Jesus Spent Much Time Healing The Sick

He heals the brokenhearted
and binds up their wounds.
He determines the number of the stars
and calls them each by name.
Great is our Lord and mighty in power;
His understanding has no limit.
The Lord sustains the humble
but casts the wicked to the ground.–Psalms 147: 3-6 

Our Lord Jesus spent much time in healing sick people, and in the natural course of events it happened that the last thing He did with His kind hands was to heal a bad cut.  (I wonder how they could have the heart to bind His hands after that.)  In this, as in everything, He left us an example that we should follow in His steps. -Amy Carmichael

January 10, 2008January 10, 2008 by ryanmthurman Categories: Christianity, Encouragement, Healing, Inspiration, Life, love, Missions, People, Photography, Quotations, Scritpure, suffering Leave a comment

Write Me Into Your Story

 

Jesus,
They say You walked upon the water once
When you lived as all men do
Please teach me how to walk the way You did
Because I want to walk with You

Jesus,
They say you taught a lame man how to dance
When he had never stood without a crutch
Well, here am I Lord, holding out my withered hands
And I’m just waiting to be touched

Jesus,
Write me into Your story
Whisper it to me
And let me know I’m Yours

Jesus,
They say You spoke and calmed an angry wave
That was tossed across a stormy sea
Please teach me how to listen, how to obey
‘Cause there’s a storm inside of me

 

Jesus,
Write me into Your story
Whisper it to me
And let me know I’m Yours

Jesus,
They drove the cold nails through Your tired hands
And rolled a stone to seal Your grave
Feels like the devil’s rolled a stone onto my heart
Can You roll that stone away?
-(song lyrics from Rich Mullins’ Jesus)

January 7, 2008October 13, 2008 by ryanmthurman Categories: Christianity, Inspiration, Jesus, Photography, Religion, songs, spiritual 3 Comments

God Becomes Human Out of Love For Humanity

“God overrules every reproach of untruth, doubt, and uncertainty raised against God’s love by entering as a human being into human life, by taking on and bearing bodily the nature, essence, guilt, and suffering of human beings.  God becomes human out of love for humanity.”  –Dietrich Bonhoeffer 

 

God’s care for humanity was so great that he sent his unique Son among us, so that those who count on him might not lead a futile and failing existence, but have the undying life of God Himself. –John 3:16

January 2, 2008October 13, 2008 by ryanmthurman Categories: Art Photography, Christianity, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Encouragement, Inspiration, John 3:16, Life, love, People, Photography, Quotations Leave a comment

The Importance of a Life of Prayer

O Lord, who brings us to the Father,
The Life, the Truth, the Way
The path of prayer You did walk;
Lord, teach us now to pray.  

“Before a word of petition is offered, we should have the definite and vivid consciousness that we are talking to God and should believe that He is listening to our petition and is going to grant the thing that we ask of Him. We should look to the Holy Spirit to really lead us into the presence of God and should not be hasty in words until He has actually brought us there.” –-R. A. Torrey 

“We can never expect to grow in the likeness of our Lord unless we follow His example and give more time to communion with the Father. A revival of real praying would produce a spiritual revolution.” –- E.M. Bounds 

“The trouble with nearly everybody who prays is that he says “Amen” and runs away before God has a chance to reply.  Listening to God is far more important than giving Him your ideas.”—Frank Laubach 

“The value in persistent prayer is not that he will hear us…but that we will finally hear him.”—William McGill 

“Prayer means yearning for the simple presence of God, for a personal understanding of his word, for knowledge of his will and for capacity to hear and obey him.”—Thomas Merton

January 1, 2008 by ryanmthurman Categories: Art Photography, Church, Inspiration, Kingdom of God, Life, Photography, prayer, Quotations, spiritual Leave a comment

Like A Tree

Blessed is the man
       who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked
       or stand in the way of sinners
       or sit in the seat of mockers.  

But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
       and on his law he meditates day and night.  

He is like a tree planted by streams of water,
       which yields its fruit in season
       and whose leaf does not wither.
       Whatever he does prospers. –Psalm 1:1-3      
      

They will be called oaks of righteousness,
       a planting of the LORD
       for the display of his splendor.      

They will rebuild the ancient ruins
       and restore the places long devastated;
       they will renew the ruined cities
       that have been devastated for generations. –Isaiah 61: 3,4

December 31, 2007December 31, 2007 by ryanmthurman Categories: Christianity, God's Beauty, Inspiration, Life, Photography 2 Comments

Our Future Must Make Sense To Us

To live strongly and creatively in the kingdom of God, we need to have firmly fixed in our minds what our future is to be like.  We want to live fully in the Kingdom now, and for that purpose our future must make sense to us” –Dallas Willard  

When Christ, who is our life shall appear then you will be revealed with Him as glorious. –Colossians 3:4

 How great a love the Father has lavished upon us, that we should be described as children of God!  But it has not yet been shown what we shall be.  We only know that when He appears we shall be as He is. –I John 3:1-2 

He will transform our lowly body to be like his glory body, using the power He has over everything. –Philippians 3:20

December 21, 2007October 13, 2008 by ryanmthurman Categories: Art Photography, Cyprus, Dallas Willard, Encouragement, Inspiration, Life, Photography, Quotations Leave a comment

Fall OnYour Knees

The One who is to come is born of a woman, Mary. 
His name is above every name.  At his name every knee shall bow  

Fall on your knees, O hear the angel voices!
O night divine, O night when Christ was born!
O night, O holy night, O night divine!

Truly He taught us to love one another;
His law is love and His Gospel is peace.
Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother
And in His Name all oppression shall cease.
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,
Let all within us praise His holy Name!

Fall on your knees, O hear the angel voices!
O night divine, O night when Christ was born!
O night, O holy night, O night divine!–O Holy Night

December 14, 2007December 14, 2007 by ryanmthurman Categories: Art Photography, Inspiration, Life, Photography, songs, spiritual Leave a comment

Sorrow And Sighing Shall Flee Away

A highway shall be there, And it shall be called the Holy Way….The redeemed shall walk there.And the ransomed of the lord shall returnAnd come to Zion with singing;Everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;They shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away–Isaiah 35:8-10

 Speak then, Lord, for your servant listens, for you have the words of eternal life.  Speak to me to comfort my soul and to change my whole life; in turn, may it give you praise and glory and honor, forever and ever.  Amen.  -Thomas a Kempis

December 11, 2007December 11, 2007 by ryanmthurman Categories: Christianity, Inspiration, Photography, Quotations Leave a comment

A Simple Prayer

Thank you for hearing my prayer, O God;
and listening to the words of my mouth—Psalm 54:2

I am, O God, a jumbled mass of motives.
One moment I am adoring you, and the next I am shaking my fist at you. 
I vacillate between mounting hope, and deepening despair. 
I am full of faith, and full of doubt.I want the best for others,
and am jealous when they get it.
Even so, God, I will not run from your presence. 
Nor will I pretend to be what I am not. 
Thank you for accepting me with all my contradictions.  Amen.
-Richard Foster

December 5, 2007December 5, 2007 by ryanmthurman Categories: Art Photography, God's Beauty, Inspiration, Photography, prayer, Quotations Leave a comment

Advent: He Will Come And Save You

Be strong, do not fear!
Here is your God.
He will come…
He will come and save you!—Isaiah 35:4 

Lord, help me to prepare for the coming of your Son.  May he find me waiting and watching in joyful anticipation.Through Christ, I pray.—Robert Webber  

Lord Jesus Christ, as I await your coming show me your ways,Teach me your paths.  For you are the God of my salvation.On you I wait all the day.—adapted from Psalm 25:4-5

December 4, 2007December 4, 2007 by ryanmthurman Categories: Advent, Art Photography, Encouragement, God's Beauty, Inspiration, Jesus, Photography, Quotations Leave a comment