It may be beautiful, but rust is still rust………..

Jim Begley and I and a lot of our friends, love to photograph old rusted metal; trucks, trains, old machines, and on and on. The color and texture of rust is really exciting to us. As beautiful as it is, it’s still rust, and rust destroys. When things sit out in the field and stop working, they react to water and air and if they are metal they will rust, eventually they can rust completely away. As men and women of faith, we can rust to. We must remain active and moving for Him. If we love the Lord, but do not serve Him daily, we will rust, and trust me, rust on a Christian is not nearly as pretty as on an old antique truck.

One of my secret dreams for the Pilgrim’s Chronicles is that it would encourage others to blog and build websites that offer their faith to others. This has been a God produced project from day one, but along the way, I’ve seen how it ministers to people of like mind, (photographers). I’ve had a lot of emails from other photographers, that also happened to be committed Christians, who are serving God in a similar way. Some say they got the idea here, some say they discovered the Chronicles after they started down this path. It doesn’t matter how the Chronicles helps others as long as it helps. We don’t want to have any rusting going on around here. The way to witness is to take a page out of the book on Jesus, the Bible. If you read and studied the New Testament thoroughly, you would discover that Jesus never debated, argued or ordered anyone to accept Him, He simply loved everyone that came in contact with Him with such a love that they could not resist wanting to follow Him and His ways. His love was so much deeper and real to people than anything they had ever experienced that they wanted to know this Man.

We are called to do the same thing. Everyday, everywhere you go, spread His love to others. Be kind to someone in need, speak warmly to those in society that go unnoticed. Offer help to someone to old to do something by themselves. Offer someone to go ahead of you in traffic.
Reach high to get a grocery item off the shelf for an elderly person, open the door for someone on crutches or in a wheel chair. After a good meal, thank the server for doing such a great job. Encourage a friend that is discouraged, hug a child, hug your wife. Listen when someone needs to share something and concentrate on them. Pray for those that you know are in need or are lost.

I had an interesting thing happen in New York. I was attending a meeting for Nikon and I was traveling to and from our hotel to the convention center by cab. Outside our hotel a bellman
assisted you with hailing a cab. I stood one morning and had a conversation with bellman, small talk, where was he from, did he have a family?, that kind of stuff. When we got into the cab, about four of us, one of my New York friends asked me a strange question. “I’ve noticed you are friendly to everyone, you even strike up conversations with people you don’t even know. Why?” My answer was simple, “Why not?” I went on to explain that in the city, where everyone is in a hurry, they seldom take the time to visit with a stranger, or they may feel that some people, because of their station in life, are beneath them. I do not feel that way. The waitress, the bellman, the day laborer, the policeman, they all are God’s children just like me. If Jesus died on the cross for each of them, just as He did for me, they are my brothers and sisters, if they have accepted Him. If they haven’t, what part can I play in encouraging them to know Him.

Encourage others to want to be a Christian by being someone they want to be like. When they ask why you are, the way you are, you can share Christ with them. It’s not much more difficult than that.

I got an email from brother in California sharing his blog that he does for his church. They have a photography ministry, wow, would I like to go to that church! They wrote about my blog in the most resent post, thought you might like it. I’m also posting another couple of websites or blogs
that are very meaningful to me, check them out and be blessed by some of the others out there walking the same path that we are.

Get going for Christ, PREVENT RUST………

http://bridgewayphotoministry.wordpress.com/

http://www.seeingcreation.com/

http://dg.hollums.com/

When I start the new website and move this blog later this year, I plan to post many great places to get spiritual encouragement and enrichment. Till then, keep your faith, and share it with others…..

the pilgrim

*Photo Note: All images Nikon D7000, 24-120 AF-S VR lens.