Travel Theme: Animals

Ailsa at Where’s My Backpack? has a weekly photo challenge of Travel Themes. This week the photo theme is Animals.

One lone penguin had wandered off from the group, and he seemed to pose for this picture.

This guy kept moving so much that it was difficult to get a good shot, but he finally paused long enough for me to get a photo that isn’t blurry.

A busy petting zoo is a photo challenge of its own! This mama goat was trying to herd her three kids as they were being chased by the human kids trying to pet them.

The baby kangaroo kept trying to get out of its pouch, but mama pushed it back in every time. You can see part of the baby under mama’s paw.

This zebra took a clue from Mr. Penguin, and wandered off alone while we were taking pictures, then turned to give me this shot.

God created a huge variety of animals, and He proclaimed them good. I agree, I love watching and photographing God’s creatures. It’s hard to imagine having the job of naming all of them, but it would be an interesting assignment.

“Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to its kind”; and it was so. And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.” Genesis 1:24-25

“Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name. So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field.” Genesis 2:19-20

See Ailsa’s and other Travel Theme photos here, and consider adding your own Animal photos to the theme.

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Photo Challenge: Thursday’s Windows – Week 3

Sandra Conner from the blog “By The Book” started a new weekly photo challenge a couple of weeks ago that sounds like fun, especially for someone like me who takes a lot of pictures of windows:

Sandra’s description of this challenge: “Now this challenge is a little different:  The challenge is just for “Thursday’s Windows.” Each Thursday, we post a different window, but the main theme will not change. (I love windows.)

And all of you readers out there who are over-burdened by these challenges, please feel free to skip this one.  But if you want to participate, I’m looking forward to seeing all the varieties of windows that open us up to the rest of the world.

Also, please feel free to post on a day other than Thursday.  If you get busy and forget on Thursday, put it up anytime before the next Thursday.  I will renew the challenge each Thursday with my own window, and then you can post again on that Thursday as well. Very Important: Be sure to post a link to your window in the comment section below.” I have a link to Sandra’s blog at the end of this post.

I’m late posting mine this week, but here’s my Thursday’s Windows photo:

Sandra’s photo of school windows this week reminded me of a recent picture I took of an old school. Workers were there salvaging wood from inside and preparing to tear the building down when we stopped to take pictures. Most of the windows had been broken out long ago, leaving large gaps where windows once were, but a few windows had survived the weather and vandalism over the years. The school was built circa 1921, and the windows were designed like other schools built in that era, with lots of windows to allow air to circulate on hot days.

Sandra’s blog and more window photos here: Thursday’s Windows

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Mine

This week’s WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge is to “share a picture that means MINE to you!”

The Bible in this photo is mine. I love reading and studying from my Bible because its got my notations, my highlights, and my underlining of specific Scriptures. My markings remind me of passages and verses that have been especially meaningful to me during difficult times, or that God used to speak to me at one time or another, or that have become my favorite verses. My Bible isn’t a fashionable color or in the latest style; its plain black cover is worn around the edges, and its binding is loose in places. But it’s mine, and it’s worth its weight in gold to me. The words on its pages are priceless, timeless, and inspired by God.

The glasses on top of my Bible are also mine. In recent years I’ve had to use them when reading my Bible, or any type of reading, writing, or studying.

The wood cross in my photo was hand carved by a retired pastor friend; the hand painted flowers are Dogwood blooms. The glass dolphin is a keepsake from my aunt who passed away a few years ago. Both of these are special to me, but neither of them have eternal value like the words written on the pages of my Bible.

More submissions to this week’s WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge: Mine

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Travel Theme: Foliage

Ailsa at Where’s My Backpack? invited me to the photo challenge of Travel Themes. Thank you Ailsa! This week the photo theme is Foliage. I have lots of photos of foliage, but I narrowed it down to three for this submission:

Leaves just beginning to change color disguised the birds chattering in the surrounding trees, as I captured shots of their antebellum style home.

Although this tree doesn’t change colors in the fall, the rays of sun streaming through it near sunset give it a multi-hued effect, from pale green to golden browns.

I like the way the red berries stand out among its changing foliage, and the faded backdrop of yellow leaves glittering in the sunlight.

It’s hard for me to choose one season as a favorite, but my photo archives show that Autumn/Fall is definitely in the top two, with Spring coming in a close second.

Then God said, “Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years; Genesis 1:14

And He changes the times and the seasons; Daniel 2:21a

See Ailsa’s and other Travel Theme photos here, and consider adding your own Autumn photos to the theme.

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Photo Challenge: Thursday’s Windows – Week 2

Sandra Conner from the blog “By The Book” started a new weekly photo challenge that sounds like fun, especially for someone like me who takes a lot of pictures of windows:

Sandra’s description of this challenge: “Now this challenge is a little different:  The challenge is just for “Thursday’s Windows.” Each Thursday, we post a different window, but the main theme will not change. (I love windows.)

And all of you readers out there who are over-burdened by these challenges, please feel free to skip this one.  But if you want to participate, I’m looking forward to seeing all the varieties of windows that open us up to the rest of the world.

Also, please feel free to post on a day other than Thursday.  If you get busy and forget on Thursday, put it up anytime before the next Thursday.  I will renew the challenge each Thursday with my own window, and then you can post again on that Thursday as well. Very Important: Be sure to post a link to your window in the comment section below.” I have a link to Sandra’s blog at the end of this post.

I’m late getting into the game on this one, but I do love the idea. Thanks Sandra! So here’s my photo for this week:

This is the inside of a church that is now closed up, with the original windows, and the original pews built to separate men and women during the service.

Sandra’s blog and more window photos here: Thursday’s Windows

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All Our Senses Declare The Glory Of God!

I heard the waves crashing against the shore before the beach came into view, the sound blending with the smell of salt air. A sound that is relaxing to me with its rhythmic splash as a wave hits the shoreline, carrying shells and sandy debris in its foam, then receding slowly from the smooth sand, leaving its gifts behind.

Gathering shells the tide leaves behind is irresistible to me, so I have to be very careful not to get salty water or sand in my camera as I stoop to pick up the treasures each wave brings in. Sometimes the waves tumble up and grab them again before I do, and they get pulled back into the swirl of water and sand. But that’s all part of the beach experience I love, including the feeling of sand between my toes, and sand washing away under my feet as the tide goes rushing back out.

We were suprised with a special show when two dolphins swam by, jumping and diving just a few feet from the shore. They played to the crowd watching in fascination for only a few moments before making their way back out to deeper water.

I love going to the beach any time of day, but sunrise and sunset are my favorite times. In this final photo the dolphins were long gone, and most people were beginning to pack up their beach chairs and head to the parking lot. Since we timed our beach visit to include taking sunset photos, we didn’t leave until the colors of sunset changed to dusk and the beach closed for the night. There is an indescribable display of colors as the sun slowly drops from the sky and seems to slide into the shimmering water, like a brilliant curtain is pulled down to signal the end of another day.

The sights and sounds of the beach are one of the many ways we can see and enjoy the beauty that God created. The waves crashing, the sun rising and setting, and the dolphins dancing declare the glory of God in their own way. Even though there are many troubles and trials in this world, we are so blessed to have the wonder of God’s creation to remind us of His love for us.

He alone spreads out the heavens, And treads on the waves of the sea; Job 9:8

God made us in such a way that we can fully enjoy the world into which He has placed us—ears that hear in stereo, a nose that inhales all kinds of fragrances, eyes that see in full color, taste buds that savor food, and hands that feel texture—all our senses declare the glory of God! Roy Lessin

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Solitary

This week’s WordPress photo challenge is Solitary: To share a picture that means SOLITARY to me.

Cheri Lucas posted the challenge and said this about it: “I love capturing a person in a quiet and often unexpected moment. These kinds of images can be reflective, mysterious, or even sad, conjuring strong emotions and stirring up stories in my head.”

I’ve searched my photo archives and I don’t have a photo of a person that would work for this challenge, so I’m using a photo of a solitary flower instead. This little pink flower blooming in the midst of a stand of towering bamboo stalks adds a solitary bright spot to a scene made up of shades of green and brown.

See other entries for the WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge here

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Everyday Life

This week’s WordPress photo challenge is Everyday Life; it’s all about people and the things they do every day.

I quickly snapped this photo through the nursery window as we all jostled in the small space to get pictures of the new little bundle of joy. It’s a scene that is repeated daily as proud parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles, and other family and friends crowd together at a hospital nursery window to capture their first pictures of the precious new life brought into their family. It’s not everyday life to them to have a new baby, it is indeed a very special occasion. And although the miracle of birth happens thousands of times a day across the world, it is anything but ordinary.

To people who work as a neonatal nurse, like the two women shown in the photo, this is everyday life. It is what they do day after day, or night after night. They have the important responsibility of being the first to care for the tiny newborn, to measure him, weigh him, and to monitor vital signs. With a new birth every 7 seconds in the U.S. alone, that amounts to thousands of neonatal nurses whose everyday life is to care for the tiny, helpless newborns who depend solely upon someone else.

For the newborns, it is their first day of what will be their everyday life for years to come – depending upon someone else to take care of them, provide for them, and keep them safe.

Statistics taken from U.S. Census Population Clock

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Sunsets – The Handiwork of God

When I captured a few moments of this incredible sunset as it broke through a large mass of angry dark clouds, I was awed by the beautiful colors stretched across the sky. It looked as if God was using fire-breathing clouds to paint the sky, leaving streaks of colorful beauty where darkness had been only a few minutes before. My camera didn’t do the sunset justice, but I couldn’t let the opportunity pass to capture the essence of the heavenly display.

It is certainly true that “The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork.” as Psalm 19:1 tells us. God is indeed the Master Artist, and it shows everywhere in nature, on the ground and in the sky.

Sometimes a picture looks good, or even better, in grayscale. But not so with a sunset. The difference between the photos is a picture of how blessed we are that God’s handiwork is in color.

Sunsets are used often in quotes, poems, or other writing. A few examples are:

“If I can put one touch of rosy sunset into the life of any man or woman, I shall feel that I have worked with God.” G.K. Chesterton

“There is no way in which a man can earn a star or deserve a sunset.” G.K. Chesterton

“Early summer evenings, when the first stars come out, the warm glow of sunset still stains the rim of the western sky. Sometimes, the moon is also visible, a pale white slice, while the sun tarries. Just think — all the celestial lights are present at the same time! These are moments of wonder — see them and remember.” Vera Nazarian, The Perpetual Calendar of Inspiration

“We have all eternity to celebrate the victories but only a few hours before sunset to win them.” Amy Carmichael

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A Vessel For Him

May not a single moment of my life be spent outside the light, love and joy of God’s presence, and not a moment without the entire surrender of myself as a vessel for Him to fill full of His Spirit and His love. ~ Andrew Murray

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