Bless the work of our hands: prayers and reflections for creatives 

'This book will be appreciated by many - it contains well-written and honest prayers for many parts of the creative process'

 

Bless the work of our hands: prayers and reflections for creatives
Written and illustrated by Jane Walters
BRF Resources
ISBN: 9781800394186
Reviewed by: Jeannie Kendall

Before I start the review, I do need to admit a small issue that I have with the word ‘creatives’ in the title. I have never thought of myself or labelled myself as creative, even though I write books and enjoy photography. A significant part of that reluctance is that I resist the idea that some of us are creative and others are not. We are all made in the image of the Creator, and all of us are capable of creativity. 

That personal hesitation aside, this book will be appreciated by many. It contains prayers for many parts of the creative process, for example getting started, the ‘messy middle’ and getting finished but also the roller coaster of our attempts such as success and failure.

Each section begins with biblical texts to root the prayers in scripture. The author is a writer but has also illustrated it herself and has a broad section of specific prayers for a wide variety of kinds of creativity interspersed with character profiles of four biblical figures. The prayers are well-written and honest. There is also a helpful index at the back.

For those who find using written prayers helpful, these are a treasure trove on the journey to honour God in anything that we might create.
 

Jeannie Kendall is a ‘retired’ Baptist minister, speaker, trainer and until recently a tutor in Pastoral Supervision. She is the author of four books and is currently working on a fifth, a devotional book covering the whole of Luke’s gospel.