i know the war is real. but to watch video of a friend's husband exchanging gunfire and being in the middle of it, made it much more real this morning.
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i am not only proud of jimmy, but i'm also proud and humbled by the sacrifice stephanie and her sweet girls are making. such a beautiful, young family, affected in a big way. thanks jimmy, stephanie, harper and sadie. you will all be in my prayers EVERY day. and i am sorry that i haven't been more faithful in praying until now.
i think we all go along with our lives and it's easy to get caught up in the busy-ness. and then it hits me, that there are many people who are going through tough, tough times. war, cancer, sickness, job loss, loneliness, and so many other terrible things. i just have to keep believing that God is in control, and that all He wants, is for us to see Him in the midst of it and trust. to trust that He wants more for us. that He just wants us to recognize our need and turn to Him humbly.
"You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in You, whose thoughts are fixed on You! trust in the Lord always, for the Lord God is the eternal Rock." isaiah 26:3, 4
i can't make sense of anything, without including the Lord in it. knowing that He is in control, and that He is not causing all the horrible things to happen, He is only allowing them, so that we see our need for Him and turn to Him.
i just can't fathom what stephanie must be going through. i just know that without including the Lord in the situation, i would feel hopeless. thanks howell family, and all the other military families...i appreciate you.
i almost feel guilty moving on and sharing images from recent shoots. but i think that images of the faces of young people, gives hope too. these are the faces that jimmy and his company, and many others are risking their lives for.
katie and her mom lori, and i hit the road after shooting a few headshots for the yearbook, and they humored me by just driving and stopping whenever there was a spot that caught my eye. i think we found some great new spots-
isn't she pretty? plus, she was natural with the camera. makes what i do, even better.
i had lots of people asking about our Christmas cards, and where i had them printed. i used my professional lab for the printing, but i don't think that is really the question. i think what people really want to know, is where i got the templates, right? i bought them at design aglow. BUT with that being said, i think the cards are only as good as the photos. not to sound uppity, or photo-snobbish....but i think it's once again a deal where *you get what you pay for*. i think everyone, myself included, wants a quality product or look, but may want to find it at a bargain price. yesterday, i had coffee at my friend chelsea's and i took brooke's Christmas cards, to give them to her. i heard several of the girls saying that they had gone to discount photographers, and had bad experiences. i take it all in. i think when you go to a discount photographer, many times you get lesser quality product. classic, "you get what you pay for". i'm not lacking clients, so i do know that lots of people *get it*. and not that i think i'm *all that*, but i do know that i truly care about what i'm doing, and want to give people a product that is not only quality in appearance, but that also evokes real emotion. that is my mission :)
where has this week gone? we've all lived a lot of life in this week, right? God bless your day today!
I LOVE this post! Makes a person so Thankful for others... especially those that are willing for the sacrifice! Great shots Becky and I LOVE your Christmas cards! Love them!!!!
Have a great day!
Lynn
Posted by: Lynn | October 23, 2008 at 08:52 AM
thank you so so much my sweet friend.
i appreciate it more than i can say.
and yes, I wonder daily how families who don't believe in the Lord make it through situations like this.
xoxo
Posted by: stephanie Howell | October 23, 2008 at 09:24 AM
I LOVE your Christmas cards..but I can totally see that quality photos would be key. The photo are 90 percent of the card.. and that's what I love about them. Just enough design element to add interest.
Your photos on these capture your family perfectly!
Posted by: Vicki Chrisman | October 23, 2008 at 01:40 PM
I almost blogged about this yesterday. I truly cannot imagine. I watched the videos and it hit me hard. I feel foolish even admitting it but I truly just had no clue. I guess who would? You know they are giving to their country....OUR country. You know the sacrifice they and their families are making. You know it's probably horrible but to see it? To watch it? To hear it? It made my heart wrench. God bless each of them, their families.
I am with you.....I don't know how one can get through that, or even the littlest things in life, without faith and without knowing that you always have the Lord to lean on. He's always there...in every situation, in every breath.
Hugs Becky
Posted by: Maureen | October 23, 2008 at 02:54 PM
Sure wish you were closer to St Louis! :)
Posted by: psmulican | October 23, 2008 at 03:08 PM
my word.... becky those pictures are amazing! love the first and last one... VERY photogenic!
Posted by: emma | October 23, 2008 at 03:50 PM
Hi Becky! First, just so you know, my email isn't working (again) this week, so I haven't been able to respond to your email . . . and my response is DITTO! I just feel so blessed to have spent time with you and Tom and have you as Daenon's photographer. I wish we could have had more time chatting, but as you could tell, the teenager was ready to go! Hopefully, next time we can shop and chat. Your photos this week are absolutely amazing!! Of course, I'm anxiously awaiting a few from Sundays' shoot.
Thank you for sharing the video on Steph's husband. I listed to the segment this morning on NBC, but didn't make the connection. Talk to you soon! Renae
Posted by: Renae Clark | October 23, 2008 at 05:25 PM
Your words are so true! Life would be so, so hard if God wasn't at the center of everything for me.
And your pictures - and comments about the cards and photographers - echo my sentiments exactly! You've created a wonderful keepsake for your family members and your loved ones too. Thanks for showing us!
Posted by: Crystal | October 23, 2008 at 07:09 PM
i follow steph's blog, too, and it's got to be a tremendous undertaking for her.
i'm honored that she shares her story with us every day, and i love that the internet allows us to have so many "friends" (real-life or virtual) to help each other through those times.
Posted by: aja | October 26, 2008 at 02:56 PM