Category Archives: Beauty

Personal Patina…

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(reposted from my professional blog at http://www.lifelinesmobile.org/blog )

I’ve been given some lovely silver trays, bowls, and serving pieces that have been passed down through generations. This time of the year I begin to think how I would love to use them for holiday dinners…but then I think of the polishing…and the polishing…and the polishing and then it never really looking like the shiny version of what I imagine my great grandmother would have used.

What is it in us that always wants the shiny version?

Tarnish is a chemical reaction that can leave a dull finish on silver after being exposed to air. It is rather simple to clean. But the patina of the silver is a lustrous finish that well used, loved and cared for silver pieces develop over time. It is a living finish of sorts that reveals marks of history from all the uses prior. Just think of the personal history each silver piece could reveal…all the joys and sorrows that mark all the times families come together.

So, what is it in us that always wants the shiny version? …

Each of us is an accumulation of a lifetime of experiences and history…our personal patina is the wisdom we wear and share. Our personal patina is nothing to be overzealously stripped…it’s what makes each of us unique.

Are you striving to be a shiny version of yourself? …

Or are you allowing your personal patina to be the wisdom you wear?

“Let the beauty radiate from inside your heart to the outside world.” Imania Margria

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Facets of the Human Person…

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image via fromtheheartofj

image via fromtheheartofj

The facets of the human person…

Fallen yet immersed in the I AM…

Catching bits of light and reflecting it.

The broken- open- healed- present- potential bundle of God’s Love.

Just one cell of the mystical Body with a unique task that no other can accomplish in the Divine Plan.

Let there be harmony among the broken-open-healed-present-potential masterpieces of Divine Love…

Which is the not yet tuned symphony of the Glory of God…

Man Himself…

The broken-open-healed-present-potential bundle of God’s Love.

“At present we see indistinctly, as in a mirror, but then face to face.  At present I know partially; then I shall know fully as I am fully known. So faith, hope, love remain, these three, but the greatest of these is love.” ! Cor 13:12

Intertwined in the Grandiose Plan…

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O ancient of waters brought forth by the Maker from the chaos of the dark…

Soothing waves pour over the anxious soul drawing one into its rocking motion…

image fromtheheartofj

image fromtheheartofj

 

Sitting before the water and pondering its beginning….

One feels so small….

image via fromtheheartofj

image via fromtheheartofj

 

But too…

So intertwined in the grandiose plan of God…

That all creation give Praise to Him our Creator!

It All Began With A Post-It…

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It all began with a Post It note…

image via fromtheheartofj

Someone took the time to affirm an anonymous woman wounded by the world.

She smiled from the inside out and too was led to do the same.

image via fromtheheartofj

She took the time to affirm an anonymous woman wounded by the world, who smiled from the inside out and too was led to do the same.

All with a Post It.

What is true beauty?

Is it not the light of Him who is beauty shining forth from within…that unique divine imprint that only you can reflect?

Let us throw off the bondage of the world’s definition of beauty…

Beauty Evangelization.

No experience required…just some post its and a beautiful heart.

Will you join me?

With our eyes upon Christ may we discover our true beauty reflected in His loving gaze. May we receive His smile upon us and reflect Him to all who cross our path.

“God created man in his image; in the divine image he created him; male and female he created them.” Gen 1:27

Looking For Beauty….

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Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful…

image via vagabond.com

 

We must carry it with us or we find it not. (Ralph Waldo Emerson)

image via ilovemydarling.wordpress.com

“One thing I ask of the Lord, this I seek:  to dwell in the Lord’s house all the days of my life, to gaze on the Lord’s beauty, to visit his temple.” Ps 27:4

How Beautiful the Feet….

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image via dj-soul.deviantart.com

“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings glad tidings, announcing peace, bearing good news, announcing salvation, and saying to Zion, “Your God is King.” is 52:7

The deeds you do may be the only sermon some hear today! (St. Francis of Assisi)

Blessings on your weekend, fromtheheartofj

When We Forget…

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When we forget to worship….

image via apologos.com

we forget who we are.

When we lose sight of God…

image via telioscorp.typepad.com

we lose sight of what we are.

His Image and His likeness.

(this is what I am listening to today : )

Take Me into the Beautiful by Cloverton

“Then God said: “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” Gen 1:26a

Slice of Life…

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The ins and outs of our everyday lives…our routines…our patterns…

Do you see the EXTRAORDINARY in the ORDINARY of your daily “slice of life”?

How quickly our vision dims at the beauty before us….The beauty in the ordinary.

Is it…”Oh no, here comes a new day?”

image via fromtheheartofj

Or, the beauty of the morning light splashed upon the pillow?

Is it, “Is the back yard flooded again?!”

image via fromtheheartofj

Or the depth of reflection in a mud puddle?

Is it, “Busy, busy day…no time to cook dinner.”

image via fromtheheartofj

Or the joy of conversation over take-out?

The things that matter most are treasures hidden in our unique “slice of life”

I have been abundantly blessed to participate in the “Slice of Life” Project e-course taught by talented, beauty seeker, Seattle based photographer, Darrah Parker.

image via www.darrahparker.com

With Darrah’s assistance and inpirational encouragement, photographers from all over the world (thanks to the internet) have reclaimed the beauty of the ordinary of their lives through the lens of their cameras. There are pros with fancy cameras all the way to beginners with point and shoot or camera phones all learning and being blessed by the sharing of the ordinary turned extraordinary…a beauty treasure hunt.

Darrah on her website www.darrahparker.com shares about the class,

image via www.darrahparker.com

“Have you ever wanted to stop time? Hold a moment in your hands? Capture a slice of your life and turn into a treasure? In the Slice of Life Project, you will dig beneath the surface of your everyday life with your trusty camera by your side and unearth the beauty that has been there all along.”

“The Slice of Life approach to photography is a way of seeing, noticing, and appreciating the nuances and details that make your life special. It’s a way of embracing and honoring the imperfections in yourself, your loved ones, your messy kitchen, and cluttered shelves. It’s about saying that your life is just right the way it is.”

“This workshop will not require the perfect camera or fancy lenses or knowledge of ISO, aperture, or shutter speed. It won’t even require you to get out of your pajamas or make your bed! It will only require you to show up with a camera (ANY camera), an open mind, and a creative spirit.”

Registration is now open for the next class beginning April 6…take this 6 week retreat and rediscover the beauty in your life! Go to the website www.darrahparker.com  for more details.

Beauty leads to wonder and awe…beauty leads to gratitude…beauty leads to praise!

And we were created to be a people of praise and thanksgiving!

May you be blessed this day with the recognition of the beauty in your life!

The Canvas of the Kingdom…

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image via photographersdirect.com

Henry Moore was and English sculptor and artist.  He is best known for his abstractions of the human figure, particularly the mother and child, and reclining figures.  It has been said that many of Moore’s sculptures, that include hollow spaces and rolling curves, were inspired by the landscape hills of his birthplace of Yorkshire.  He created many public works of art around the world. Although he became quite wealthy from the sales of his work, he lived very frugally and before he died he created the Henry Moore Foundation (still in existence today) to support the education and promotion of the arts.

image via obit-mag.com

 “The secret of life is to have a task, something that you devote your entire life to, something to bring everything to, every minute of the day, for the rest of your life.  And the important thing is, it must be something you can’t possibly do.”

Henry Moore (1898-1986)

What is your life task? What is that which you devote your entire life to? What is your passion? What is that which your heart cannot ignore?

What is that which you can’t possibly do?

Could it be,” You shall love the Lord, your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all  your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment.  The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matt 22:37-39) ?

For surely this radical love is impossible without the love of God infused through grace within us.

And it is in that flow of God’s grace we discover that life task, that life devotion, that passion, that mission of the heart.

By surrendering our total selves heart, soul, and mind, to Him who is love…

We become His artists of all kinds, in all walks of life, splashing forth up on the canvas of the Kingdom our own unique color and brush work.

image via dreamstime.com

 Blessings on your weekend!