BLOGPASTOR – Page 48 – blogging since 2004

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My Photography Journey

17 September 2021 blogpastor Leave a comment

My two adult sons and a daughter asked me what I would like for a retirement gift and I told them I would like a camera. I wanted to learn photography as it would help me in my blogging and I also hoped to use it for recording videos for YouTube. They bought me a beautiful Fujifilm XS10 camera. It is small, light and suited for both purposes. I was thankful for their thoughtfulness and generosity. That was how my photography journey began.

I found myself watching YouTube to learn more about the camera and how it can be used. I watched video after video about photography skills and lenses and types of photography, including contemplative photography, which I think is too dominated and influenced by Zen Buddhism. Christians should baptize this type of photography – a full immersion baptism, and make it into another window for people to find and know God. It did not take long for me to realize that I have entered a vast interesting world that is dazzling, puzzling and rattling.

To accelerate learning, I started an Instagram account @visiojourney, and saw the many stunning pictures that some others took and I was dazzled. They were very impressive and wowed me. The earth is indeed full of the glory and beauty of our King. I felt totally discouraged as it would take years to be able to take such beautiful pictures.

One question that often hit me as I sat transfixed by those pictures, “How did that person take that photo?” I simply have no knowledge to figure out how such beautiful, amazing, striking photos were taken. It was puzzling and frustrating. I could see that this journey is no walk in the park but a very long and winding (and possibly costly) road.

Initially, as I watched YouTube instructional videos, I thought buying better lenses would be the solution but I soon learned that there were many other more important factors. It rattled me. I felt uncomfortable. I had thought I had jumped into a swimming pool only to realise that it was actually an ocean. I will definitely have to pull back my expectations and settle for something more down to earth.

I must say though that I am enjoying the luxury of learning at my own pace and without any pressure. It is after all a hobby, a useful one at that, but I am in no hurry to improve and I am certainly no perfectionist. Thus, all is well. I am at peace with my slowness and ordinary photographs. I will take it a step at a time and delight in the process of learning to take meaningful pictures.

The Practice of Solitude

11 September 2021 blogpastor Leave a comment

Solitude is defined by the dictionary as the state of being alone. However, in Christian spirituality, we refer to the spiritual practice or discipline of solitude as being alone for the exclusive purpose of fellowship with God. We do not seek to be alone because we are uncomfortable being with people and wish to avoid them. Nor is the purpose “me time” – being alone to do my own thing, to have a time-out, whether it be a Netflix binge, a café visit, shopping, or being absorbed in a hobby or sport. The practice of solitude is about time alone with God, being alone and free from all distraction of people, amusement, things or tasks. “Go to your room and pray in secret”(Matt 6:6) was Jesus instruction on discipleship and prayer. To pray in secret is to pray alone. Room (Gk tamion) is a chamber, an inner room for one to retire, to have privacy. In effect Jesus was encouraging a practice of solitude and prayer.

Why Solitude Frees Us

When we are alone we feel free of the need to meet up to people’s expectations. We do not worry about having to impress people with our eloquence or our breadth of concerns for the world. We are able to be ourselves and express what is in our hearts of hearts: our deepest desires, the darkest secrets, the abysmal failures, our exalted hopes and dreams without fear of a confidentiality leak or condemnation or evaluation. Solitude means being alone with Someone who loves us like no other. It creates a sacred space for God to meet with us, and for us to be changed by our encounter with him.

In this state of aloneness with God there are no scaffoldings: no activities to keep us occupied, no people or smartphone to keep us engaged, no Netflix or YouTube to keep us entertained, no work to keep us numb towards feelings we have unknowingly suppressed. There is no one to get LIKES from, no one to impress so that they FOLLOW us. It is only the solitary soul and God.

When we give God such exclusive attention the meeting with him is bound to impart life, invite change, initiate action. We are available to reflect on and receive communications from God through the many way he messages us in our daily life, through the Bible, dreams, impressions and the stirring of our desires and imagination.

When we are alone with God we find ourselves inevitably facing ourselves. Often this may be uncomfortable as the Lord surfaces for us things in us that needs his cleansing, reforming, and purifying power. Suppressed fears, anger, resentment and other insights about our true selves are able to surface because the blocks that keep us from seeing or dealing with these have been removed by the practice of solitude.

WHAT DO WE DO

We wait in silence before God, resting in the knowledge that he looks on us in love, kindness and gentleness. We breathe slowly and deeply. We still our body and our inner selves and silence all the noises in our mind. We quiet ourselves and present ourselves to him, like saints of old, “Here am I, Lord, waiting before you in solitude and silence”.

We can then turn to a passage in the Bible and read it slowly and meditatively. Or reflect on the day or week that had past. Or tell him what the day was like as a friend to a friend. Or tell him how we feel right there and then.

To help us continually be aware of his presence and our purpose, we could light a candle. We could place a cross before us, or hold a cross, or have the Bible in our hands. We could even have an empty seat or additional mug to remind us we have Jesus with us. “If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me”(Rev 2:20).

We could start with an hour, and gradually increase it to longer periods of solitude and prayer, perhaps to a morning and later to a whole day with set times of 45 minutes to one hour of prayer with breaks in between. The day of solitude could then grow to two or three days in a retreat house with the help of a spiritual director to guide our prayer. This progression is not to be forced but the fruit of the grace of God at work in the soul that makes a soul hunger for more solitude, more time with God in prayer.

Prayer Overcomes Procrastination

9 September 2021 blogpastor Leave a comment

One of the tasks that I have procrastinated is painting all the ceilings and rooms in my home. It has been nine months since I retired, and I am only halfway done. What do I do with procrastination? I bring it to God in prayer. This task goes on my prayer list and I let God know I have a problem and ask for power to overcome the inertia. I was reluctant to pay people to do it. I am virtually a one man show, and an old man show at that. Thank God my wife helps out to move furniture and clean up. Still I needed divine help most.

One morning I woke up and the idea of paint, paint, paint persisted until it overcame all excuses and resistance. It had to be an answer to prayer. I announced my sudden inspiration to my wife, who was leaving for her Friday ladies’ prayer meeting. I think she must have thought this idea would not take off and was probably surprised when I actually got it done.

I was amazed at the power to do. The Lord must have energised me to finish three quarters of the painting. I was so excited that the next two days, I completed the finishing touches, and moved in all the furniture to make ready my retreat room – the sacred space for me to withdraw, study, pray, idle, nap and write.

The momentum steamrolled its way into progress in other areas as well. What happened was that we had to reorganise a lot of old files and paper documents, books, clothes, bookshelf, storage boxes and a storage space. The result was stunning for us as we had lived with and accepted all this junk for so many years, and never had the motivation or strength of will to overcome the million excuses we came up with not to change things. Suddenly, like magic (and hard work) it was all done.

*I was pleased the writing and prayer space looked so inviting*

Looking at the results gave us great pleasure. For me it was a lesson in the power of prayer. Do as Mary, the mother of Jesus, did. “Son they have run out of wine.” Perhaps we should make of list of things to do, and that we tend to procrastinate, and simply bring it to God in prayer. Allow God to do something in the situation or in our life and co-operate with him. Let Him empower us even in the mundane problems of everyday living.