Lifted Up

“The Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven.”
Ezekiel 8:3
California Poppy

This photo was taken at the observation point of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, CA. This California poppy flower may be passed up be thousands of visitors daily, but it caught my eye and made me think of a verse. Ezekiel 8:3 says, “The Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven.” The tallest flower reminds me of how we should “lift up” from earth and reach towards heaven. It also shows how the higher you get, the brighter you become. I may have taken more photos of this flower than I did of the Golden Gate Bridge!

The Lone Tree

“The dew will lie all night on my branches. My glory will remain fresh in me.”
Job 29:19-20
Lone Tree

This picture was taken in Cades Cove located in Townsend, TN on a cool October morning. The chosen inspirational bible verse reminds us that even though the fall season causes the trees to lose their leaves and seem dead throughout the winter, they hold onto life as their “glory remains fresh in them.” In the spring, they will once again blossom as they grow bigger and stronger. Our lives are much the same. As we experience ups and downs that seem to strip us of all signs of life, we can find glory remaining fresh within. If we can hold on and maintain faith, we will once again rise…bigger and stronger than ever before.

Inner Beauty

“Your beauty should not come from outward adornment…instead, it should be that of your inner self…which is of great worth in God’s sight.”
1 Peter 3:3-4
Inner Beauty

A “modernized” version of Matthew chapter 6 says, “(27) Has anyone by fussing in front of the mirror ever gotten taller by so much as an inch? (28) All this time and money wasted on fashion–do you think it makes that much difference? Instead of looking at the fashions, walk out into the fields and look at the wildflowers. They never primp or shop, (29) but have you ever seen color and design quite like it? The ten best-dressed men and women in the country look shabby alongside them. (30)”If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers–most of which are never even seen–don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you?”

This inspirational picture shows that just as a flower’s beauty blossoms from the inside-out, so should ours. If God can create amazing beauty in a flower that may never even be seen, then know that He has placed something beautiful inside us as well. As we reveal that beauty from the inside, our entire lives and the way the world sees us will change.

Drenched

“Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven, and let him live.”
Daniel 4:15
tulip

This inspirational picture is of a tulip drenched in the rain. The background is black and white, which sets the colors of the tulip popping out of the print. The rain drops add character and mood while depicting Daniel 4:15 “Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven, and let him live.” As the flower is drenched with the dew, it lives. This verse compares to life in the sense that we should let God’s fortune shower us instead of us covering up and trying to handle everything ourselves. Open up and let the dew of heaved drench you and you will live in ways you never knew.

Red White and Blue

“Proclaim liberty throughout all the land.”
Leviticus 25:10
Red White and Blue

A large American flag was hung on an old barn shortly after 9/11. The simplicity and power of the scene just begged to be photographed. After changing the image to black & white, read more on waisttrainingcenter.com I chose to bring back the colors in the flag. This helped to prove the message that in our nation’s darkest hour, the flag and our freedom will not conform. It will “Proclaim liberty throughout all the land.” Leviticus 25:10.

The Web

“May the LORD bless his land with the precious dew from heaven above.”
Deuteronomy 33:13
Spider Web

This inspirational photo was taken early on an october morning in Cades Cove. The spider web was found on a fence located right along the road. The beads of dew almost look like strings of pearls, which I thought went well with the part of the bible verse in Deuteronomy that mentions the “precious dew.”

In the end, make sure to get Sleeklens.com tools for overlaying in photoshop.

The Cross

“Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies.”
Psalm 36:5
The Cross

This is one of the very first “inspirational” pictures that I ever photographed and became the starting point for what would eventually become “Visual Forces”. When I saw this scene, it opened my eyes to what I should be doing with a camera. It features a lone tree in the shape of a cross with the sun setting behind a distant mountain. The sky happened to pop with incredible color that evening as I started firing my shutter. Sadly, this tree is no longer on the hill and so this photo can never be reproduced. Sometimes God gives us only one chance to do something and if we pass it up we will never again have that same opportunity. Whether you’re photographing a tree on a hill, accepting a job, singing karaoke for the first time, or saying “yes”…go into it knowing that opportunity may never come again.

The Cross HeartThe Heart of The Cross
I didn’t notice this immediately when I first printed this image, but after a few months (maybe even a year) someone pointed this out to me. On the top-right branch that is stretched out the farthest, there is a perfectly formed heart on one of the limbs! You can draw your own symbolism, but I thought this was rather amazing.

Welcome to the New Visual Forces

Old Cross NecklaceIf you have visited this site in the past, you may notice that it looks very different! This redesign is the beginning of many great things to come. I had put the site on hold during the middle of 2006 as I finished achieving my bachelor degree, moved to a new state, started a new job, got married, bought my first house, moved again, and now my wife and I (mostly her) are expecting our first child due Feb, 2008! Needless to say, everything has been a whirlwind of blessings. I can’t begin to describe how incredibly blessed I’ve been to experience everything that I have throughout these years. There have been as many valleys as there were mountains and I’ve had amazing people come into my life that helped keep me on track and focused on what matters most…faith in God. Everything that I have is because of Him…everything that I am is because of what He has done. I can honestly stand here today and say that there is no valley so low that He cannot reach and no mountain so high that He cannot be praised. He has been everywhere I’ve been…all around me, the entire way.

I had originally created Visual Forces so that I could use my photography to share the gospel, but I’ve since decided to expand it beyond just my work. Over the years I have come in contact with some amazingly talented artists and photographers that are also using their work to share faith. I will now be sharing works from those artists as well, so stay tuned for that! I’m simply amazed at the talent that so many people are blessed with and how they’ve decided to use their talents for God’s glory rather than their own.

Finally, on a personal note, if you happen to know me, I just want you to know that I’ve thanked God for you and what you’ve meant for me and my walk in faith. If you don’t know me, I’ve prayed that somehow you would find this site so that I can have the opportunity to share God’s love with you. I don’t know where you stand with faith, but I’m available through the contact form to send comments, prayer requests, etc.

God Bless,
Shane