Finally...

Ok, so I finally got the Christmas pictures ready. In all fairness Christmas is not really over for us, my brother and his wife are heading into Houston tonight. As a family we will have Christmas this weekend... so maybe there will be two sets of Christmas pictures!

I got to spend $20 on Jenny this year. It was really cool how much and what I was able to get for her. With the year we've had a good Christmas would be a huge blessing. The chance to see my brother is a very good start.

These pictures come from last weekend. The snow was a blessing, one I wanted to share.

Well I have more of the snow to share later, don't want to over load one post ;) I'll be back to more regular and detailed posting after the weekend. I have a lot on my mind right now, and things are always busy around the end of the year. So enjoy the pictures and I'll be back with more!

White Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all! We apparently made it to Tennessee just in time to have a white Christmas. We woke up this morning to about two inches of snow and it still falling. While it is quite the blessing to be able to share my wife's very first white Christmas, we also have to travel today. I'm still thankful for the snow.

I did get to take a lot of nice Christmas pictures on this trip, but as I am away from my computer I am unable to any of it yet. No worries though, it will be along soon. I did have a few things I wanted to share.

First is a tradition I have made mine since I can remember. I would always, late on Christmas eve, turn out the lights and set a few candles about and with just the candles and Christmas tree I would read through the accounts of the Nativity. It has always meant a great deal to me. So I wanted to share with you my favorite account.

From the book of Luke chapter 2

1And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. 2(And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) 3And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. 4And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) 5To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. 6And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. 7And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. 8And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. 10And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 11For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. 12And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. 13And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, 14Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. 15And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. 16And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. 17And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. 18And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. 19But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart. 20And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.


I posted the KJV of this section because it is what my Grandpa always read the story from when I was a child and so it still holds meaning for me. I truly hope you have all had a very blessed and merry Christmas. I am going to put up a picture of the only fall colors I had this year, I know it is a tad out of season, but let the warm colors keep you warm on this cold and snowy day just as the light of our savior keeps you warm in your heart!

Merry Christmas Eve...

Its Christmas Eve! We finally arrived at my wife's parents late last night. So we will be in Chattanooga TN for Christmas. It is interesting taking such a long trip with a VERY pregnant wife. There was one point I thought we were going to have to look for a hospital around Birmingham. Thank the Lord that it was only Braxton hicks.

I wanted to take the time to say a very merry Christmas to everyone. This and Thanksgiving have always been my two favorite times of the year. I love the cold crisp air, the family get togethers and warm fires, and the food and giving. Most of all I love the intimate focus on the peace and poetry of a God of love stepping out of glory to be born among men. Humble and low. To remember the nativity is to remember a God so full of love that nothing would stop Him from reconciling His lost children. The nativity would mean nothing without the Resurrection. We have a living Lord to thank for the gifts He gives us, a living hope. Let that be the source and proof of our joy and warmth this Christmas season.

Speaking of family. I have posted the pictures of Trey and Aurlie here. Well they went on a hike with us through Mammoth Cave National Park. This is where Trey and I used to go running. There is a certain overlook that I wanted to take Jenny to. I used to love running this path. The view was always amazing, and at the very bottom of the valley was a lightly wooded area with lush undergrowth where the deer would graze. From time to time I had the pleasure of running with the deer. Man and deer not 10 yards apart running through sun and trees. The memory means a good bit to me so I thought I would share those pictures.

"Such an oath did the gods make of the imperishable, primevil water of Styx; and it jets down through jagged country."

- Hesiod, Theogony 775 ff

I have a love of Greek mythology. It always seemed to add to the aura of this place, running near caves, waterfalls, and dark green waters.

This is the look out. There is something beautiful about the bone white trees stretching to the brilliant blue sky; patched with ever green and rimmed by still Waters. I hope you enjoy it as much as I! Merry Christmas!

Mid day update....

Ok so just wanted to throw up a quick mid day update. Jenny and I are preparing to leave tomorrow for TN, with a stop over in Bama. She is seven months pregnant and we are embarking on a sixteen plus hour trip... sound smart? Well her parents are paying for it and really want us to come up, so that's the plan. We still have packing (which i should be doing now) and preparing for my brother and his wife to visit yet to do. Oh the joys of chaos. Oh well.

I also wanted to comment on the lunar eclipse last night. It was cloudy in Houston so I didn't really get to see much of anything. I did look up the time elapse footage of the eclipse, so I guess I got to see some of it.

And last but not least was the Philly/ Giants game this past weekend. I didn't get to see the game here in Houston, but oh my word what a game. I have been a long time Vick fan. I know there are people who will never forgive him for the dog fighting, but he is the only 'celebrity' I have ever seen offer no excuses, apologize sincerely, and go above what is required of him to make amends. I think that is worthy of respect. I also like listening to his interviews. When asked a question he always gives credit to the team and the coaches and always takes blame for himself. This stands in stark contrast to the arrogance and pride of New England players. They were almost beaten by Green Bay, and were still cocky about it.

In all honesty I think there is something a good many of us could learn from Vick. Humility and hard work combined with a sense of responsibility can cover over a multitude of sins. Vick's past is becoming less and less of an issue for many people, why? Because he lives out what he professes.

Not that the winning hurts...

Now lets throw away any of the details but that last part.... how many people do you know are very good at living out what they talk about? Unless they are jerks that is. Not many. In fact it has become so rare a quality that an entire generation of young people are convinced it is better to be rude and a jerk so as not to be a 'hypocrite'. As wrong as that thought process is because it ignores the fact that reality is made by our actions and feelings are fleeting and often follow what we do, it still shows the state of our cultures self control.

Maturity was once defined as ones ability to practice self denial. If this, very fitting, definition was to be our standard I am afraid very few would be mature. We lack the self control, self denial, or maturity to live by what we say we believe. How often this has hurt the Church, how often now it characterizes people in general.

I hope Vick's personal success continues and that he is able to live a legacy worthy of passing on. I hope I can do the same.

Faces....

Ok so there is a story behind this post. I lived at my grandparents house for about a year. During this time I noticed the haunting image of a significantly elderly elven man in the linoleum floor of the bathroom. From the moment I first saw the character I could see nothing else. Now before you start wondering about my sanity. I have always searched things with a pattern or grain for any kind of image, much like searching clouds for animals.

SO with my sanity established... My grandparents suffer from Alzheimer's and have been moved to a nursing home. The family is now talking about selling their home. That is really difficult for me to think about, for many different reasons. However what is important is that the idea that I may never be in their house again inspired me to photograph my little elven friend and share him. The above picture is slightly edited by removing some distractions and darkening existing lines so they would show. However, beyond the darkening, no further drawing of any type took place. Therefore the portrait is somewhat artistically rendered to offer everyone a chance to meet my little elven friend.

The process also served another bit of inspiration. The following picture was taken at an art museum here in Houston called the Menil. The original picture was one straight line trench with one curl, which makes up the right eye. I then added the rest.

I realized that the black and white was, perhaps, not the best way to display the image for detail's sake, however I felt the black and white fit the atmosphere better. While I doubt a high class establishment like The Menil would agree, I think this fellow would make a wonderful addition to their grounds!

I know these pictures are quite different from my normal work, but I had such fun and such inspiration that I had to share. I hope you enjoy them!

P.S. Through the holiday season I will be traveling some, therefore the post frequency may go down slightly. Please check back often as I will post whenever I am able. Soon to come: fall colors (yes we did see some), Belly shots (if I can get my wife to do them), and more. 

Christmas shopping...

Jenny and I went Christmas shopping today. It is crazy out there, but it has always been fun to me to go Christmas shopping. This year Jenny picked out most of the gifts online and we simply went on a hunt to find them and move on... which did take out a good bit of the fun. It was still Christmas shopping though and it was  fun.

I keep thinking about Samuel Elijah showing up. I cant wait! It will be to late for this Christmas, but I'm still thinking about him a good bit. I suppose not having a job yet that it is a good thing he wont be here for Christmas. I would want to buy him a lot of stuff.

I figured I would put up the last picture we have of him so far. If you look really close you can see his eye lens and it is really cool.

I know it isn't the best picture of him, but it will probably be the last one until he meets the world. He is certainly giving Jenny a fun ride. She says it feels like he is trying to bust out of her side. That would be an awkward moment.

Anyway... onto other topics... I wanted to share a book I read recently. The Church of Irresistible Influence.


 This book is fantastic. The idea is that the Church should be well known in its community. We are called to build bridges of influence into our community. We cannot call them over to our side, we must build a safe and consistent bridge of influence into their worlds by which we may cross the cultural divide and walk with them back across.

Of course Lewis and Wilkins do a much better job of explaining the book than I. Again, if your in ministry leadership I believe this book is a must have.

Anyway, that's about all for today, let me know if you have read the book, I'd love to chat about it.

Smart Phones...

So my mom just got a Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 smart phone... I think she is cooler than I am. I have never really been able to afford the new things; smart phones, high def tvs, tablets, or whatever. At least not until they are far from the new thing. So it was a treat for me to play around with my mom's smart phone today.

The phone works off of the android operating system, and it really just blew me away. I guess I had never seen a smart phone outside of Blackberry. This was way cooler.

Someday I would really like to have a tablet. I think they are really cool, and would have a blast keeping up with all my Internet activities through some device looks like it should be in a SciFi movie.

Oh well enough about technology.


    
   On to reading! I am reading the Wheel of Time series for the third time through. I love these books. Robert Jordan does a superb job of bringing the story to life and he ties such intricate connections that you would expect a story board to look like a spider web. 

   Currently I am reading book 4, The Shadow Rising. The books are a good size, but you get every imaginable perspective; male and female, young and old, good and evil. This series is at the head of my recommendations.

  I have also read Tyranny of the Urgent. This tiny little paper back book is a great reminder of the importance of balanced priorities. In ministry there are so many different things that pull from every side that scream for our attention. Yet if we look objectively few are truly important, most are simply urgent. I think that no is perhaps the hardest word for many good loving ministers to learn.

As for my life? Well little more is going on. I am still looking for a church job. Pisgah Forest Baptist in North Carolina recently contacted me to let me know they are still considering me. I try not to let my hopes get up to much and to be prayerful about all of my decisions, but I know I would really like that job. Regardless I would love a job somewhere.

Sammy is due in late February and we are getting kind of nervous about not having much ready for him. Hopefully I will hear something in time to at least be making arraignments. I am really excited about my little boy showing up. Jenny is getting big enough that you can see her stomach move with the baby. She keeps showing me how shallow her belly button has gotten and I keep telling her that its a baby timer and will pop out when Sammy is done!

Other than various forms of anticipation I guess the only new thing to report is about my photography. The pictures I have for today are more of my cousin Trey and his girlfriend Arley. They were not exactly the most willing models, but their parents wanted pictures so I got my first opportunity to take some portraits. Even if it was impromptu. I would love some feedback on them so please let me know what you think!

Dreaming...

I've been dreaming lately... dreaming of a new lens so I can step up my portrait photography. A lens much like this one.  
The f stop is great and it would widen my 50D out to a normal wide angle lens. This would allow me to get up and close, while allowing a wide enough angle to draw the viewer in. I love the crisp, real view feeling that these give.

The other great benefit is that the fixed focal length forces you to accept the challenge of shooting up close and personal.

Alas the time has not come, for the price is yet to high!


Speaking of beautiful portraits, I found one today on a blog that I would really like to share with you. The photo was on http://kirstenberkabile.blogspot.com/

     

      The wonderful part of this picture to me is the beautiful use of shadow to draw attention to the subject's eyes. The color is striking, without being over saturated, and the tinted window looks almost like a painting. Simply wonderful. 

The rest of Kirsten's pictures have the same warm and engaging charm. She does a very good job.

As for my picture for the day, I am sure it appeals to few, but I really enjoyed the poetry behind it.

The pure new snow on the burned out char of a tree seemed enough to make me smile. To often we choose to see ugly or beauty. Even among our art we draw attention to the beauty of life among the dead.

Yet seldom do we seem to be able to celebrate each season for what it is. Winter brings death and quiet. The world settles into a soft hush like the slow rhythm of sleep. 

All find this season. Eventually. Yet, there is beauty in a story coming to a close; if it was well written. And death is the greatest closing. So the question then is was it well written? 

I pray we can all meet a well deserved rest after a long, warm, and well written story. My grandparents are nearing their homecoming. While I know that I will miss them terribly, I must be happy for them. Life is filled with rush and flurry, hurt and earthy striving. They have written well the story of their lives, and I hope to do half as well with mine. A story is beautiful at it the close because every end brings life anew. I pray the Lord would let them celebrate this season of their lives and know, whatever journey lay ahead, and ending is only a chance to start again.

      I pledge you in this cup of grief,Where floats the fennel's bitter leaf!The Battle of our Life is brief,

The alarm, - the struggle, - the relief, -Then sleep we side by side.

    - An Excerpt from The Goblet of Life by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Discipline?

Ok, so I know there aren't pictures associated with this post, but I needed to weigh in on something and I didn't see making a new blog! I hope you will be patient with me.

My wife pointed out a Dear Abby article to me where a school teacher berated the primal and evil, not to mention unenlightened, barbarity of physical discipline concerning your children. She went on to rant that she could see patterns proving that children who were disciplined in this manner were going to hit other children and were most likely behavior problems. Furthermore she said it caused serious psychological damage...

Here is where I wanted to weigh in...

I was spanked as a child. It caused no psychological issues. It did however teach me appropriate boundaries, the importance of respect and discipline, and stood as a testament that my parents cared enough to do something. I never had to wonder about the reality behind warnings... I knew what consequences were. I never felt my parents were to heavy handed, or abusive, or were hitting me because they were angry. In fact, it was fairly obvious that they didn't like giving me the spanking either.

I find myself confronting an entire generation of 'time out Timmy's" and jelly spined parents that appear, for lack of a better word, afraid of their children. As a Youth Minister and a Direct Care Worker, and the husband of a Teacher, I have seen children practically beg for harsh discipline. Why? They want some proof that someone cares enough to do it. They want the security and safety of enforced boundaries. They want to know that, yes if they step a foot wrong they will face consequences, but that if someone makes a step towards them they have to protection of that same solid parent.

If all they get for any infraction is a time out, what will happen to someone who threatens them? A time out? Hardly comforting.

So here we have quickly decaying boundaries between parents a children, rampant lack of discipline among adults or Children, and a growing belief that anyone who does hold a standard, any standard save tolerance, is barbaric.

The sad fact is parenting without discipline leads to brats that tell their parents what to do so that they feel like their is SOMEONE in some type of control, offering some type of security. We have parents who cant muster enough love to teach their children proper consequences.

Now, for those who strive to stay consistent and strong with their non-physical punishment. I do want to apologize for any offence taken. I do not envy the unmeasurable task ahead of you in trying to figure out how to teach a creative, headstrong, and stubborn child the life lessons they will need to function as healthy adults.

I have never railed on anyone for choosing time outs regardless of my feelings about the method. This is why I did not choose to write a reply to the "teacher" who was spread by Abby. Yet when someone regards someone else's proven attempts to raise a strong and healthy child as barbaric and then spreads this opinion as documented truth, spouting lies, and claiming some sense of positional authority... well needless to say it makes me more than a tad irritated.

Again, I want to apologize for anyone who might find offense, but let it be known from Youth Ministry, to Direct Care, to Public Schools every single serious behavior problem I have ever seen had one thing in common. Parents whose strictest form of discipline was a 10 minute time out, or taking away the child's smart phone for a couple of hours.

Spanking is barbaric? I think allowing a child to grow with never an indication of consequences beyond a time out or having some toy taken away, and then letting them face the world with never a clue... that is barbaric and unloving to boot.

THE DIGITAL STORY OF THE NATIVITY

This was great. I suggest watching it on full screen. Enjoy!

Trey…

 

Over my Thanksgiving visit with family I had the opportunity to take some pictures for my cousin Trey and his girlfriend Arley. They are a fun pair, and I very much enjoyed meeting her.

Let me know what you think of the pictures, they are some of my first attempt at working with someone other than my wife.