Molded Images

Children take an intense interest in everything they do. Spend a few minutes or, more likely an hour, watching a child play with Play-Doh and you will see intense concentration as they strive to create objects.

Their creations appear in many forms. Some of their creations emerge from their imagination and don't resemble anything tangible. Other creations come from their limited experience and vaguely resemble bicycles, snakes, turtles, and anything else that they can create with their hands.

If they don't get it right the first time, they smash it all up and start over, rejuvenating their thought processes and drawing from millions of thoughts going through their minds. The final product may not really look like anything to anyone else but the creator.

Is this how God saw the world when he started the process of creation? Did He look at a mass and decide that he wanted it to look like this or that or something else? How did He know what the end product would be? What thoughts were swirling around in His head when he started creating the birds, the animals, the flowers, the trees and, eventually, man and woman?

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them....God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.  (Genesis 1:27, 31, New International Version) 

Lumpy Beds?

I recently had the opportunity to stay in a very nice hotel in Walla Walla, Washington.  Now, I won't mention the name of the hotel, but suffice it to say that it cost just over $100 for the night. To my estimation, that would be considered a very nice hotel for that area. What I could not figure out, however, was why the beds looked so lumpy. 

This "lumpy-ness" did not set the tone that I am sure the hotel was striving for. It just plain looked weird. I finally had to raise the coverlet from the bed and look underneath, and I discovered that the lumps were coming from the comforter encased in the duvet cover. The bed itself was very comfortable and I slept relatively well, considering that I was in different surroundings and not in my usual comfy bed at home.

All other aspects of the hotel were great--the room had great appointments, the bathroom was very attractive and modern, the free continental breakfast was more than adequate, and you could access the wireless internet from anywhere in the building. Everything was clean and well cared for.

But...the beds looked lumpy. 

Tea Party & Dress-up Time

Kids, dress-up clothes and a toy kitchen make for imaginative play for kids of all ages.

Daughter:  Try it, Mommy. It tastes really good; you'll like it 'cause I made it myself.

Son: Don't do it Mommy. It doesn't look very good to me. 

Son: Mommy, you'll be sorry. I really don't think you should drink that stuff.

Son:  Hmmm, you look okay to me, Mommy. Okay, I'll try some.

Son:  "Aaaaagh!  Mommy, I told you not to drink that stuff! Yuk!