December 6th

If you read last week’s PP, you’ll realize I’m on a bit of “mind” kick. If you haven’t, well, let me just share with you that I’ve been thinking a lot about thinking and intelligence recently. For instance, I could, if asked, explain to you how an “old school” tube television works. I can even tell you the amazing story of how it was invented, and by whom, and the fact that the inventor was only fourteen (14!!!) years old when he came up with the idea. What I cannot tell you, is where in the world that young man found his inspiration for sending pictures through the air, or the ensuing device that he eventually took from concept to reality.
Most folks consider themselves to be acceptably intelligent. We all know how to work our way through the world without getting into too much trouble. Many folks can even make change without resorting to computers, calculators or a diligent application of fingers and toes. Yet there is a greater intelligence that allows some folks, like the young inventor of television, to go beyond what the rest of us think and to come up with something entirely new. Whether it’s electronics or music, chemistry or literature, fashion or the human mind, some people are able to see beyond what is and to imagine not only what might be, but what needs to be done to get there.
We call these creative minds geniuses. We praise them (rightfully so) and wish we were like them (again, rightfully so) and generally put them on pedestals or offer them accolades. At times, when the ideas are too radical, or they differ from what is common practice, or they just seem too weird, we give their progenitors a rough ride, but for the most part, clever creators tend to be respected and admired.
What really amazes me about this process, however is the thought that no matter what new idea might be devised, no matter how brilliant a fresh thought might be, no matter how amazingly useful and creative an original concept may turn out to be, they are never as new, fresh, creative or original as we might think in the first place.
Why do I say such a thing? Well, it’s pretty simple really. No human can ever come up with anything entirely new because God has been there first. The mind that created all that there is, and that sees that all creation operates as it should, is both timeless and infinite. There is no thought that hans’t already run through God’s mind; there is no invention that He hans’t devised and perfected, no dream he hans’t considered. Wherever our creative minds might lead us, God has already been.
Now, this concept isn’t meant to diminish our human creative geniuses. I just want to set the record straight and acknowledge that all human wisdom comes from God himself. Sure, there are some folks who are pretty amazingly smart and original, and they deserve our praise. But for every word of praise we offer the brilliant human, we should also offer a few words to the genius beyond all human capacity that put those thoughts there in the first place. At least that’s the way I see it.