It is good...
My absolute favorite time of the year is fall. No, not because my kids are finally back in school after a summer of noisiness (and bickering) and I'm relishing the quiet (although, that's wonderful, too!). The reason fall is my favorite season is because there is no other time of year when my breath is so totally taken away simply by beauty.
As I drove across town to my bible study this morning, the magnificence of God's glorious creation brought me to tears. The brilliance of the reds, yellows, oranges...so prominently displayed by the sun's radiance. In those few moments, I was reminded once again that our God is a God who loves beauty. Who IS beauty. It exudes from every ounce of His being. And he created it just for me. He delights when I delight in his splendor.
This morning, I felt closer to God than I probably would have if I had been reading the Bible in my living room just by experiencing the beauty of His creation.
As a writer, the desire to create has been planted in my heart. To take a blank sheet of paper (or computer screen) and turn it into something beautiful. Because I was created in the image of God, the desire for my work to be good has also been planted in me. There is nothing wrong with wanting to create something for others to enjoy. Delight in.
Whether it's a poem, a short story, an article, or a full length novel, I long for people to take pleasure in my words. To laugh, to cry, to pause and think.
Most of all, I want to point people to the Master Creator. The one all beauty and enjoyment comes from. My work may be well written. It may have a good plot and likable characters. It may even have a good message. But when it brings someone closer to Christ, that's when I can step back from my work and declare, "It is good."
"Your beauty and splendor have everyone talking; I compose songs on your wonders." - Psalm 145:5
