All of life is a Communion Call -- as if God is the ever present first Friday Visitor, asking that we be with him, receive him, welcome him.

I look at the beauty of freshly fallen snow -- it is rare, here in Georgia, to have snow. Just yesterday I was telling a group in our retreat house that I used to love the sound of falling snow when I lived in the northeast. There was that pervasive hiss as the snow fell and touched the earth. Even when the snow stopped falling, there seemed to be a sound in the air, the sound of snow, a peaceful yet rich sound. Something like a communion of white, of innocence, of purity. Billions of hosts, coming softly to the earth, covering everything. A gift from God, as is everything, coming from above, arising from below, whispering to me as to where he is, communing with us.

The whole universe is a Mass -- feeding us every day. The banquet of God, this life we live. It is special, very special.

Overseeing the mysterious laws governing the universe, the divine breath of the Creator Spirit reaches out to human genius and stirs its creative power. He touches it with a kind of inner illumination which brings together the sense of the good and the beautiful, and he awakens energies of mind and heart which enable it to conceive an idea and give it form in a work of art. It is right then to speak, even if only analogically, of "moments of grace", because the human being is able to experience in some way the Absolute who is utterly beyond. - John Paul II, In a Letter to Artists

When I was starting the business 5+ years ago, my wife and I were wrestling with what to name it. After a couple days of thumbing through dictionaries and thesauruses looking for the perfect name, Heather stumbled on an obscure text in the book of Exodus (31:3) that talks about God placing his Spirit on a guy named Bezalel to be creative, and to make stuff.

Not only have I filled him with my Spirit, but I have given him wisdom and made him a skilled craftsman who can create objects of art with gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood.

These words really resonated with me. Stepping out into business on my own was a real step of faith, and by naming my business after these words, it was kind of my way of tipping my hat to the Creator. Every time I have to explain to someone what the name means, it reminds me of my beginnings, and where I believe creativity comes from... and there's something about thoughts like those that help me stay grounded.

It has been my experience that in design work, the really great designers pay close attention to detail. The biblical reference in the name of 31three is a great detail that allows for deep, yet subtle, meaning.

In an increasingly susceptible world, where more and more people are realizing that things like nuts and wheat and even certain pungent scents can make them quite sick, religious organizations are reconsidering the most time-honored of traditions.

Communion wafers are now available in rice and soy. Religious supply stores are offering hypo-allergenic incense. Churches are banning cologne and cutting way back on Easter lilies. Fresh pine boughs for the holidays are often out. A group of nuns in Missouri have invented a host with only a trace of wheat so that the gluten-sensitive could digest it.