Mrs. Craver pointed out this bush, saying how pretty it looked, with the snow piled on some areas. It is in front of the house, and we see this plant all the time. I think it's a Juniper. It releases a subtle, but sweet fragrance when you brush up against it.
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More and more, I am learning to appreciate what goes into picture-taking. Boy, some people just seem to have an eye for it; don't they? I carry my camera with me all the time now, trying to stay alert, deliberately looking for contrast, light, angles, etc. I'm not seeing anything new, but I'm taking the time to observe, savoring these ordinary sights in a fresh way..
"It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see."
-Henry David Thoreau
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Last year, I tried (and failed) reading through the whole Bible in the calendar year. This year, rather than try to do the same thing, I am going to switch things up and just try to be a more careful observer, taking my sweet time as I go..
On the drive to work this morning, I enjoyed some memorization from Psalms. I repeated the verses aloud. Then I experimented, emphasizing different parts and using different tones of voice, trying to imagine what it might sound like coming from King David (if he could speak English)..
I don't expect to get through the whole Bible this year, but that's okay. I'll take my sweet time every day with God's word, burrowing deeper, and being careful to notice and savor it. There won't be anything new that I read, but I'll bet that I see some things in a different way!
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16 comments:
Great snowy photo.
Glad you got the cards ok and you welcome, thanks for taking the time to have a go.
Happy 2008.
i think you have the right idea about the Bible. I made it a goal to read the Bible back in 2000 and still haven't finished. I'll spend some mornings with a single verse. Other days I go back to something I've already read. Go where ever the spitit takes you, and like you say, just keep your eyes open!
I have to admit, I have never read the Bible. I'm not exactly a heathen, but, well, I suppose it hasn't been on my list of priorities. Perhaps I should try to rememdy that.
Thanks for the compliment, Imac. I'd love to hear any suggestions you might have about something I might do differently with my pictures.
Welcome, Ed!! Hey, if you haven't read through the whole Bible yet, I would encourage you to just pick up where you left off, and continue with a systematic reading that covers the whole Bible. I welcome other thoughts on this, but I think it's a worthy goal to (at some point) have read through the Scriptures... in their entirety. I'll probably be on again for next year (even if I don't finish by year's end).
Shammy, same thing. Do you wonder what interesting tidbits you might be missing? I was definitely shocked by some details on my first read-through.
If you guys are trying to persuade me to switch back to the program, my mind is already made up. I'm going deeper this year, rather than wider.
it is wonderful how God does bring us along on the same page at times.
also...
i saw this quote this morning, i think that it was on photoblog.
by Henry David Thoreau
"It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see."
i was reminded of it when reading your blog because i can also read the same place in the word at different times and the Spirit speaks to me and teaches me a new bit of knowledge. it is so cool how the Spirit teaches us and changes our thinking and life. it truly is like a wisper sometimes that has to be listened to to notice what is happening. and sometimes the change unfolds overtime and finally at a certian moment appears right in front of my face...bam! like a surprise party!
it is so interesting to me today that i am taking time to realize the moment and i almost get a giddy feeling of the Spirit being with me.
i also was thinking
how freaky it feels
when i actually
be aware of the moment
so much to notice each
second appear as new
and everything happening as new
that it can be
like being so close to God
i can feel and see the creation of it
I agree Dandylions are weeds and must die, BUT when they are in seed they are beautiful, as the eye sees, Angel wings to photograph,The eye see beauty in all things.
I think an even greater challenge where reading the Bible is concerned, would be to read it as though you have never read it before. Not through the eyes of tradition or past experience, but in the light of the finished work of Jesus on the cross. I think THAT would give you a new perspective!
Great picture. I am glad we don't have snow. It's supposed to be 72 on Sunday. I'll be out there raking leaves and cutting up fallen branches from our ice storm last month. I'll try to take a picture or two, but they won't be as stellar as yours!
TM
I wonder if those are yew bushes in your photo. They always took such a beating from heavy snows in the winter but bounced back in the Spring.
Walking slower through anything seems to yield much greater rewards.
My camera is so bulky that it would be a pain to carry everywhere. If I were to do it again, I might have gotten a smaller camera, though I like mine alright, but a great idea, and you do have nice pics you share with us.
I very much like your thoughts on going through the Bible, reading it out loud, etc. I would like to get "the Bible Experience" I believe it is; I blogged on it recently. Very well done. But I'll stick now with my main way of going through Scripture, with book in hand. I just make it regular, morning and night, using the chart in the back of my TNIV Bible for getting through in a year. I take two of those in the morning from Old and New Testaments, and one of them at night- odd calendar days: New, even: Old. I find it doesn't take that long. (And I'm working on going through the Message rendering of Scripture- trying to read a little from it daily, or at least most days)
But the important thing, as you say and point out, is just to be in the word, to soak in it, and let God's word soak into us- get through. It does take a long time; I speak from the voice of years of experience (woops, I forgot you could be a grandpa yourself!) And to let that narrative of Scripture shape us, our outlook and living.
I have read thru the bible a couple of times and find something new everytime I reread!!
Have ya ever gone thru the chronological bible-puts a new spin on things. I(when much younger)always thought it was chronologic until I read the chronologic format.
I always find the wonder of God's blessings in nature.
I appreciate your comments on taking time to really observe what's going on around you and what God is teaching you. We live in such a fast-paced world, we don't simply observe much anymore. A friend and I were just talking last night about observing and "getting to know" our children better. It's a wonderful concept, and I hope to also do more of that this year.
And I love seeing your snowy pictures. Today is sunny and 72 degrees F. We're not too big on seasons here in Texas!
Craver
Thanks for sharing your goal of reading through the Bible and your efforts to memorize scripture. I really appreciate your earnest pursuit for growth.
My church is doing a Bible reading plan together. I typically do not like Bible reading plans but I'm participating in this one...it's modified so that our reading will coincide at certain points with the Sunday preaching schedule for the year.
Nancy, I dropped that quote someplace else this past week. I don't remember exactly where I said it though. Thoreau got this one right, didn't he!
The Holy Spirit is active and doing many amazing works, but he doesn't go around with a big neon arrow, drawing attention to himself, saying "looky what I just did."
Hold it second, TM. You said you're GLAD you don't have snow??? Friend, you should learn to enjoy it because I hear we're gonna have snow in heaven. (Just kidding.)
When you talk about the perspective we read Scripture from, one way I would compare it to is knowing the end of the story from the beginning, and knowingly connecting the dots as the story unfolds.
Well of-a course those are-a MY bushes, Lin. You didn't-a think they was-a YEW bushes, eh?
An aggressive clipping would have been okay by itself, but later, damage from a heavy snow got me concerned about their ability to bounce back. Cross your fingers, please.
Ted, I have this rule about not letting anyone make me carry their purse, but sometimes this camera looks just like that! It's bulky, but I feel like there are so many great moments I would lose if I didn't have it with me.
I read your "Bible Experience" post and thought about what it would be like to have one of these audio Bibles. Right now, the only one I have is a New Testament in Spanish.
You know what, Mommanator? A chronological Bible might just be the thing for me next year. I don't mean this as a slight to naturalists, but I feel like I have a special appreciation of nature, having the Bible as the foundation for my worldview.
That's handy when we can get advance notice on the preaching texts, ESI. That's why I'm trying to memorize one of the Psalms these past couple of days.
"Not too big on seasons" in Texas, Spaghettipie? I thought big was the whole thing in Texas. ;-)
Observing and getting to know our children better... That's harder than it sounds, isn't it? I'm logging off now. Let's see what kind of trouble the kids and I can get into.
Quality is better than quantity. :)
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