Portrait of a generation

I recently came across the work of a French Photographer, known as JR. He produces large scale black and white portraits of people living in a specific community and then plasters them across the walls of various cities and towns. He's done several major projects in places such as Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Brazil and Paris. I think he aims to take photos of people who would never otherwise be seen or heard and by putting up posters of them he gives the simple message that "they exist" and shouldn't be forgotten - for example one of his projects looks at the violence suffered by women in Kenya, Sudan, Sierra-Leone, Liberia and Rio de Janeiro.  I find it interesting anyway and think his artwork is pretty powerful. It makes me wonder how much art can be used to effectively look at social issues and raise genuine concern in others. I'm constantly debating how much photography and art can actually be used for good and my viewpoint changes daily. Looking at the work of JR does make me appreciate how powerful a photo can be though and reminds me how much i love people and life itself. I guess what's matters though isn't whether you can look at a picture and say it's a good "photo", but whether you can look at it and appreciate the subject - what it actually captures, the life underneath it all, the person and the One who made that person - and whether you let that stir you into action somehow.

He has said

“'He hath said' - Hebrews 13.5 ... the source of all WISDOM and the fountain of all comfort, let it dwell in you richly as 'a well of water, springing up unto ever-lasting life.'” - Spurgeon

Butterfly Girl

- Butterfly Girl, by Napix -

In speech with You

"Master, they say that when I seem
To be in speech with you,
Since you make no replies, it’s all a dream,
-One talker aping two.

They are half right, but not as they
Imagine; rather, I
Seek in myself the things I meant to say,
And lo! the wells are dry.

The, seeing me empty you forsake
The Listener’s role, and through
My dead lips breathe and into utterance wake
The thoughts I never knew.

And thus you neither need reply
Nor can; thus, while we seem
Two talking, thou art One forever, and I
No dreamer, but thy dream."

- C.S.Lewis -

Joy.

I believe that God has healed me from my epilepsy. It is a miracle and i am incredibly grateful and rejoice in what He has done. It has been a slightly strange healing process if i'm honest, and i've been pretty sick coming off my medication, but nonetheless i still believe i've been healed and praise God for that. 

But at the very same time i do feel like i want to be careful that i don't speak or act or think in a way which suggests my deepest joy is in the fact that i've been healed - rather than simply in God, for who He is, whether i'm well or sick. The thing is, although i am truly amazed and happy that God would be so merciful as to release me from the last 4/5 years of seizures - and although i want to tell everyone what God has done and how grateful i am - i know too that there are things which matter much more than being healed right now... it matters more that we actually know and love and trust in Jesus for eternity... it is more important to have joy in the beauty of His character and His greatness - to have joy in the fact that He has forgiven my sin and that I will be with Him forever - because however much God may have released me from this illness right now, i know that whilst on Earth we are always going to suffer to some degree or other, so we can't base our joy simply on circumstantial things - the deepest, truest joy is found in being satisfied in God alone.

Hope in Him

"Though He slay me, yet will i hope in Him." - Job 13:15

If you can, you may.

I've been re-reading "Hinds' Feet on High Places" by Hannah Hurnard. It's a good book, with a thousand relevant things in it. The following is an extract from a conversation between Much-Afraid and the Shepherd:

"'You know that i DO love You, Shepherd, as much as my cold little heart is capable. You know that i love You and that i long to trust You as much as i love You, that i long both to love and trust You still more.'

'Would you be willing to trust Me,' He asked, 'even if everything in the wide world seemed to say that I was deceiving you - indeed, that I had deceived you all along?'

She looked at Him in perplexed amazement. 'Why, yes,' she said, 'I'm sure i would, because one thing I KNOW to be true, it is impossible that You should tell a lie. It is impossible that You should deceive me. I know that I am often very frightened at the things which You ask me to do,' she added shamefacedly and apologetically, 'but i could never doubt You in that way. It's myself i am afraid of, never of You, and though everyone in the world should tell me that You had deceived me, I should know it was impossible. O Shepherd,' she implored, 'don't tell me that You think i really doubt You, even when i am most afraid and cowardly and despicably weak. You know - you KNOW i trust You......

He said nothing for a little, only looked down very tenderly, almost pitifully at the figure now crouching at His feet. Then, after a time, He said very quietly, 'Much-Afraid, supposing i really did deceive you? What then?'

It was her turn to be quite silent, trying to grasp this impossible thing He was suggesting and to think what her answer would be. What then? Would it be that she could never trust, never love Him again? Would she have to be alive in a world where there was no Shepherd, only a mirage and a broken lovely dream? To know that she had been deceived by One she was certain could not deceive? To lose Him?

Suddenly she burst into a passion of weeping, then after a little while looked straight up into His face and said, 'My Lord - if you can deceive me, You may. It can make no difference. I MUST love You as long as i continue to exist. I cannot live without loving You.'"

I remember that when i first read this passage, about 7 years ago, i couldn't quite grasp how Much-Afraid could agree that the Shepherd could deceive her if He wished - in all my logic i concluded that it would make the Shepherd someone He wasn't, for i agreed that it is impossible for Him to lie, so was unsure whether i would be able to permit Him to deceive me....... BUT now i understand. And now i agree. Though everything in me believes that He can't lie - and if something turns out different to how i expect then i think it will most likely be that I heard wrong, rather than that He lied - But still i can agree with what she says now - if it is possible for Him to deceive me, He may, i still trust He knows best and there is still nothing else on earth which compares to loving Him.

Painting the Sky

"Who paints the skies into glorious day, 

Only the splendor of Jesus,

Who breathes His life into fists of clay, 

Only the splendor of Jesus,

Who shapes the valleys and brings the rain, 

Only the splendor of Jesus,

Who makes the desert to live again, 

Only the splendor of Jesus,

Teach every nation His marvellous ways, 

Each generation shall sing His praise...

He is wonderful, He is glorious, 

Clothed in Righteousness, full of tenderness, 

Come and worship Him, He is the Prince of Life,

He will cleanse our hearts, in His river of fire.

Who hears the cry of the barren one, 

Only the mercy of Jesus,

Who breaks the curse of the heart of stone, 

Only the mercy of Jesus,

Who storms the prison and sets men free, 

Only the mercy of Jesus

Purchasing souls for eternity, 

Only the mercy of Jesus"

-Stuart Townend-

Death is not dying

A couple of months ago I listened to a talk by Rachel Barkey, a lady dying of terminal cancer. I just found out that she passed away yesterday. I recommend the talk, it glorifies God and is encouraging, you can watch it on her site 'Death is not Dying.'

Coton Manor

We went to Coton Manor today to see the beautiful meadows and gardens that they have there - it was nice to get out of the house and enjoy the Summer. I took so many photos - none of which came out particularly well, but i turned a few into Polaroids tonight (using poladroid.net) so they look a little better than they originally did.

Hmong

I love these photos of Hmong people, taken by Napix. I love the life that is captured in them - so diverse and beautiful - such fascinating expressions. Or maybe i just love them because ever since i saw a documentry, a few years ago, about the Hmong people, i've been interested in them and their way of life. 

Little leaping lamb

I filmed these lambs back in April and just found the video again - it made me smile. It's pretty bad quality and i don't know how to edit it so it's shorter, but never mind. One of the lambs, number 72, leaped continuously for at least half an hour - sadly he calmed down a little when i started filming him, but i did manage to catch a few of his little skips and dances! What made me laugh the most is that he was a pretty ugly lamb, yet very very very happy.  All the other lambs, which were quite handsome, just stood there, but for some reason, this one little lamb was full of the joys of Spring and he made my day. I decided that he had either just discovered that he could leap, and was therefore very excited, or else he used to be lame and God healed him. It reminded me of that verse which says:

"But for you fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall." - Malachi 4.2

Kissed a guilty world in love

"Here is love, vast as the ocean, Loving-kindness as the flood; When the Prince of Life my ransom, Shed for me His precious blood. Who His love will not remember? Who can cease to sing His praise? He shall never be forgotten, Through heaven's everlasting days. 

On the mount of crucifixion, Fountains opened deep and wide, Through the flood-gates of God's mercy, Flowed the vast and gracious tide; Grace and love like mighty rivers, Poured incessant from above, And heaven's peace and perfect justice kissed a guilty world in love." - trad.

With feeble fingers

"O Lord, if this were lost instead,
And all I had was you, I would
Be rich, and have the greatest Good......

This candle two gives little light,

And does not make the darkness bright.
But keep it lit and you will find:
Far better this than being blind.
One little flame when all is night,
Proves there is such a thing as light.
One answered prayer when all is gone,
Will give you hope to wait for dawn........

O God, I cling

With feeble fingers to the ledge
Of your great grace........"

-Extracts from a poem based on Job by John Piper-

Summer = Lovely

1. Bông, 2. lazy hazy, 3. beautiful simplicities, 4. *

I am getting a little addicted to browsing photos on flicker at the moment and particularly like this site i found that allows you to make mosaics and collages out of pictures you like.

Truth

"Perception, knowledge, and truth without love are nothing. They are not truth, for truth is God, and God is love. Therefore, truth without love is a lie." - Dietrich Bonhoeffer

The breathings of your heart

"Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart" - Wordsworth

Faith

"Faith in God would take away our faith in all those other things and powers. Faith in them would become impossible. Those who believe in God believe in nothing else in this world, because they know it will fail and pass away. Nor do they need to believe in anything else, for they have the One from whose hands everything comes and into whose hands everything goes..... Faith means daring and trusting unconditionally." - Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Heavy to light

I have a tendency to think WAY too much and as a result i sometimes write things that probably aren't helpful for others to read..... like Friday's post. I'm not sure that i have any regular readers anymore, but if you have read any of my intense posts, then i just wanted to say i'm sorry for the nature of them! Hopefully there will be some nice lighthearted things coming soon........

The summer sky

"To see the summer sky is poetry, though never in a book it lie - True poems flee." - Emily Dickinson

Lives that matter

"There are some things about which nothing can be said and before which we dare not keep silent." - T.S.Eliot

I've written this post several times before but never published it. I felt uncomfortable exposing my heart and didn't think it appropriate for my blog. Today i am prepared to write it anyway.

A couple of months ago my friend took his own life. This month also marks the anniversary of when a friend of my housemate killed herself, whilst we were at university. And it's also 3 years since my other housemate's sister took her own life. So tragic and heart-breaking for everyone involved. I didn't know the girls well myself, but i was close to my housemates and still found it very hard to deal with. My friend who died recently was a Christian, although i hadn't seen him for a number of years. I still feel a silent sorrow. A sorrow that no words can really express. A sorrow i feel probably shouldn't even be put into words. I don't know why exactly i'm writing anything now, i'm still afraid to lest my feeble words minimise it.

I can't imagine what the families are going through. I confess that suicide is something i find so hard to come to terms with. A whole part of me wishes and longs that somehow God had interceeded. But i know too that there is nothing but perfect goodness in God and He has pure integrity in what He does and doesn't do, so although i can't for a moment understand it, i must humbly trust Him.

I guess i've been thinking too about how much tiny things can truely make a difference to someone's life. When somebody dies sometimes it puts things into perspective and it makes you feel like other little things just don't matter in light of it. But i was thinking how sometimes it also works the other way too - and makes you realise how incredibly important all the little things are. It's the little things that make up a life. It's the minutes and seconds in a day that corporately make a life what it is... every single second counts for something.... When someone is gone, you would give anything to just have one minute back with them... to just watch the t.v. with them... to just chat to them... to just do something 'little' with them. It is little things which do matter. Little things which make up our lives. 

I sometimes think too, would it have made a difference to these three if someone had done something 'little' for them just before they died? if someone had phoned them? or if someone had said something encouraging? or been watching out for them? Could it have stopped them? I remember how my friend was clearly withdrawn and unhappy when i last saw him - could i have done something more? There must have been something more i could have done. I know i shouldn't speculate really - i think in these three cases they were truly ill and maybe nothing like this could have made a difference - no matter how many nice things people do, or how much love someone shows, it sometimes still just lacks power to heal or stop something happening.... even when we so desperately want it to help. However, in some cases those little things can make a massive difference and can have the power to change someone's day or week or life. Little things can have power if they are done in love and God works through them.

There are so many little things people have done that have meant so much to me. Why should it be so? I don't know. I can only say thank you. I long to be a person who does little things with much love. I think i often forget to.

"I don't do big things, i do little things with big love." - Mother Teressa

Balloon dreamer

(1. the dreamer in the beautiful mess, 2. play with ballon, 3. girl and sky, 4. Returning to the same ocean.)

-.... and when all the balloons burst and dreams dissolve into thin air, then just remember, He has not gone anywhere. The very best, the very greatest, can never be lost.... -

Street Mosaic

1. princess revisited, 2. street Calcutta, 3. Street scene,calcutta, 4. you buy flower from me?, 5. Working class, 6. Boy From Bluefields, 7. Hello Stranger, 8. Kofi's Portrait, Mali, 9. curious Calcutta

Over Moonless Seas

"And only heaven is better than to walk with Christ at midnight, over moonless seas." - Barbara Miller Macandrew 

"He is indeed enough. He is not all we would ask for (if we are honest), but it is precisely when we do not have what we would ask for, and only then, that we can clearly perceive His all-sufficiency. It is when the sea is moonless, that the Lord has become my light." - Elisabeth Elliot

The approaching light

Lately i've been having trouble sleeping, but i have to admit that there is something really lovely about being awake when the birds start singing, beckoning the morning in. Last night it was as early as 3.30am and by 4am there was a whole chorus outside my window. I love the fact that they start singing when it's still dark... they know what's approaching, they know the dawn is coming. With the very first glimmers of light, when the rest of the world is still asleep, they proclaim the arrival of a new day and sing with joy. They sing because they have the hope of a promise of another day. So even before they see it they can declare it, they can rejoice in it, they welcome it in. I think it's a fine example of faith. Hebrews 11.1 says "faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen".... and when you have that assurance i guess you can step out in faith, knowing you will receive what is promised. So today i shall take my lesson from the birds.... and as i hear the dawn calling in the distance, the voice of truth beckoning, i shall rejoice in all that is promised... rejoice that soon we will be gathered up into the approaching light and folded into the arms of that great morning.... when we will see our Saviour's face.

I will say

" I will say to the Lord, 'My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.' " - Psalm 91

(Photo by Gregory Smith)

Flats Fixed

(photo by Jake Dobkin)

...... i do love people's creativity.....