Promise Made, Promise Fulfilled

Last Sunday began and ended with me celebrating two promises.  One was a promise made, the other was a promise fulfilled.

On Sunday morning we were blessed to witness the baptism of our grandson.  It was exciting to hear him confess his need for Christ before the church.  His was a promise made.  A covenant which will bode him well for his entire life and assure his eternal life.

On Sunday evening we joined some of our dearest friends as they mourned the death of their son.  As I grieved with them and recalled the events of the day, the Lord reminded me that both the beginning and the end of the day were celebrations of promises.  When Bradley Campbell was 10 he made the same promise that my 10 year old grandson had made that morning.  Now, Bradley has received the fulfillment of that promise.

We grieve with our friends, but we are comforted to know that Bradley's was a promise fulfilled!

For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.

Philippians 1:21

The Season of Bounty

I love this season of the year.  The earth gives up its bounty. The time of harvest is full of promise and reward.

Take time to give thanks for all that the Lord has given you this year.

You have crowned the year with Your bounty,

And Your paths drip with fatness.

Psalms 65:11

Fame and Fortune

These uniforms were all worn by very famous baseball players.  In fact, they are on display at the National Baseball Hall of Fame.  If you are a baseball fan you probably can name each of the players.
Leave a comment if you think you can name them.

These men were famous.  They were heroes. They were "rich".

I don't want to talk about the lives of these men because I have never known any of them personally. Some of them have reputations that are admirable, some don't. This is not about the men, just the uniforms!

God has used these uniforms today to say to me, "What really matters?"

Do I lament that I never achieved the fame and fortune associated with being a "Hall of Famer"? Do I focus the rest of my days on seeking fame and fortune? And, at what costs?

Or do I seek to be the best husband, father, grandfather, friend, neighbor, servant that I can be?

For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world

and forfeits his soul?

Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?

Matthew 16: 26

Making Change

"There are things in my life that I need to change." Who hasn't said that?  It is true for all of us.  Yet, change seems very hard for us to do. Most of us talk about change a lot more than we actually make change.

Change is hard! Change can be painful.

The glassblower changes things.  He takes silica, heats it, and shapes it into something very different.

Are there things in our lives that need to be heated like that? I know there are in mine!

Lord, convict me of that which needs changing. Give me the courage to seek change where change is needed. Give me the strength to truly change.  Give me the determination to endure the heat. And, give me the result which will make me more useful to you. Amen.

So Jacob said to his household and all who were with him,

"Put away the foreign gods which are among you,

and purify yourselves and change your garments;

Genesis 35:2

Don't Be Led Astray

No, that is not the photograph I set out to make.  Does it even look like a key?  Of course not.

When I visited the United States Military Academy recently I had the privilege of seeing the Cadet Chapel.  It is a beautiful building constructed in 1910.

While we were there we talked with the organist.  He had just played for three weddings held in the chapel that day.  He showed us the key to the front door.  Yep. I asked if I could photograph the key.

Taking a photograph of the key required a very long exposure because there was not lot of light in the chapel.  I had a tripod so that was not a problem.  I decided to take more that one picture just to be sure.

The image above does however demonstrate that I had a problem.  Just after I pressed the shutter release to begin the second long exposure another employee of the chapel walked by and picked up the key that I had so very carefully placed in front of my lens.  Kodak (or in this case Fuji) moment gone!  In frustration I picked up my camera and began to walk away.  However, the camera was still taking a picture. That is the picture above.

Here is the first picture I took.

The two are quite different.  One is exactly what I wanted to do, the other is a total mess!

Life can be like that.  We start out on the right path, doing what we rightly chose to do.  Then someone or something comes along to influence us and take us totally away from where we were going or what we were doing.  The result is often like the first picture, a total mess!

I must learn to keep myself on the right path regardless of the world's influences.

You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand,

be on your guard so that you are not carried away by the 

error of unprincipled men

and fall from your own steadfastmess.

2 Peter 3:17

He Has Made All Things Well!

The earth is the Lord's, and all it contains,

The world, and those who dwell in it.

For He has founded it upon the seas

And established it upon the rivers.

Psalms 24: 1,2

I have had a song on my mind a lot in the last few days. It really speaks to a situation I have been praying about.  

All things bright and beautiful,

All creatures great and small,

All things wise and wonderful,

The Lord God made them all.

These words comfort me. They reassure me.  He made everything.  And, He is Lord!

The final verse is the most reassuring to me at this particular time.

He gave us eyes to see them,

And lips that we might tell

How great is God Almighty,

Who has made all things well.

He has "made all things well"! Amen

Good Fruit

Enjoy the fruit that God has created!

The earth brought forth vegetation, 

plants yielding seed after their kind,

and trees bearing fruit with seed in them,

after their kind; and God saw that it was good.

Genesis 1:12

Another Harvest

The season is slowly changing.  The heat of summer is waning and the cool crispness of Autumn is approaching.  I love it!

This is the season of the year for which farmers work.  Harvest time is here.  Every day, as I drive through the countryside, I see tractors busily working in the field bringing the year's labor to an end.

There is a wonderful promise in Genesis.  After the flood God promised never again to destroy every living thing.

While the earth remains,

Seedtime and harvest,

And old and heat,

And summer and winter,

And day and night

Shall not cease.

Genesis 8:22

It is comforting to know that there will be tomorrows, there will be more harvests, there will be another summer.  The challenge is to remember that although those seasons are yet to come, my season may be over at any moment.  

Am I making the most of my seasons? Am I sowing and harvesting as God desires?

What's In My Storehouse?

I love barns!  They come in all sizes and shapes.  But, they are all fun to photograph.

Barns are usually built for one main purpose.  They are for storing things.  They might hold hay, or feed, or animals, or farm equipment.  But, they all act as a storehouse for the farm.

I've been traveling through the Northeast recently.  I have seen some wonderful barns in Pennsylvania, Maine, Virginia, and other states.

I was struck by how some of the barns are beginning to look tired and worn.  I realized that they cannot store things forever.

I began to think about how we store up things - love, compassion, generosity, talents.  Why we store them I don't know.  There will come a day when they will be useless.

Have you ever asked yourself what you are storing and why?

Then he said, "This is what I will do: 

I will tear down my barns and build larger ones,

and there I will store all my grain and my goods.

Luke 12: 18

We Must Not Be Deceived

Sometimes things are not as they seem.  The photograph above was taken recently at the United States Military Academy (West Point).  It shows a wonderful monument to young men who died defending their country.  The fall colored leaves frame the monument beautifully.

There is only one problem with this photograph.  Scroll down a bit to see why it is deceptive.

There was no fall color when I took the picture! I used photo processing software to create the fall color in the first image.

As the political campaigns begin to heat up we hear many promises.  Many politicians will say what sounds good, what might touch our passions, what appeals to us.  Are they speaking truth or are they deceiving us with empty words? If elected, can they really do what they say?

We must examine them carefully. And, we must not allow ourselves to be deceived.  We must not believe that which is unbelievable even if it sounds just like what we want to hear.  We must seek the truth!

Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren.

James 1: 16

How Do We See?

A fact about photographers is that they all "see" differently.  I know many excellent photographers who take photographs that I would never take.  I just don't "see" those scenes the way they do.  Their images are wonderful, but just not me.

Even a single photographer can see a scene several different ways.  The photographs I share today are all of the same flower.  They were taken at the same time, within seconds of each other.  Yet, they are very different. The differences are in the way I processed the photos on the computer.  Changing the exposure, changing the size, changing the light, all of these can make the image different.

You may like one photo more than the others.  You may not like any of them. You may like all of them.  That depends on how you see them.

We are like that in the way we see others too.  We meet someone and almost immediately we make a judgement about that person.  We may find them warm and friendly or cold and crass.  Most of that evaluation is based on our thoughts, not their real personality.

How do you see?

Having eyes, do you not see?

And having ears, do you not hear?

And do you not remember,

Mark 8:18

Being a Light

Nuble Light, York, ME

One of the things I love about visiting Maine is seeing the lighthouses.  I am always struck by how simple, yet how critical they are to so many here.  They stand silently against the winds, rain, snow, and cold, providing guidance to the ships who come near.

Portland Head Light, Cape Elizabeth, ME

Each lighthouse is different, yet each gives the same valuable service to others.

We, as Christians, are like that.  We are so very different.  Yet, we should all be so very much alike.  We should be providing a beacon, a guide for those around us who are in danger.

Owl's Head Light, Rockland, ME

How is your light shining?

Let you light shine before men

in such a way that they may see

your good works,

and glorify your Father

who is in heaven.

Matthew 5:16

What Will the Scales Say?

Yesterday I wrote about the markers, the testimony, that we have left behind as we have lived our lives.

These scales, found in the Vermont Country Store, remind me that those markers give weight to my life.

The question I find myself asking is, "What do the scales say?"  How will my life be judged.  I am not concerned with the judgement of others.  I am concerned with the judgement of God!

I am grateful that he is a forgiving God because I can see much in my life that does not measure up.  All I am asked to do is confess.  He will forgive!

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive

us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

1 John 1:9

How Have I Testified?

I love being in the state of Maine!

The air is cool and there is just a freshness about this place.

Yesterday I saw a wall of great old, worn out buoys. Each of these was once a very important marker for a lobsterman.  Tied to the other end of each buoy was a lobster trap, the source of the man's livelihood.

The bays here is Bar Harbor are dotted with these buoys.  Each is a reminder of where the man has been.  Each leaving a mark for others to see.

Our life is filled with markers too.  We have walked through life leaving markers on family, friends, co-workers, and even complete strangers.

Each action, or lack of action, in our life has left a mark on someone.  My life is a testimony to others.

How have I testified?

It will lead to an opportunity for your testimony.

Luke 21: 13

What is Our Purpose?

I love to photograph flowers.  They are vibrant. They are delicate. They are beautiful creations.

Today, as I looked at these images from a garden in Vermont, I thought about the purpose of a flower. With all of it's beauty, being beautiful is not its purpose.  With all of it's vibrance, being bold and colorful is not its purpose.  The only purpose of a flower is to create seeds.  Seeds which will allow the species to continue.

I applied that to my life.  What is my purpose?  Why am I living?  I should not be living to look good (which I don't), to feel good, or even to be good!  I should be living so that others might come to know God and continue His work in future generations.

What is our purpose?

Splendor and majesty are before Him,

Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary.

Psalms 96: 6

We Must Forgive

Yesterday I visited the Antietam Battlefield. Antietam is actually a creek just outside a small town in Maryland. Near that creek was fought the bloodiest battle of the Civil War.

I stood where, in a single day, 23,000 men were killed or wounded! I walked around a church yard that became a battleground.

I stood on a peaceful hilltop and thought about husbands, fathers, and sons who did not return to their families.

I saw monuments soaring into the clouds to honor and commemorate those who died, and those who lived.

I thought about the horror of war as I heard about how men, for three hours, fought back and forth in a corn field.  I saw the farm where over 700 men were buried in a mass grave. Bodies were dragged into the grave with bayonets that had been refashioned into hooks. There was a field where over a year later bleached bones still lay on top of the ground.

I walked down a quiet little farm lane that became a river of human blood!

And, I saw a banner from the 75th commemoration of the battle.

My thoughts? My thoughts went to the rhetoric of today. And I was overwhelmed with the sense of how we ALL need to forgive. We do not need to say, "They",  we need to say "I"!

Whenever you stand praying, forgive, 

if you have anything against anyone, 

so that your Father who is in heaven

will also forgive you your transgressions.

Mark 11: 25