Category: encouragement

Be Still and Know

Church, Color Photography, encouragement

“Be still, and know that I amGod: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.”
Psalms 46:10
King James Version (KJV)

Sometimes it’s hard to simply be still. As humans, we are creatures of action. We want to make things happen on our schedule. We desire to crack open a situation and “fix” it to fit into our plans. However, it’s not our plans that need to be completed. God has a plan and He is able to complete it. We have all had the experience of the over eager helper who means well but messes up the plan by doing the wrong thing at the wrong time. Or even when it’s right thing but at the wrong time.

Imagine that you have a classic car and you’re preparing it for a show. Your child wants to help and you’re overjoyed. Now, imagine that you’re soaping up the driver’s side and you look up to find the child waxing the unwashed passenger side. There’s a big smile on his face because he’s giving you his best effort and he’s proud because he hasn’t missed a spot. How often do we mess up God’s plans by trying to help but not doing it at the right time? How often do we try to polish a soul that God is still cleaning? I know that the verse above is normally quoted by folks who mean to inspire a sense of peace but there are times when God is simply saying “Step back a minute, I got this”. In those times we need to step back and let God deal with it.

Overcoming

encouragement

I was taking portraits for a friend last year at a track and field event. It was a nice overcast day. Perfect for outdoor portraits. As usual I was challenging myself to push the envelope on my skills and the competition provides plenty of opportunities. I was never a person who could compete in feats of agility and I’m always fascinated by the hurdles. I was a large framed man by age 14. 6 feet 3 inches tall and 250 pounds of muscle that could not jump. Needless to say that I found the petite young lady pictured here quiet impressive with her skills. Shortly after the picture was taken another wave of athletes came through gracefully bounding over the obstacles. I heard a voice behind me comment that she wished she could jump as well as the others. I turned to see the girl in picture. She had never saw herself competing. She didn’t know how well she did on the same course.

Most people are stronger than they know. Most people have never seen themselves through the eyes of another.

Let me tell you now that you were born to be a champion! Just because you have not seen yourself as a champion doesn’t mean that you’re not winning.

Maybe you’re like me. Maybe you don’t jump well. That s okay. Jumping just isn’t your competition. My sport was American Football. I could tackle and protect the quarterback. The jumpers didn’t always do well in my competition. Maybe you’re not an athlete at all. Well, I’ll bet your smart, funny and talented in other ways.

Whatever it is I want to know that you’re just as capable of success as anyone else. The rest is just practice and dedication to the goal.

I never planned to publish this image. But all day today I felt like God was telling me that someone needs to be encouraged. There’s a hurdle in your life that you don’t think you can overcome. God wants you to know that He gave you talent and abilities to succeed. Just practice and prepare. When it’s time to jump you’re gonna make it.

Sunday… A day of hope

Back and White Photography, Church, encouragement, West Virginia

Okay, so I have written this and started over.

Then I didn’t like the way it sounded so I erased it and started over.

But, my writing wasn’t perfect so I deleted and started over.

And once again it wasn’t making sense so I started over.

Eventually I realized what God was trying to point out to me. Sunday is about a chance to start over. To delete the mistakes and have a fresh start. Christianity is about having the opportunity to allow Jesus Christ to erase all our sin and let us start over. It’s not just on Sundays, it’s every hour of every day for as long as it takes to be restored. That is the hope we celebrate on Sundays. That’s the hope we live with every day.

Image was taken in Deepwater West Virginia which is in Fayette County.

Let The Light In

Color Photography, encouragement, Thoughts and Musing

Sometimes when I’m talking to friends about things like fear of the unknown or just fear and doubt in general I’ll pose a riddle.

“I was afraid of the dark, but then I became the darkness “.

For the first time ever I’m going to publicly give you the answer.

When you are in a dark place there is fear and anxiety. You can’t perceive the world around you. What’s out there could be bad. It might even be very bad. You’re fear comes from your mind filling in the unknown with projections of worse case scenarios. The flight or fight response kicks in. Adrenaline surges through your blood and your ready for the unknown.

But why become the darkness? It sounds scary. Doesn’t that make you evil? No, not at all. Because a person who is in darkness casts no shadow! In order to become darkness one must become a shadow. In order to become a shadow one must leave the darkness and move into the light. If a person who is in the light is casting light, the the light is being reflected instead of absorbed. The truth will set you free but only if you drink it in make it a part of you.

The Light shines for everyone but not everyone steps out of darkness to let the light in.

Cultivate Life

black and white photography, encouragement, Thoughts and Musing

This old barn near Summerville West Virginia always seems to have something to offer my lens.  I  was raised in agriculture.  I  look at the old barns and think about the life that was housed there. Not just grain, hay and farming supplies but the people who worked the land. I can hear the ghostly echoes of conversations about life and love,  business and pleasure.  I can hear the footsteps of young people who think that they’re up to mischief but really are just learning about life.  People who share work are investing in each other.  Work parties often ended in generations of close friends.  You may not have barns where you live but odds are that you do have people.  I want to encourage you to reach out to a neighbor and offer to share in some work.  You’ll be surprised to see how large your family really is.