Inspiration Thursday - Friends

If I were to ask you to name your friends, how many people would be on that list?  Are they friends, close friends, or close personal friends. What qualities to they posses that makes them your friend? The Bible has a lot to say about relationships, especially friendship. If you compare those names of your friends with the qualities listed in God's Word, you may find that the list shrinks to a very few people and they would be considered close personal friends. According to Proverbs 27:17 a true friend should make you a better person. How does that work?
A true friend is an encourager when you need encouragement. They are a helper when you need help and a sympathizer when you need sympathy. They are also the ones who will lovingly hold you accountable for your words and deeds. Okay, that friends list just got shorter, didn't it? When you get defensive about being held accountable, the friend stays the course, doesn't back down from the challenge of making you a better person, and celebrates the change in  you when you see the truth in their words and actions. It is truthfully said that we don't get to pick our family, but we do choose our friends. Choose wisely and benefit from the choice of good friends.  Have a blessed day.

Wordless Wednesday

Vintage VARoooooM!!!

 

Ruby Tuesday Too

Red is a favorite color among those build and fly airplanes and no plane is more famous than the "Red Baron" This one is on display at the Oklahoma Science Museum in Oklahoma City, OK.

Shootin' Hoops

 Saturday afternoon found my wife and I at the grandson's basketball game. He's the one in the center.

 At twelve and thirteen years old, the ball can be a bit elusive and everyone believes it belongs to them.

 Here, the grandson is looking for an open teammate to pass the ball to. He found the right person and a score was the result.

 At this age, some of the boys have gotten that first growth spurt and some haven't. There are usually three for four on each team that are several inches taller than everyone else. Here, it is pretty clear than number 8 and number 7 (shooting) have a distinct height advantage over some of the other kids. The grandson hasn't gotten that spurt yet, but I'm pretty sure this is going to be his year.

Sometimes the only way to slow the big guy down is to reach in and foul him. We are the purple team and the final score was in our favor.  I really don't photograph much basketball so I have a lot of work to do in the coming weeks. We'll be back on the court Saturday.

Scavenger Hunt Sunday , Archive Edition

It seems like forever since I last participated in a Scavenger Hunt Sunday. The weather has not been terribly cooperative for a sky photo and I have had a running fight with a cold or flu all week, so I had to dig into the archives for most of these images. The weather and I both are supposed to be improved this coming week and that might help my photos. Anyway, here goes.

Light

This is an image of our oldest grand daughter that I made for her senior pictures. I place her in the shade, late in the day and used the natural light from the afternoon sun to blow-out the background. It is her favorite image of her senior photos.

 Sky

Three days a week will find me exercising at the nearby community center. Not long ago I arrived in just in time to see this glorious sight unfold across the street. I almost always have a camera with me and this time I was fortunate enough to have my best camera in the car. I love this sky.

  Under

In the fall, one of my favorite pastimes is photographing the colors of the season. One thing I have discovered that if you want some really nice images, stand under the tree and put the leaves between you and the sun. The sun lights up the leaf and provides a wonderful glow to the image.

 Under

Sitting under the watchful eye of their coach the grandson (middle) and team mates await the start of their basketball game. 

Artifical Light

What would Christmas be without aritficial lights?

 Space

The person who has shared the most important space in my heart and my life for over 41 years. Have a blessed day.

  

Inspiration Thursday

I have recently returned to my habit of reading one chapter of Proverbs each day.  The Bible teaches us to seek wisdom and there is no better place to seek wisdom than the books of  Psalms and Proverbs. Add the Sermon on the Mount from Matthew and you can spend a lifetime gleaning knowledge from these verses. Yesterday I came upon this verse and it provoked the following thoughts.
We live in a society filled with marketing that promises to make you feel younger, stronger, healthier etc., but nothing that promises to make you wiser. God's Word instructs all of us to seek wisdom. Young men are instructed to seek wise counsel. Wisdom comes from life experiences. The older men have been where you are going and they can give you insight about the journey you are on. Those who have used God's Word as their guide to living are a testimony to every aspect of God's character, holiness, faithfulness, love, strength, etc. God instructs young men to seek wisdom, and he places grey hair on the heads of the wise so that they are easier to find. Have a blessed day.

Inspiration Thursday

I spotted this cereal bowl in a flea market recently. It reminded me of the ongoing health trend in America. Cheerios is a whole grain cereal that most of us grew up with. This bowl is sending the message that Cheerios is "Heart Healthy". A healthy heart is critical to a healthy life. We engage in all sorts of diet and exercise in order to keep the blood flowing and strengthen the heart. There also seems to be a spiritual side to the heart and that side is often neglected.
I would not pretend to know the spiritual/intellectual connection between the mind and the heart, but the Bible makes it clear that such a connection exists. Have you ever thought about doing something only to get a feeling in your heart that something just isn't right about that decision? The Bible instructs us, "Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." I Samuel 16:7. Professional athletes are often selected because of their size, speed, and skill, but what separates the good players from the hall of fame player is their heart. They play with passion. Scripture warns us, "Everyone proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord." Proverbs 16:5.
God's Word promises us, "My son, if your heart is wise, My heart will rejoice - indeed, I myself; yes, my inmost being will rejoice when your lips speak right things. Do not let your  heart envy sinners, but be zealous for the fear of the Lord all the day. My son, give me your heart, and let your eyes observe my ways." Proverbs 23:15-17, 26. There is no better place to exercise the spiritual side of your heart than to spend time in God's Word and there is no better place to begin than reading one chapter in Proverbs each day. Have a blessed day.

Wordless Wednesday (Not) - Cold Front Coming

My first post of 2016 finds us waiting on the arrival of a cold front and maybe a little snow. I'm not sure there will be much accumulation but it will be a change from the mild temperatures we have experienced recently. The temperatures are going to dip into the teens at night and not climb much above freezing during daylight hours this week. Brr-r-r-r!

I put the bird feeders out, and it didn't take long for the first neighbors to arrive. The woodpeckers really like the suet cakes. I'm not sure that I have ever seen one on a standard feeder.

On the other hand, cardinals definitely are seed feeders and I don't think I have ever seen on a suet cake feeder. Maybe if I put a piece of suet cake in a standard feeder, they might try it.

This little fellow seemed to be unable to make up his mind which feeder to try out first. He eventually settled on the traditional seed feeder. I admire these critters for being able to adapt to some pretty substantial weather changes. Me, I just grab a cup of coffee, get next to the fireplace, and try to find something to watch on television or play on the computer. How about  you.

Movie Time

December and January seem to be the months that my wife and I see the most movies.  We really don't go to the cinema all that often, but we've been three times since Christmas. Like most of the rest of the Universe, we went to see Star Wars, The Force Awakens right after Christmas. It is a great family action movie. It does hurt a little to see Carrie Fisher and nearly 40 years after the first Jedi adventure. Most of the audience was not born when Return of the Jedi was released. George Lucas is no longer associated with the franchise so J.J. Abrams, of Avatar fame, directed this episode. Now that the force is awake, we will have to see what happens next.


Next up, was Bond, James Bond. Again most of the audience was not born when Sean Connery played the role of 007 in Goldfinger. I really like Daniel Craig in the role and I like where the series has gone.  The stories are much more action and much less spoof than the originals. There is some speculation that this was Craig's last 007 performance. Only time will tell. I have to say that the one connection to the original Bond movies was 007's ability to shoot a helicopter out of the sky with a 9mm pistol. "Nice shootin' Tex.


After Sci-Fi and Action/Adventure it was time for a reality check. We went to see Concussion starring Will Smith in a role that will most likely garner him an Oscar nomination. The story is based on the research that lead to the NFL lawsuit. The saddest part of this movie was the number of players from the Pittsburg Steelers glory years that died from the results of years and years of concussions. Several Hall of Famers are among the victims. It is amazing, looking back, the way we were coached to play the game would get you thrown out of the game today. Everyone knew that the helmet was a weapon, and we were coached to lead with our head. That's just the way it was in the 60's. This is a great film and should be on your list of must see movies.



So, have you seen any good movies lately?