It's idleness. However, let it be qualified that idleness in this case is not the mere absence of something to do, but the absence of something CREATIVE to do. When our minds are not creative, fear and doubt can seep in. These twin thoughts can conjure negative imaginings that can lead to depression and even despair.

The Bible in Proverbs 29:25 says: ?The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe.? Fear, indeed, can ensnare us in depression.

The Bible categorically states that we were created in God's image and likeness. This means we have a creative mind like God, perhaps not in his magnitude, but creative nevertheless in some degree or another. We may not be able to create something out of nothing, but we can be imaginative enough to ?create? something out of other things.

Our minds are constantly active. If we don't feed it with creativity, it will feed itself with daydreams and imaginations that often lead to negative thoughts.

So how can we feed our thoughts with creativity?

It first begins with yourself. List down the good things about yourself: your gifts, talents, positive attributes and such. Then, be creative in describing those good points. For instance, if you're able to sing, don't just write down, ?can sing.? Rather, write down something like, ?I can sing as good as any American Idol contestant.?

Then again, if you were an extrovert, you wouldn't want to just place ?extrovert? as one of your traits. Rather, you can place something like, ?loves to dance in the rain? or ?loves to laugh out loud with friends.? If an introvert, you can place something like, ?loves quiet conversations with a friend.?

You can try to be humorous. If you're on the heavy side, you can place, ?horizontally challenged.? If you're balding, you can place, ?lacks a bit on the top but never in the heart? (this might be misconstrued as lacking in intelligence, so be careful with this). If you love to eat, you might try, ?gourmet dilettante.? At the very least, writing humorously about yourself, even if it's only for your own eyes, can bring a smile to your face; and that beats depression anytime!

Be creative about yourself. You might even discover more wonderful things about yourself.

Secondly, be creative in the tasks that you do. Instead of going about your work routinely, think about different ways you can do them. For example, instead of traveling the same route to your office or to the grocery, take another route (if time permits, of course) and discover ?literally and figuratively? new avenues.

If you're a right-handed guitar player, try to strum with the left hand a la Paul McCartney. It may not sound good but, hey, you never know, you just might discover a sound or chord you can use. It is said that the trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie accidentally sat on his trumpet and bent it. When he tried playing his deformed trumpet, he liked the sound so much he had his future trumpets fashioned in a bent

manner.

Even if you're not a musician, you can still go about your daily routines ?unroutinely.? Give thought on how you can do your work in a different but creative way. You might just discover more hidden talents or gifts in you.

Thirdly, be creative with your relationships. If you have children, be a magician for one night, complete with props, or a clown, or a story-teller; or have dinner with them dressed as Gandalf.

You can also be creative with your spouse. Perhaps you can meet him/her at the door as a masseur/masseuse and treat him/her with a massage complete with essence oils. Or you can design a card with your computer to express your love for him/her. It doesn't matter if you're really not a designer or don't know how to give a good massage. What matters is that you are able to show your spouse that you

give a lot of special thought to your relationship.

If you're single don't just meet with friends in the usual places like malls and parks. Meet in an orphanage where you can all minister to the less-

fortunate. Why not take the pastor out for dinner? (This one's a scary thought, but you never know what can come out of an encounter like that). The point is to think of ways to do the uncommon and have fun doing it. I promise you the experience will make you richer for it.

Lastly, be creative with your perspective on life. You have a God-given purpose. Because God is the Creator, he most certainly wouldn't want you to go about life in a drab, unexcited way. This is where faith comes in. Faith is not merely the ability to believe, but the constancy to love God and be pleasing to him.

If we were to look at the Biblical heroes and heroines, theirs were certainly not boring lives. Indeed, we may not be called to face giants, marauding armies, poisonous snakes and travel on long, perilous journeys. But when we draw ever closer to God, he will provide us the mind of Christ so we can fulfill our purposes for him in creative ways.

Then it won't matter whether we fail or succeed, lose or gain; for all experiences will be mere stepping stones to making a creative difference, not only in our lives, but in others as well.

So, when you start getting that sinking feeling, buoy yourself up with creative thoughts. That's what we're designed for.

For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. -Ephesians 2:10 NLT