Why do we spend hundreds of dollars every year, just to put ourselves in the most beautiful places on earth? Whether that’s the highest mountains or the most exotic island beaches, we go to great lengths to find places of beauty.

It’s the subtle but powerful call to be captivated.

We as humans were made to be captivated by beauty. I’m not just talking about physical beauty, but the beauty to have our breath taken away. The beauty of getting lost in a moment, the beauty of relationships, the beauty of divine, the beauty of adventure.

So often I am too concerned with impressing people with what I can do, instead of pursuing that which captivates me.

What would happen in our creative expressions if we lived out of a place of being captivated?

What would our lives look like if we seized those feelings and bent all our imagination into capturing that experience?

A captivated heart is an imaginative heart.

A heart so captivated by beauty, is an imaginative heart that sees into what others feel but can’t put into words. A heart held captive by beauty and wonder, is alive with expression.

A captivated heart is like a young maiden stricken with love who rushes through the hallways of her home awakening each member to tell of her fortune. When we are captivated we can’t help but express what we feel. We are driven madly not by profession but obsession, the kind of obsession that says “I will never stop searching for you, and even when I can’t find you, I will shout your name in the streets, I will call your name in the valleys, and I will write your name on my arm.”

We need that kind of fire in our bellies if we are to face what’s ahead of us.

So I ask of you, no, I challenge you to make room to be captivated. Take seriously the beauty around you that beckons you. Personally I have found many ways that captivate my heart, such as adventures; whether that’s exploring Utah’s state parks or building a fort and having Harry Potter story night, to quiet afternoons where I read beneath the dancing patter of rain drops, to the times I play music and let my heart pour through my hands.

Finding what captivates your heart, what awakens your imagination to another world, takes time. Do not wait, for the sake of your heart, seek out those sacred places where you can be present in the beauty of life in all its colorful motion around you.