Pictorial Devotion Notes
The Complete List of Notes About the Pictures and Drawings
Week 1 - Almighty God - The cloud in this picture reminded me of what it might have been like for the Israelites to see the glory of the Lord appearing in the cloud. Exodus 16:10
Week 2 - Bright Morning Star - While studying Revelation at the time I saw this sunrise, I immediately thought of Jesus as our Bright Morning Star.
Week 3 - Majestic - I was overcome by the array
of beautiful majestic colors that could be found in
one picture.
Week 4 - Suffering Servant - When I first saw this photo that my older daughter took, I immediately thought of Psalm 51:7 (NIV) “Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.” The snow near the red leaves reminded me that we are made white as snow because of Jesus’ blood.
Week 29 - Judge - This is the first page we put together for this devotion. We wanted people to know that God is a Judge, so that all would know that we need a Savior, who paid the debt of our sins, so we will be found innocent in the eyes of God and have eternal life. We appreciate that Isaiah tells us, in the Bible verse chosen for this page, that the Lord is our King, and He will save us. What a promise! That is why we placed Jesus, our King and Savior, as the next week’s devotion subject. The light sprinkling through the dark clouds gives us the hope of our salvation.
Week 30 - Jesus - One summer day in 2013, I was waiting for my younger daughter to join me outside to read. While waiting, I looked at the trees surrounding my house as I have done many times. Yet, it was on this particular day that I saw this cross of pine cones in the trees. I blinked several times, because I could not believe my eyes. I can only imagine that it had been there for quite a while, but God chose the perfect time to reveal the pine cone cross to me.
Week 5 - Holy - I remember seeing this sunset and could not believe the artistry of the rays of sunlight. My younger daughter once told me that she heard someone say that the sky is God’s canvas, and I totally agree. This sunset reminds me of the day that has passed, the night that is here, and the day that is yet to come, just as God was and is and is to come.
Week 6 - Breath of Life - This picture is of a branch from our Rose of Sharon bush. I found it fascinating that there are 3 stages of budding found on one branch. God gives life to each bloom in His perfect timing.
Week 31 - Righteous - The intensity of this sunrise was incredible – an intensity that Jesus possessed when he died on the cross, so we could be made righteous in God’s eyes. 2 Corinthians 5:21
Week 32 - Redeemer - During a sunset one night, I saw these colorful clouds which I had never seen before or since. It seemed like a rainbow -- a rainbow that appeared after the Great Flood. Just as Noah and his family were saved, we are saved and redeemed through Jesus’ death and resurrection.
Week 7 - Provider - In the spring of 1995, I gave birth to my twin daughters. God had given me these two beautiful girls, but I had doubts about my ability to take care of them. God assured me that He would
equip me as a mother with this view of a mother robin taking care of her two babies in a nest on the ledge of my bathroom window. “Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds!” Luke 12:24 (ESV)
Week 33 - Prince of Peace - Our cat looks so peaceful when she sleeps. When she stretches out on the back of the couch, she is very content and is ready for a long, peaceful nap. Like our cat who is peacefully sleeping, we, too, can be at peace with Jesus in our hearts.
Week 34 - Powerful - Can you imagine God illuminating the clouds above the mountain with broad orange brush strokes to give the scene a sense of authority and power?
Week 8 - Good - This Bible verse is from my dad’s favorite psalm. He had me memorize the 100th Psalm during our prayer time with God when I was a child while getting ready for bed. This Psalm helped me see that God is good like a sunny summer morning.
Week 35 - Gate - I saw a picture similar to this on my younger daughter’s phone. Hers had the gate closed, but I sensed that God wanted me to take a picture with the gate open to show that all are welcome to walk through and know Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
Week 9 - King of Glory - This was the first picture I took after God told me to look out the window to see His revelation. He took my breath away.
Week 10 - Firstfruits - My older daughter’s artwork in
this devotion depicts Biblical events and figures through still life drawings she created in high school. This is one of those pictures where she drew fruit with the idea that Jesus is the Firstfruits of our resurrection.
Week 11 - Consuming Fire - The vibrant colors of this sunrise remind me of the intensity of a burning fire.
Week 12 - Covenant Keeper - I love seeing rainbows, because I know that God is seeing the same rainbow that I am seeing. That is an amazing realization!
Week 13 - Bridegroom - On Valentine’s Day, my older daughter’s boyfriend brought her this bouquet of flowers. I felt God nudge me to arrange the flowers in a certain way and take a photo. What is more beautiful than a bouquet of flowers for the bride of Christ? The bouquet reminded me of the bouquet that brides take with them down the aisle.
Week 14 - Caring - We had deer in our backyard after a snow storm. I love that no matter their circumstances, these deer were caring for each other.
Week 15 - Faithful - This picture was taken at dawn while the moon was setting over the mountains to the west. There were just a few moments when it was visible, ever faithful to reflect the sun’s light -- a good reminder that God’s faithfulness is renewed every morning.
Week 16 - Radiance of God’s Glory - I took this picture from our front door on a cool winter’s night.
I was captivated by the composition of the picture with the radiant sunset colors as a backdrop to the tree’s sturdy bare branches.
Week 17 - Creative - The variety of colors and textures of the plants in our front yard attest to the fact that our God is incredibly creative.
Week 18 - Root of David - My older daughter drew these objects to represent David. He played the lyre for King Saul and slayed Goliath with stones. He was a man after God’s own heart, and from his lineage came Jesus Christ, the Son of God. David possessed a reverent heart for the Lord along with a faith that took action.
Week 19 - Trinity - My younger daughter’s favorite plant is the marigold. She planted, watered and cared for the flowers daily just as we are taken care of every day by God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit.
Week 20 - Friend - I was amazed at what I saw from our study window one spring day after it had snowed - two pregnant robins “talking” to each other. I thought to myself perhaps they are friends who are enjoying each other’s company while walking around in the snow.
This reminds me of the friendship and fellowship that
we can have with God on a daily basis.
Week 21 - Great - I felt that God wanted us to include the attribute Great in this devotion, but did not have a photo that exemplified it. So, I prayed to God and asked Him to give me an image of Great. About a week before Christmas, I was greeted with this sunrise. God is indeed great!
Week 22 - Life - My favorite flower is the iris. I have always been impressed with how some petals go up and some go down. To me, the blooming of these flowers represents Spring, and the new life that will soon cover the garden.
Week 23 - Creator - All I could think of when I took this picture was Genesis 1:1 (ESV) “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”
Week 24 - Merciful - What struck me about this scene was that in the midst of the stormy dark sky, I saw rays of light. What a blessing to realize that no matter what dark trial I am going through, I have God’s light with me all the time; I will never be completely surrounded by darkness.
Week 25 - Holy Spirit - I saw the moon setting in the early morning hours, and my jaw dropped at its sheer beauty. You can just sense the Holy Spirit hovering over the mountain just as He hovered over the face of the waters in Genesis 1:2 (ESV).
​Week 26 - Omniscient (All Knowing) - I cannot remember ever before looking at a tree from this angle.
I saw a few pictures like this on my younger daughter’s phone and knew that God wanted me to take a picture from this vantage point of looking up at the amazing yellow leaves of our ash tree against the blue sky.
Week 27 - God Who Sees Me - While eating breakfast one morning, I looked out the kitchen window and saw a hot air balloon flying by my house. I had never seen one up close, so I had to take a picture.
Just as the people in the balloon could see me and my surroundings, God sees me in all circumstances.
​Week 28 - Holy One of Israel - This is one of those sunrises in which you can see the deep color purple in the sky. Royal and majestic are the words that come to mind when I think of the color purple. I had studied the book of Isaiah a few years earlier and loved the phrase that Isaiah used to describe God – Holy One of Israel.
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Week 36 - Perfect - I am so glad the Rose of Sharon shrub is in our garden. The blooms are beautiful, and I love how this picture captures the flowers in different stages of bloom. In God’s perfect timing, the buds will transform into the perfect flower, like the one in the photo.
Week 37 - Good Shepherd - Just as the Good Shepherd carefully watches over His sheep, the clouds seem to watch over the trees. In addition, in the bottom right hand section of the picture, you will see the top of a pine tree in the shape of the cross.
Week 38 - Hiding Place - The snow-covered rolling hills appear to exude a sense of peace and calm – that same sense of tranquility that comes to us when God is our hiding place.
Week 39 - Lord of the Harvest - Fall is my favorite time
of the year because of the display of the many colored leaves that are seen everywhere. Fall reminds me of harvest time, and that this is the time of gathering all to know Jesus is our Lord and Savior. Our Hawthorne
tree which has the yellow leaves in the foreground has not turned that color yellow since this picture was taken, making it a special moment.
Week 40 - Everlasting Father - The bluish clouds rolling just above the mountains are like everlasting waves crashing on the shore.
Week 41 - God of Grace - The streaks of red in the flower remind me of Jesus’ blood. “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace.” Ephesians 1:7 (ESV)
Week 42 - Lawgiver - The second I took this picture, I immediately thought of God coming in a cloud, hovering over Mt. Sinai, to talk with Moses and give him the Law. Exodus 19:18-20
Week 43 - Shield - In this picture, my older daughter drew different parts of the armor of God – the belt, the shoes, sword, the Bible (Word of God). With the armor of God, we can take up the shield of faith which will extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one. Ephesians 6:13-17 (ESV)
Week 44 - Light of the World - Seeing this sunrise over the city immediately made me think of John 8:12 when Jesus stated that He is the Light of the world.
Week 45 - Resurrection and the Life - While teaching about Easter, I came across a butterfly craft for children to make in Sunday school. The idea behind the craft is that the caterpillar enters the cocoon and emerges as a butterfly. While this is not an exact representation of
Jesus entering the tomb and being resurrected on Easter (because He died and the caterpillar does not die), I still think of Jesus’ resurrection when I see butterflies.
Week 46 - Sovereign - When God showed me this sky,
I could just sense the movement of the clouds rushing over me. I had no control over the path of the clouds just as I have no control over God, for He is sovereign.
Week 47 - Branch - When my younger daughter took this photo, she thought of Zachariah's prophesy in Zechariah 6:12. The vivid red branches reminded her of the price that Jesus paid on the cross -- the shedding of His precious blood so that we can be with God for eternity. The raindrops on the branches reminded her of the pain and suffering that Jesus endured on the cross because of His love for us.
Week 48 - Worthy - With a sky like that, how can we doubt that God is worthy to be praised?
Week 49 - Rock of Salvation - One of my favorite things to see are snow covered mountains. I took this picture on a day that followed a snow storm. The snow on the red rocks made me think of Jesus being our Rock, our Salvation, and that His sacrifice makes us white as snow.
Week 50 - Gentle Whisper - This is one of those sunrises when I could not get to my camera fast enough. I had never seen a cloud formation like it before or since taking this picture. I imagine that perhaps this is what Elijah saw when God moved by him in 1 Kings 19.
Week 51 - Immutable (Unchanging) - Just as the fact that the moon orbits the earth does not change, God does not change.
Week 52 - Love - My older daughter drew rose stems with thorns resting on an open book to represent how we are new creations (a new blank book) through what Jesus did by dying on the cross and then being resurrected from the dead. The thorns made her think of the crown of thorns that Jesus wore during His crucifixion. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16 (ESV)
Back Cover - How Great Thou Art - One of our favorite parts of Sunday morning church is our worship time with God. We love to sing songs that praise Him and that speak to His greatness. He is worthy to be worshiped and praised. This is one of my favorite hymns; I can barely sing it without having tears well up in my eyes.
The words from the first verse just seem to summarize all of the beautiful revelations of Himself that He freely gives to all of us each day, and that He gave to our family as we put this devotion together.
Camera Information:
The images in this devotion were made with 2 cameras:
Film camera - Canon AE-1 using Tokina lenses – a 28mm lens and a lens with focal lengths ranging from 80mm to 200mm.
Digital Camera - Canon EOS Rebel XSi using 2 Canon lenses – lenses with focal lengths ranging from 10mm to 55mm and 55mm to 250mm.