On my first visit to Norway, decades ago now, I discovered a distant relative who lived in a remote mountain cottage. She was pointed out to me in the village where I was looking for ancestors. I took the risk of introducing myself and explaining that my grandmother had lived in these mountains.  When she realized I was family she invited me to her home.

She knew no English so we did the best we could with my broken Norwegian. Thankfully we were in Telemark so the dialect was that spoken by my grandmother.

Her home was quite far from any road. The only access was a steep, often treacherous, trail.  She pushed her bicycle with familiar confidence and I walked behind with unfamiliar caution.

I don’t remember much about her house other than it being furnished with only bare essentials. Her lifestyle was clearly simple and solitary. I felt honored to be trusted as a visitor.

The unfading memory is of the brilliant wild flowers that covered the hills. As I let the beauty soak in I said that it was sad that nobody could see these amazing flowers. She calmly said, “Oh, God planted those for Himself.”

Today I am visiting a friend who explodes with creativity. Her home is a stunning array of unusual things being used for unexpected purposes.  If I were to fill my home with these same things it would look cluttered, but when arranged by this artist the image is striking colors and shapes. She is always looking to produce the “wow” factor.

This friend was confused recently to be asked to explain her motive in investing so much energy into decorating her home. The person asking the question said, “Who will even see this?” My friend thought it strange that someone would think she needed a reason. She asked, “Isn’t it enough to make something beautiful just because you love to make things beautiful?  Isn’t creativity an end in itself?

This post describes two very precious people living in two very different environments but both women express God’s heart. He loves to make things beautiful. Sometimes he does this for a reason and sometimes because this is who He is.