This past week it was my turn to lead chapel at the office. It's kind of neat because each week, on Wednesday, chapel is led by a different staff person at the office and there are no guidelines. At least none that I know of! And everyone takes a different approach and can use their own gifts and talents.
So Monday night came and I found myself completely uninspired. Oddly enough, while I might not have been inspired, I was motivated. I wondered to myself, how is it that I am supposed to get put together a 15 minute time of devotion and prayer when there is very little to inspire me at this moment. At least nothing that I was coming up with. I tossed around ideas of focusing on the contrast of light and dark and showing some of my photos that portray this contrast, or playing the song "True Colors" and diving a little bit deeper than that. But nothing was really pulling me strongly in one direction. And, as I think happens to the best of us, I was coming up with ideas and then needing to go in search of scripture, rather than having a text to form the rest of the idea around.
Then after looking up the text of the day on textweek.com I found a scripture that spoke to me. One that resonated with me. One where I could use photos to back up the idea I was hoping to get across. Using excerpts from Isaiah 60:1-5, and photos and music, I created a meditative slide show to create a space where my colleagues could come and rest and relax and listen to the spirit moving in their own lives.It was a place where I could use my gift of photography to inspire others in a time where I was struggling with finding my own inspiration.
Photography is something that I greatly enjoy. I was one asked by a close friend if there was anything that I do that I can get lost in. I think about this question often and I always come back to photography. To seeing things in a different light. From a different angle. And then capturing that moment. And then being inspired by it. As it turns out, though it took me awhile to get there, I was able to inspire others using what inspires me.
