...and its comments and some of your other recent entries, I became curious about what our friend Henri Nouwen had to say about creativity. I found a tiny piece on henrinouwen.org, (where the image also came from), about an on-line discussion that they had about the book The Inner Voice of Love: A Journey Through Anguish to Freedom, inviting participants “to be a part of this community as we explore the spiritual imperatives Henri wrote that led him gradually ‘to a new inner freedom, a new hope, and a new creativity.’”

I also found this comment, which is about ministry specifically, but which I think would be applicable to many professions:

“There are many people who, through long training, have reached a high level of competence in terms of the understanding of human behavior, but few who are willing to lay down their own lives for others and make their weakness a source of creativity. For many individuals professional training means power. But the minister, who takes off his clothes to wash the feet of his friends, is powerless, and his training and formation are meant to enable him to face his own weakness without fear and make it available to others. It is exactly this creative weakness that gives the ministry its momentum.”

(for source see this link)

It is a struggle…easier said than done. But it’s a creative struggle. :)