There has been so much going on in our personal lives that at times I wonder if I am still sane. From 3 emergency room trips, two surgeries, a broken arm, a near fire and most recently a scare that our littlest one needed a surgery we have been spinning so fast it has been hard to keep focused! I realize this is my photography blog, but I also realize that as a photographer and one who "captures character" I am changed by all that has happened. I feel all the more URGENCY to treasure life. I have seen countless times this summer/fall that life is just as the Bible says, "a mere breath" and that time passes quicker than any of us wishes. Psalm 39 verse 5 says it well:
"You have made my life no longer than the width of my hand.
My entire lifetime is just a moment to you;
at best, each of us is but a breath.” (New Living Translation)
and I really think it is hysterical in the Message! Get a load of this:
"...Oh! we're all puffs of air.
Oh! we're all shadows in a campfire.
Oh! we're just spit in the wind.
We make our pile, and then we leave it."
Most of our readers know that we have grieved the deaths of three of our children. After this summer we have truly walked into each situation believing we were losing another member of our family. Each time, God has graciously answered our prayers and restored him or her to us. (Please understand that I do not believe that if we do not get our way in prayer that it equals that God did not answer...it is a matter of our limited sight.) For this reason, we believe we are rescued for a PURPOSE.
For ages, our family has been called to serve overseas. We continually seek where, when and how we are going to have this opportunity. And as we process life, read God's Word (the Bible), pray, talk with others and read good books, we see that we must live life NOW for the very best. We do not know when our time will come to leave our nation and serve somewhere else, so in the meantime we must serve here. We have made personal choices to be serving now and it is wonderful.
One of the events of the summer caused me to fear my own life was over. As we rushed off the the emergency room, I felt a sense of awe/shock, "that is all I did in 37 years?!?!?" Coming through this experience (turns out I didn't die! :)) I realize all the more that I must live in such a way that EACH DAY counts. EACH DAY MUST MATTER. See that verse up there? I am just a puff in the wind. HOWEVER, I can be a puff that impacts the world for good. I can use my limited time in a strategic way that will make a difference in other people's lives. So what if I never write a book, become a famous speaker or even make it overseas? The time is NOW, the people are HERE and I have something to SHARE!!!
(What I have to share is news that this life is NOT all there is. We are not left hopeless in a depressing state. Although I totally admit that life can be difficult, depressing, hard and treacherous, there is hope. God has given us a way out. He has made a way through. He created us, loves us and will not leave us in our sinful state! Jesus is a real person who lived 2,000 years ago and He was perfect. He was God's Son, as crazy as that sounds. He died a criminal's death punishment because He knew that His perfect blood would cover our sinfulness. (This is really weird, but God declares that without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins! This was commonly understood back in the days of animal sacrifice and is understood well in other cultures!) He died and went to hell in our place. Then, He conquered death by coming back to life! (That's Easter!) He lives forever now in Heaven and will take us each there when we die if we accept His death in our place. And that's the GOOD NEWS!! There is more! You don't have to be depressed! You don't have to feel like you are on a treadmill of daily life! There is an adventure to be lived, and God is calling you!)
So you may wonder (if you are still reading this!) what in the world does this have to do with photography? I believe it has everything to do with it! When you understand the preciousness of life, the gift of life and the brevity of life, you can better understand how critical it is to savor the NOW. Your beloved children, niece, nephew, grandchildren are little now. You will blink and they'll be grown. (My own baby is 9 1/2!!) Capturing them now is not only a blast but will bring great joy to you in the future. We do not know how long we have with out beloved family members, and so I seek to make portraits of people being themselves, enjoying life and sharing relationship. When you invest in portrait session, you can be assured that you will come away with treasures forever because as a photographer, I "get" life!