Water. Rock. Sun/Son.

This summer, I made my way across Ontario entirely by myself, camping along the way. As I was travelling during the week, there were even times when I was the only person staying over night in my area of the campground. For the first time in my life, I was truly alone and without somewhere to call home - I had yet to move into my new apartment, but everything was already gone from my old place, packed and being shipped in a large truck. For that week, I was utterly alone, and living out of my car. Strangely, I kept finding myself being drawn to the secluded beaches, rather than hiking through the trees as I normally prefer. I would end up sitting on the beach for hours on end with nothing but my thoughts and my camera, attempting to capture what I was seeing well enough to explain the emotions I was feeling. It was at this spot in Neys Provincial Park that I finally realized why I was repeatedly being drawn to the beach. 

John 4:14 but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life. 


Psalm 18:2 The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. 


1 John 1:7 but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. 


It was in these spots that I was clearly being shown physical reminders of the greatest gifts God has given us. The water crashing up against the firm rock I was laying on, the cold spray jolting me awake, and the sun providing me with a comfortable warmth. 


I realized the beaches at each campground were giving me a great opportunity to be reminded of God's presence in my life, as well as the many gifts He has given me. Although I was alone, I never felt lonely, and until this point I hadn't figured out why. But being surrounded by the water, rock and sun He created reminded me that God is always with me. He is forever holding me up on His rock so that I don't get swept away by seas of sin, yet still sprinkling me with water to remind me that I am alive because of Him. And even when my surroundings appear cold and damp, His light provides warmth and guidance that cuts through to my soul. God is with me, and His living water is in me, forever having me connected to Him. 


Praying that we can all feel the comfort of God's presence with us, even when we feel we are alone. 

Long Overdue...

This post has been a long time coming.... but as with many things you aren't able to properly see them until after the fact. And as with anything else, when you're trying to view it in the dark, it's even harder to see. Thankfully, I'm never in complete darkness even when I forget to keep my eyes open - or try to shut them as tight as possible.....

So what may at first glance look like this...

Actually looks like this once you remember to open your eyes and let the light in...

Exact same image, but one has hasn't permitted the light to be properly exposed, while the other has allowed the light to show what's been there all along. 

Isaiah 42:16 ... I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground. These are the things I do, and I do not forsake them.

John 8:12 Again Jesus spoke to them, saying "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." 


While not always easy, with just a little work we can see things we haven't noticed - or were even afraid to look at. Even when we want to see, but believe it to be too dark for any light to come through, it's clearly there - we just need to be willing to open our eyes and follow it.

True Reflection

Often when I show this photo to others they want to flip it upside down because they can see the sky more easily in the reflection than by looking up at the real sky. In fact, many have a hard time seeing the actual clouds in the sky but are pleasantly surprised to see that the clouds do exist once they see the clouds reflected in the water.

2 Corinthains 3:18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.

As Christians we should hold this as a goal - to so easily reflect the Lord and to have become so Christ-like that those who are too afraid to look upwards to the truth, will still be faced with its reality. To be confronted with the Truth in such a way that they want to flip their lives upside down, just as ours were once we accepted Christ as our Saviour.

Praying that we can all be such a mirror for those around us.

Fearlessness...

Encouragement can come from the most unexpected places. In this case, from a wild animal that had every right to respond to the "fight or flight" instinct, and take off running before I had even noticed his existence. But he didn't.

In truth, my fear that he would suddenly jump in front of my vehicle, or take off before I could turn on my camera seemed to be exponentially greater than any he had of me. He seemed to be just as content to watch me, as I was to watch him. The clicking of the camera shutter had him moving his ears to and fro, but never did it appear to cause him any serious alarm. Veritably, the deer understood my desire to have him model for me in this impromptu photo shoot, and graciously changed positions several times while remaining in the exact same spot for over 10 minutes.

It wasn't until I put my camera down that he slowly walked away. His beauty, grace and poise had me captivated until he vanished. His fearlessness still has me captured.

Now as for me....

New job, new city, new social circle..... yep, here comes the fear. Or so I expected. Change isn't usually easy for me, however I fully trusted God, and that this is where I was suppose to end up. And because of that, the fear never came. In fact, this change will probably be the easiest one of my life, and I'm not only excited about it, but am becoming quite anxious for it to happen.

But these are the kinds of fears that we are expected to face, and overcome throughout our lives. The knowledge that others have, and will continue to face them somehow makes it slightly easier to face them as well. However,bridges are something else.

Since the age of three, travelling across one (especially on foot) brought about so much fear that a panic attack would ensue. Racing heart, shortness of breath, trembles so bad it was difficult to keep moving. And tears. Lots of them. It went beyond fear to a full-fledged phobia. Size didn't matter - big or small, it brought the same reaction. The older, wooden ones were probably the worst though - the thought that a single, rotten plank could cause me to crash through to the (undoubtedly) cold water below was almost incapacitating. An embarrassing fear that required me to warn friends I was travelling with because there would be no hiding my discomfort from them - no matter how hard I tried.

But that was before I learned to put my fears - ALL of them - in God's hands.

Psalm 56: 3-4

When I am afraid, I will put my trust in You. In God, whose word I praise, In God I have put my trust; I shall not be afraid. What can mere man do to me?

If the Lord can protect me from every evil imaginable - including death - then why should I fear a simple bridge? A pretty basic question, but one that took me a long time to consider, and even longer to realize that the answer was "I shouldn't". So I put my trust in Him and stepped out on to the bridge to take a picture. And another. And another.

Although a simple feat for most, it took a big breath and an even bigger prayer for courage for me to take these steps. And I'm glad I did. With photography, the slightest change of angle can dramatically change a photo from a "nice snapshot" to an awe-inspiring image. A whole four feet on the bridge allowed me to see things from an entirely different view - and I don't just mean from behind the camera lens. I could have spent the entire time worrying that I was going to have a panic attack, but instead was thankful for the ability to see things from a new angle. And eventually I even stopped thinking about the fact I was on a bridge. The reward for trusting Him with my fears was well worth the immense effort that first step took.

Praying that we can all find the strength to trust God with our fears, and that we can appreciate the rewards He gives us when we do.

Spring Surprises

A spring walk revealed I could make friends much easier than I thought....

He was running to greet me, not trying to get away...

He seemed to enjoy having his photo taken - even once he discovered I didn't have any treats for him. Given that this chipmuck should not be even close to tame (given the area of my walk, and the reactions of other local residents) I was quite surprised at his willingness to investigate me, and to stick around and show me where he'd buried several of his goodies. Other than in areas where passers-by regularly feed the locals, I've never born witness to such a fearless friend.

My other discovered surprise is that Trilliums come in more than just white. I'm clearly not a horticulturist, but after years of seeing them on every piece of government information I just assumed that they only came in the one colour.

Before I knew it, I was walking by a sea of Trilliums - something else I wasn't expecting as when I was a child I would be lucky to see more than one or two in the same area.

Simple surprises, and yet they brought such a large amount of pleasure. At first, I actually felt rather silly for being so happy after experiencing these things that could otherwise be considered quite normal, and ordinary.

Genesis 1: 29-30 Then God said, "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you; and to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the sky and to every thing that moves on the earth which has life, I have given every green plant for food"; and it was so.

But He clearly knew that these things would bring us joy. And since they were given to us, they were meant to be experienced in a way that would allow us to be happy in such a simple way. We really don't need anything other than Him and what He has given us to make us content in this life. The sooner we're okay with that, the better.

Praying that we can all find such unexpected joy in in such simple surprises.

Built upon the rock

Matthew 7: 24-25 Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.

Knowing that I have a rock as my foundation is indescribable - the security, the comfort, the peace. Especially knowing that no matter how many times I jump up and down trying to break my foundation (and trust me I've tried more than once - but don't ask me why) it will ALWAYS remain firm beneath me, supporting me even if I forget to notice that it's there - because the rock never forgets that I'm here and that I'm in need of a foundation.

This photo was taken in a city where my foundation became firmly established upon the rock.

Praying that those I care for have a firm foundation - or that they come to truly understand the need for one.