Times and Seasons

In the past month I've found myself in some of the most beautiful places I've ever seen: Florence, Italy; Bray, Ireland; Kent and Bath, England.  What a lucky girl I am!  I have been very fortunate.

As I've been in each of these places, I've been struck by their natural and man-made beauty. I frequently find myself looking out at the landscape and thinking, "I'm here!  I'm really here."  Each place has its unique splendor; I can't help but feel awe-struck with every new place I see.  And as I've contemplated each beautiful location, one so different from the next, I've come to realize two things: first, that there is no end to God's creative genius, and second, that man's creativity pales in comparison.  Sure, I've seen architectural wonders and artistic masterpieces that are known the world over for their beauty, but God's masterpieces are always infinitely superior.

There is, without doubt, something so pure and inherently magnificent about nature.  One person may debate the value and beauty of one piece of art to the next, but surely no one can question the beauties of the earth.  God simply does it better.  And I hate to break it to you artists (or you scientists, or you writers, or you mathemeticians), but God's creations will always be the most spectacular.

As I've pondered God's creative genius though, and how nearly nothing else on earth can rival nature's beauty, I realized that God has one creation he is more proud of: mankind.  Only after God created man was his work complete and "very good."  We are God's crowning creation. How did I fail to remember that sooner? Although I've been so recently struck by God's beautiful landscapes, I had hardly remembered the absolute miracle that is my physical body.

Think, for a second, about how incredible your body truly is.  My body only weighed six pounds when it first saw the light of day 20 years ago.  Six pounds! These hands are the very same ones that my mother marveled at because of their size.  These feet are the same ones I took my first rocky steps on--these are the same feet that have taken me through 20 years of standing, walking, running, dancing, traveling, and everything else in between.  This body represents the whole of my earthly experience.  How often do I stop to appreciate the fact that this body is among God's greatest creations?

Unfortunately, I often do the exact opposite.  I'm mad at my legs for being too short, or my thighs for storing all the pounds of European chocolate I've eaten here. (The nerve!) Unfortunately, I spend most of my time in front of the mirror wishing things would look slightly differently. In actuality, I should marvel at everything my body is, instead of what it is not.

What a miracle life is!  What a blessing it is to move and to feel, to experience and to love.  Do we understand that our body is what enables us to do all these things?  These are the bodies Satan's minions pine for.  These are the same bodies that devils were willing to inhabit swine to have, even if only for a moment.  Swine! That is how miraculous and incredible a body is.  Do we see that?

This is life.  Truly, it is phenomenal!  Don't waste a second!  Realize that every man has his time, his hour, his season to make life happen.  I'm already amazed at how fast my hour in London has come and almost gone, and I know that mortality will be much the same.  Fortunately, I have been soaking up every second.  Certainly we shouldn't waste any of our time complaining about what life is not.  Instead, take a minute to realize what life is! It might be more than you think.