Setting

I’ll share a few pictures I’ve taken over the past couple of weeks, as well as what drew me to save these scenes.

This view is one of my winter favorites every year. When the snow is heavy and wet, it sticks to every branch in the woods by our house, making for a beautiful winter wonderland scene.

This image got a lot of attention this week. The cardinal’s bright red feathers are easy to spot when his favorite bush is wearing a thick white sweater!

I’m sure this is not a winter scene you’d expect to see, right? It’s seaweed doing what seaweed does, floating in the shallow water along the shore a mere 10 days ago, which makes it a winter scene.

Seaweed provides food for ocean animals, as well as a place for small creatures to hide. But what happens when the water goes away? This is how it looks:

Not such a pretty sight.

Until the tide starts rising again, and it floats along again like nothing ever happened!

That got me thinking about our setting in this life.

The first picture of the winter wonderland is striking simply because so much snow changed the look of the woods drastically.

Are you surrounded by like-minded folks who find their strength in numbers as they work toward a common goal?

The cardinal in the second picture looks like the only spot of color in an otherwise black and white photo.

Do you stand out from the crowd around you, bringing light and life by putting your God-given gifts and talents to work for His Kingdom purposes?

The seaweed in the third picture seems to be full of life.

Is your life buoyed by the time you spend soaking in God’s Word and in His Presence?

If you’re feeling like that nasty-looking, dried up seaweed stranded on the beach, you don’t have to wait for the tide to come back in. God is ready and waiting for you to turn to Him. If you’re alive and breathing, it’s not too late! He offers new life in exchange for the old, and that new life comes with love, peace, and joy.

Will you turn to Him today?

I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.

~ Jesus

John 10:10