Gadfly's Muse

I Will Lift Up My Eyes .....

(DJohanson, 2008, I Will Lift Up My Eyes)

Psalm 121: I will lift up my eyes to the hills -- From whence comes my help?  2 My help comes from the LORD, Who made heaven and earth.  3 He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber.  4 Behold, He who keeps Israel Shall neither slumber nor sleep.  5 The LORD is your keeper; The LORD is your shade at your right hand.  6 The sun shall not strike you by day, Nor the moon by night.  7 The LORD shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul.  8 The LORD shall preserve your going out and your coming in From this time forth, and even forevermore.

My friend Dave was visiting the Mt Baker area, specifically at Picture Lake recently when he observed these "Alpine Flowers" at road's edge.  Since taking pics of flowers alongside the road is one of my things I have to approve even if I didn't love the picture, which I do.  Here with the mountains in the background rising out of the haze, the flowers seem to be bending their heads in wonder and amazement at the strength that lies beyond them.  The words of Psalm 121 naturally spring to mind, and of course a word of encouragement that comes from them.

Psalm 121 is a "Song of Ascents", sung by ancient pilgrims as the wound their way from the plains of Palestine up through the hills to Mt. Zion, the fortress city of Jerusalem, where God "dwelt" in His holy temple.  It was a perilous journey but the hunger that lay close to the heart of the Israelite believer, like David himself, yearned for the precincts of God, to dwell in His house forever. Here perhaps we can discover a metaphor for our own life.

We are all on an uphill journey to Jerusalem.  Jerusalem sits high, we enter its gates at the end of an ascent.  The very hills in which it is situated are the realm of the unknown, with dangers on every side.  It is a strenuous climb with a narrow path that requires attention to where we put our feet as we take each step.  Wide and broad is the path that leads downward to destruction but the climb to Jerusalem is different.

Never-the-less, it is not a journey to be feared, only soberly considered.  For at every step there is Help from those very hills.  The LORD, the Creator of Heaven and Earth, the source of all providence, the God who Provides, our Shield and Defender and Keeper never slumbers nor sleeps.  He is an Ever-present Help in time of trouble and His promise is that nothing in the day or night, no evil devised by man or spiritual power, can overpower His protection.  He SHALL preserve our soul.  He SHALL preserve our going out and OUR COMING IN.

Eat Your Heart Out Spidey.... "Saw Leaf Daisy and Friend"

(2008, WSVanDevender, click for larger image)

This one was taken by my brother who has the unusual name of Sterrett.  (The name has made the news recently as the USN has recently launched the second USS Sterrett).  The beautiful little green creature is a Green Lynx Spider and for all intents and purposes, it is a lean, mean, green killing machine.  If it had a bit more discretion, and chose to concentrate on just the bad bugs and not honeybees, it would be a very useful addition for pest control in the garden.  But such is not the case.  It can jump with the best of them and has no problem taking down wasps you would think would pose a big problem for it.  Beautiful creature.

Did you ever ponder the intricacy and diversity of God's creation?  Think about it.  Who among us would have thought up a creature like this one?  Many spiders are fascinating but the descriptor "beautiful" doesn't readily spring to mind.  This one looks like a woman's brooch made of finely shaped, delicate emerald with translucent crystal legs.  Yet, the beauty is deceptive.  It can jump many times its length (though not a true jumping spider) trailing a fine strand of web for back up.  Here is God's attention to detail: crafting a creature worthy of contemplation yet one not to be trifled with.  That might be a bit of revelation for us.  God is surpassingly beautiful but He will not submit to being thought of solely in those terms.  He demands respect for His whole range of Being.  The One who can design the Lynx Spider and then pose her on a Saw Leaf Daisy is a God of surpassing aesthetic accomplishment... but beauty for both spider and flower serve other ends... and God knows them all.

Truly The Light Is Sweet

(2008, DJohanson, click for larger image)

To see more of Dave's pics go HERE

Ecclesiastes 11:6-7    In the morning sow your seed, And in the evening do not withhold your hand; For you do not know which will prosper, Either this or that, Or whether both alike will be good.  Truly the light is sweet, And it is pleasant for the eyes to behold the sun

I've known Dave for nigh on 35 years now and have profited from the friendship in numerous ways.  He's been doing photography for as long as I've known him and is quite accomplished.  This photo is different than his usual in that he specializes in nature shots, especially macro images.  He went to Antarctica  once upon a time and came back with three thousand slides of "white."  (not really)

This picture was taken however at the culmination of a hard day's work in the hayfields and subsequent stacking in the barn.  It particularly appeals to me in its composition and muted contrast.  There is an Autumn feel to the browns and the filtered sun light can be nothing less than the smile of God rejoicing with man in the cooperative work that has been done.  Man plants but God yields the harvest.

Truly, the light is sweet... it seeks out the darkness and penetrates and illumines and encourages and even provides its own beauty.  What better for man to do than sow in the morning and not with hold his hand in the evening, so that together, with God, he may bring the harvest into the store room, and then perceive the filtered presence of God's smile!