I made this image for a Facebook ad…
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WorshipOnPurpose.com is committed to encouraging artists in all media to use their gifts in worship and ministry and to encouraging churches and ministries to activate artists… If you’re new to the site, I’d like to introduce you to some of the features…
Every two weeks, the site promotes a new FeaturedArtist… Not just some karaoke singer, but artists with unique and often visionary approach to using their gifts to glorify God… For example:
Jason Tockey is an amateur photographer who’s gorgeous sunsets first caught my eye back in the spring. A few weeks ago, I spoke with Jason about his art and a vision he has to connect artists in an online community…
And coming up:
Mary Freeman is a mixed-medium artist who created striking collage work for visual journaling. She also does seminars to teach her techniques to other artists and hobbyists in her community… September 6.
Troy Rowe is a professional portrait and event photographer who is using his considerable gifts to serve children at a local foster-care home. I’ll be talking with Troy about this unique ministry and other ways he uses his gifts… September 20.
Hannah Krohn is a dancer and dance teacher. I’ve worked with Hannah in some of my own projects at LVC. She has a great gift and heart and we’ll be talking together about unique ministry and missions opportunities that dance has opened up for her… October 4.
Jim Holt is sketching his way through the Bible… I found his pen and ink sketches on Tumbler.com. I’ll be talking with Jim about this project and his insightful visual blog… October 18.
Philip Davis is a graphic artist and photographer. We’ll be talking about an interesting project that he’s working on as he designs through the book of Psalms… November 1.
Every FlickrFriday, the site features an image from a member of our Flickr group… You can join the group here and submit your images too.
I’m currently developing a series on Cultivating Discipline for artists… You can start reading that here.
You can receive regular updates from the site by Liking WOP on Facebook, or by following us on Twitter or Tumblr…
Thanks again…
FlickrFriday: Hebrews 9:12 by purplenoel…
purplenoel added this image to the WOP photopool, inspired by Hebrews 9:12:
…but he (Jesus) entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption.
I really love the broad range of visual art that people are submitting to the WOP group on Flickr… If you photoshare on Flickr, why not join us?
Finding Focus…
Everybody gets lucky once in a while, but success in imaging and in LIFE requires purposeful focus.
I shoot pictures with a nice digital SLR… It has a deep well of features to draw from but, for the most part, I keep all of the dials and menus set to “auto” so that I can just point and shoot. I do this because I have a 4-year-old and I don’t want to miss any of the impromptu moments that happen in our family life…
I also do it because I’m kinda lazy…
In general, I don’t take the time to really dial-in my technical skills in photography. I have a pretty good “eye” for capturing good composition, but I am limited by the automatic choices that I set by default.
Auto-focus is a funny thing… particularly when you shoot macro-stills. For example, an image of a flower: the camera might select the edges of the petals as the focal point… or the end of the nearest stamen or the nearest flat surface or the dead twig in the lower right corner of the image that you didn’t even notice… I have come home from photo-walking with a hundred images in my camera and no more than 3 that were properly focused… I suppose everybody gets lucky sometimes…
When you let the technology select the focus, it could be anywhere.
If this isn’t an obvious life-metaphor, then you haven’t lived long enough: Focus doesn’t happen by default.
In life, I often wander around with all of the dials set to auto. I get by largely on talent and intuition but fail to capture the real potential because I slack on skills development, discipline and focus. Sometimes, I get a lucky break: a great image, a singable song, an interesting story… but mostly, I get a camera full of bad images, a notebook full of unused ideas…
And most of the artists I encounter seem to be floundering in the same way…
Except for the successful ones.
The “professional” artists that I know… the ones that play regular gigs, appear in multiple plays simultaneously, open their own art shows and make a living with their talents… These guys are all focused on specific goals. They spend hours dialing-in their skills. They have a camera full of great images, albums of great music, awe-inspiring portfolios… This is the legacy of living with purpose.
I saw this on a t-shirt:
Talent and discipline will always beat talent, unless that talent becomes disciplined.
Pray for my friend, Jack…
That's Jack on the right...
Last summer, I wrote a post about a missionary that I know named Jack Fairweather. I’ve followed his ministry closely and eventually became involved in the parent organization, LifeChange International, that supports the orphanage that Jack and his wife are running outside of Manila in the Philippines.
Jack was in a gas explosion on May 11 that left him with 3rd degree burns on both of his legs and 2nd degree burns on his face. He is under the care of a doctor but is more than 1 1/2 hours from the nearest hospital. He has to remain lying down and that is pretty uncomfortable in the heat and humidity of the Filipino summer.
The greatest danger right now is infection… Fortunately, Jack has a friend who is a doctor and is visiting him at home and keeping his bandages changed.
Please pray for Jack’s quick recovery and for his wife, Tammy, who is here in Colorado for a month and very concerned that he may need help.
Thanks!
