God in the Details

The fact that we're bastions of boredom rather than bursting with creativity and the release of the artsis such an embarrassment. We should be the place that is known for creativity as we have a directconnection to the Creator.

—Leonard Sweet

Did you know that twelve of the forty chapters of Exodus are devoted to aesthetics, that is, to precise detailsabout altars and oils and offerings and everything in between? God had a wildly creative and multisensory imageof how it was to be there in the holy of holies, and—let's be clear—the details mattered:

Have them make an acacia-wood chest. It should be forty-five inches long, twenty-seven inches wide, andtwenty-seven inches high. Cover it with pure gold, inside and out, and make a gold molding all around it.Cast four gold rings for it and put them on its four feet, two rings on one side and two rings on the other.Make acacia-wood poles and cover them with gold. Then put the poles into the rings on the chest's sidesand use them to carry the chest. The poles should stay in the chest's rings. They shouldn't be taken out ofthem. Put the covenant document that I will give you into the chest. (Exodus 25:10-16)

Some say that 1 percent of what we do makes 99 percent of the difference. Attention to detail is not a newthought. Artists of all disciplines have discovered the difference between mediocre and amazing:

To create something exceptional, your mind-set must be relentlessly focused on the smallest detail. (GiorgioArmani, Italian-born fashion designer)

The difference between something good and something great is attention to detail. (Charles R. Swindoll,educator and radio pastor)

God is in the details. (Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, German-born American architect)

And although attention to the details in design, architecture, and basic housekeeping is extremely important,it's really about the potential of what can happen within the walls of these intentionally crafted spaces. Greatdesign—and our subsequent calling—is not to impress our guests with all our dazzling efforts but to prepareplaces where people can experience connection to God and community with others in the best way possible.

I'm happy that the church was expanded by its use of gymnasiums in the 1980s and '90s, but we lost somethingprofound. We lost the sensuality of spirituality and replaced it with song after song in the key of C, metaphoricallyspeaking. I love music, but we've underestimated the power of physical design. Environment is howwe exist on the earth! Not my idea, but God's. You may not feel that you are "into design," but because we arehumans created in God's image, design is wired into us.

Addressing engaging environments, Andy Stanley encourages church leaders to ask, "Is the setting appealing?"and challenges us not to discount the importance of paying close attention to aesthetics:

It could be argued that the very first thing God did in time was to create an appealing environment tailoredfor his prize creation, that portion of creation that would be fashioned in his image, the image of theone who created an irresistible environment. Essentially, that's the story of creation.(Deep & Wide [GrandRapids: Zondervan, 2012], pp. 164–65)

Even as I write this, the absurdity of attempting to convince readers of God's creativity gene is beyond humorous:"In the beginning, God created." Bam. Forming the land, sky, plant and animal life, and subsequently humanbeings was the first recorded act of love that God chose to extend. Our call as humans and Christians—as "littleChrists"—is to carry on the legacy, to not allow our busy, linear, routine-driven little lives to edge out the open,expansive, imaginative, and soul-tending nature of God, and to share that beautiful, authentic, holy "spirit" witha weary world.