CHILDREN'S MINISTRY SUNDAY

My drummer hubby!!


Today was Children's Ministry Sunday - the one Sunday of the year when "big church" is taken over by Children's Ministry. We do everything kid style, worship, drama, teachings - it's AWESOME!!! Today was incredible - God showed up in mighty ways (as He tends to do). The drama we did was Willow Creek's version of "New Testament Rewind" (of course, materfully rewritten 'Mountain Style', which, I might add, was stinkin' hysterical and so much FUN!!!). It perfectly followed our latest sermon series "Around the Word in 80 Days". Last year on Children's Ministry Sunday, we did the "Old Testament Rewind" - so it all worked out just great!! I'm working on getting a video clip put on the blog (UGH, can't figure it out). But you can enjoy a slideshow of the day by entering the code "CMS" under the client section of my site HERE.
PS) All photos courtesy of Little Miss Timeless and Treasured (my sweet daughter, and aspiring photog Kirsten).

MY WORLD BEHIND THE LENS

Every now and then I get a client who is curious as to why after seeing me take what seems like hundreds of pictures, they only receive 40-50 proofs. Today I'm going to bare my photographer soul to you and show you all the un-edited outakes from one of my recent sessions!! (So very unprofessional of me, and very brave). So you can experience what it's like to work with kids, from behind the camera. All the silly faces, blinking, talking, sticking out tongues, and altogether goofiness. But usually these kinds of sessions are so much fun and there is so much laughter that you end up with some really great shots too! Some of these are actually really cute! Enter the code "goofy" under the client section HERE. ENJOY!! (This is for you Linda!!) And just in case you missed the "real" pictures, you can find them under the code "k".

WEDDING PICTURES

I was finally able to get the time to work on the wedding pictures. I was the second shooter for a wedding a few weeks ago - so I didn't get all the pictures I would have liked to. I edited some of them real quickly today, just for fun. But here are some of them - go to my site and enter the code "oliver" under the client section. The other photographer took all my pictures and did all the editing to present to the client. You can see the FULL wedding day at www.sweetcaptures.com and enter the code "Hannah" and password "Ben".

COMPUTERS

How did we ever live without computers? My desktop has been down since last Thursday. It felt like I was missing a limb or something. How have we become so entirely dependent on them? I felt like I couldn't do anything!! Check the weather - nope, check the bank account, nope, e-mail, yeah right. Anyway - thankfully we are back up and running (thanks to an amazing Comcast guy who thought it his personal mission for the day to figure out my rebellious computer, when it wasn't even a Comcast issue!!) We are in our last week of summer vacation with lots to do!! Happy last week of summer (for most of you).

A TRIP TO OHIO

We had a wonderful extended weekend trip to visit our friends the Martin's in Ohio. This is Sophie - the newest Martin! Check out Wendy's new blog HERE
We enjoyed visiting Iniswood Gardens - a photographers dream location for sessions!!

Some guy time in the basement jamming to "Rock Band".
Visiting the Columbus Zoo. Alexander and Kirsten have been friends since they were four, and Hannah and Noah ever since they can remember!! They are great friends of ours and we love to vacation together. The Martins used to live here in Maryland and then relocated to Atlanta, GA, and now they are in Ohio!! We are so happy they are a little bit closer for quick trips!

Visiting "Magic Mountain" with the younger kids while the Dad's took the two oldest to "Cosi Science Center".
Having fun discovering the creek in the backyard!!

HER FIRST SHOW

What an amazing day!! Kirsten's first horse show - we are all finally coming down off the adrenaline rush. She did amazingly well for her first show - and received a Fifth Place ribbon. We were all thrilled!!Kirsten with "Know No Limits"
Absolutely hysterical!! We need a life size print of this one! Always keep a sense of humor - and remember to brush your teeth!!
Kirsten and her riding buddy Mary Ellen.
Getting ready
Kirsten and Mrs. Leigh


Checking in with Dad - "Are you sure she can't come home with us??"

In the dressage arena

In the cross country arena

Stadium jumping

Kirsten and her trainer, Leigh.
Landing on one foot! Oh my goodness - WE DID IT!!
The results are in...
Her first show ribbon - Fifth Place!!Two of her best friends were there to cheer her on!!!

THE SHACK

EDITED: This post is edited to say that my thoughts towards this book have changed.... I have come across many great critiques of this book lately and I have seen this book in a new light. We must always be on guard against what we allow to enter our hearts and minds. There is a new book that will be next on my reading list entitled: 'Burning Down 'The Shack': How the ‘Christian’ Bestseller is Deceiving Millions The following is a critique of the book :

"The number one error of The Shack," James De Young summarizes in an appendix to his critique of that influential bestseller, "is that Paul Young commits the great evil that he faults the human race for committing from the beginning onward. Paul Young makes the number one evil in the world...to be the independence from God that Adam and Eve exercised in the Garden of Eden.... Yet Paul Young himself indulges the great sin of independence. By embracing the basics of universal reconciliation, Young creates his own view of how love and holiness or justice relate but does not reflect all those texts that talk about the judgment of God on the unbelievers who reject him". This analysis, which I find indubitably correct, goes far toward explaining the root error that has sprung up in many bitter fruits, which, elsewhere, De Young enumerates: "Paul Young improperly redefines the meaning of the Trinity and the special roles of God the Father, Christ the Son, and the Holy Spirit. He distorts the nature of Christ's crucifixion, the nature of sin and punishment, the wrath and judgment of God, and the nature of God's love and having a relationship with him. He has no place for the devil, the enemy of every Christian. He has corrupted the nature of forgiveness, the nature of faith and reconciliation, the nature of salvation, the very meaning of the gospel, who the children of God are, what the bible is, and the role of the institutions of the church, the state, and marriage. Indeed, he rejects the latter, twice calling them a 'trinity of terrors'".
These accusations are supported with a multiplicity of troubling quotations taken directly from The Shack; and they serve as evidence of what great errors God in his righteous wrath is often well-pleased to plunge them into who have rejected the sole sufficiency of his own self-revelation in the inspired scriptures, and have turned instead to fashioning God after their own imaginations and the councils of their own hearts. This bestseller has sadly influenced the spiritual perceptions of countless persons. I ardently urge you, if you are one of that number, to take a moment to consider very soberly and seriously if the picture of God that Paul Young has painted in The Shack is in accordance with the God who has condescended to reveal himself in the bible.

For those of you who frequent my blog for photography reasons, then you may want to consider skipping this post. (I just checked your book list on your blog Karen to see if you had this one on there - I should have known!!!) To begin, this week has probably been the busiest week of my summer. I have had four photography sessions, getting Kirsten ready for her first horse show tomorrow, and packing for a weekend trip, on top of all the other craziness that is normal around here. So, the fact that this book entered our home this week (as a gift to my husband - thank you Kevin and Beth (and Katie)) and the fact that I felt so compelled to read this book in the midst of the chaos, (I can't remember the last time I felt I had time to read a book.) was most definitely a God thing. Don't you just love God things? This book has changed my life. Here is a review from the back cover "The Shack is the most absorbing work of fiction I've read in many years. My wife and I laughed, cried, and repented of our own lack of faith along the way. The Shack will leave you craving for the presence of God." - Michael W. Smith. I couldn't say it any better myself. Not only is this book an amazing literary work, I could literally sense God's presence at times as I read it. Something I have NEVER experienced from reading a book (other than the Bible). This evening as I was feverishly trying to finish the book, and my girls were creatively trying to get my attention, I had the most amazing experience, one that I feel intimidated to even share here. I was at the most unbelievable part of this story, a holy moment, involving a little girl and her Lord - when Emily (two years old) climbs in to my bed beside me. She takes her two little hands and starts stroking my cheeks on either side. And says "I sing you a song". She then starts singing in the sweetest voice a beautiful melody comprised of fragments of speech that I know were spoken directly through her from my Lord. The song made little sense, but the phrases were so beautiful "I will hold you", "Your Daddy loves you", "I'll protect you", "a beautiful morning", "you can do it" "I will help you", "we'll be together", "it's so beautiful". I didn't even know what some of it meant to my heart, but some of what she said spoke to me so deeply. It was the most profound, beautiful, holy moment. I know God was whispering to my soul, through my precious baby girl. When she finished she just looked deep into my eyes, piercing my soul. I said "Where did you learn that song? Who taught you to sing like that?" So very seriously she said "My Aunt Jennie". Those of you who know Jennie, it will make complete sense. My sister Jennie has a most beautiful singing voice and uses it daily to worship and glorify our Lord. Emily formed a special bond with her Aunt Jennie this summer, and apparently Jennie left her with something very special, when neither one of them realized it.

This book is "Where Tragedy confronts Eternity". It is so healing. There were two parts of the book that really stood out to me, so that I had to mark the page. I'm not even sure why they spoke to me, but they did. Assume this is God speaking.

"Just because I work incredible good out of unspeakable tragedies doesn't mean I orchestrate the tragedies. Don't ever assume that my using something means I caused it or that I need it to accomplish my purposes. That will lead you to false notions about Me. Grace doesn't depend on suffering to exist, but where there is suffering you will find grace in many facets and colors."

"If anything matters then everything matters. Because you are important, everything you do is important. Every time you forgive, the universe changes; every time you reach out and touch a heart or a life, the world changes; with every kindness and service, seen or unseen, my purposes are accomplished and nothing will ever be the same again."

I wanted to write this down before the busyness of life swept it from my thoughts. My blog has become a journal for me, in an oddly public way. You have to read this book. Nothing will ever be the same again, you will never be the same.

http://www.theshackbook.com/

PART TWO!!

I was so in love with these pictures that I just had to get them all ready - you can see the gallery by entering the code "k" under the client section of my site HERE.