Christian Photographers Community

Let's make this the best week ever in "Thoughts for the Week!"  What are you doing this week?  Do you have plans?  Where have you been reading in the scriptures?  Want to share with us the blessing you've received from God's Word?

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Morning Devotional...


READ: Ephesians 5:3-6

But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people (Ephesians 5:3).

That charge to Christians must have seemed even more unrealistic and incapable of fulfillment to the pagans of Ephesus than it does to Americans today. Why is it there? Not because Christianity is negative and prudish. The whole of Scripture is written for the welfare of humanity. God's purpose in telling us the truth is that we might fully enter into life. Jesus said, "I have come that they may have life, and to have it to the full" (John 10:10).

Why is this passage here? It is because, as Paul says, even the hint of sexual immorality, impurity, or greed is improper among saints. The word he chooses is a word that means "becoming," "wholesome," "attractive," "refreshing." Who of us has not had the experience of being exposed to something filthy, obscene, or improper in sexual matters and coming from that experience feeling dirty and unclean? What a refreshing thing it has been to come into a company of people who talk about wholesome matters, whose time and talk is filled with that which is healthy. That is what the apostle means. By implication, to indulge in improper talk is unwholesome, unfitting, uglifying, debasing, defiling.

We are being told today that all sex is beautiful and natural, that it is in the same class as any of our bodily desires or urges, and therefore, we should feel free to satisfy it as openly as we do any other of our bodily needs, without shame or apology.

This idea that all sex, any sex, is natural and beautiful is a lie. Like all powerful lies, it derives its strength from being based upon a partial truth. It is true that sex is related to our physical body like hunger or thirst or the need to sleep or any other physical urge. But what is never said is that these other urges also require regulation and control. They are not indulged in at will, any time, any place.

Like these other natural urges, sex requires regulation and restraint. And the intended regulation of sex is marriage! Marriage is the way to regulate sex so that it is right and wholesome and beneficial. Anything else becomes a violation, not only of propriety in Christian society but of elementary humanity as well. One thing is clearly true: Sex is obviously much more complicated that any other of our natural urges. It requires a partner, which no other urge does. And it is not only a physical union but a psychological union as well. In fact, and this is what is so often forgotten, it is the psychological union that is the more important of the two.

Sex is intended to be a total union of two beings, and only in marriage is such a total union possible. It is the giving of two people to each other totally—body, soul, and spirit—with all their possessions, their name, everything they own. Only in marriage is that kind of a union possible.

Father, I pray that I may heed these important words and take them to heart, not to read them lightly or to forget them and give myself to improper practices and improper thoughts.

Here's a nice one from YouTube:

So, let's sing it together.  Here it is to the tune of "The Rose".  Kind of nice too.

Foot is getting a little better now, Mr Jones the consultant, seems happy with it, (he's Welsh, I think he's also chapel you know) I'm still visiting the hospital and the health center regularly, not going out much yet though, so I've been having a look over in Flickr quite a lot, and now I'm getting back to scanning some slides up for posting. I lost all my confidence at doing things so it feels a bit of a struggle getting back to normal, got rid of the hot water bottles and have a nice snug electric underblanket, going to see what you all make of my latest writings in manna, just written one tract. Michael.

Hi Pat,
I loved the You Tube singing.    How are you doing?    Dan is moving to my place and I have been busy.  Talk to you soon. 

The weather is bright, but cold.   I'm still wearing my winter coat.

Love Ruthie

Six -year-old Brandon decided one Saturday morning to fix his parents pancakes. He found a big bowl and spoon, pulled a chair to the counter, opened the cupboard and pulled out the heavy flour canister, spilling it on the floor.

He scooped some of the flour into the bowl with his hands, mixed in most of a cup of milk and added some sugar, leaving a floury trail on the floor which by now had a few tracks left by his kitten.

Brandon was covered with flour and getting frustrated. He wanted this to be something very good for Mom and Dad, but it was getting very bad.

He didn't know what to do next, whether to put it all into the oven or on the stove and he didn't know how the stove worked! Suddenly he saw his kitten licking from the bowl of mix and reached to push her away, knocking the egg carton to the floor. Frantically he tried to clean up this monumental mess but slipped on the eggs, getting his pajamas white and sticky.

And just then he saw Dad standing at the door. Big crocodile tears welled up in Brandon 's eyes. All he'd wanted to do was something good, but he'd made a terrible mess. He was sure a scolding was coming, maybe even a spanking. But his father just watched him.

Then, walking through the mess, he picked up his crying son, hugged him and loved him, getting his own pajamas white and sticky in the process!

That's how God deals with us.. We try to do something good in life, but it turns into a mess... Our marriage gets all sticky or we insult a friend, or we can't stand our job, or our health goes sour.

Sometimes we just stand there in tears because we can't think of anything else to do. That's when God picks us up and loves us and forgives us, even though some of our mess gets all over Him.

But just because we might mess up, we can't stop trying to "make pancakes" for God or for others. Sooner or later we'll get it right, and then they'll be glad we tried...

I was thinking and I wondered if I had any wounds needing to be healed, friendships that need rekindling or three words needing to be said. Sometimes, "I love you" can heal & bless!  Remind every one of your friends that you love them. Even if you think they don't love back, you would be amazed at what those three little words, a smile, and a reminder like this can do.

                                   

Liz

My dad would simply have belted me black and blue for making such a mess.

Hi everyone.  This has been a nice day with very mild weather.  We had a good church service this morning and then 13 of us went to lunch at a bar-b-que place close to the church.  As a result we got home at a very good time. 

I laid down, napped a little and then watched some of the fine basketball games played today.  I then worked on getting my desktop setup the way I wanted it, including updating some of the software.  I just about have everything in good shape and should easily finish it up tomorrow as only have a luncheon to attend tomorrow and have the rest of the day free (at least at this point).  Now I am trying to catch up with the message boards.

Pat, thanks for the devotional for this week.  Glad to see you are safely back in Guelph and hope you will be feeling better tomorrow.

Etta Sue, a good nights sleep does wonders.

Gord, glad to see you are having the opportunity to spend so much time with your grandchildren.  This was and is something we have missed in our family.  However, I knew what this met when I was growing up as spent lots of time with my grandparents and it met the world to me.

Liz, sorry to hear of the medical problems for you and the members of your family.  It appears that we in the USA are headed for the same type of health system you all have.  Right now we can be seen when needed without long delays.

Michael, good to see that you are feeling a little better.  Hope the progress continues.

Ruthie, good to see you posting.  It has been awhile.

Just had a thought as I was about to close down, I decided on scanning just one more picture, its been posted in architecture. The thought was what many other Christians state, and that is, we are all unique, made individually, with all our weaknesses and talents, (I feel a tract coming on) the way we think and see things, and interpret just what we see. I think this photograph goes a long way to proving that God's uniquness is built into each and everyone of us. Take this building for instance, it was completed in 2006, not tall as skyscrapers go, but nothing like it where I live. However since it went up, it has attracted photographers by the thousands, and I've looked at hundreds of photographs, and not one is the same, same building, but like snowflakes not two pictures alike or ideas. its just a little bit of proof that we have been made in the image of our Creator, we are his handiwork, and through creative activity we try to be just like our heavenly father, just like that little story of Brandon there, trying to feel he could create something nice for mum and dad, just like mum makes.


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Pat:  What a lovely song - their harmony is so smooth.  Thank you.

Al:  The little places to eat are often the best & your view sounds super. 

Liz:  Hi - it is really hard to get rid of neck pain because everything we do seems to be related to that area.  Am sure you have tried all the things - warm wraps - even those pillows that are conformed with a deep hollow for your head that support your neck?  I used one for quite some time but it was hard to continue since I like a little pillow.  Take care.

Hi Larry:  Your southern meal sounds very good to me.  I am working hard at trying to get this BP down - it is a mystery because my numbers are good usually.  Suppose I must make a dr. appointment.

Summicron:  I like your post on architecture and the uniqueness in every human. 

It is cooling down nicely tonight and the breeze is really chilly so the house should stay cool.  We didn't sleep well last night so now counting the days until our rental is over.  Missing family too much.  We watched daughter & g-son last night as they were talking about a hockey weekend - I meant to say we watched them on the computer with the video cam they have & we have bought an inexpensive one ourselves.  Don will use it for his two teleconferences this week.  I just have to remember not to walk behind him in the kitchen  - who knows who is watching.  So, I open the garage door and go around the kitchen through the garage & front door just to stay away from that camera. 

Well Liz, I think we "adults" sometimes try to do things for our Father in Heaven when we really haven't learned how yet - and we make a mess too.  Oh there's so much to be learned!  It's too much like my father-in-law used to say - "Alan, what's your hurry?"

Hi, friends,

Well, I didn't make it to church because I was really feeling under the weather. Now, it seems to have cleared up. What a great blessing that our church has begun putting the minister's sermons online, so I'll be able to listen to him as I drink my morning tea.

Pat thank you for that message. I truly appreciate you and how blest we are to be able to be here at CP.

Late yesterday I felt that it might help if I went the 1/2 block up the street to the chapel service. But, didn't dare walk as bad as I felt. Well, the back rear tire on my car was flat. How great it was to rejoice that my son has put me on his AAA account, and I could call for assistance, then someone sat with me while I was waiting and we had a nice conversation.

So, although I missed the service, it certainly was great to feel safe, protected, and cared for.

Y'all have a wonderful day.

Ruth Ann

Hi Pat,
I tried to post a short spiritual story based on bible verses
but it went on limbo. I don't know whether I did something wrong in the process
or it simply got lost in computer glitz.

Happy Easter,
Laughing Peppers

When you do anything like that its usually best to type it as a word document then copy and past it over to wherever you want it, I've done it myself, and you get this horrible feeling everything you've taken so much time write out has just vanished and is unrecoverable, yes we are human, and prone to not thinking, that's how I managed to burn my foot on a hot water bottle, put it in the bottom of the bed unintentionally, and when I got in never thought to remove it, and got a wonderful collection of some beautiful blisters, for some stupid reason it just didn't occur to to me to shift it. The problem is can you remember all the things you wanted to say in that story, to re-write it again?

Quote from: LaughingPeppers on March 23, 2009, 10:28:37 AM
Hi Pat,
I tried to post a short spiritual story based on bible verses
but it went on limbo. I don't know whether I did something wrong in the process
or it simply got lost in computer glitz.

Happy Easter,
Laughing Peppers

It could be that when you posted, someone else was posting at the same time and you may have not noticed the red text saying that and then thinking that your post was posted, it wasn't.

I'm sorry you had a problem.

Want to try again?

Did you know......

• That we'll be SIX YEARS OLD on April 9?


• That we are voting in our Challenge?

Long morning.  I went with Ivalou to her cardiologist.  She was in there an hour...was wondering why so long.  When she came out she said she had to go downstairs.  There she got an echo-gram and we left an hour after going downstairs with her wearing a heart monitor.  She has to wear it for 24 hours.  All routine to see if there are any changes from last year! 

Then we went to O'Charleys for lunch.  I forgot to use my Gift Certificate!!  Ivalou had a couple of books to pick up at the library and then we both got some groceries at Marsh's. 

I have blood work done at 9:45 in the morning so Ivalou will decide if she wants to go with me, then have breakfast and then go somewhere for a couple of hours to have her heart monitor taken off after 1pm.  Hmmm!  Wonder if there is a good movie to see! 

Kitty got a call today.  Her heart cath has been rescheduled to Wednesday!

Hello to all:    I had a quiet but busy day, made some phone calls as we are making plans for a 90th birthday lunch, there will be 20 approx and as it stands I think all will be able to be there.

Later on I made a batch of chocolate chip cookies lots of calories but who would enjoy one with their tea or coffee, perhaps even hot chocolate.

Pat: How long will you be in Canada? Good to see you back.

Now I will call it a day and enjoy a couple of programs on the t.v.

Ruth

Hi everyone.  This has been a nice day as the weather has been great.  I enjoyed a nice lunch with my group of men friends.  This afternoon I finished up restoring my desktop computer and then cloned it to another hard drive and now have a hard drive to keep on the shelf.  I am going to try to clone every three or four months to keep things fresh.   

Tomorrow I plan on putting the additional memory in Pat's computer and cloning her computer so that we have a good backup. 

If only I knew what you meant about "cloning your computer". 

Oh that's simple, it means there are programmes that make a complete copy of everything on your main hard drive, as an image, stores it on a second hard disk drive, then if the computer fails or crashes, the programme restores everything back the way it was before the crash. I think one of the programmes is called Norton ghost, very, very useful.

Here is the lost short story:
I feel now is the best time to share this spiritual experience.

The Reluctant Pilgrim

Amid disturbing world news that highlights the never-ending hostilities targeting Israel, one would think that it would be complete madness, if not suicidal, to travel to such a volatile place. And yet, I found myself in Milan International Airport, staring at an electronic sign with its colorful pixels glaring back at me, spelling out the Air Alitalia Flight departing for Tel Aviv. Along with my wife, I would soon board the aircraft, together with the other pilgrims from St. Thomas More Church. We were to fly to The Holy Land. 

Three weeks earlier, there was a great battle going on in my head. As much as I wanted to visit The Holy Land, I was also dreadfully aware of the potential danger that could ignite at any time along the way. My wife had to persuade me to join the pilgrimage. Her persistence and the irresistible opportunity to photograph the biblical and historical places were instrumental in somewhat overpowering my reservations about the trip.

As we waited for the shuttle bus that would take us to the tarmac, the fear once again managed to creep into my veins. It was corroding my nervous system. The "what If?" revived the old nagging thoughts. Maybe there is a terrorist on board? A suicide bomber perhaps? What about being blown up in the sky? Whoa!! The self-induced paranoia was choking me. I needed something to divert my thoughts. I took some candid shots of our group who seemed undeterred by what was happening in the Middle East. Thanks to my camera, it calmed me down. Before I knew it, we were airborne and there was no turning back. I heard myself praying, "Dear God, I know that The Holy Land has been photographed countless times by many talented photographers. What I will be shooting are just repetitions of their work, but if there is something you want me to shoot, lead me to it and please deliver me back home safely so I can share it, too. Amen." 

As I looked out the plane's window, the clouds below were like huge formations of fluffy cotton. I was marvelling at their beauty when suddenly something strange caught my eye. Out of nowhere, a glint of colors appeared then magically transformed into a circular rainbow. The circle of colors was captivating but when the shadow of our aircraft mysteriously revealed itself inside it, I was mystified. My heart started pounding heavily as I asked myself, "Is this an omen? Is God telling me something?" I sensed something very special was happening. The circular rainbow enclosing the airplane's shadow was like God's way of saying that His angels were escorting our flight. The very thought of it reassured me and dispelled all of my fears. The ghostly sign lasted approximately six seconds, but in that brief duration, I was able to quickly snap a picture of it before it drifted away in rays of light. The mystical experience left me wondering if there was an underlying message somehow connected to the unforeseen events of my life.
"Blessed are those who come." That was the heading of the brochure that was provided by the travel agency. It does feel that way when one's foot touches the Holy Ground. Walking along the path of our Lord's footsteps was spiritually uplifting. Any Christian would feel the presence of Jesus in every step of the way. The journey to The Holy Land was like a homecoming. I grew up knowing about Nazareth as if it was my hometown. The city did not appear exactly the way Hollywood portrayed it in movies, but just like other biblical places in the region, it made me feel welcome. From Bethlehem where Jesus was born to the hilltop of Golgotha where He was crucified, the pilgrimage re-defined my Christian faith. I gained a deeper understanding of Jesus.  And for the first time, I felt the pain of Mary, the mother who witnessed the rejection, humiliation and torture of her Son, who died for our sins.

The first five days of the Seven-Day tour of Israel earned me hundreds of beautiful images of The Holy Land. From those shots, I could easily merge photojournalism and travel photography to create a good slide show presentation of the pilgrimage. But, I still felt empty. Something was missing in the shots.

On the sixth day, towards the evening, God filled the void. Before me was the most compelling picture of all. At the courtyard of the Holy Sepulchre Church, I shot the perfect photographic interpretation of a verse in the gospel of Matthew. "Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven." It was the collective silhouette of my fellow pilgrims that was highlighted by the bright radiating light in the background.

In the afternoon of the final day, the tour guide took our group back to Jerusalem for personal free time. The majority of the group took my wife to explore the souvenir shops, while I wandered around on my own, taking more photos. And just when I thought I had shot enough, I saw two cute little Jewish schoolgirls walking together from a distance. In a game of catch-me-if-you-can, the bubbly one in the red dress sprinted ahead of the other girl. At this point, my reflex took charge and nailed the flow of her motion in three digital shots. It was the second frame that best captured the expression and running action of the little girl. Her happy innocent face was a mirrored contrast to the hostilities between her people and the neighboring countries. Why can't there be a lasting peace in this land? I paused for a moment, thinking for answers when in my subconscious I heard the words of Jesus, "Let the children alone and do not hinder them from coming to me; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."  This verse summed up what is required from us in order to become the perfect followers of Christ. If we could only have the nature of a child, then hatred and vengeance would have no place among nations. Our faith in God would be unquestioning, unwavering and in full surrender. Then it occurred to me that the photo of the little girl was the shot. It was the shot I prayed for. God answered and led me to it. Unlike the massive walls of Jerusalem, God's message has neither form nor shape, but it took the face of a child to make it clear and visible.

By the time we left Israel, I had more than three thousand digital images to take home, but only three of them can sum up the spiritual maturity that I gained from the pilgrimage. The photos of our plane in the rainbow, the pilgrims and the little girl are the key images that unlocked the door to the wonderful gift seeing. The images widened the perspective of the way I see things around me. While my art in photography found a new angle to focus on, I discovered a new color of the rainbow. And that is the color of God's unconditional love for me and the rest of the world.

HAPPY EASTER,
Laughing Peppers

Thank you, Laughing Peppers, for that report on your visit to the Holy Land.  This blessed my heart so much to read and try to visualize what you were seeing and feeling.  Thank you again!
~Janice

What a riveting account of your trip!

I hope that maybe we could post that in a topic all of its own somewhere on the site so that it doesn't "get lost" in the back posts.  I'd love to see the three photos with it.

Thank you so much for sharing it here.

Hi Janice!

I think of you often.  Hope you are both keeping well.

Just a smile for you all...

Thank you Janice and Pat. It is my joy to share it to you.
I am glad you like the spiritual message attached to my short story.

Pat, you have seen the three photos already.
"The Rainbow and The Shadow" was the photo that won the first place in the Mini Challenge: That is Not Natural,
"As Trusting As A Child" won second place in the following challenge:The Holy Bible Says.
and the "Let Your Light Shine" was an entry in the The Holy Bible Says.

God Bless,
Mario Dimain
Photographer for Christ

That is a nice poem, Pat.
It kind of remind me of myself.
Did you write it? It is very well written.

Thanks for sharing,
Laughing Peppers

Thank you, so much, for sharing the story that goes with the pictures.  As I read, I remembered seeing the pictures you spoke of. 

Pat, I think that poem could apply to a lot of us, but I can't remember why I think that.