"Bless the moment... and the years will be their own blessing. Many of us
live life in a rush because it allows us to believe we are going somewhere."
-Jacob the Baker-


Photography - My HopeCry

Some of you know that I also (semi/not really) maintain another blog called My HopeCry that comprises a sampling of my photography. I have decided to move it to this page... keep it all in the family, you know?

I am inspired to worship by the glimpses I catch of God's heart, whether that be in smile of a child, in the minute details painted onto the back of a ladybug, or in the untamed wildness of creation. I believe that it is in knowing Him that we know HOPE, and it is my desire to communicate hope through my photography.

Thank you for stopping for a moment to see God's creativity through my eyes. While I love my Nikon DSLR and delight in playing at photography, it is only a tool through which I can communicate this message. I was also involved as a volunteer at Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch (Bend, Oregon) in 2008 and 2009, where I had the privilege of serving broken children and families with the help of our equine partners, many of whom also have stories of abuse and neglect. The sale of my photography raises the funds needed for me to either serve with them again or serve alongside a similar ministry in the coming year. Questions related to My Hope-Cry, pricing, or bookings... feel free to email me at jennibartell@yahoo.ca.

May you grow to know the Creator of the universe intimately, experiencing the hope that emerges when you rest in the extravagant love of the One who created you in His image.

are you listening?

...to the softest whispers of truth that may be seen to the one willing to stop and look?
He peers nervously off the edge of his small platform, and I am reminded that the gift of flight involves risk, the stretching out of one's wings, the frantic beating of the air, and the final separation from all that one knows to be stable and secure.

To Be Known

Winston Churchill once said that "there is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man."  It is in the moment that we know that we are completely known and completely accepted that we feel safe enough to release our hesitations and be completely ourselves.  We long to be known.


My Source of Hope

Your word is a lamp to guide my feet
and a light for my path.
You are my refuge and my shield;
your word is my source of hope.
Psalm 119:105, 114