Cog—n.
1. any of the teeth or projections on the rim of a gearwheel or sprocket
2. a gearwheel, esp. a small one
3. a person or thing playing a small part in a large organization or process
Linchpin—n.
1. a pin placed transversely through an axle to keep a wheel in position
2. a person or thing regarded as an essential or coordinating element: the linchpin of the company
In his latest book Linchpin, Seth Godin argues that in our current economy it is no longer good enough just to show up and be responsible. This attitude leads one to become another cog in the machine, trading a day’s labor for a day’s pay. A linchpin, on the other hand is not replaceable. A linchpin goes a step beyond. According to Godin, a linchpin is an artist, willing to share his or her art with the world.
While reading this book, I often thought about my own creativity. We tend to think of creativity as hobbies, the things we do on the side, while our work is what pays the bills. Godin encourages us to “stop settling for what’s good enough and start creating art that matters.” We have the ability to practice creativity and behave as artists every day in our homes, schools and our work.
Paul proclaimed in
I’ve also come to realize as a teacher and a minister that my work is more fulfilling and its impact greater when I take the approach of an artist rather than an employee. I strive to communicate in effective and novel ways that will do more than impart knowledge or fill a block of time, but in ways that will change lives. According to Godin, an artist creates and shares his or her gift with the world.
In psychology, the overjustification effect explains that rewarding someone for doing something he or she inherently enjoys doing takes the intrinsic motivation away. In other words, when the reward is gone, the behavior is gone. Art is rarely created for its reward. If we approach our work as an artist, we create gifts to share and not commodities for trade. We stop viewing that meeting with a parent as a chore. We no longer dread evaluations with the boss. We learn to stop doing what we’ve always done and carve a new path for others to follow. We nurture relationships with family instead of draining them emotionally because we recognize the need to create something worthwhile trumps the need to just finish a job. We stop working for a reward and start creating to share.
God’s “work” in the Bible is creative. God creates the universe and life to populate it. God creates a relationship with people, and once it is broken, He creates a plan to redeem it. God creates new life from death, and finally a new heaven and a new earth. Just as do human “creators,” God creates for His pleasure. His work is creative, and He calls it good. His work is creative, and He shares it through His people and His Word.
When we see our relationship with God in contractual terms — when we think we can earn God’s favor or love, we are expecting the Artist to behave like a boss. When we can see ourselves as a masterpiece, created by the Master, we find it easier to see the world and our place in it from the perspective of an artist.
We have been endowed with the creative love of the Master, and this Master has entrusted this gift to His creation. God has created and chosen us as the vehicle for sharing His gift, His art with the world. None of us are cogs in a machine. We are fearfully and wonderfully made, known by God before He knit us together in your mothers’ wombs. Through the Holy Spirit, we have been enlivened with the very life of Christ, and the creative spirit of the Father should flow in every effort we make.
Embrace this, and see what God can do through you!
1Collins English Dictionary, Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition. Retrieved Sept. 27, 2010, from Dictionary.com
