I Speak Through My Eyes ; A Photo Blog

It all started with a car ride, the sun, and some rolling hills. I'm a sucker for car rides, and He knew it. God asked, and I said, "Yes". [en·gage·ment • the act of engaging. emotional involvement or commitment.] engaging with You and engaging with this created world. through photos and words.

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-- When the world is bright and cheery, and our hearts feel light and merry --

(An old photo with a good friend:)

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Dear M,

You have left a mark on my heart for all of eternity. Although you may forget me, I will always feel proud of you, like a mother has her affections for a son.

It won’t be long until you become a man after God’s own heart. Stand firm in the faith, my little one.

Yours truly,

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Beauty and the Peace

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Brooklyn, New York My friend and I found this cute, hipster market. And just like that, I was like a little girl in a new world. Wide-eyed and in awe. I hope to come across more amazing things randomly... There are so many things to discover and fall in love with.

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Thank you God for Winter Storm Jonas. (Please let Jonas’ relatives visit us next winter!)

The things that are hard in life are still hard... What is cold and bitter in winter is still cold and bitter... But I am thankful for friends, family, and community who remind me of what is warm and good, when instead I feel like giving in to the cold. Dramatic and cheesy yes, but I don’t think God wants me to give in to the cold and freeze myself to death. I think He just wants me to realize where the warmth is...

“Winter in the soul is by no means a comfortable season, and if it be upon thee just now it will be very painful to thee: but there is this comfort, namely, that the Lord makes it. He sends the sharp blasts of adversity to nip the buds of expectation: He scattereth the hoarfrost like ashes over the once verdant meadows of our joy: He casteth forth his ice like morsels freezing the streams of our delight. He does it all, He is the great Winter King, and rules in the realms of frost, and therefore thou canst not murmur. Losses, crosses, heaviness, sickness, poverty, and a thousand other ills, are of the Lord’s sending, and come to us with wise design. Frost kills noxious insects, and put a bound to raging diseases; they break up the clods, and sweeten the soil. O that such good results would always follow our winters of affliction! How we prize the fire just now! How pleasant is its cheerful glow! Let us in the same manner prize our Lord, who is the constant source of warmth and comfort in every time of trouble. Let us draw night to Him, and in Him find joy and peace in believing. Let us wrap ourselves in the warm garments of His promises, and go forth to labours which befit the season, for it were ill to be as the sluggard who will not plough by reason of the cold; for he shall beg in summer and have nothing.” -CH Spurgeon

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"They showed me that the highest mental health is not liking myself but being joyfully interested in everything but myself." John Piper Our hearts were made for awe and wonder. And ourselves is just too small for that. Fill yourself with something greater.

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Feels like home A not so wintery visit to Longwood Gardens

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One of my all time favorite quotes:

“Perhaps we don't like what we see: our hips, our loss of hair, our shoe size, our dimples, our knuckles too big, our eating habits, our disposition. We have disclosed these things in secret, likes and dislikes, behind doors with locks, our lonely rooms, our messy desks, our empty hearts, our sudden bursts of energy, our sudden bouts of depression. Don’t worry. Put away your mirrors and your beauty magazines and your books on tape. There is someone right here who knows you more than you do, who is making room on the couch, who is fixing a meal, who is putting on your favorite record, who is listening intently to what you have to say, who is standing there with you, face to face, hand to hand, eye to eye, mouth to mouth. There is no space left uncovered. This is where you belong.” -- Sufjan Stevens

All my life I longed for intimacy but I always feared it. Today I discovered why. Intimacy means that everything is exposed, “There is no space left uncovered.” Every part of you you share. And with that there is a fear of rejection...

I am learning everyday to be intimate with God. It is hard. And it involves honesty and humility. But it is worth it. Intimacy with God is a great thing. (used a stockphoto image, but photoshopped it hehe)

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A poem I read in Tim Keller’s book, The Meaning of Marriage. Tears swelled up in my eyes as I read it and read TK’s comments on it. I hope it blesses you, keeps you, and grows you in God’s love. There’s no better place to be. (fyi: background photo not mine! it’s a stock photo that I just edited. I’ll always note if a photo isn’t mine).

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Goodbyes

You will always have a special place in my heart. You did from the start.

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Way to my heart

The way to my heart is not food (though that would be much appreciated).

The way to my heart is a long, scenic drive... And I look forward to the day I begin journeying with my other, literally in long car rides and figuratively in life. #agirlcandream #prayingforhubbie #LOL  But don’t worry, I am REALLY going to enjoy my singleness. My supervisor told me to. :) And a few others have been too. Seems to be the consensus that the 20′s is a good time in life. :) So here’s the enjoying the now, so that I can enjoy the later.

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Refreshing... Sad, but refreshing.

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We’ll always have each others’ backs. And for that I am so grateful. #chicagotrip #childhoodfriends

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Life is not about the destination, it’s about the journey that gets you there.

I used to be extremely disappointed with life and dissatisfied with myself. But I am learning that it’s not about the results, it’s about the journey. Who you’re traveling with. What you’re learning. The day to day-ness of life. 

Life is ordinary, and once accepted, beautiful.

I know this sounds crazy, but my heart is so content and filled with joy that it feels like it will burst at the seams! It’s not a loud kind of joy and passion, but a quiet one, simmering in my heart. I’m not going to lie. I like this kind of joy.

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Mount Meru, Kenya

Your eyes are kind.

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Colorful How often I forget that every mountain is a different color. A different challenge to overcome and a different character to build in my life. Resulting in a more colorful me and a more colorful view of God. {You make me come alive. In good and bad times.}

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Love is so precious isn't it? We all seek it. We all want it. Sometimes though, we overlook it.

"This sounds very simple and maybe even trite, but very few people know that they are loved without condition or limits." -Henri Nouwen