| I was telling a friend about a recent experience of | | | | whales. |
| amazing joy in God, when she became visibly | | | | My Christian friend refuses to deal with her |
| upset. | | | | creature-ness. |
| "I HATE it when Christians talk like that! I am a | | | | She is morbidly obese. She does not exercise. She |
| good Christian, I do everything right! I ask God to | | | | ignores relationships which have been broken for |
| make me happy, and He doesn't!" | | | | years. In many areas of her life, she lives in denial |
| I was stunned at the intensity of her anger. And I | | | | of her work as a creature. |
| am sad for her, too. Because she's walking on a | | | | She does not have happiness in her creature-life. |
| dead end road. | | | | And she's so mad at her lack of happiness that |
| To have joy--or even happiness--we have to live | | | | she doesn't have joy in her spiritual life, either! |
| as creatures dancing in harmony with creation, as | | | | But that's not because God refuses to give it to |
| well as living and loving in harmony with our | | | | her. |
| Creator. | | | | My friend's refusal to live within the healthy |
| The created world is what Francis Schaeffer | | | | bounds of what it means to be a creature will |
| called the "horizontal level" of our human-ness. | | | | mean physical and emotional unhappiness, and |
| Creation is the part of the universe where science | | | | probably her early physical death, here in this |
| applies. It's the natural world, where "the rain falls | | | | creation. |
| on the just and the unjust alike". | | | | She's still loved by God, and she'll still be with Him |
| But we aren't just creatures! We are also uniquely | | | | in joy after she leaves this creation, but her |
| made in the image of God, and so we are related | | | | relationship to Him as she lives in this world will not |
| to Him on the "vertical level" as well. That "up and | | | | include much physical (horizontal, creation-level) |
| down" connection transcends the limits of the | | | | happiness or spiritual (vertical, God-level) joy. |
| created universe, and connects us to Him through | | | | And yes, I'm getting to meditation! |
| His love. | | | | Because meditation is a way to nurture and heal |
| Joy is our experience of connecting with Him, | | | | in the horizontal plane and celebrate joy the |
| moving beyond our "fallen creature" limits. And | | | | vertical one, all at the same time. When we |
| because that's true, we can have joy even when | | | | meditate, we elicit physical responses that make |
| life is difficult. Even when we are ill, or dying. In | | | | our created minds and bodies healthier. And we |
| fact, we will have joy with Him even after our | | | | open our hearts to communion with the Creator. |
| created bodies are dead here on earth. | | | | So why wait? Live as a healthy creature, open to |
| But while we're alive, in this created universe, the | | | | a loving Creator. |
| laws of nature apply to us just like they apply to | | | | And open your life to joy! |
| dogs and cats, birds and tulips, monkeys and | | | | |