99 oughts on the Creator Unexpected Encounters With Our Artistic God 2013 Jason Ostrander group.com simplyyouthministry.

.com All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without prior written permission from the publisher, except where noted in the text and in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. For information, visit group.com/customer-support/permissions. Credits Author: Jason Ostrander Executive Developer: Jason Ostrander Chief Creative O cer: Joani Schultz Editor: Rob Cunningham Cover Art and Production: Veronica Preston Scripture quotations are from e Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. ISBN 978-1-4707-0844-3 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12

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To Calu, Liam, and Jams...

99 THOUGHTS ON THE CREATOR

FOREWORD
Far too many people live without considering what God has created or how it re ects the very character of the creator. ey fail to have meaningful encounters with Gods creation to contemplate what he has brought into being. Creation itself should drive us to God and closer to him. Our technology often keeps us away; instead of being drawn to God, we are drawn into our own little world. In 99 oughts on the Creator, Jason Ostrander takes us on a journey with bite-size insights that help us to observe, know, and appreciate our awesome God through his creation and through his creative character. Its a marvelous spiritual journey that will create a thirst in you to love and know the Creator. Jason Ostrander has been a close friend and featured speaker at the Creation Festival for years. He is always challenging people in a creative way to love and serve the Master. Our name incorporates the word creation because from the very start in 1979, we wanted youth who attend the festival to experience it in the beauty of Gods creation and to become a new creation in Christ.

99 THOUGHTS ON THE CREATOR

I urge you to break out of the four walls of your room, step away from your technologies, and start to explore these 99 oughts on the Creator. You will nd new vistas of loving and knowing our awesome creator God.

Rev. Dr. Harry L. Thomas Jr.

Co-Founder, Creation Festivals

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction ....................................................................... i

Section 1: God as Artist (Thoughts #1-57) ......................1

God as Painter ................................................................... 3 God as Filmmaker ........................................................... 13 God as Photographer ...................................................... 19 God as Sculptor ............................................................... 25 God as Writer/Author ..................................................... 33 God as Composer/Musician............................................ 43 God as Communicator .................................................... 50

Section 2: God as Builder (Thoughts #58-81)..............61

God as Architect ............................................................. 63 God as a Creative ............................................................ 68 God as Designer .............................................................. 71 God as Contractor ........................................................... 77 God as Worker ................................................................ 80 God as Preservationist ..................................................... 83

Section 3: God as Farmer (Thoughts #82-99) ............ 87

God as Cultivator ............................................................ 89 God as Shepherd ............................................................. 93 God as Weather-Giver .................................................... 99 God as Laborer.............................................................. 103

99 THOUGHTS ON THE CREATOR

INTRODUCTION
I grew up in the church, and when I was a young boy the picture of God in my head was always that of an old man reclining on a cloud holding a remote control. Every once in a while he would push a button on that remote and things would be brought to life. Im not quite sure how that image was formed for mebut I do know that it is eerily similar to the understanding that a lot of people have about God: that he didnt do anything; rather it all just happened because he snapped his ngers, or he just thought about it and it appeared. Whatever the case, they think Gods role was passive, not active. While I cant even pretend to know exactly how God created, we nd plenty of clues in the Scriptures that help us to see God as an active participant in his creation. In other words, God was moving things around, forming things with his hands, breathing things into being, and pushing up crops for his people. God was not only involved in his creation; he was passionately connected to the beauty of it all. Now the picture of God in my head is one of an artist forming mountain ranges out of clay, or a director sitting in his chair calling for the birds to sing and the sun to
99 THOUGHTS ON THE CREATOR

enter stage left, or an engineer with his sleeves rolled up measuring out galaxies on graph paper as he sits over his drafting table. I even view him as a farmer, the one who toils day and night watching over the animals in his care or laboring over the harvest. Obviously theres no one way to view our creator God, but I hope that the following pages will give you a perspective of God that you never had before. Enjoy the connection time with our truly artistic Creator!

GOD AS ARTIST
thoughts 1-57

GOD AS PAINTER
THOUGHT #1 Colossians 1:16
For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authoritiesall things were created through him and for him.

Main thought
Anyone who practices art will have a working knowledge and appreciation of great art. Likewise God has not only created all things through himself, but for himself.

Application
Often artists will become deeply inspired by what they are working on. Grab a notebook or a canvas and paint something that inspires you, and then hang it on your wall to experience what it is like to have made something through you and for you.

99 THOUGHTS ON THE CREATOR

THOUGHT #2 Psalm 8:3-8

When I look at your heavens, the work of your ngers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet, all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the eld, the birds of the heavens, and the sh of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas.

Main thought
e beauty of painting is that you can decide what goes where. Our view of creation is de ned by what God thought about the best place for the moon and the stars, and all the other elements of creation.

Application
On the next page, draw or paint something that represents a beautiful landscape. Why did you choose to draw it that way? Why did you put things where you put them?

GOD AS ARTIST

THOUGHT #3 Isaiah 44:24

us says the Lord, your Redeemer, who formed you from the womb: I am the Lord, who made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself.

Main thought
How do you think God created the heavens? e writer of Isaiah describes it as being stretched across the sky.

Application
ere is a beautiful thought in God stretching out the heavens for usunveiling it as far as the eye can see. Imagine what it would look like for God to do this. What type of imagery does it bring to mind? Is it like a canvas being stretched over a frame for all to see, or do you envision it some other way?

GOD AS ARTIST

Painter. Photographer. Builder. Sculptor. Filmmaker. Architect. Writer. Designer. Musician. Farmer.
Each of those words describes a characteristic of God and a reflection of what he passionately loves doing. You see, God is a creativeits what he does and who he is. God loves to create, and he loves his creation: the birds, the mountains, the rivers, the stars. And you.

99 Thoughts on the Creator examines different traits of our astoundingly creative God and brings things down to a human understanding by considering God as an artist, a builder, and a farmer.
As you read through the pages of this book, youll be challenged to think of God differently, to appreciate his artistic and inventive power more deeply, and to see how you were designed to express those same creative attributes in your own life. BE INSPIRED TO CREATE, BUILD, EXPRESS, AND DESIGN BY THE ONE WHO STARTED IT ALL.
JASON OSTRANDER leads the Simply Youth Ministry team at Group Publishing in Loveland, Colorado, where he lives with his wife, Calu, and two boys, Liam and Jams. Jason previously served as the National Youth Director for the Christian and Missionary Alliance, as well as the Director for Envision Culture. Jason is a well-traveled speaker and filmmaker, and hes the author of 99 Questions Jesus Asked.

ISBN 978-1-4707-0844-3

Printed in the U.S.A.

Religion/Christian Ministry/Youth

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