I’m a Christian, and creative skills are a gift from God.
The Lord said to Moses, “See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship, to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze, in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, to work in every craft. And behold, I have appointed with him Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan. And I have given to all able men ability, that they may make all that I have commanded you. (Exodus 31:1-6, ESV)
Most likely you have come to this post from the link at the bottom of my website. There’s a method to the madness of my having done that.
This article used to be written with a pretty fluffy set of prose. I didn’t like that. The long and short of making a blatant scripture reference is that my Christian identity is more important than my professional identity and it’s something that would come to the fore one way or another.
God created the world and everything in it. The things I do, I do because I hope that they make a positive contribution to Creation and somehow add to God’s work here on the earth.
I will live forever, and the eternal component of my life will take place in a perfect form of Earth in the presence of God. Incidentally there could be a space for you in the presence of God in the afterlife, but that’s between you and God. Though I’d love to have a conversation with you about that if you felt so inclined.
Having said that, I’m not worried about placing my Christian identity in a more forward-facing place. God will prosper my work as He sees fit and he will fail it as he sees fit. The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof, and it exists that He might be glorified.