# 84 The Season

My wish and prayer for you this week is that you will have a blessed and Merry Christmas. Be safe, enjoy your friends and family to the fullest!

Merry Christmas to all of you!

And know that I am with you always; yes, to the end of time.

Jesus Christ

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.

Luke 2:8-11 NIV

# 83 Share what you know

I would never be accused of being the smartest guy in the room but I have learned a few things about photography. Yesterday I was privileged to participate as a presenter for a statewide 4-H event focusing on photography. It is always fantastic to be able to share a little of what yo know to help someone progress. Working with kids who are actually interested in what you have to say a pure pleasure. I had a blast!

To know what you know and what you do not know, that is true knowledge.

Confucius

          Proverbs 9:10

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and theknowledge of the Holy One is insight.

# 82 Give Thanks

I have many things to be thankful for and I am sure you do too. One of the things I cherish most is the time  I am able to spend with my family. It is a true pleasure to be able to watch my sons and their family's grow up. They are three great sons who are fine young men,

 All with their unique personalities and talents.

Oh yea they still know their way around a turkey too!

Be grateful for what you have and stop complaining - it bores everybody else, does you no good, and doesn't solve any problems.

Zig Ziglar

Psalm 7-17

17 I will give thanks to the Lord according to His righteousness
And will sing praise to the name of the Lord Most High.

# 81 Sharpen Up

Last week I encouraged you to be good to yourself. One of the ways to do that is to step back from technology and let the pace of life slow a bit. Mother nature can be a great teacher to be prepaired. While we were camping on our hunting trip the temps got into the mid 20's! A bit nippy for this Texas transplant. It was good for all of us there to unplug for a few days. The fire and a good sleeping bag can mean a lot! My sons were a blast to have around, trust me they will keep you sharp!

Camping is nature's way of promoting the motel business.

Dave Barry

Proverbs 27 

17 Iron sharpens iron,
    and one man sharpens another.

# 80 Be Good

I am reading a book called " Be Good To Yourself' Orison Swett Marden 1850-1924

I am not sure when this one was written, but the wisdom is timeless! His main point is, how will you ever be able to give your best or do your best if you do not take care of yourself? Proper food, proper rest and time to ready yourself is essential today more than ever. Many of us think we can stay up all night and partake of perhaps one to many adult beverage, eat junk food, (properly named) and then do an proper job the next day! It doesn't work that way...Imagine how much better of a father, mother or employee we would be if we thought to take better care of our self! There is only one you!

Take care of yourself!

Take care of your body. It's the only place you have to live.

Jim Rohn

Proverbs 17:22

A cheerful heart is a good medicine, but a downcast spirit dries up the bones.

# 79 work

Most of you have been working for a while. Most of US will continue for a while! But hopefully some day we will be able to at least shift gears and go at a slower pace. I like to work. When I get frustrated I remember back to the times of illness when I could not work. That will always help you keep things in perspective. Enjoy your work and do the best job you can.

Commit your work to the Lord!

Big jobs usually go to the men who prove their ability to outgrow small ones.

Theodore Roosevelt

Proverbs 16:2-4

2 All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes,

    but the Lord weighs the spirit.

 

3  Commit your work to the Lord,

    and your plans will be established.

4  The Lord has made everything for its purpose,

    even the wicked for the day of trouble.

# 78 Food

I am trying to eat better!

 The paleo diet is very popular these days and I am doing a "version" of that. You don't eat anything a caveman didn't have. Lots of meat and vegetables. Leave the junk food alone and no bread or pasta.

And no processed food..Eat Natural!

 I have to say some of the food is very good! I have not been doing it long enough to see if it will  have a weight reduction result, but I feel much better.

Free range pork and venison are on the menu, Lets go hunting!

Vegetarians are cool. All I eat are vegetarians - except for the occasional mountain lion steak.

Ted Nugent

Psalm 104

14 Thou dost cause the grass to grow for the cattle,

    and plants for man to cultivate,[b]

that he may bring forth food from the earth,

15 

    and wine to gladden the heart of man,

oil to make his face shine,

    and bread to strengthen man’s heart.

# 77 Alone

I like the old saying that goes,

 "I only like to fish when I am by myself, or with somebody"

Sometimes being alone can be a good thing and other times its nice to have a wife, brother, sister or close friend to share an event with. The older I get the harder it is to find a good friends. They take time to cultivate. Being from a large family has some great advantages, there is always some kindred spirit to talk to. I never have been very lonely, because I think I am very good company!

Associate with men of good quality if you esteem your own reputation; for it is better to be alone than in bad company.

George Washington

Psalm 62

5 For God alone my soul waits in silence,
    for my hope is from him.
6 He only is my rock and my salvation,
    my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
7 On God rests my deliverance and my honor;
    my mighty rock, my refuge is God.

# 76 Cars

I changed a flat this week. First time in a long time.

I had to do it  because I did not take my own advice given here!! I put off getting new tires for a few days...bad mistake!

It cost me a lot more than a set of tires of course. The blowout, took out, some brake wiring so you can guess the rest of the story..

It was not pretty.

My foot is kind of sore from kicking myself!

If GM had kept up with technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving $25 cars that got 1,000 MPG.

Bill Gates

Psalm 91

11 For he will give his angels charge of you

    to guard you in all your ways. 12 On their hands they will bear you up,
    lest you dash your foot against a stone.

# 75 Plans

We were picked for a draw (deer) hunt at a Texas Wildlife Management Area this year.

 A week long hunt in the deep hardwood forests of East Texas.

 I will be joined by two of my sons and a very good friend.

The excitement of  winning the lottery is soon replaced by the anticipation of the trip. So now the planning begins. Planning is half the fun. TOPO maps are being emailed, gear lists updated, and menu planning is in full swing. We have a month to get ready!

I once came up with this advice to myself.

Make your plans, but do not plan on it.

" And during the long winter months they are prone

to collect in little knots and talk much of camps, fishing, hunting, and “roughing it."

The last phrase is very popular and always cropping out in the talks on matters

pertaining to a vacation in the woods. I dislike the phrase. 

We do not go to the green woods and crystal waters to rough it, we go to smooth it.

 We get it rough enough at home; in towns and cities; in shops, offices, stores, banks, anywhere that

we may be placed—with the necessity always present of being on time and up to our work; of

providing for the dependent ones; of keeping up, catching up, or getting left.."

George Washington Sears...Nessmuk

Psalm 46

10 “Be still, and know that I am God.

    I am exalted among the nations,

    I am exalted in the earth!”

#74 Storms

Today we had a wild storm that hit mid morning. I do not know too much about forecasting weather, but I do when when warm air and cold air meet there can be some fireworks! Two hours later we needed our sun glasses again. The same is true in our lives. Sometimes we just need to weather the storms and look for better weather ahead.

Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes its a quite voice at the end of the day saying:

"I'll try again tomorrow"

Mary Ann Radmacher

1 Kings 19

 And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; 12 and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. 13 And when Eli′jah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there came a voice to him,

# 73 Give it up!

When is the last time you gave something away? Not the kind of stuff you would put in the garage sale or goodwill but I mean some of your GOOD stuff. 

This is something in my life that I need to do a better job with.

 I suffer from the "I may need that one day" syndrome! 

Yea I may have a bit of hoarder in me. I do like to watch American Pickers!! I hope you will join me and find something you have, that will have an impact on someone else and just

 "Give it up"

Remember that the happiest people are not those getting more, but those giving more.

H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

2 Corinthians 9

6 The point is this: he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7 Each one must do as he has made up his mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for 

God loves a cheerful giver. 

# 72 The Zoo

Yep went to the zoo last week! It has been a few years since I had been. Its always better if you pick a cool day (we did) so you can spend more than an hour walking around. It is a great place to see raw emotion from children seeing the animals sometimes for the first time. we got to see the baby shadow leopard cubs on display for the first time on this trip (pictured above). That is what makes the adults ooo and ahhhh!  A great place to test your photo skills too!

The city is not a concrete jungle, it is a human zoo.

Desmond Morris

Genesis 1

24 And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds: cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so.25 And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the cattle according to their kinds, and everything that creeps upon the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

# 71 Procrastinate

Some things you can put off, but some things not matter what you do they are going to happen.

I think it is best to do the things, you know you should do, when you know you should do them!

Easier said than done.

Like the seasons many things will be upon us whether we like it or not.

Take some time today and think of what should be on your to do list...and do it!

Procrastination makes easy things hard, hard things harder.

Mason Cooley

27 Proverbs 27 1-2
Do not boast about tomorrow,
for you do not know what a day may bring forth.
2 Let another praise you, and not your own mouth;
    a stranger, and not your own lips.

# 70 In Good Time

Have you ever had something you wanted done...RIGHT NOW! 

We think that all things should be done on our schedule!

 I am trying to be patient with things in my life that are not on my time table.

And they are not in my control so I must wait.

Patience has never been one of my greatest attributes but I am learning.

Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.

John Quincy Adams

Isaiah 55

8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways, says the Lord.
9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts.

# 69 Dog Days

Summer in Texas is HOT. No big revelation there!..

I keep pictures like this to remind me that seasons change.  I now see more clearly the seasons of life having passed through a couple of them. With change comes excitement of what is ahead and a bit of sadness to know some things will not be revisited the same way ever again. Enjoy the moment what ever season you are  in. Good or bad, one thing is for sure..Things will change, you will get a day older and wiser.

Everything has seasons, and we have to be able to recognize when something's time has passed and be able to move into the next season. Everything that is alive requires pruning as well, which is a great metaphor for endings.

Henry Cloud

Ecclesiastes

3 For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:

2 a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
3 a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
4 a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
5 a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
6 a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
7 a time to rend, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
8 a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace.

# 68 Sunset

19

In photography we talk about the "golden hour". That time at sunrise or sunset that the light is perfect for capturing just the right shot. I have been working on learning more about light and photography. What a great time to spend some quiet time, either first thing in the morning or later in the evening. Enjoy the long summer days because soon they will fade.

Two golden hours somewhere between sunrise and sunset. Both are set with 60 diamond minutes. No reward is offered. They are gone forever.

Horace Mann

Psalm 19: 1-4

The heavens are telling the glory of God;

    and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.

2 

Day to day pours forth speech,

    and night to night declares knowledge.

3 

There is no speech, nor are there words;

    their voice is not heard;

4 

yet their voice goes out through all the earth,

    and their words to the end of the world.

# 67 Mistakes

I was reminded this week that we all make mistakes, or you might say like this guy above get in over our head! It is never fun and most times the result is not what we hoped for either. Mistakes are a part of life, I have heard it said that if you never make mistakes than you are not doing anything!

It doesn't make it any easier when its YOUR mistake.

Give your self the grace to not be perfect, just learn from your mistake!

A smart man makes a mistake, learns from it, and never makes that mistake again. But a wise man finds a smart man and learns from him how to avoid the mistake altogether.

Roy H. Williams

James 3

 2 For we all make many mistakes, and if any one makes no mistakes in what he says he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body also. 3 If we put bits into the mouths of horses that they may obey us, we guide their whole bodies. 4 Look at the ships also; though they are so great and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. 5 So the tongue is a little member and boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire!

6 And the tongue is a fire. 

# 66 Quotes

I am sure you know by now I love a good quote! When someone sends me a quote or a bible verse that I do not know well, I can't wait to use it. There is so much wisdom in the written Word. I use many of the quotes I find to try and encourage you to stay positive! 

Time is a sort of river of passing events, and strong is its current; no sooner is a thing brought to sight than it is swept by and another takes its place, and this too will be swept away.

Marcus Aurelius

Jeremiah 29

11 For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13 You will seek me and find me; when you seek me with all your heart, 14 I will be found by you, says the Lord,