Creativity is a concept that I think is often overused and misrepresented in our lives. We know and believe that God is the creator of all things, and His son Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith. We believe that we were created in His image and made to be vessels of love. The reality of this also means that we inherited an essence of creativity that comes directly from Him. When I say overused and misrepresented, I mean to say that as believers we have the greatest source of inspiration, ability, and purpose. Yet, I often feel like the expression of our creativity, both in the body of Christ and in the secular space has been boiled down to repetitive, uninspired renditions of something we’ve seen, or something we pull from those we value. If I can share anything about my journey of discovering, it would likely be about the process of waiting.
I’ve learned the hard way over the years that the creativity we attempt to showcase which comes by way of a trend, a hot topic, or the current fad will never last. My husband and I started a company last year called Bomu. The name comes from a “Twi” word, in the Akan language predominantly spoken in Ghana (where my husband is from) which means “to bring together.” Bomu is the culmination of many years of waiting, laboring and flat out figuring it out. We spent years pouring into youth and young adults as next generation leaders at church and in our transition, we found ourselves full of vision but lacking in strategy. So, we waited and went through silent seasons, painful revelatory moments, healing, and many more questions. Yet, we persisted in the waiting. In the end, what came out was a vision to which we truly believe the Lord had crafted. It was something born into the both of us that had been seen in glimpses over our time together and years before we even met.
I'm not trying to persuade anyone away from taking the plunge into that new business, idea, or desire. Instead, I want to encourage you to allow the Lord to stoke the flames of your vision & creativity and watch Him birth something in you. Once you allow Him to work, He will create something that cannot be replicated or fabricated because it has been crafted out of the nature and purpose of who He’s made you to be. Both my husband and I feel that way about what we have been building and though we are at the very beginning, our assurance is truly in Him. There was not a roadmap until He spoke the creative direction into us. For years we had given ourselves to design projects, event planning for our friends and families, and helping decorate spaces we were in. The process of creatively tying all these areas together would have never occurred to us in the way that it has now. All of this came as we waited and trusted Him.
Bomu is a three-tier company specializing in project organization, event planning, and physical to interior design. Partnered with woodworkers and creatives in Ghana, we’ve also established a home decor line composed of handmade Ghanaian products and other accessories. In addition, we are seeing the Lord marry the creative direction to the call and purpose we believe we have, which is to love and shepherd His people. For a long time, I viewed the things done in the Lord's house and for the body as just that: what I was doing to serve the Lord or his body. I never viewed His work as something I could necessarily engage in every space of my life. However, I believe growing in full creative expression where the Lord guides and gives you direction can truly bring you to a place of greater awareness and well-roundedness. In coming to understand that the gifts inside of us were not given to us by accident, we realize that they really were meant to be used in a greater manner than we imagined.
I have seen the work of our hands lead us back into bonding well with people. I know many of us have read Colossians 3:23, “Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people” and I believe this wholeheartedly! In our creative expression we have been given the ability to lead, cast vision, and impact those around us simply through a vision birthed through the most creative Creator. The journey ahead for me, for us, and for Bomu looks much like the journey behind us. We intend to trust Him and watch Him make something beautiful out of us while inspiring creativity (only how He can) for our good and His glory.
Sincerely,
Jassmire
To learn more about Bomu, head to https://www.thebomu.co/ where you can learn more about Jassmire's creative business through their platform or follow them on social media here!
Photo Credit | Jassmire Agyakwa