Listening for God

A photo of a bonfire we in our backyard burning our slash pile.  As I was listening to the sounds of the fire the crackling and popping as the wood burned, made me think about the trees when they burn and if we listen close enough would we be able to hear them scream in agony as the fire claims their green living branches?  So often we never stop, never quiet ourselves and the world around us, long enough to truly listen and to hear, especially for the voice of God as He speaks to our hearts.  ~M

Eternal Magic - Part 3

Eternal Magic - Part 1 
Eternal Magic - Part 2 

He discovereth deep things out of darkness, and bringeth out to light the shadow of death.

Job 12:22 KJV

The creatures continued to advance; Sadee Jayne’s barks became filled with aggression and fear.  Within the mind of each family member at the same time the word ‘surrender’ was heard as clear as if it had been spoken by someone standing next to them.  They each looked at each other in turn, with a dawning recognition in their eyes.  A freezing chill settled deeper in the air and began to penetrate their hearts as the fires light began to wane.  They knew they could not save themselves and the realization drove them to their knees still holding tightly to one another. 

Words of belief, of devotion, of love and worship quickly passed across their lips into the cold frigid night in an effort to accept what seemed an inevitable fate.  A long forgotten magic and wisdom began to dance in the air as the small family huddled together still clasping hands.  Silent prayers were fervently whispered and offered up to the throne of heaven as stars swayed in the sky as if hanging from invisible string.

Suddenly, the last rays of the setting sun emerged from behind low lying clouds on the western horizon, blazing light across the landscape.  The owl had disappeared quietly into the night as the air became filled with a power so tangible you could almost hold it in your arms.  A brilliant gold illuminated the darkness and the shadows.  The creatures were filled from the center with a pure white light that pierced them from within as the suns light reached them before they could retreat. 

Each creature recoiled and writhed in pain, erupting in low screams just barely audible for the human ear to hear.  Slowly each creature began to melt inward, as ice on the sidewalk on a hot summer’s day, back into the earth from where they had come.  The image of the apparitions completely disappeared as the kingdom advanced heralding a power that calmed their hearts.

The prayers of the three had became bolder with power and expectation as they turned from pleas of rescue to voices raised in worship to an eternal hope offered freely from heaven.  The owls’ ability and vision to see in the dark had supplied a warning and revealed a truth that darkness can be overcome by a deeper magic that shines a light into all dark places.  After the creatures had completely vanished a silent calm had returned to the night.           

The sun dropped beyond the horizon as night settled over the land once again and the campfires’ light blazed brightly.  The realization of the power they had just witnessed combined with feelings of whether the experience had all only been a dream.  The family vowed to remember and share with others, that there is an eternal magic that reveals mysteries from the darkness and brings the deep darkness into the light.

    THE END  ©Maleko 2011

Eternal Magic - Part 2

He discovereth deep things out of darkness, and bringeth out to light the shadow of death.

Job 12:22 KJV

Civilizations have both revered and feared the owl as a symbol of the underworld.  The ability to navigate easily through the night has tied the owl to the secrets we all hold in the dark places in our hearts.  Often thought throughout the ages to be a shape-shifter that heralds the coming of evil or dark wisdom, a link to spiritual things the material world has long forgotten.  But some see the owl as a warning for those who would heed its presence, sent as a guide to discover hidden timeless truths which hold forgotten wisdom.

Civilizations have both revered and feared the owl as a symbol of the underworld.  The ability to navigate easily through the night has tied the owl through history to the secrets we all hold in the dark places in our hearts.  Often thought throughout the ages to be a shape-shifter that heralds the coming of evil or dark wisdom, a link to spiritual things the material world has long forgotten.  But some see the owl as a warning for those who would heed its presence, sent as a guide to discover hidden timeless truths which hold forgotten wisdom.

The owl’s hoots became more frequent and intense as Sadee Jayne voiced low growls in the dark while standing stiff, poised for attack, strained against the full length of her chain.  The air suddenly was charged with an unseen energy.  Flames suddenly shoot upward out of the campfire into the sky, but no heat could be felt from the raging inferno.  At the edge of the glow cast by the fires light dark shadows began to emerge from the tree line filling the night with an oppressive terror released from the depths of the earth.  Shadows, numbering in the hundreds, were slowly moving forward and appeared at once human in shape but with no distinguishable features save for glowing metallic eyes.  The silhouettes showed familiar human like appendages; legs, arms, hands but the edges remained hazy as if advancing from out of a foggy mist.

In fear the family of three quickly clasped hands forming an unbroken circle as the shadows continued to advance slowly out of the darkness drawing nearer and nearer.  It was possible now to discern that the shadows appeared as creatures from the spirit world that had taken on physical form.  The little girl shrieked in fear as the apparitions continued their slow march forward.  As the three began to pray their prayers slowed the forward movement of the dark figures for a moment when voiced with no hesitation or doubt.  But with any break in the prayers and the cadence of their voices, then the slow plodding march forward of the figures would begin again.  The creatures appeared to gather strength and resolve that as they came closer.

No sound could be heard as the creatures crossed the ground seeming to float just above it.  Did they lack a mass to their form?  Visions of demons danced through the head of each member of the family from stories they had heard; grotesque and cruel, things most people only seemed to believe in their nightmares.  But this was real and only a greater power, which had existed long before these creatures could stop the attack.  It was a deeper kind of magic that echoed across eternity, one in which these creatures long ago turned from and chose not to believe.  Prayers become more fervent as the terror inside rose and they clung tightly to one another.  The parents frantically shielding their beloved daughter’s eyes from the gruesome figures that now hunted them.   (END PART 2)

What I fear and desire most ...

What I fear and desire most in the world is God.  

I fear Him because He promises to be spontaneous, out of my control, unnamed beyond my reasonable self.  

I desire Him because God has color, like the fire that burns hot.  

He is not pale, He is not neutral.  

His light reveals the darkness of my heart.

Excerpt adapted from "Red: Passion and Patience in the Desert" by Terry Tempest Williams, © 2001

Flames Fall on Majesty in Blue

"Flames Fall on Majesty in Blue"

A majestic stallion rearing upon hind legs shows the power and grace of this beautiful animal.  A streaming gray-black mane and tail flow in the wind outlining the magnificent form of the horse.

Pastel drawing on white paper, 14"x11" 

Pedaling in Flames!

My passion for cycling drives me to not only ride my bike, but also to create designs from this sport.

This colored pencil drawing was done from a photograph of, you guessed it me!

I took away all images of the bike and just left the rider in an aerodynamic position, adding flames flowing out to the rear to emphasize the speed and power!

Fanning the Flames

Ashes to Ashes, Dust to Dust

Lord, guide my path during the time in between.
That the desires you have given me will be ignited into a fiery flame.
Help me to persevere in the face of those who wish to douse my passions with
fear, doubt and envy of a life that is lived with the consuming fire of your love!