Glorieta prayer gardens Sunday, March 16, 2008 | 3

While I was recently at Glorieta, this picture was taken about a year and a half ago when we spent a couple of days here on vacation. I think my favorite part of this picture is the tree shadows across the sidewalk.

ramblings of a beggar Saturday, March 15, 2008 | 3

Tonight, I was resizing some pictures taken this week so that I would have them ready to put up here sometime. I think nighttime photography is my favorite way to take pictures, and I took a number of pictures at Glorieta last Monday night. While resizing these, I just stopped and stared at this one shot for a long time. I don't know what it is, but I couldn't stop looking at it. I found myself fixated by these trees and how the different lights cast different colors on each little grove. And in the midst of all of that, you get this brightly lit steeple shining through the branches of the trees and being a lighthouse in the middle of this dark night, pointing the way where I needed to go.

In many ways, I saw these different trees as you and I and everyone else just sitting around in darkness and lit by whatever little light (hope) we can find. But I saw this Glorieta steeple beacon cutting through the darkness, and I see it as the light and hope of Jesus. This light is way brighter and much more brilliant than anything else around, just like Jesus. And I found it ironic, because what I was listening to was very fitting to all these thoughts I was having, and I didn't even realize it.

I have been listening to Shawn McDonald's album, Ripen, lately. While staring at this picture, I found myself singing along with the song Ramblings of a Beggar without even catching the lyrics and how fitting they were at the time:

Would You open up my eyes,
And show me the light,
Take me away, from this place,
Would You open up my eyes and show me the light,
'Cause I cannot make it alone,
I need, I need You,
I need, yes, I need You,
To free me

I hope you know that Jesus is the light of the world and He loves you.

I also wanted you to be able to hear the song, but blogger will not let you upload songs. They do have video uploads, so I spent about 20 minutes and put some pictures from last Monday onto this one minute and forty second song (actually the last picture was taken in December). I did this mainly for me, but I hope you enjoy the song and that God can use it in your life like He did mine tonight.