See full post over at the new Words of Life blog... :)
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Monday, December 26, 2011
Unglazed ~ Sage
UNGLAZED
A small terra cotta pot sits on the shelf. Imperfect. Amateur. Unglazed.
I cradle it in my hands, feeling the rough ridges of the clay, placing my thumb over the impression of a misplaced fingerprint, wondering why it is unfinished.
I visualize the strong, thick hands of the man I never met, but whose eyes I have stared into, soaking up the twinkle that I see in the the old black and white photographs from the years before I was born.
He was handsome. Strong. Laughing. Loving.
He had a space between his teeth…and he left that to me. I never heard his voice, felt his hug, smelt his aftershave. He died too young, a few months before I was born…
His life seems unfinished. Unglazed.
Turning the pot over, I use my finger to trace the initials on the bottom…R.H. Robert Holland. My grandfather. I wonder why I never met him. And how life would be different if I had. But that is the past. And those questions are futile.
I form a pot…the wet clay molding to my fingers as the wheel turns. I am also a vessel. Being molded and formed and fired. I want to be used…to be loved…to fulfill the purpose The Potter has…
For now, I am imperfect. Amateur. Unglazed.
From Something Sage
Photos by Tera
A small terra cotta pot sits on the shelf. Imperfect. Amateur. Unglazed.
I cradle it in my hands, feeling the rough ridges of the clay, placing my thumb over the impression of a misplaced fingerprint, wondering why it is unfinished.
I visualize the strong, thick hands of the man I never met, but whose eyes I have stared into, soaking up the twinkle that I see in the the old black and white photographs from the years before I was born.
He was handsome. Strong. Laughing. Loving.
He had a space between his teeth…and he left that to me. I never heard his voice, felt his hug, smelt his aftershave. He died too young, a few months before I was born…
His life seems unfinished. Unglazed.
Turning the pot over, I use my finger to trace the initials on the bottom…R.H. Robert Holland. My grandfather. I wonder why I never met him. And how life would be different if I had. But that is the past. And those questions are futile.
I form a pot…the wet clay molding to my fingers as the wheel turns. I am also a vessel. Being molded and formed and fired. I want to be used…to be loved…to fulfill the purpose The Potter has…
For now, I am imperfect. Amateur. Unglazed.
From Something Sage
Photos by Tera
Monday, December 5, 2011
Monday, November 14, 2011
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
A Strong Tower
"The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe." Proverbs 18:10
"These towers - built by individual families to safeguard valuable plots of farmland – were once a common sight along the hills of ancient Galilee, Samaria, and Judea." ~ Nazareth Village
My daughters said it was freezing cold outside when they were at the Grand Canyon. It had just snowed the previous night and the wind was blowing intensely. When they entered the tower, it protected and shielded them from the strong winds and the bitter cold.
Back to the scripture..."The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe."
"The metaphor suggests a righteous man running into an immensely fortified tower being elevated high above the surrounding danger." John J. Parsons
The Name of the Lord is a Strong Tower...that means it is protection and defense from enemies. It is comfort and aid. It is a valuble storehouse of spiritual food. It gives us eyes to see all around us and enables us to be prepared for whatever may befall us. It is the Rock, and our Shield and Defense. Let's run to it and take hold of this truth.
"And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved." Acts 2:21
You can read more about the Name of the Lord at Hebrew for Christians
My daughters just visited the Grand Canyon and brought home some incredible pictures of The Desert View Watchtower. I have to say here that I am fascinated with archaeology, and I am aware of the fact that there are ancient watchtowers not only in the Old World, but here in North America as well. This particular watchtower at the Grand Canyon was modeled after the towers in Mesa Verde, Colorado and Hovenweep near Aneth, Utah. These amazing rock structures were thought to be built by the ancient Anasazi Indians.
The structures shown above in Hovenweep National Park were used as living quarters, storage areas, and defense towers.
In Mesa Verde National park the towers are square and round...
Round Tower by Ansel Adams, 1941
Click on this link Desert View Watchtower to see a video explaining about the design and building of the watchtower at the Grand Canyon.
Photos of Desert View Watchtower by Sage and Tera
In the Old World strong towers were built for protection...
"These towers - built by individual families to safeguard valuable plots of farmland – were once a common sight along the hills of ancient Galilee, Samaria, and Judea." ~ Nazareth Village
Here is a stunning lithograph of an ancient strong tower in Petra by artist David Roberts...
So, we see that strong towers were built to protect and defend from enemies, to give comfort and aid, to store valuable crops, and to have a view for miles around, so as to be prepared for whatever may happen.
My daughters said it was freezing cold outside when they were at the Grand Canyon. It had just snowed the previous night and the wind was blowing intensely. When they entered the tower, it protected and shielded them from the strong winds and the bitter cold.
Back to the scripture..."The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe."
"The metaphor suggests a righteous man running into an immensely fortified tower being elevated high above the surrounding danger." John J. Parsons
The Name of the Lord is a Strong Tower...that means it is protection and defense from enemies. It is comfort and aid. It is a valuble storehouse of spiritual food. It gives us eyes to see all around us and enables us to be prepared for whatever may befall us. It is the Rock, and our Shield and Defense. Let's run to it and take hold of this truth.
"And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved." Acts 2:21
You can read more about the Name of the Lord at Hebrew for Christians
Monday, October 24, 2011
Shadows of Things to Come ~ Gratitude
I have really been intrigued with shadows of late...
In my paintings they stream across pathways and under bushes...
I've also realized that when I'm out walking in the early morning with the sun behind me, I am never alone, because there before me or beside me is my shadow. I like my shadow. It looks healthy and vibrant as it bounces along beside me.
It reminds me too that I really, truly am never alone, because Yahshua is always with me.
Walking at the lake this morning was so absolutely gorgeous. It was early just before sunrise, and there was a mist enshrouding the water...
Walking at the lake this morning was so absolutely gorgeous. It was early just before sunrise, and there was a mist enshrouding the water...
A flock of Canadian geese were leisurely floating atop the water through the mist...further on down the shore as the sun began to glow above the horizon, small white beaked ducks were huddled together along the shoreline. I thought at first that they were Canadian gosslings, but looking closer I noticed their white beaks and come to find out they are possibly American coots...
Now the sun has risen higher and an orange glow gleams across the water. The sunlight streams through the trees with a golden sheen lighting up the dew on the grass like diamonds scattered in all directions. The shadows darken, in contrast to the brightening hues of light.
A lone Heron sitting on a rock out at the distant point that juts into the lake is waiting... watching over the light blue water that reflects the color of the sky.
Two fishermen in a small boat are also watching and waiting, silouetted against the glowing orange, now turning yellow, of the rising sun.
I praise God for the gift of seeing all this beauty before me, for the gift of hearing the beautiful sounds of the birds twittering their songs of the morning... of the geese honking and taking off in flight...
And then a wonderful scent wafts towards me...ginger? I immediately think of ginger bagels and hot coffee...And again I praise Yahweh for the gift of smell and the gift of taste.
Shadows of things to come...this morning was so heavenly and yet we are promised an eternal life so much more magnificent than anything we can experience here...this morning was just a shadow of things to come...
Photo of sunrise by Anna
Gratitude 901-915
Monday, October 17, 2011
"He Shall Gather the Lambs with His Arm" ~ Isaiah 40:11
Here is a beautiful depiction of our Great Shepherd by Spurgeon and a beautiful painting to go along with it. I just love the comfort and encouragement that these words bring...
"He shall gather the lambs with His arm."-Isaiah 40:11
Our good Shepherd has in His flock a variety of experiences,
some are strong in the Lord, and others are weak in faith, but He is
impartial in His care for all His sheep, and the weakest lamb is as dear
to Him as the most advanced of the flock.
Lambs are wont to lag behind,
prone to wander, and apt to grow weary, but from all the danger of
these infirmities the Shepherd protects them with His arm of power. He
finds new-born souls, like young lambs, ready to perish-He nourishes
them till life becomes vigorous; He finds weak minds ready to faint and
die-He consoles them and renews their strength. All the little ones He
gathers, for it is not the will of our heavenly Father that one of them
should perish.
What a quick eye He must have to see them all! What a
tender heart to care for them all! What a far- reaching and potent arm,
to gather them all!
In His lifetime on earth He was a great gatherer of
the weaker sort, and now that He dwells in heaven, His loving heart
yearns towards the meek and contrite, the timid and feeble, the fearful
and fainting here below. How gently did He gather me to Himself, to His
truth, to His blood, to His love, to His church! With what effectual
grace did He compel me to come to Himself! Since my first conversion,
how frequently has He restored me from my wanderings, and once again
folded me within the circle of His everlasting arm!
The best of all is,
that He does it all Himself personally, not delegating the task of love,
but condescending Himself to rescue and preserve His most unworthy
servant. How shall I love Him enough or serve Him worthily? I would fain
make His name great unto the ends of the earth, but what can my
feebleness do for Him? Great Shepherd, add to Thy mercies this one
other, a heart to love Thee more truly as I ought.
The Lost Lamb Painting by Del Parson
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