No Photoshop Here

I recently watched this video regarding the wonders (and deceitfulness) of Photoshop in the media.  It's worth a quick watch ...



Here is the Link on YouTube.

I don't know about you, but after I stopped laughing, I felt a little better about me!  Next time I see the lovely ladies on the covers of the magazines at the checkout line, maybe it won't depress me.

"Maybe she's born with it.   Nah.  I'm pretty sure it's Photoshop."

I will admit that I've been tempted to polish up some my snapshots.  Of the kids.  Just to have a decent picture of my brood.  One where they're all looking.  At the camera.  With their tongues in their mouths.

Last Friday, in honor of the Bronco game on Saturday, the kids dressed in blue and orange in support of their favorite team.  Aaron borrowed a jersey from his cousin while the girls hodge-podged together Halloween shirts and short-sleeved blue shirts.

Just before they headed out the door, I pulled out the camera for a quick picture.  Last September we had captured a fun picture for a similar Spirit Day and it turned out so well ...

Look how cute they are!

I wanted another.

I guess I got greedy.

First, I forgot to flip on the flash.  Hmm ... a little blurry and a little dark.  And we're missing #4.

Okay.  There she is.  Let go of her head, please.  I guess three out of four smiles isn't so bad.

Let's try an action shot.

Do something football-ish.

Okay ... one kid with a faux-football, one cheerleader, one forehead and one ... whatever Norah is doing.

There.  Now we have a real football.  That's a little better.  Norah's still silly.  Ashley is buried there in the back.  And Lydia?  She's the candy-caned blur in the front.  Look here, Weeda.  At the camera.

Oh, for pete's sake!

I guess we'll go with the blurry first one.  Or take a class in Photoshop.  But I don't think even the wonders of Adobé can make this crew look ready for the cover of Sports Illustrated!

Gratefully, even if they are total goofballs on the outside, I know that in the inside they are tender-hearted, compassionate, generous and loving.  And since God is more concerned with their hearts than their snapshot antics, I will be too!

⁷ The LORD does not look at the things people look at [or their silly eyes or their goofy faces or their crazy poses]. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7)

In the Bleak Midwinter

As I sit to write this Monday afternoon, it is bleak.  And grey.  And cold.  And sunless.

And bleak.

Which leads me to one of my most favorite Christmas carols.  So I guess today's blahness was worth it!

Enjoy a little musical interlude with Corrinne May.   I love this little snapshot of an artist truly loving what she is doing.  Her joy in performing is evident in her smiles ...



In the Bleak Midwinter
In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone;
Snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow,
In the bleak midwinter, long ago.

Our God, heaven cannot hold Him, nor earth sustain;
Heaven and earth shall flee away when He comes to reign.
In the bleak midwinter a stable place sufficed
The Lord God Almighty, Jesus Christ.

Angels and archangels may have gathered there,
Cherubim and seraphim thronged the air;
But His mother only, in her maiden bliss,
Worshipped the Beloved with a kiss.

What can I give Him, poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb;
If I were a Wise Man, I would do my part;
Yet what I can I give Him: give my heart.


Text: Christina G. Rossetti, 1830-1894
Music: Gustav Holst, 1874-1934


What a powerful picture painted with words and song.  The bitter cold held at bay from the new babe and mother by the stable walls and the animals who lived there.  The humility of His birth contrasted with the majesty of Heaven looking on.  The rejoicing of the angels at this miraculous birth and that first snapshot of worship ... a mother's kiss on the head of the Son of God.


But the final verse is what really touches my heart.  


What do we have to give as a gift to Jesus?  
We are poverty-struck in the face of His glorious riches.  
We are empty of anything of value when it comes to His all-sufficiency and majesty.
We lack anything of worth when compared to His incomparable wealth.


The only thing of value that we have to offer Jesus is us.  


Christina Rossetti penned it well.  What can we possibly give to Jesus?  


Only our hearts will do.  


And what if our hearts are in the midst of a bleak midwinter?  What if our hearts stand hard as iron?  I believe Jesus will take our icy hearts, too.  He doesn't want anything to come between His love and our hearts.

Not Recycled ... Redeemed

Plastic tubs and bottles are piling up beside the sink.  Each one has been rinsed and now awaits the trip to the garage.  The bin beside the trash can is overflowing with egg cartons, broken down cereal boxes, junk mail and papers from school.  This fabric bin is also waiting patiently to be carted out to the garage to be sorted.

A bin for paper.

A bin for boxes.

A bin for plastics and tin.

A bag for glass.

Once a month we drag the overloaded bins to the curb.  When the recycling truck arrives, the girls run to the window to watch the men empty the boxes and bins into the specific receptacle.  They are careful to keep the recyclables separate, even reaching in a few times to resort our mistakes.  The workers are conscientious and carefully stack our now empty and reusable containers beside the garage door.  Later I will slide them back to their spots in the garage and we will fill them again.

Where do those #1's and #5's go?  What happens to the unwanted catalogues and math worksheets?  What is the future for the empty wine bottle with the pretty animal print label?

While those items do have a future, there is not a tangible value assigned to them. While it is true that they are on their way to being melted, shredded, crushed for new packaging ... but they are essentially trash.

They are garbage, 

refuse, 

waste, 

junk, 

debris, 

detritus, 

rubbish.

One bottle sitting beside the dish drain has a different story, however.

IA MA VT ME CT NY DE OR HI 5¢ DEP.  MI 10¢ DEP.

It would appear that in a few states, you can get some spare change for recycling this bottle.  A few nickels and dimes here and there.  You couldn't make a living out of cashing in your unwanted bottles and cans, but you could maybe buy another soda!

This policy of buying back your bottles has a different twist than simply recycling.  By returning the bottle, a deposit (however nominal) is received in exchange.  A value has been placed on this empty container.  

It has been redeemed,

reclaimed,

exchanged,

regained,

reclaimed,

saved,

bought back.

In Ephesians, chapter 1, Paul uses this imagery to explain to his readers about the mystery of of Christ's death on the cross.  Keep in mind that this was looooong before curbside recycling was even developed!

⁷ In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace ⁸ that he lavished on us. ... 13When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, ¹⁴ who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory. (Ephesians 1:7-8;13-14, emphasis mine)

Who knew that a daily chore of rinsing and sorting our recyclables would lead to a teachable moment for me?  And, I hope, for you, too!  

You are redeemed.  

You are valuable.  

You have been reclaimed.  

You have been saved.

You have been bought back at a price - Jesus's death on the cross.

You are redeemed ... not recycled!

Day 1:  Mom in the Midst

Day 2:  My Button is Lame

Day 3:  Splendidly Lavish

Day 4:  Keeping My Head Above Water

Day 5:  Time-Warp Wednesday ~ Little Me

Day 6:  Me, Myself & I

Day 7:  Food For Though ~ Bacon

Day 8:  The Aches and Pains of Service

Day 9:  I Heart You

Day 10:  Who is Me? {part 1}

Day 11:  Who is Me? {part 2}

Day 12:  Who is Me?  {part 3}

Day 13:  Handmade with Care

Day 14:  Food For Thought ~ Carmel & Apples

Day 15:  A Bunch of Rocks

Day 16:  Not Recycled ... Redeemed

Need Some Grease?

I could hear her long before I saw her.

Squeak

It sounded like she was in the culdesac across the street.

Squeak

Yep.  Here she comes now.

Squeak

Around the bend of the street.

Squeak

Stopping at each house.

Squeak

Our mail carrier in her mail truck.  The one with the squeaky wheel.

Squeak

As she drove out of our neighborhood, I couldn't help but shake my head in wonder.  Everyday for the past month she has squeaked around our subdivision.  For a month.  She was certainly driving home that old adage, "The squeaky wheel gets the grease."  Or at least, should get the grease.

This persistent (and truly ear piercing) protest from her vehicle needs some attention.  Perhaps it's just a squeak ... or perhaps it's an indication of a more serious problem with her truck.  I bet Tom & Ray would tell her to get it checked.  But then, it's not her truck.  So maybe she doesn't see it as her problem.

Each day that she noisily proceeds around our culdesac, she is driving home a message to me.

I have my own squeaky wheels.

As I go about my days I have a problem with squeaking:  speaking brashly to my kids, choosing to be lazy over productive, throwing "what about me?" pity parties, sighing and rolling my eyes when exasperated, opting to pay attention to the internet instead of my kids and passing judgement on people different from me.

Squeak, squeak, squeak ...


In the same way that the squeaks of the mail truck indicate a internal problem, my squeaks are evidence of internal problems, too.  On the outside, I am still motoring around and mothering well, but my heart could nevertheless use some attention.

Jesus talked about this once when He was visiting Jerusalem.  He had a little run in with the Pharisees regarding Jewish rituals, a question about whether or not Jesus' friends followed all the traditional rules of washing their hands before eating.  Jesus responded with a fierce accusation.  He scolded the Pharisees for being overly-concerned about outward cleanliness while inside their hearts were sick.  While the Jewish leaders were obsessed with being sure that whatever went into their bodies was pure, Jesus was more concerned with what was already inside them ...what was the condition of their hearts?

²⁰ He went on: “What comes out of you is what defiles (pollutes) you. ²¹ For from within, out of your hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, ²² adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. ²³ All these evils come from inside and defile (pollute) you.”  (Mark 7:20-23, emphasis mine)


Those are some pretty strong words - many of which I'm quick to dismiss.  But ... if I'm truly honest, my squeaks are as a result of some of those internal problems.  And here's a few more that I would have to add:  Selfishness, disrespect, laziness, judgmental attitude, rudeness, self-centeredness and ingratitude.

Squeak


What, then, is the remedy for this squeaky heart condition?  I would have to say that we have to submerse ourselves in God's word.  If we fill up our tank with the wisdom and truth of the Bible by spending regular time reading and studying Scripture, I believe that we will see our heart changed.  God's words to us in His Bible are the grease for our squeaky wheels:

¹⁰ I seek you with all my heart; 
   do not let me stray from your commands. 
¹¹ I have hidden your word in my heart 
   that I might not sin against you.
Psalm 119:10-11

Seek God.

Know His commands.

Hide His word inside.

Squeak less.

What about your squeaky wheels? How about a little of God's good grease?