Enrichment Through Inclusive Creativity

Rosa Cándida Ramírez, MDiv, is the Associate Pastor of Spiritual Formation at La Fuente Ministries and the project’s leader. She and her dedicated team offers an in-depth look into the process. This includes how they organized calls for participation, the struggles they faced, and the victories they achieved throughout the project’s development.

With great enthusiasm, a sense of accomplishment, and expressions of satisfaction, the team reflected on the various challenges they encountered. They also highlighted the unexpected lessons learned and the moments when they witnessed God’s presence both within their group and among the wider congregation. The truth is that they accomplished their objective: they successfully composed prayers in both Spanish and English, as well as bilingual congregational music. These creative works were centered on key Christian seasons—Lent, Holy Week, Easter, and Pentecost—and were shared with the entire church.

The Strategy

To bring this vision to life, the team organized several introductory activities that involved folks wanting to contribute to the project. These were essential and specific steps, including a focused study of the book The Artist’s Way and the hosting of three songwriting workshops. In addition to these, a writing workshop was organized, followed by bilingual writing sessions. Finally, the team moved on to recording both the songs and the prayers that were composed during workshops.

One of the most critical aspects of the project was building trust among the participants. This need for trust is why the process began with a book study, utilizing simple language to address the insecurity, fear, and self-doubt that individuals often feel when encouraged to develop their creative side. By tackling central themes like hospitality and vulnerability, the team guided participants to recognize the creativity as a divine gift.

After these initial steps, participants were invited to write with intentionality. The focus was on letting go of any shame or negative frameworks and influences that might stifle creativity. Identifying these barriers allowed participants to gain more confidence in their artistic abilities. The project emphasized the importance of trusting one’s creativity while also teaching methods for how to discover and nurture it further. 

Unexpected Growth

Some participants initially doubted their capacity to rise to the challenge. “I’m not creative; I can’t do this,” some would say. To address these doubts, the group leaders initiated a process that began with an exploration of each participant’s internal self. They were guided to reflect on personal stories, recognizing how God had worked in their lives and sustained them through various spiritual challenges. “This process was impactful because participants realized they shared similar life experiences, such as migration, growing up in dysfunctional families, and other significant and/or traumatic life events. With the Spirit’s inspiration, participants began experiencing unexpected levels of creative growth as they expressed words and phrases that would eventually become songs,” explained Rosa.

By internalizing these lessons and viewing them through the lens of grace, love, forgiveness, and God’s comforting presence, team members found the inspiration to create deep and meaningful compositions. These compositions touch the hearts of those who listen to them, particularly because of how much they resonate with the immigrant experience—people who, for various reasons, have been unable to return to their homeland. In the midst of this longing and displacement, participants found solace and strength in God’s unrelenting mercy.

By internalizing these lessons and viewing them through the lens of grace, love, forgiveness, and God’s comforting presence, team members found the inspiration to create deep and meaningful compositions.

The project leaders were deliberate in their preparation because working with beginner artists requires intentional support. This support provided participants with the confidence needed to overcome their fears and fully engage in the creative process. Additionally, the experience of working together and offering mutual support brought healing to the deep-seated wounds many participants carried around the topic of creativity. The project was able to facilitate profound healing and fostered the development of valuable skills in composing, organizing, recording, and mixing songs.

A Prayer

This collaborative and creative experiment resulted in the production of art that exceeded what any individual might have created alone. The participants clearly understood this dynamic, as they discovered hidden gifts among the congregation’s membership. As a testament to the project’s success, here is a prayer inspired by Psalm 56:8 (translated from Spanish):

When my world lacks color

And my eyes are filled with tears of pain,

I know you hold me.

I will trust in you.

When my heart is frustrated

And my eyes are filled with tears of anger,

I know you hold me.

I will trust in you.

When my heart is trembling

And my eyes are filled with tears of fear,

I know you hold me.

I will trust in you.

When my heart is content

And my eyes are filled with tears of joy,

I know you hold me.

I will trust in you.

Rejoice, my soul,

For you are upheld by the God who created us to feel

And are known by the One who collects every tear.

Who would have thought a bottle could be sacred?

Every emotion, a sacred gift.

Testimony

The United Nations General Assembly established World Autism Awareness Day, observed annually on April 2, with the aim of raising awareness and understanding of the autism spectrum. In light of this, the project team decided to include their song “Made in Your Image” in that Sunday’s worship program.

The song’s reception by the congregation was profoundly moving—not only because of the group’s heartfelt performance and the melody itself, but especially because of the depth of its lyrics. “I fear the days ahead, filled with so much uncertainty. We are made in Your image. You are the voice for the mute, sight for the blind, sound for the deaf. You are the God of life…” the song’s lyrics proclaim. Something unexpected happened that day. Among the attendees was a visitor who was deeply moved by the composition, particularly because he is a man who is deaf. It was the first time this song had been shared, and the effort was clearly worth the work. The sacrifice bore fruit simply by blessing this one individual in such a significant way. He later expressed to the church how meaningful it had been for him to hear the song performed.

La Fuente Ministries

La Fuente Ministries is an intercultural, intergenerational, and bilingual community made up of people who seek to be interconnected in order to grow together and serve Christ. In an additional conversation with Marcos Canales, pastor of La Fuente Ministries and member of the pastoral team, he emphasized the importance of the project as well as Pastor Rosa’s leadership and the hard work of her team, who helped bring this all into fruition.

According to Marcos, the “Bilingual Resources for Bilingual People” project was instrumental in unleashing creativity, reflecting our nature as beings created by a creative God. He noted, “This is crucial for our development, both as human beings and as disciples of Jesus.” The initiative successfully unleashed creativity that had been dormant, which was vital. It validated the participants’ voices and gave them confidence in their divinely inspired creative gifts.

Moreover, the positive response and celebratory reactions from within the congregation were clearly palpable. People were deeply moved by what God had accomplished through this project and its leaders. Participants forged more intimate relationships and made a mutual commitment to care for one another. The project has also inspired La Fuente Ministries to dream of different artistic endeavors for the near future, motivated by the success and impact of this powerful initiative.