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!

His Infinite Sight

You are probably asking yourself, "What is in that photo?"

I took the photograph nearly a year ago when I was on an airplane bound for Texas. This was taken somewhere over Idaho at about 15,000 feet above sea level, and the only thing you can see is the highest peak of a mountain surrounded by clouds. It made me think about God's view of our world from His throne in Heaven.

With my finite sight, I can barely see this mountain peak, but the Bible says that God knows when a sparrow falls and he has numbered every hair on our head. Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows. (Matthew 10:29-31, King James Version)

Are we truly so important to Him that he knows the minutest detail of our lives? Yes, we are that important to Him and He wants to be involved in every aspect of our day-to-day activities and decisions. He stands ready and willing to bless us when we include Him in our decision-making process and in our celebrations.

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened." (Matthew 7:7, 8, New International Version)

When we trust in God to lead and be the guiding light in our lives, great things can happen. It doesn't mean that life will be a bed of roses because, let's face it, Satan tries to lead astray those who are close to God. But it does mean that even in those difficult times, God is there beside us, walking each step of the way with us so that we are not alone.

I love the "footprints" poem. You know the one, where the author asks why there was only one set of footprints when he was at his lowest point in his life. And God replied that when you saw only one set of footprints, that was when God carried him.

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. (Matthew 6:33, King James Version)

Faces

I heard a sermon at church this morning about how we are all created in God's image. Have you ever really stopped to think about that concept? I mean, if we are ALL created in His image, what must God be like?

We can be serious, funny, emotional, angry, calm, crafty, temperamental, dictatorial, obnoxious, loving, critical, devoted--our personalities run from one end of the spectrum to the other and all spots in between. I found a website that listed 348 character traits, and I am sure that at some point in time, each of us has exhibited most, if not all, of those traits.

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. (Genesis 1:27, New International Version)

God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. (Genesis 1:31, New International Version)

So, do you suppose that God is sitting up in Heaven and enjoying a hearty chuckle at this moment?

Fun with Food

Mmmm, good. Have you noticed how children never seem to be bothered by licking their fingers, messy faces or goo all over their hands? On their first birthday, we shove a birthday cake in front of them and let them dive into it with their mouth, their hands, and eventually, it is everywhere. And then we stand back and take photos....and we laugh. No wonder kids think it's funny to be covered in goop and goo and icky stuff.

Now, as adults, we are much more refined in our eating--we have a napkin handy and dab at our mouth after every bite, making sure that not one morsel remains to be seen on our face. Unless, of course, you are carnivores who enjoy eating ribs, in which case your face is covered in goop and goo and icky stuff.

Now, who do you think has more fun eating?!

Okay, so maybe it's a toss-up. I guess it doesn't matter what age you are.

Then I realized that it is good and proper for a man to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in his toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given him. (Ecclesiastes 5:18, New International Version)

Flowers and Fragrance

Soft, fragrant, delicate, fragile: A rose by any other name is still a rose. As William Shakespeare put it, "That which we call a rose by any other name is still as sweet."

On the third day of Creation, the Lord said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds." (Genesis 1:11) The variety of plants created by God were phenomenal, each one unique in its own way. Roses, tulips, lilacs, poinsettias, sunflowers--all designed by the hand of God.

Each flower brings beauty, fragrance and color into the world. Pink, red, white, purple, yellow--every color imaginable is reflected in God's handiwork.

The hills of Palestine were bright with spring flowers during the Passover and fathers and mothers told their children of God's wonders. (The Desire of Ages, Ellen G. White, page 76)

"The things of nature are the Lord's silent ministers, given to us to teach us spiritual truths. They speak to us of the love of God and declare the wisdom of the great Master Artist. I love the beautiful flowers. They are memories of Eden, pointing to the blessed country into which, if faithful, we shall soon enter. The Lord is leading my mind to the health-giving properties of the flowers and trees." (The Adventist Home, Ellen G. White, page 147)

Flowers are also a blessing to those who are ill or shut-in as they lift the spirits and add a touch of beauty to the room. "In nature may always be found something to divert the attention of the sick from themselves and direct their thoughts to God." (Ministry of Healing, Ellen G. White, page 265)