Hey, Teacher! Hey, Writer! You there – the Photographer! And You – the Preacher! Yes, You – Project Manager! Yeah, You – the Speaker! And, yep, You, the ______________.

This post is for You! You, the person who creates…anything…and we all…create something. It can be art or solutions or designs or stories or meals or lesson plans or _____________. Take a minute and watch this video.

You need it.

Me, too.

Give yourself a break, Kid. You’re still learning. You’re still in beta.

Da Vinci painted one Mona Lisa.

Beethoven composed one Fifth Symphony.

Gustave Eiffel designed one Eiffel Tower.

God create one you. One me.

And you and I are fearfully and wonderfully made.

For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.

Psalm 139:13-14 (NIV)

I’ve been reading a book by Max Lucado. These words encouraged me.

(from Outlive Your Life: You Were Made to Make A Difference by Max Lucado)

Craft & Vision 2

I love free books – especially free photography books! I’m pretty excited to share this one with you by Craft & Vision. I own several, truly beautiful ebooks by them and just love them.

Their latest release, Craft & Vision 2 is available to download at no charge. It’s full of great tips and instruction on how to create better photos. If you’d like to improve  your photography, then you’ll really enjoy this book. (And, if you don’t like to read, the pictures are gorgeous!)

Click here to view more details and to download the ebook for free

Inside you’ll find articles by six Craft & Vision authors, including nine unique ways to improve your photography. It is a gorgeous ebook that will help photographers of all levels to make stronger photographs.

Let me know what you think!

I’ve spent much of my life trying to be invisible and, yet, longing to be seen. I’m sure this has been some sort of safety mechanism left over from childhood. I’m aware of it now but sometimes I still try to hide.

I learned this morning that the Zulu tribe in South Africa greet each other with “Sawubona.” Translated this means “I see you.” Can you imagine the impact a greeting like that could have in our social circles, if we said it and meant it (in a good way, that is)?

The God Who Sees Me (and Hears Me)

Do you recall the story of Hagar?  She was the Egyptian handmaid to Sarah. It’s cool to note that Hagar means “uncertain.” After 10 years of being unable to conceive, Sarah asked her husband Abraham to sleep with Hagar so he could father a child. When Hagar became pregnant, she treated Sarah with contempt. Sarah, in turn, treated her harshly. Then pregnant Hagar ran away in the desert.

The Angel of the Lord found her.

 ¹¹And the angel..said, “You are now pregnant and will give birth to a son. You are to name him Ishmael (which means ‘God hears’), for the Lord has heard your cry of distress…

¹³ Thereafter, Hagar used another name to refer to the Lord, who had spoken to her. She said, “You are the God who sees me.”

Genesis 16: 11,13 NLT

Uncertain had a baby named God Hears. Uncertain was encouraged by God Who Sees Me.  How awesome is that?

Oh by the way, after God encouraged Hagar, he told her to go back to Sarah. Running away from conflict wasn’t the answer for her. The God Who Sees Me was.

Reflect:

• Do you ever try to hide? Feel invisible? Believe that you are less valued than others? Long to be seen and heard? Feel tempted to run?
• What does it mean to “see” someone? To “hear”?
• How does it make you feel knowing that one of God’s name is El Roi – “The God Who Sees Me”?
• Get the whole story, read Genesis 16 to go deeper. This is a rich story full of conflict, emotion and healing.

May our hearts break for the needs of others.

I feel an urgency…a growing restlessness…these days to do something more with my life. Maybe it’s just midlife or maybe it’s growth – but I want to have more of an impact on my world and to inspire others (especially my family) to do the same. I don’t want to be so stuck in the daily routines of life that I miss it…miss the opportunity to outlive my life.

This story inspires me:

Some years back a reporter covering the conflict in Sarajevo saw a little girl shot by a sniper. The back of her head had been torn away by the bullet. The reporter threw down his pad and pencil and stopped being a reporter for a few minutes. He rushed to the man who was holding the child and helped them both into his car. As the reporter stepped on the accelerator, racing to the hospital, the man holding the bleeding child said, “Hurry, my friend. My child is still alive.”

A moment or two later he pleaded, “Hurry, my friend. My child is still breathing.” A moment later, “Hurry, my friend. My child is still warm.”

Finally, “Hurry. Oh my God, my child is getting cold.”

By the time they arrived at the hospital, the little girl had died. As the two men were in the lavatory, washing the blood off their hands and their clothes, the man turned to the reporter and said, “This is a terrible task for me. I must go tell her father that his child is dead. He will be heartbroken.”

The reporter was amazed. He looked at the grieving man and said, “I thought she was your child.” The man looked back and said, “No, but aren’t they all our children?”

Indeed. Those who suffer belong to all of us. And if all of us respond, there is hope.

Lucado, Max (2010-09-14). Outlive Your Life: You Were Made to Make A Difference (Kindle Locations 811-825). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.

A prayer:

Lord,

Sometimes…actually often…I get too caught up in the daily routines of life. Many of these routines are important and necessary but I forget to look up and see the needs of others – especially the needs of those outside my immediate circle. Lord, give me – give us – the eyes to truly see the suffering around us. Lord, help us to outlive our lives by being your hands and feet to a hurting world.

May our hearts break for the needs of others.

Amen.

This summer I’m going to northern India with my daughter Kadie, sister Susan, and my friend Annie. We’re joining a team from Linc Ministries to reach out to women and children.

More info to come but if wondering why take a look at these faces…

These images were taken by Katey Lee on last year’s trip. Beautiful.

Found this quote in Grace: More Than We Deserve, Greater Than We Imagine by Max Lucado

“I find television very educating. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read a book.”
Groucho Marx

I’m reading two wonderful books right now:

• Grace: More Than We Deserve, Greater Than We Imagine by Max Lucado
  
  Max Lucado is one of my favorite Christian authors. This book is encouraging and reminding me of who Jesus is and what true Christianity is all about.
  Here’s a favorite quote:

  Here’s my hunch: we’ve settled for wimpy grace. It politely occupies a phrase in a hymn, fits nicely on a church sign. Never causes trouble or demands a response. When asked, “Do you believe in grace?” who could say no?

  This book asks a deeper question: Have you been changed by grace? Shaped by grace? Strengthened by grace? Emboldened by grace? Softened by grace? Snatched by the nape of your neck and shaken to your senses by grace? God’s grace has a drenching about it. A wildness about it. A white-water, riptide, turn-you-upside-downness about it. Grace comes after you. It rewires you. From insecure to God secure. From regret-riddled to better-because-of-it. From afraid-to-die to ready-to-fly. Grace is the voice that calls us to change and then gives us the power to pull it off.

  When grace happens, we receive not a nice compliment from God but a new heart. Give your heart to Christ, and he returns the favor. “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you” (Ezek. 36: 26).

  Lucado, Max (2012-09-11). Grace: More Than We Deserve, Greater Than We Imagine (p. 8). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.

• APE: Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur-How to Publish a Book by Guy Kawasaki and Shawn Welch

If  you are considering writing a book, read this. I’ve read about half of it today; not only is it a pleasure to read but it’s full of excellent, practical info. I’ve been a Guy Kawasaki follower for some time. He is as genuine and real as they get. 2013 could be your year to publish. If you’re serious, APE will show you how.

National Geographic Best Photos of 2012

Photographers who take photos from a unique perspective create the most compelling photographs. They give us a view of a life, place or idea that we may have otherwise missed. The unique vantage point helps tell a great story.

And so it is with our lives…perspective is everything. Some call it attitude. Others may say paradigm or faith or beliefs or religion. Whatever you call it, our life’s perspective affects the story we tell.

This year, 2013, what is your perspective? Just like a photographer can choose to create a photo standing up or laying on her tummy or from a high point, we choose our perspective. Our attitude. Our paradigm. Our faith. Our belief. Our religion.

I have no idea what 2013 will bring. Whatever may come, this year I want to live my life’s story from a place of hope.

What are your thoughts for the New Year?

Have you seen the best photos for 2012?

• Best of 2012 – National Geographic Magazine Photos of the Year
• Reuters: Best Photos of the Year 2012
• Boston Globe’s Big Picture: Best of 2012 Part 1, Part 2, Part 3
• Time Magazine: Best of 2012
• Business Insider: Best 2012 London Olympic Photos