Mindfulness

(c) deAnn Roe | September 2012

“To be mindful, full of mind, that is,

to have our minds and souls

conscious and aware,

attuned to the things around us,

to the things of God.

For nothing is truly

ordinary in God’s created order.” 

Manuel Luz

 

This month at The Studio is all about Seeing Beyond the Obvious. Through the medium of photography, the focus this evening was Mindfulness - slowing down, leaving the to-do lists behind, the emails, phone calls, grocery list, laundry, headaches from home or work. Leave it all and walk into the presence of God, "Be still and know that I am God" He tells us. Yes, we rarely actually take the time to do so. Tonight we did...

To practice mindfulness, one must abide with our Heavenly Father (to remain in). Jesus modeled this for us through His life - he remained connected in prayer and through the Holy Spirit so that He was always in step with the will of the Father.

Reflection... How well are you abiding with your Heavenly Father these days?

(c) deAnn Roe | September 2012

This evening's exercise included a 45 minute contemplative photography walk around our church property. Here's what I mean...ask the Holy Spirit to guide you to things; objects, trees, etc. If you feel a nudge to stop and take a closer look at something, even if it seems dumb, don't ignore it. Explore everything in detail taking photos along the way. The three photo's in this blog are a few of what I took.

Mindfulness leads to a renewed awareness of our surroundings - the beauty of creation all around us and the people God brings in to our lives. We learn to see the spiritual beyond the material, beyond the obvious.

God's creation speaks loudly of His glory. Can you hear it? Can you see it?

"Let the heavens be glad, and the earth rejoice! Let the sea and everything in it shout His praise! Let the fields and their crops burst out with joy! Let the trees of the forest rustle with praise before the Lord, for His is coming!" Psalm 96:11-13

The next time you see a sunset, pause and reflect on its beauty and its Creator. He paints the sky for your enjoyment. Enjoy it!

(c) deAnn Roe | September 2012

Seeing beyond the obvious... We need eyes to see Him, ears to hear Him. I love this poem by David Adam. I use it as a prayer....

VISION

O Lord

Extend my vision

Open my eyes to see

Beyond the obvious

To perceive that this is Your world

You are in it

You invade it

You pervade it

You enfold it

It is immersed in You

 

 

The challenge is to see the sacred in the ordinary.

 

The assignment this week:

As with any creative endeavor - always ask God to be present with you and that He would make His presence known to you.

 

Choose an object you use daily; maybe the bathroom faucet, a pair of shoes, coffee pot, or steering wheel of your car.

 

Using your camera take photos of that the ordinary object but in extraordinary ways.

 

Explore the object from every angle, change the perspective, have fun with lighting, use close up shots, move the object to a paradoxical location (i.e. an ice tray in the oven), Be creative! Have fun!

 

Print out 1-3 of your favorite photos from this series and bring them to The Studio next week, 9/12.

 

Reflection... as you look over your photos from this assignment, what surprises you? What have you learned about this ordinary object? Has your perception of this object changed in any way? What has the Holy Spirit revealed to you through this exercise?

 

See you next week as we explore LIGHT...

 

grace & peace,

deAnn