The Sword of the Spirit

I believe God has gifted me with an eye to discern His hidden treasures, & each year, I shoot thousands of images which remain unseen. I teach people they have a responsibility to use the gifts they were given, & yet do not heed my own words. I started this blog to share the Works of God's Hands, which I have been blessed with the ability to discern.
No sooner had I started this witness, than I came under attack by neighbors for simply being. I nearly caved to depression, but I hung in there & continued my witness. Dear friends moved away & those who followed threatened my morning prayer & Bible time. I "happened upon" a few minutes of a preacher saying how the very utterance of Jesus' name, let alone the mention of His shed blood, drives Satan & his minions shrieking back into the darkness.
I sat on the bench near the pond, & in desperation prayed aloud, claiming peace to our neighborhood through the shed blood of our Lord, Jesus Christ. I felt better & began my day. That night, an amazing miracle of healing began within our community! Though unrelated to the above, it was far more encompassing & pervasive. It truly was a miracle that no one could have ever anticipated.
The witness of my blog grew by leaps & bounds when shared through FaceBook & yet another spiritual attack began. This time, I crumpled up & withdrew under it's weight. I continued to be assaulted from seemingly every direction. Gradually, & for the first time in months, I began to feel a sense of hope & a renewed strength. I spoke of this with several people & returned home to find a hostile letter secured to my bush. As the anger grew within me, I began to crumple, once again. These powerful words were placed afresh on my heart: "We do not wrestle with flesh & blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of this darkness of this present age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places." (Ephesians 6:12)
When Jesus was attacked by Satan, He used but one weapon: "The Sword of the Spirit, which is the very Word of God." (Ephesians 6:17). I turned to my Bible & was strengthened. As small as bound text on a page may seem, I held in my hands, the very word of God....the VERY WEAPON JESUS USED!!
"I CAN do all things through Christ, who strengthens me!" (Philipians 4:13)
It's all good !!!!!

Seasonal Forms

On rainy summer days, I would stand under the trees, beside the lake, shielding my camera as best I could. I became lost in the circular patterns the rain created on the surface. There were also the "pinwheels" I have come to believe are made by fishtails.



Said to be, "the coldest winter in 34 years", I find myself mesmerized by water as a solid. In this harsher of seasons, God has chosen to adorn the water with geometric shapes. I spy them in large bodies, such as the lake & small ones, like buckets. These were taken on the surface of our pool. I love the metallic look to this last image.

Within the Ice

As I stepped onto the deck, I marveled at the ice God had played with overnight. Lines on a blue lid caught my eye. Air trying to escape from the water, along with it's path had been frozen in time.


Below is an image of the ice as seen from above. Life has taken some incredible twists & turns in my life, but I have continued to watch.

Flaws & All

Adult friendship is something I wrestle with. Those closest to me are busy with families & day-to-day life, as am I. We may only see each other a few times a year, but time together melts away our months apart. Living over 500 miles away from where I grew up has led to many such relationships. We may reminisce some, but soon we are united in the present. Distance dissolves as we share in the bond of our daily struggles & joys. As we confide our heartaches & adventures, laughter abounds.
When I am continually told what I “should do” to “fix” myself I simply hear how broken I am. Friends uplift one another. They guide & reflect when asked, but share a common understanding of love despite imperfections. We commiserate & jest over our foibles. I am embraced for all that I am, not for just parts of me. My faith & my teaching are integral to who I am. Editing them out of conversation is to be someone other than myself. Friends don’t impose their lifestyles on each other. Friends don’t come into my house & tell me to throw things away, nor do I enter theirs & tell them to throw things around…. We accept each other for how we live as well as for who we are. Friends embrace each other for who & where they are, without need to change one another.
What would the holidays be like if shared in the love of friendship?

Moonset On Saluda

We spent the morning decorating inside & chatting with long-distance loved ones blessed with snowfall. I sifted through a years' accumulation of shopping for others before heading out with my brother for the finishing touches. As we drove home, I was awed back into reality by the yellowing crescent moon. The moment we returned home, I scrambled for my tripod to catch a few images before sitting back to watch. The amber moon turned to orange & then rose before it set behind the ridge. Our Heavenly Father is so very good & we are so richly blessed !