Walking in Nashville

So after a week in the cold and the snow, I got out for a bit today to enjoy the sun, and relative warmth.  I broke down and went to a cheer competition to take pictures of some of our good friends, and I will admit, I had a good time.  It was significantly more challenging than I anticipated; but I think I still got a few good shots.  I'll posts my favorites here in a little bit.

But after the competition I was able to enjoy walking through the streets of Nashville and taking a few photos of the people and places I passed.  There were several groups of photographers out, and one was doing a wedding shoot.  She was kind enough to let me shoot over her shoulder, so I included those.

The last one is a group of young men who were walking to the library.  I spoke with them for a bit, and then asked to take their photo, gave them a business card and told them to check back.

In any case, it was a great day to be out and enjoy God's creation and take a few photos.

Room at The Inn

Today my daughter and I had the blessing of serving the gentlemen who are part of Room at the Inn; a ministry to homeless men in the Clarksville area.  Our home church opens their doors to host this event regularly, and this year our family has committed to volunteer more.  What an amazing time to see how God works!

So my daughter Jessamine and I took this opportunity to be the tangible touch of God this morning from 4am to 6am which turned into 8am.  Jessamine helped cook breakfast, serve and do dishes, while I enjoyed the conversation with the gentlemen that were awake this early.

What amazing stories these men have, and how sobering to think each of us is only a moment away from trading places with them.  In the words of one of the men I talked to, "Sometimes your the chicken, and sometimes your the feathers..."  It took a minute for me to gather what exactly he was saying, but the simple truth is that no matter what you have now, it can all be gone in a blink of an eye.

These men do have some serious needs, medical conditions, and circumstances that will take the love of many to work through.  But that is what we are called to do.  We don't need to preach to them that they are a product of what ever it is they have done, or that they are victims of a biased system, they don't need to be reminded of what mistakes have been made.  Talk to them for 5 minutes and you will see they remind themselves frequently enough.  What they need is to feel that God is real and tangible, and working in His church, and in the real world.  Meeting needs, helping with clothing, shelter, food, caring.

So please take a moment to say a prayer for each of these men, and the many other, including women and children that may or may not be fortunate enough today to enjoy a meal prepared by volunteers, to sleep under a blanket that was donated by someone with an extra blanket, and are walking in shoes that we have been blessed not to wear.

These last photos I captured on the way home.  The sun had been up for a bit, and there wasn't as much color in the sunrise as I'd hoped.  But I drive past this church everyday, so I thought I'd catch the rising sun on the steeple.