Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Step Seventy-Nine: Vibrant

Dear Readers,

I've mentioned before that I love the word vibrant. That it drips an infusion of beauty and life. It's so much more than a word for me, it's a lifestyle. It is bathed in boldness, full of color, spice, and well awesomeness. It is the "abundant life" that Jesus came to offer. My prayer, as of late, is that my life would be vibrant and, as many of you know, you should be very careful what you pray for, you might just get it.

Over labor day weekend, I had the opportunity to experiment with painting and while I am no expert in the concerns of art it gave me a new appreciation for this word that I love so much. To give you an idea I googled "vibrant paintings" here are a few of my favorites:

Kasey Taylor "Koi Lotus & Lily Pond Scene"


Mia's "Two Virgins"



Derek McCrea's "Japanese Cherry Blossom Flower Painting"


There is something unique to vibrancy that I hadn't really seen or appreciated before. The degree of vibrancy correlates directly to the degree of contrast. To put it another way, you cannot have light without darkness. Imagine if the Koi pond had been painted with a baby blue rather than the navy. It would still be a remarkable painting, illustrating skill and beauty, but it would not be breath-taking. It would not be vibrant.

You may have now gathered the point to which I am writing - if we are to have vibrant lives they cannot be purely light. We need contrast. We need the murky waters. I suspect, if your response is anything like mine, you don't find this the least bit comforting. I would challenge you,however, to re-evaluate your opinion of darkness.

Ecclesiastes 7:13-14 says this "Consider what God has done; who can straighten what he has made crooked? When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider: God has made the one as well as the other." You and I need to reconsider are biases in regards to darkness and pain. So often I think of pain as a means to an end. How many times do we say phrases like this "it's a growing experience" or "it will make you stronger/more beautiful" or "if you can just hold on/endure/stay strong". We cheat ourselves when we say this. We cheat ourselves out of the vibrancy that is our inheritance. Pain is not a means to the end. Pain is a vital part of vibrancy. To simply "endure" pain is to miss out on the vibrancy that is yours now.

So my challenge - no matter whether you are in a season of light or a season of darkness, be vibrant and rejoice!