Today was a beautiful sunny blue sky day. Summer has pushed fall away for a few more days. I was thinking, as I walked Penelope this morning, the earth is an art desk for the Lord and occasionally things fall off and I find them. He has lightning bolts in pencil holders on his desk, a basket of balls of thunder, Mason jars of rainbows, tin pie plates holding lumps of clay, jars of sunbeams and stardust and snowflakes. He stores his raindrops in little green glass Coke bottles on a shelf nearby. He has cardboard boxes of sky pastels he shares with Father Sky, traditional watercolors and their brushes he shares with Mother Nature, resting on a corner of his desk. I can see God’s large hands folded on top his desk, suntanned and warm, calloused from rescuing and holding hands with both believers and non-believers. He might even have a bottle of Corn Huskers lotion in a desk drawer.

I found the most gorgeous fall leaf this morning as I was thinking of the Lord’s art desk. So sad I couldn’t give it to Chief, he would have loved it. I spent a little while trying to identify the leaf. I thought it had ridden on the wind to the yard next door from the poplar tree down the street but on Penelope’s second walk of the morning, I realized it was a leaf from the crab apple tree next door. I’ve never seen a leaf that looked so much like a watercolor painting. I could even see the brush marks where Mother Nature dabbed the leaf, with her watercolor brushes dipped in black and dark bluish-purple, up and down around the leaf’s spine. Watercolor washes in red and yellow and orange and green completed the painting. I also found a little piece of dead water oak limb with a beautiful gathering of lichen on it. The lichen colors were surely from God’s watercolors, the myriads of pale greens and grays so soft and pretty. I stuck two birds feathers I found nearby on the branch. My favorite finds today.

Scripture in Psalms 95 states, “his hands formed the dry land.” Just think, God held a ball of clay in his hands and formed the earth giving color and light to his creation. Scripture in Matthew tells us to bring out the world’s colors through our lights of faith. “You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill,” Matthew 5:14. God created the earth with color to give joy to those who notice God’s paintbrushes. We can choose to see the world in black and white but God gave us colors to display his glory. He wants us to experience the wonder and beauty of earth with all its tinctures and textures, looking at his watercolorings as offerings of peace and harmony.

We read in 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.” We all belong to God and we are glorious colors of his holy light. Psalm 24:1 reads,“The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.” Everything we see in the earth around us should give us pause to stop and thank God. I’m so grateful for the colorful songbirds and the wildflowers and the sunsets. And I thank God that not only can I see his glory but that I have enough faith to know he’s blessed me with this wondrous world and for that I’m grateful.

“Of all God’s gifts to the sighted man, color is holiest, the most divine, the most solemn.” — John Ruskin