Let Creation Declare His Glory

Where She Trods And Lingers

Beauty In Detail

Saturday mornings are one of my favorite times of the week.  With camera bag in tow, coffee in one hand and all my 'Books' in the other, I head out to the door and drop my books on the swing.  Then, sitting still, I listen and sip.  The birds are singing, water is trickling and the fountain is bubbling.

As the sun warmed my hand, casting long shadows on the page of my notes, I was drawn to the light all around me, particularly the way the sun beam danced through the trees next to me.

Glancing over my shoulder because I couldn't help but follow the shadows behind me, I thought, 'I should attach my new magnifying lens to the camera and see what I can capture of God's beauty."



I know I've taken a photo like this one, but it was just too amazing to not shoot it again!

Tiny spiders make tiny webs...

Shadows draw our eyes to details unnoticed...

...and beauty fades.

Still doing its job of guarding the Garden...

A bit nervous to get too close...THEY'RE RED!

May your weekend be filled with beauty.

How Earthen Vessels Last Forever

"God never hurries.  There are no deadlines against which he must work.  Only to know this is to quiet our spirits and relax our nerves."  A.W. Tozer

(After reviewing past posts, it seems as though I speak of this one topic often. Forgive me, there is most definitely a good reason...I need to be reminded over and over and over...)

Check this word out:

har·ried--ˈharēd/-adjective--feeling strained  as a result of having demands  persistently made on one; harassed.

Has your week been one of strain?  Persistent demands made on you?  Feeling harassed by the circumstances of daily life?

When the pressure builds up for me, I aim the lens and focus. 

I Shoot.

Heading out the back door at dusk, I spied this feeder, completely useless because the opening is too high for hummers to drink deeply, yet, what I saw inspired me.  Do you see it?  

It's cracked all around.  Yet, it's beautiful, and though it appears broken, it was delicately created in such a way to reflect light.  Here it hangs, glistening...inviting me closer.

This morning, bright sun shone through blurred glass and a mix of joy and sadness welled up in me

How do I really enjoy my life when glass is smeared, smudges block light?  Do the smudges really stop the light or do the tiny fingerprints painted over each other only serve to remind me that, today, right here in my home, His light shines through the dirt, the grime and when I take in that light and embrace it, I am saturated with His glory?

This moment had to be shared...I grab Jenna and we stare. I am sad that in three weeks the potential for more artwork will no longer be around.

There will be a day I wash away these memories.

But NOT today!

How often have we missed seeing the beauty of the world around us?  We are ever in a rush to get somewhere, but if He doesn't rush and we are His, wouldn't we be happier people if we only embraced the Light, slowing down to take it all in?

...but then, what about the times that I have tried to wash away the smudges?  He holds the camera and focuses in on my cracked life: 

I complain in my head, fuss about things that don't really matter in light of eternity, want to be thinner, younger, prettier, have more money, go away by myself (often), get paid to give advice, make my kids love God and serve Him and Me...(no need to go on. You get the message.)

But then, as I sit in the Light, I am undone. Instead of life being a blur, it all comes into focus.  

Oh, the glorious freedom and hope His Word gives!

How grateful, how transforming, how comforting to know:

“But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.  For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.”  2 Cor. 4:6-11

There are cracks, smudges, and flaws but His light still shines.  As a matter of fact, the uglier, dirtier things become, the greater His power to manifest His life and shine beauty wherever we go.

Remind yourself this weekend that there is nothing in your life that He can't fashion beauty from.  

Not one thing.

Words are Superfluous

Counting my gifts

Gifts given can bring delight, and sometimes they can undo the emotions...in a good way.

Like yesterday morning before church, sitting in my garden, talking to Daddy and listening and then, there it was, suspended right in front of me--
#53~ a hummingbird.  Made me cry.  There was no time to grab the camera.  He flew away too quickly.  A gift that felt like a kiss on my cheek, unexpected.

#54~And then the night before that:  walking around the amphitheater at Sea World, snapping pictures of Jeremy Camp and shuffling to the music (even though I'm not a Jeremy Camp fan--I went for Shane and Shane!) when my heart, for the first time in my life, truly ached to be in heaven.  That, too, made me cry.  I longed for home.  REALLY longed. 

#55~answered prayers almost forgotten about

#56~bees

#57~climbing back into bed and warm sheets still!

#58~the sound of ticking clocks









#59~laughter when my son decides to work at my desk and I look up to see this:

I named him Edward for the day!

#60~

#61~ blueberry muffins on steroids

 #62~good graffiti-is there such a thing?  The gift was that I was just snapping things on our way down the road and didn't see what I got until I uploaded it.

#63~spotting this small, yet huge gift tucked behind the petunias.  The new seeds are a bonus.

#64~pretzels and Bananagrams with Caleb

#65~ science experiments from treetops

#66~my best friend and his love for me.

In community with Ann over here:

Each delicate pedal expresses symmetry

The rose speaks of love silently, in a language known only to the heart...   

Unknown

 ...A work of art, symmetrically uniform, dainty, refined, resplendent, picturesque, well-formed...these are just a few words that describe the beauty of a rose. Each stalk guarded with thorns.  Interesting that Jesus wore a crown of thorns on his head as he hung on the cross.  He, the head of the Church, bled from the thorn of a rosebush.  He protected us then and He protects us now.  We are His roses.  I am His rose.

Oh, it was so wonderful to be greeted by these rich, colorful beauties this morning.  I had been waiting, yet had forgotten how gloriously vibrant they are. 

It was challenging to rightly capture the colors with my camera, so I headed out to the Garden of Eden at different times today.

   

I also found Columbine budding. The seed for this plant was sown last spring. I am encouraged that the seeds I plant will come up, but not necessarily when I want.

I couldn't leave out a 'weed'; yet why a weed?  It's color is delicate and fragile.  For now, at least, it shall be allowed to live in my garden.

Perhaps tomorrow I'll find this tender bud opening: a white rose, tips dipped with a very soft pink, unfolding its fragrance and inviting me to join in the chorus of thanksgiving for a new day.





"The flowers are springing up, the season of singing birds has come, and the cooing of turtle-doves fills the air."
Song of Solomon 2:12

Multitude Monday

Something is happening inside me and it's making its way to the outside...getting up early, seizing the day and diving into mommyhood, learning at home and enjoying this season of my life...so, today, a Monday, I decided to take the boys to the zoo.  We got season passes last month and so off we went, just the three of us. 


On this day of reflection, I am reminded of today and its gifts to me.

#172:  my lion cubs

#173:  eager learners

#174: a walk through the park after the zoo: 
only the Father knows how deeply these two love each other, but it's evidenced at times by an arm around each other's shoulder.










#175:  boy comment about how 'we made memories today that will last a lifetime':

#176:  jubilant boys at home in the creek...

#177:  creation:

 178: cuddling

179:  goulash

180:  a nap

181:  completing a blog post!

182:  a growing garden and harvesting radishes (I'll try to post the latest pix soon...)

183:  a overcast day turning into a beautiful 73 degree day!

184:  being loved unconditionally

What a day to be grateful for.  Thank you, Jesus, for giving me children-my children- and family.