then mindset.

If I had __________, then I would ___________.
If I could __________, then I would ___________.

So…
If I had more money, then I would buy a nicer house.
If I could sing, then I would be a musician.
If my children were in a different stage of life, then I would move.
If my church had a state of the art facility, then we would grow.

You encounter this same kind of thinking in the corporate world. It’s called thinking outside the box:
What would you do if you had unlimited money? Could sing? Had children who were at a different stage? Had a state of the art facility?

Sounds nice, but this mindset is a breeding ground for frustration. Why?

Because you don’t have unlimited money.
You can’t sing.
Your children aren’t in a different stage of life.
And your church still has the same building.

In other words, for now you’re stuck with your limitations. And while it might be liberating to think about life as if you didn’t have them, they’re still there and you have to work with them.

I’m not saying that you shouldn’t plan ahead or that you shouldn’t dream. Of course you should. But your box is never going to expand to the place where you’re thinking outside of it until you learn to live in it.

I would challenge you to think inside the box. Stop waiting for what you want and work what you’ve got. How much money do you have? What talents has God given you? How can you maximize your church or corporation with the assets and resources you currently have in place?

Your greatest limitation is God’s greatest opportunity.
If He wanted you to have ________, He would have provided it to you.
If He wanted you to do ________, He would have made you able.

But He didn’t.

So there must be something greater in mind that He wants to do through your limitation. He must have something in mind He wants to do with what you actually have and actually can do.

Most of us are so focused on what we don’t have that we’re blinded to what we do have. If you had what you think you needed you wouldn’t be able to use what God’s actually put inside of you.

And what He has put inside of you is all you need to accomplish all that He’s called you to do. It’s all He needs too.

Even if it seems limited to you.

I saw Stephanie Tanner from Full House on some Where Are They Now type show recently.

Turns out the former child star went on to struggle with serious drug addiction after leaving the show.  That’s not uncommon for kid actors.  It’s hard to navigate the pressures of growing up, period.  It must be nearly impossible to navigate the chaos of growing up in front of the paparazzi or a camera crew.  (Although Rev Run’s kids seem pretty down to earth and relatively balanced.)

A friend told me a while back:
“I hope Elevation Church doesn’t end up like one of those Where Are They Now? stories.”
I asked him to clarify.
“Yeah, you know, you guys are really getting a lot of attention at a very young age.  Kinda like one of those child stars.  I hope it doesn’t spoil you.”

I hope so too.  I think about that a lot.

I’m so grateful for the platform God has given us to encourage other churches and pastors all over the world.  If something about our journey can accelerate your progress, we’ll gladly give you a lift.

But just because God has given us a platform doesn’t mean we’re stars.  In fact, we’re nothing more than the road crew to set the stage for Jesus.  He’s the only star in this show.

Every chance I get I challenge our staff and volunteers not to take our platform for granted, or to pervert the purpose of it.  We’ve experienced a lot of blessing in a little bit of time.  We thank God for it.  But we’ve got to be careful of it.  Otherwise, our greatest asset will become our greatest liability.

I don’t want to have a few years of good public ministry and wind up in a Where Are They Now? spiral of mediocrity and inertia.  By God’s grace, we’ll keep setting the stage for Jesus to act in power and shine in His spotlight.