Our missional community was asked this past week by Brandon who leads our discussions, “what scripture brings you comfort?” For me, I’d say Isaiah 41:8-20 is one of many that brings me comfort because it demonstrates how powerful and mighty our God is.

Isaiah 41:8-20
8 “But as for you, Israel my servant, Jacob my chosen one, descended from Abraham my friend, 9 I have called you back from the ends of the earth, saying, ‘You are my servant.’ For I have chosen you and will not throw you away. 10 Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.

11 “See, all your angry enemies lie there, confused and humiliated. Anyone who opposes you will die and come to nothing. 12 You will look in vain for those who tried to conquer you. Those who attack you will come to nothing. 13 For I hold you by your right hand— I, the Lord your God. And I say to you, ‘Don’t be afraid. I am here to help you. 14 Though you are a lowly worm, O Jacob, don’t be afraid, people of Israel, for I will help you. I am the Lord, your Redeemer. I am the Holy One of Israel.’ 15 You will be a new threshing instrument with many sharp teeth. You will tear your enemies apart,making chaff of mountains. 16 You will toss them into the air, and the wind will blow them all away; a whirlwind will scatter them. Then you will rejoice in the Lord. You will glory in the Holy One of Israel.

17 “When the poor and needy search for water and there is none, and their tongues are parched from thirst, then I, the Lord, will answer them. I, the God of Israel, will never abandon them. 18 I will open up rivers for them on the high plateaus. I will give them fountains of water in the valleys. I will fill the desert with pools of water. Rivers fed by springs will flow across the parched ground. 19 I will plant trees in the barren desert— cedar, acacia, myrtle, olive, cypress, fir, and pine. 20 I am doing this so all who see this miracle will understand what it means— that it is the Lord who has done this, the Holy One of Israel who created it.

A few posts ago I showed you a picture of my son in his crib and how he had ripped down the bumper and pulled off his socks, etc. This morning I peeked in to see if he was awake and to my surprise he was still asleep at 7:30am, but the crib was, well…see for yourself. ((hehe))

In this post
photographer Natalie Norton explores 6 ways you can hand hold lenses at low apertures and low shutter speeds and still avoid blurry images caused by camera shake.

I’m a mover and a shaker in general, and this is particularly true when I’m on a shoot. I’m twistin’ and turnin’, climbin’ and jumpin’ and to top it all off, I DO NOT have a steady hand, plain.and.simple.

As often as possible I opt for lenses with VR (Vibration Reduction) or IS (Image Stabilization). You pay a pretty penny for this feature. For me, it’s worth the extra cost, and for the point I’m at in my photography it’s a reasonable expense. But that wasn’t always the case, and what about uber slow shutter speeds with no tripod. No IS or VR can hold up under pressure like that. . .no matter how magical they may be. . . and magical they are, trust you me.

Once a week, Corbin and I like to visit my mom. On this particular day we decided to order a sub sandwich from Lenardo Pizzeria and have a little picnic at Nancy Jane Park near her home. It was a gorgeous day and perfect for a picnic.

After we picked up our food, we headed over to the park. We found a nice shaded parking spot, parked, and went on a search for the perfect picnic location. Under a huge pine tree is where we found our resting place.

With our tummies full and rested awhile, we decided to pack things up and head over to the swings. Corbin had loved the swings at other parks we’ve been to, so I thought my mom would enjoy seeing Corbin laugh and squeal with delight as he swung back and forth on the swings. She did. We enjoyed finding ways to make him laugh. We’d chase him and we’d count to 3 while getting closer and showing him our tickle fingers…it was fun.

Thanks mom for a fun day.

Today we had the Oma Pumpkin Patch experience. About 10 friends and their kids met us at the Van Ommering Dairy Farm in Lakeside. It was a little hectic throughout our stay, but we ended up having fun in the process. They have a ton of activities to keep kids occupied for hours…especially kids ages 3-10. We went on a hay ride and saw lots of cows, ate lunch and played the afternoon away.