WHEN PASSION MEETS DIVINE APPOINTMENT

For more years than I can remember I have been in Bible Study Fellowship.  For quite of a few of those years I have been privileged to be on the leadership team.  For most of my years in leadership, I was on the administrative staff.  I loved that job.  I was comfortable there.  Well, you know what happens when you get comfortable in a position when serving The Lord.  He moves you!  So, 4 years ago, He moved me to the position of group leader.  I was blessed to lead a small group of 15 beautiful women ranging in ages from 65+ to 20 somethings!  One of those 20 somethings is pictured above.  She and her husband are awesome Christians and we have become sweet friends!  This is my divine appointment with Erin May. 

As a group leader,  I got to lead the discussion of questions that we had studied during the week.  But, I also got to know these women on a deeper level through phone conversations and lunch fellowships.  Most importantly, we pray for one another!  You really get to know a person when you pray for them.  

Erin had asked our group to pray as she and her husband were wanting to start a family.  So, we prayed.  I wasn't surprised when after Bible study ended in May of that year she asked me to lunch and told me the good news that she was pregnant!  So I began praying for the new baby!  Bible study started back in September and Erin was in another group, but I would see her from time to time.

During this next year, I decided to take up photography in a "big" way.  I purchased a good camera, went to South Carolina and studied with a mentor, took online classes and dove head long into something I knew very little about.  I did this because I wanted to take "good" pictures of my granddaughters.  I thought.  This is my passion.

I passionately pursued photography.  I developed a love for it.  I was enjoying it on a level that I couldn't understand.  I wasn't great at it, but I wanted to be, so I practiced.  I prayed for the Lord to send me people to practice with that I could bless.  He of course was faithful to do that!  One afternoon, I was standing on my front porch looking at God's beautiful creation and I felt a prompting in my spirit to ask:  "Lord, why have you given me this passion for photography"?  I would soon know the answer to that prayer.

One Monday after our leader's meeting, I saw Erin in the parking lot of the church.  She was always so sweet to help take care of the leader's children on many Mondays.  She told me that this was the day they were to find out the gender of their baby!!!!  What excitement!  I asked her to text me and let me know.  As the day went on and I didn't hear from Erin, I began to pray.  I knew in my heart that something was wrong. And yes, something was terribly wrong.  This part of course is Erin's story to tell, but the baby was very sick.  She and here husband were encouraged to terminate the pregnancy, but they decided to entrust this baby to the Lord.  Fervent prayer began!

Trusting the Lord is a strong suit of Erin's!  She has inspired me in more ways than she knows.  However, what she didn't know was that I had been given this passion for photography.  So, sometime later in her pregnancy, she posted on Facebook asking if anyone would recommend a photographer for maternity pictures.  Oh my gracious the list was long!  Friend after friend posted names of people who would be fantastic for this project.  At the end of all those posts, I told Erin that I had taken up photography and that I would love to do her pictures.  But, a bonus was that I was "Free!"  Truly, the real bonus was that God had ordained this time.  I loved this sweet couple and their baby and they knew that.  No explanations were necessary. 

We had a blast taking pictures!  Erin was radiant and her husband was a handsome dad-to-be!  They were trusting God with this beautiful child He had created.  I am so thankful that I got to be a part of their story!

We took a lot of pictures and we celebrated their pregnancy!  We were anticipating the birth of Emma Grace May regardless of the circumstances!  What a vibrant testimony Erin and her husband were to me and to all the people who know them.

I am so thankful to Erin and her husband for showing me what trusting God in the darkness looks like.  I am so thankful that The Lord brought Erin into my life just at that time.  I am so thankful that the Lord gave me the passion to learn photography so that just at this moment in time, I could capture their story and bless them with the talent the Lord had given me.  If I never take another picture, I know that I have fulfilled the purpose God gave me with this passion for photography.

So, as my sweet sister-in-law Sheri has told me many times, "there are no accidents in God's kingdom."  I encourage you to be looking for who God is placing in your life.  Be looking for a passion God is placing in your heart.  I never thought that photography would be a spiritual gift!  But,  when you dedicate your work to the Lord, He will direct you.  And, just when you think you are blessing someone with "your" gift, you will be amazed at how you are being blessed so many times more in return!  Love you Erin!

You Can't Hide!

This image brings so many applications to my mind.  I just finished the study of Genesis at Bible Study Fellowship and this picture makes me think of Adam and Eve trying to hide from God in the Garden of Eden.    Parker, my #2 granddaughter, was hiding so I couldn't take her picture.  But I love her little hands so I was rewarded with a sweet shot anyway.

It has been said by a few of my friends,  (I know you are all cringing now so I won't say your names) that when I don't know the answer to something, I just make something up and say it with such authority that everyone thinks I'm right.  I admit it is a skill I have developed over the years.  It has not always served me well, but it makes life interesting.

There is one thing that I know for sure and that is you cannot hide from God.  I have this on the best authority!  It is from God Himself.  I can't go wrong there!  This Sunday the pastor challenged his congregation to think of one person in our lives who may not know Jesus Christ as their Savior.  Then, he began to speak about eternity.  He said that Jesus spoke more about Hell than any other subject in the Bible.  Why do you suppose that is?  It is a real place and He doesn't want anyone to go there!  Trying to hide from God will not let us bypass eternity.  We will spend eternity with God or apart from God.  Jesus described Hell in Matthew 13:40-43  AS the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age.  The Son of Man will send out His angels , and they will weed out of His Kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil.  They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.  Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the Kingdom of their Father.  He who has ears let him hear.

Hearing this made me think that Hell would be my worst day on steroids.  Well, really, I can't even imagine how horrible eternity would be without God.  I don't have to, my eternity is secure.  So I began to pray for the person that the Holy Spirit had put on my heart last Sunday morning.

As a young person, I was a good kid.  Thought that was enough to get me into heaven.  WRONG! I'm not good enough.  Mother Teresa wasn't good enough.  But, Jesus was good enough and He chose to sacrifice His life on our behalf so that we can spend eternity with God in Heaven.  It's so easy!  Look at these basic Truths:

• Genesis 1:1  God is our Holy Creator and has all authority over His creation.  If it wasn't for God, we wouldn't exist.  He has a claim on our lives.
• Isaiah 59:1-2  Sin, an offense against God, separates us from Him.  Romans 3:23  We are all sinners and fall short of God's standard.  In order not to be separated from God, we need to be reconciled to Him.
• John 1:14  Jesus is God the Son who was made man to save sinners according to God's eternal purpose.
• John 1:29, 36  Jesus lived as a man so that he could die for men.  He took all the guilt and shame of sinners upon Himself and endured the judgment of God on our behalf on the cross.  His death, in our place, satisfied God's just anger against sinful rebellious people.  Romans 5:8  Christ's death is a beautiful demonstration of God's perfect love and grace for mankind.
• Acts 2:24  Jesus was raised from the dead by the power of God conquering sin and death.
• Hebrews 1:3  Jesus now sits at the right hand of God.  There He reigns as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.  Jesus, the one and only God-Man has given us the ONLY way for our sinful selves to be reconciled to our Creator God.

After reading these truths about God, sin and Jesus, I challenge you to examine your relationship with God.  What is your response to God?  If you have never received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior will you do it now?  Putting off your response is answering No.  God's desire is that no one will perish.  

I usually post a new blog on Sunday.  The Lord had given me this message that day.  I argued with Him saying that it was too heavy and I'm funny and this is too serious.  Obviously, HE won out.  When The Lord calls me to something, I can't hide.  So, this is from His heart to mine and I share it with you, praying that you will take Jesus into your heart as well.  It's a great adventure and one you will never regret!

Fear

We just returned home from an eight day Disney cruise.  We sailed away from Galveston on the Disney Magic last Friday.  The trip started off with uncertain weather conditions.  As Steve and I drove from Athens to Galveston, the weather got progressively worse.  As we came into Conroe, north of Houston, it began raining so hard that we could hardly see the car in front of us.  When we got into Houston, the rain was even harder and it was as dark as night.  Traffic was, well we were in Houston, so it was bad anyway!  Steve's knuckles were white on the steering wheel.  We crept along and then it started hailing.  Ok, I asked God at that point was this going to be the theme of our trip?  Steve has a new Jeep.  We stopped for a breather at a gas station and then inched our way into Galveston.

I was reminded of when Jesus' disciples had obeyed His command to get in the boat and go to the other side of the lake.  It was just after He had fed the 5,000.  After feeding the 5,000, He told His disciples to take the leftovers with them in the boat.  I don't think He was thinking they might get hungry on their way.  I think He was hoping they would remember the miracle He had just performed and "take it with them".  As they were being obedient and going to the other side of the lake a storm shook them to their core.  The storm was not a result of their disobedience, it was just a storm that Jesus allowed in their lives.

As Steve and I were going through this storm that Jesus had allowed in our lives, I remembered that Jesus, the Jesus of miracles, was with us.  Fear was not an option.  Faith and fear cannot live in the same heart!  This was another opportunity to trust the Lord.  I am thankful to report that we arrived safely on the ship.  We were wet, but alive and well.  The weather from that day forward was perfect.

The above picture also says a lot about fear.  These are my three beautiful granddaughters.  Emma is 8, Parker is 4 and Finlee is 2.  The older girls are thrilled to have their cartoon character come to life.  Finlee, not so much!  She is terrified.  The older girls are smiling and looking into the camera.  (There were several to look into).  But Finlee is looking straight into the eyes of her mother.  Even though she was fearful and crying, she held Minnie's hand and posed for pictures never taking her eyes of mommy.

Where do you look when you are terrified.  When storms come into your life where do you turn your gaze and your focus?  I first ask myself, have I brought this storm into my life through disobedience, or is it a storm that Jesus is allowing to refine me?  Do I need to confess and repent?  If yes, I confess and repent.  In either situation, I focus my spiritual eyes on Jesus, the King of all creation.  He has it all under control.  I can rest in that.  He may not remove my storm, but I know He walks with me through it.

Next time you are fearful, think about your focus.  You can focus on how terrible your circumstances are, or you can focus on how great our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is.  He died for you.  He loves you.  He will walk you through it.

Mother's Day

                                                                                                                                                                   

Today I am reminded how precious time is.  As a "late bloomer" photographer, God has blessed me with opportunities I have never imagined.  I laugh out loud and praise HIM every time someone asks me to do their pictures.  I will always be amazed and thankful for the passion HE has given me.

I had scheduled two photography shoots over the weekend and the weather did not cooperate.  It was windy and very cold for May in Texas.  For a photographer who likes to shoot outdoors, the wind is really a pain.  So, I decided to just take pictures of my daughter and her girls as they went through their normal day.

The picture above is my daughter Sherrie with her baby.  Finlee is #3 in the lineup.  She is enrolled in ISR swim.  (Infant Swim Resourse)  Basically this class teaches your children how to float if they were to fall into the water.  It is amazing!  This is her third child to go through this program.  The other two, who you will meet soon, are above average swimmers at age 8 and 7.

As I watched my daughter with her youngest.  I remember holding my children and smelling their heads.  For all you moms and grandmothers out there don't you remember doing that too?  It was such a natural thing to do.  It is a smell I will always remember.  I am so thankful for these beautiful granddaughters that the Lord has blessed me with, so that I can once again experience "that smell."

As Mother's Day is coming up soon, I would encourage everyone to take the time to hold your children close.  Even if they are grown you can hold them close with a phone call or a note.  Don't wait! Time is a gift from God and is precious!