Merriam-Webster defines a person with imposter syndrome as someone who “is characterized by persistent doubt concerning one's abilities or accomplishments accompanied by the fear of being exposed as a fraud despite evidence of one's ongoing success”.
This describes me in every creative endeavor I have taken. When my art was displayed in a small gallery show in Raleigh last year, I felt like a fraud. My art was next to that of established artists, and I felt unworthy to be there. But as that weekend continued, I learned much about being a creative, in a room full of creatives as different stages in their journey. How sweet it was to worship and learn with beginners and experts alike.
As I’ve continued to create since then, I have still felt the pull of imposter syndrome, threatening to pull me back into the dark. The temptation to stop creating and hide my art from the gaze of the world is real and present. But being in fellowship with other creatives has helped me remember that we all have our own journey, our own style, and that we all have something to say with out art.
As I have thought about starting this blog, a lot of that has crept into my mind. I don’t feel eloquent enough to share my thoughts. So lately I have reminded myself that my eloquence is not important. My words are not my own. I don’t want my voice to be what shows up on this page, I want the Lord’s words to flow through my finger tips.
So, dear reader, I encourage you to close Pinterest, close Instagram, and just create. Put pen to paper. Make what flows from you, what the Lord leads you to make. Let his words, his pictures, flow through you into the world. Let him reveal the secret things through you.