Handicrafts and Creativity

"May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us - Yes, establish the work of our hands." Psalm 90:17

Handicrafts serve as a means of communication among people who are afraid, shy or sick, or even people who speak different languages. There is something reassuring, homey, pleasant and relaxing to see someone embroidering or knitting n an airport or on a train. One feels a trust and confidence about such a person. If one has some similar work at hand, one becomes friends almost without words. Or one might ask what the other is doing; and a bond of friendship, gentle and warm, is established with ths person who only a short time ago was a stranger. The handicraft is a bridge.

All creative effort is from God, and people who do handicrafts create. To create is to be at peace, for in creating one s joined with the Creator. Creativeness is one of the needs of our humanity and one of the gifts of God to us. Handicrafts also are one more way of restoring us to wholeness in the natural and psychological order so as to better restore us to Christ. The loneliness of modern people has almost reached a point of no return; but in a common effort of creativity, men and women may find someone else who is interested in similar crafts, and become friends through their craftsmanship. Friendship is still the most precious possession that a human being can share. So handicrafts open the door to both friendship and creativity. These aspects go together, for friendship both creates and demands creativity to grow.

By Catherine Doherty, taken from "Women's Devotional Bible 2"