I have been spending a lot of time looking at the beauty of creation as the days have gotten warmer and the birds have invaded my yard, as the flowers are blooming and the skies are filled with the majesty of spring storms.    And I have watched as all of creation seems to applaud its Creator.  And I was reminded of a journal entry from several years ago.

My journal entry went something like this:  What must it be like to create something that does nothing but praise, glorify, worship and honor its creator?  Did a painting ever stand and applaud Michelangelo or a symphony bow and weep at Beethoven's feet?  No, but the creators were honored by the people who viewed and heard their work.  What greater glory and honor does God deserve from me as the created of His hand?  When people look at the painting of my life or hear the music of my legacy, will they look to God and give Him praise?  And do I spend my days pointing to Him and in worship of Him?

Do the trees bend and sway and wave their branches toward the heavens as an act of worship?  Does the sun come out every morning in blazing radiance as if it cannot wait to shine its light on all of God's handiwork?  Do the waves clap and dance as they joyfully race to lay flat at the boundaries He has set for them?  Do the stars twinkle and glow like diamonds on the velvet of His robes, each wanting to shine brighter and longer to give Him pleasure?  Do the petals of a rose unfold tenderly to release perfect beauty and sweet fragrance with the single purpose of turning their faces to Him for a brief moment before falling to the ground?  Do the majestic mountains rise up to the sky to stand tall and straight in His presence?  Do the rains fall at His feet and run thousands of river miles wanting just to be poured out at His ocean shores?  Every part of creation uses its created beauty to honor its creator every day and in every way.

Oh, that I would live my every moment like one of these of His creation!  I want to use all that I am to worship Him.  I want to raise my arms and yield my very body toward Him in worship.  I want to wake up each morning and greet each day with a desire to shine His light on all the world.  I want to clap and dance and race to the place where I can lay prostrate before Him.  I want to let Him reveal His beauty in me and let it bring Him pleasure.  I want to let Him unfold my life to release His perfect majesty, lifting a sweet smell of sacrifice to Him.  I want to rise up and stand tall to honor Him.  I want to fall at His feet and let Him pour me out like a drink offering to His name.  I was created for His glory.  May my life glorify my Creator every day, in every way.

I've noticed as I've watched creation and pondered my praise of Him that when I am fully focused on Him and on applauding Him, my heart sings in spite of the troubles of my day.  Just like how, in the midst of storms, the trees sway the most and bend the most and wave their branches most dramatically toward Him.  So I want to worship Him like His creation - honoring Him every day, in every way, even in the midst of my storms.  I was created for His praise.  And He deserves it.  I was created for my Creator's glory.

Colossians 1:16 For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.

Revelation 4:11 "You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being."

Applauding wildly -
Amy