The Desert ... God's painting canvas!

It was so profound to see the amazing colours in the midst of this desert wilderness. Whether it was looking up into the sky or around at the mountains, there was the most beautiful colours in the gift of God's creation in this place. Here is some of what I mean ...


In my photography courses, we were taught to look up and see what was above us. I'm happy I did because there was much to see!

While at Ghost Ranch, many of the days brought clear blue skies with the odd cloud here and there. I enjoyed those moments I had to just look up into the literal blue sky. There were sunsets and sunrises too that were captivating in their beauty. Even when the dark clouds came in threatening a rain storm, there was beauty in the dark gray against the browns of the mountains.

Remember to look up from time to time; it's amazing the beauty you will see!

Then there was the experience of walking into what the ranch referred to as its "painted desert". Again such astounding colours in the different rock formations ... various shades of brown, red, and gray. Of course, there was the odd flowering cactus and green bushes too that added to the display of colour. Such awesome beauty in what nature has provided through God's creation.


God has painted a wonderful masterpiece in the gift of creation. Colours are everywhere around us; some vibrant and others more subtle. I am thankful for these opportunities to be touched by what God has painted on the canvas of the earth and sky. I want now to try and be more attentive wherever I may be to the artwork God has created for us to see, experience and enjoy!

Cross at Kanuga Conference Centre

During the week I spent at Kanuga Confererence Center in North Carolina, I was particularly drawn to this crucifix in one of the gardens: to the look on Jesus' eyes looking down from the suffering cross; the nails in the flesh of his hands and feet. I found it particularly profound and envisioned a composite photograph including all of these pieces in one.

In addition, the hymn which came to mind was the verse from

"When I survey the Wondrous Cross" ...

See from his head, his hands, his feet,

sorrow and love flow mingled down;

did e're such love and sorrow meet,

or thorns compose so rich a crown?

When I put all of this together, this is the photograph which emerged:

I feel blessed by this creative exercise (and I thank my son Nathaniel for assisting me with the editing). The cross comes to life and means even more as I look at the various elements together. This will hang on the wall of my office as a reminder of that sacred and holy time I spent at Kanuga as part of my sabbath leave.

Spirituality in the dry desert of New Mexico,

I've been back a while from a photography conference I attended at Ghost Ranch north of Sante Fe, New Mexico. It was spiritually enriching as I recognized God's presence and spirit alive and touching my soul. This is the first of two reflections that come out of my time there.

In our imagination we might see the desert as dry and barren with no life and very little to inspire. The truth is, there's no doubt that it is dry, but I found it to be anything but barren; I experienced life; I found inspiration. In fact, I experienced the desert around Ghost Ranch to be a beautiful place where I experienced God everywhere I went. Here are some of the examples of what I mean.

There are cactus everywhere in the desert. That's not untoward given that they need little water to survive. They are prickly, and in many ways not all that attractive to look at. And yet they produce some beautiful flowers. Pink, yellow and white buds form on the cactus plant; they open up to show such a display beauty and splendour.

One day I walked along one of the riverbed which ran through the property. Last year, it was flooded with water rising high along the bank. This year, it was dry and parched. And yet there was a beauty in the cracked clay bottom. And in places there was life growing too. Somewhere deep in the ground there was a water source that brought forth life.

Walking along the river bed there were animal foot prints. During the dark hours of the night, racoons, wolves and possibly other creatures walked along this same path.

Finally, we came to a point along our walk where there was a spring of water that moved downstream. In the midst of all that was dry and parched was life giving water that had made its way to the surface.

These are some of the ways I encountered God in the desert of New Mexico. God was present; God was visible.

There's a lesson there too for our lives when we encounters moments and experiences of the desert that come upon us in one form or another. We may feel like life is dry, desolate and barren; that in effect there is no life left in us. The reasons for that are many. Yet, especially in hindsight, we often realize that what we were going through wasn't totally dried up, desolate and barren. In fact, we realize that God was very present as a spiritual resource that gave us strength, peace, hope and comfort when we needed it most. That's the life we can and do encounter in our experiences of the desert.

In my next post I'll explore God's painting as I experienced it in the desert.