Miracles are those extraordinary events that catch our attention from beyond reason, outside explanation, past what's naturally explainable. Healings, rescues, opened eyes, paid bills, surprise friendships, unexpected partnerships... Miracles happen and they're fantastic and awesome and, well, miraculous.
But if we wait around for miracles to form in order to move forward, in order to find healing and freedom and rescue and movement forward, I think we'll be waiting a while. We'll miss a lot of the beauty and grit in making life happen on a daily basis. We'll miss out on the adventure.
Miracles tend to happen in the midst of adventure.
I think our creative pursuits function this way.
I think we have seasons, whether we're creating for profit and vocation, or as hobbyists and retirees and spare time enthusiasts... whatever the case, I think there are times when lighting strikes and the miracle of a brilliant piece of art, song, design or writing appears out of the overflow of our fingertips. From soul to song.
Yet if we only create in those miraculous moments, we miss out on all the work churned and refined and revealed in the meantime.
Some might say that every creative product is a miracle. That each piece is in some way divine, connecting the creativity of heaven with the creative pallet of earth. I like that thought.
But I also know that some creations really are a notch beyond. I think you do to. That song that grabs your heart. That design that catches your eye and grips your mind. That book that settles in deep. As though the artist were channeling something divine for my singular benefit. Yeah, some works are just beyond.
And in my limited observation, just as miracles tend to happen in the midst of the journey, the trial or a life taking shape (think of Jesus healing the blind or disappearing through the mob, or a cancer inexplicably disappearing or a debt anonymously settled), creative otherness, masterpieces, and transcending works of art seem to happen in the midst of making the daily take shape.
I don't know about any 15 minutes of fame, but there's something in the daily creative grind that sets the stage for a little more light, a bit more clarity and lot more joy in the process.