The Scenic Route

Today I decided to take the scenic route – I drove through Garden of the Gods Park in Colorado Springs on my way to work – instead of taking the usual Highway 25.  It took me half an hour instead of the usual 10 minutes.

Of course, I took this photo a while back at sunset – but you get the idea.  It was a beautiful thing.  Those red rocks are lovely.

I used to wonder, what is the POINT of being creative, anyway?  I mean, creativity doesn’t have a “practical” purpose, and that used to really trip me up.  But it’s these landscapes that help me remember.  We serve an abundantly creative God and He created us in His image.  I mean, you can’t look at a canvas like that and tell me that God is not creative! His masterpiece is more wonderful than any painting – and we artists spend all this time trying to capture it in it’s impossible fullness.

So, if God is creative – why did God create?  This whole beautiful world came into being just because He delighted to create it – it says in Revelation 4:11 that all things were created for that purpose.  So if God created this whole universe simply because He delighted in it, can’t we also create in our delight?  We can also create because we enjoy it, because we were created to.  That takes a lot of pressure off, doesn’t it?

The highway route gets us from A to B quickly.  It’s straightforward, and logical, and direct.  And it can be kind of a rut.

I vote for the creative path – the adventurous, the beautiful, the winding and slow and out-of-the-way.  Because sometimes enjoying the journey is a lot more valuable than rushing to your final destination.

So if you have the chance, take the scenic route – and let God show off His handiwork!