moving me

what if

2009-10-26T22:21:00.000-07:00

last week i was talkin to one of my instructors, her name is Heather Protz and she is an incredible artist, i was expressing to her my lack of inspiration as of late. dont get me wrong its not that i don't love grabbing my camera and goin out to shoot, or putting images together, or making prints or my work, or anything else that goes along with my art. its not even that i feel that my art just sucks. i simply feel uninspired.

webster defines uninspired as - Having no intellectual, emotional, or spiritual excitement. i am not depressed or upset, i am just not excited! really i feel utterly normal, and i dont do well with normal. i feel mundane and unsure how to get out of my apparent funk?

as i shared these thoughts with heather, without hesitation she said

"micah art isnt always about inspiration lots of times its about just doing it."

wow that hit me like a semi! who could have thought it was that easy. who could have imagined that i simple can press forward and create? i mean really why must i be on some whimsical high to produce great art? i think in your life and in mine if we waited around till we were i some state of magical euphoric thought to live and create there would be alot less change and beauty taking place and much more self loathing(which might explain why we wear black some days)! but for me many times i sit on my butt and wait for some lighting bolt of innovation to hit me in the face.

its like that in my art in my life and in my walk with God. i feel as if i sit around and wait on someone else to move then i can do my best to ride their wave/to be their partner in the race/a game of leap frog. but what if instead i decided that the only thing between me and great art is my willingness to go. the only thing stopping me from knowing and loving Jesus more is me. the only thing that stops me for living life with all ive got is myself!

what if today we picked up or tools(camera, brush, song, pen, computer, guitar) and started living a life worth talkin about? what if we quit living in stories that are small and insignificant, and started to experience BIG life changing stories? what if we stop waitin on heavenly bombs of creation, and instead got off our couches and started being a part of the beauty that ever surrounds us!

what if right now we reaized that we need not wait on catalyst for you and i have in deepest parts have be given the essence of inspiration!

GO.LOVE.CREATE.

see ya soon

micah

journey to a unknown course

2009-08-26T01:04:00.000-07:00

im back home for almost a month now and i dont yet know to the full extent what ive seen an heard and felt but i do know ive been changed. by the western standard im not sure my change is for the better, but i know that i have seen a clearer picture of who Jesus is and therefore i can not be the same i as once was.

the world is big and beautiful and God is found in all of it. i have seen Him in tent meeting and tattoo shops, boat rides across africa and bar tenders in las vegas, in the faces of missionaries and misfits, it rings so true of what peter say in John6 "where can we go from Your spirit? You alone have words that bring eternal life." i have seen and driank deep in eternal life! and just as many times ive pushed away from that table and drank shallow in what i thought was better! my sad attempts at self-preservation result in neglecting the beauty set before me!

how can we judge a days worth until we have seen the end of it? i think i find myself more times than not seeing the bad in mess im in, and completely over lookin the kingdom God is creatin here in the midst of our lives, its dirty/messy/sloppy/glorious!

i feel God is doing something in new in me an overhaul/transformation/reshaping. right now i feel the eagerness/angst like seein a empty canvas, or a brand new photo site, but i sense life is changin directions my exit is comin close, with every turn of the wheel my heart shifts. what if today is the day we look back and see that we got off I-15 and hit I-70 and now we arent far from where we are but our corse is drastically different? what if today, why not today, what if us, why not us!

in my experience ive had many more "still small voice" times than "fire/light/earthquake times", our road sign may not be huge with flashy lights, but i also trust that it will be just small and insignificant to never be missed. life is comin its here fight and laugh and cry, get ready change is near to us keep both hands on the wheel. open your eyes there is a glorious messy heaven that you can live in right now.

only at the end of a day can we judge its worth!

thanks billy

see ya soon

micah

take heart

2009-07-08T08:37:00.000-07:00

friend, Jesus is alive and at work! i am being transformed by the gospel! wow God is BIG!
friends take heart "He has the words that bring eternal life"
love someone like Jesus would today
i have to run
you are missed
i love you all
micah

bring the RAIN

2009-06-29T01:46:00.000-07:00

it has been a wild week here in Joburg. we have seen heard and done so much. i have been overwhelmed by the power and love us Jesus.

friday they took us to game park one of the few places in the world that you can play with loin cubs. these guys were like 1 month old and i saw one pounce and also kill this 3 year old (it was awesome/terrifying) then i got to feed a giraffe that was crazy too, their tounges are forever long. i saw a real african loin... it was a monster, me and ben keep saying we were gonna fight one while we were here... we lied, i mean there is NO chance (Mr Lion im sorry for talkin smack- You sir are king. but ben said you a chump, eat him!)

saturday was our last night at our tent meeting we been part of all week. and God gave us the most beautiful sunset ever to let us know He was coming to meet with us. our time of worship was incredible as we sang in "Ndebele" its so amazing to sang to God in words you cant understand, but know that He hears you, and loves it. it has been awesome to see the people change of the corse of 4 nights. just before we left the Pastors wife said that God had brought us here just for them. what great perspective! i was reminded of the barbarian way, and that God has called me to be part of a tribe called FORWARD. we were blessed by those people.

sunday we went to Lattex Rain Church in Kwaggafontein. when we started the service Pastor Sibanyoni said "God doesnt visit the praise of His people, He inhabits the praise of His people."

so we sang and danced and shouted and gave and prayed and encouraged and loved on Jesus! and He came down and meet with us. i got to teach after all that for a few minutes and once again, told the people Jesus offers us a chance for rescue for new life. He came the He might speak restoration into our brokenness. after me Rogers got up and brought the rain like WOW! we prayed for vision and life to be on the people and God moved.

after church we had to say goodbye to dirk and rogers, and it was hard. these men have guided us, thus far on our trip, but more over they have loved on us! these men are HEROS of the faith, and i am honored to now them, and blessed to call them friends.

God has brought me 16,000 miles from home. i have spoken His life into darkness, hurt and despair. we have seen and heard and done great things.... but greater thing are yet to come. if i have learned anything thus far in Africa, it is that God brought me here not to change Africa, but to transform me

i love you guys

see ya soon

micah

lotjani

2009-06-25T12:57:00.000-07:00

LOTJANI = HELLO

day 1 & 2 are now in the books and wow it has been incredible/breathe taking/terrifying. i have seen children intrenched in poverty, but overwhelmed by happiness; i've seen special needs kids in great need, but with smiles like the sunrise; and today my heart more than broke at the sight of bloodstained hospital hallways. i've never seen anything like this, our Jesus is alive and well and He is moving here. even in a place like Vegas where God is workin in big and miraculous ways things are different in Africa, Jesus is alive in peoples faces and He is moving in their hearts!

day 1 was incredible we got to pray with 800+ students, teachers, police, prisoners, orphans, pastors, and countless others. we've been able share at many schools in our 2 days and on day 1 i was given the chance to talk to about 50 high school kids, i spoke from john 4 & 5 a lame man i need of healing and the woman at the well. both in desperate need of life, but both not realizing who they were standing with. the man answering Jesus' offer for help with i can't, and the woman said You have nothing to draw with. Jesus stands in from of them... and us saying do you want rescue, while we just set in our junk/sin/death, sayin "Jesus You cant" and then i was able to share that Jesus still wants to free us/ heal us/ restore us. it was incredible as may students responded to the chance for rescue.

day 2 was equally amazing we had opportunity visit to a hospital. we were able to encourage the staff, people that see death and brokenness everyday, we shared that Gods story is one of brokenness being restored. then we went to pray with patients , our hearts wept as we cried out for Gods favor and healing. my faith has never been tested like that i found myself praying over and over like Peter "God i believe but help me with my unbelief"

i have been praying that God would unite my heart with the people here, even when i dont understand their language. tonight at a service i felt that God began that process in me as my "mfooth" (aka brother) Rogers taught completely in Zulu but i felt strangely connected. it is blowin my mind to see God at work and His kingdom expanding all over the world.

friends, God is alive and at work, join Him where You are! join His restoration and bring new life. You are in my prayers!

see ya soon

micah

im in the South... of Africa

2009-06-23T12:00:00.000-07:00

as David Crowder plays in my ears we come up on hour number 14 of the flight and Africa greets me with the sunset. it has been long I won't lie, but i've watched Benjamin Button, taken, and two lovers; I have slept and read Larry Crab, Shane Caliborne, and CS Lewis; but I have only stood but once (thus I have cankels)
I have know idea what the next 6 weeks will hold, but I am reminded that just for me Jesus came. if I share that love with simply one person I feel like my trip will not be fullfilled.

as I prayed in the months leading up to Africa I had a chance to pray with one of mentors named Stane Gibson. out of the hundereds of prayers I prayed his stands out. Stane said over and over "God, You are worth it... moving to Vegas or Delware, or stayin in the place you are now, servering right where you are, or going around the world, talkin to everybody you meet or spendin time tell one, God You are worth it.... " as I land in South Africa those words run through my head and heart.
dear God, use me, work in me that You might work through me! my I stand amazed that I might love You more & love people more!

see ya soon
micah

on the road.... again

2009-06-13T11:14:00.000-07:00

dear friends its been much to long since last i wrote. and now even as i write this i am excited and very busy as i have and continue to to have friends arrive. we have, for the last few months gearing up for our summer camp which starts on monday. today however im stoked today because my friend from athens, frankie is coming in town tonight, which is always exciting because frankie is one of the most fun people know, and i cant wait see her.

so with sumer camp almost underway i find it hard to focus on anything else, however the day we get back from camp i pack my things again and fly to southern africa for six weeks. i cant even being to tell you whats goin on inside my head (but i struggle to do that almost always). i cant wait to see what God does in the next week to rock my world, and to even start to talk about Africa is way out of my league at this point.

so i guess i write to you to say that by plane. train, and automobile im on the move goin who knows where, doing who know what, but i couldnt be happier i thrive in being spontaneous! as my friend tyler wrote so brilliantly "come hell or high water ill find you, ill find you" that is my goal that is my mission!

see ya soon

micah

bye bye

2009-04-26T21:42:00.000-07:00

my 21st year is now almost completely in my rear view and i have no clue what lies down the road called 22. it has been incredible journey thus far ill talk about that tomorrow.

as 21 comes to an end i couldn't imagine leavin on such a great note.

today i have:

loved on Jesus

poured my heart into others

driven with the top down

worn some new toms shoes

laughed alot

right now i am:

with my close friends

sharing a good meal

watching tommy boy

and just hide a metronome in my roommates bed room (hahahaha)

so 21.... goodbye, i love you, you were great!

LA love

2009-04-23T09:32:00.000-07:00

so as i type i'm one block off hollywood blvd and right across the street from the famous Knickerbocker hotel, once home to hollywoods who's who, capital records is in my view and the spirit of art surrounds is very present. but people aren't smiling. i'm overwhelmed by my surroundings, by the history but the people don't realize it, or maybe are simply over looking it.

my heart this morning as i was talking with God, i was almost in tears. i was reminded that my of the story that im a part of.... and that daily i don't smile about or realize or overlook. have i forgotten that my Jesus is bigger than hollywood? once wrote so beautifully the prayer that my heart sang this morning

Terry Macalmon

once wrote so beautifully the prayer that my heart sang this morning.

"Jesus, YOU are great,

you do miracles so great,

there is no one like you,

there is no one else like you"

smile and remember and soak up Jesus today.

away... but not today

2009-04-09T11:57:00.000-07:00

april..... a few days
so can i tell you how my heart has broken because i could not write to you. the last 3 days have been phenomenal. i have been a part of our student spring break mission opportunity called EXPOSURE and now i am spent.

i have served and washed and painted and sang and played and talked and danced and thrown and walked and listened and moved and burnt and driven and sat and laughed and seen and cryed and cared and felt and learned and changed and and and loved.

i have seen Jesus: in the hand of a student bent over to wash the car of a stranger for free, in the brush strokes of an unlikely artist as she cleaned city walls, in the laughter of a game of frisbee, i the song of my Deliver, in the voice of richard a homeless man, in the wind and sunshine of an open jeep flyin down I-15, in a water bottle given to a dry mouth, in love given without expectation, in the name of a friend written in ink, and in a message to explore and think and live as BIG as you can.

so today i challenge you to live and love and serve. be a hippie and enjoy a sunset. look for Jesus in unlikely places. think bigger than you might want to. be spent!

see ya soon

micah

wings and Jesus

2009-04-06T23:00:00.000-07:00

so had a bit of a late night coupled with a it of an early morning thus i am bringing you saturdays blog right now...

saturdays are great it is my only day to lay in my bed for most of the day.... and that i did first watching into the wild, and the a complete climate change to madagascar.

but saturdays are also alot of work i go to this great chruch in Vegas called hope. we meet at silverado high school, so saturdays at 2 we being to setup a full on rock show. its a pretty big job but we always manage to have a pretty good time.

so after church i booked it down to freemont st. ithe ACM's are in town this week and so there have been free concerts this weekend. last night i got to see zack brown and kelly pickler. i always enjoy goin down to freemont just to see the people, its almost lilke being home as las vegas turns out its own brand of redneck. hahaha i was surrounded by people of all shapes and size some rockin there college gear, nascar jackets, all different shades and combos of plaid, i was in between football mugs and HUGE boots of beer, and of corse you have your redneck girls proudly wearing there halter tops to show a tattoo proclaiming they are "daddys girl" however im not completely sure daddy knows and im very confident that he would not approve (hahahaha). all of us somehow united by songs about our toes in mexico's sand and fried chicken.... incredible.
aftre the show i very happily agreed to some chicken wings and some great conversation with the durhams, ben, and our new friend lindsey.

so now im off to church on this sunday morning to enjoy a totally different atmosphere, which is awesome. but i the thing i love the most about Jesus is that i can enjoy His family here at a church where im "supposed" to but also in the middle of thousands of people, good country music, and chicken wings. wow im so thankful for friends that push me to love God...... and chicken wing.

bringing things together

2009-04-03T13:11:00.000-07:00

april 3

i started a new book call "the safest place on earth" by larry crab. i love starting new books, almost more than i love finishing them.. is that bad? we anyway the premiss of the good is experiencing genuine community, which is very interesting to me because im a VERY relational person. thus far my favorite part of the book says: "we must not only turn our chairs in a circle, we must also turn or souls together." what a great concept what a great practice. i hope today you and i can open our soul to someone, that we might enjoy authentic connection.

this morning i got to hangout with my friend billy arndt. we spoke about thinking freely and imagination and how we want to encourage that follow Jesus to do both more often. it was a great time.

today is also first friday and later im goin downtown for some great art, and some good music with some good friends.

happy friday, im glad your here!

see ya soon

micah

sorry i no its tomorrow already but i forgot to publish this yesterday.... dont hate me

happy windmills and coffee... in excess

2009-04-02T21:16:00.000-07:00

so can i start by saying that im watching happy gilmore right now with my buddy jeff, and its at the part where he sings into the door monitor "i want to kiss you all over and over and again, i want to kiss you all over. till the night closes in." as a little boy listens super confused and that crazy Chinese lady go up to happy room and (burrrrbbb). hahahaha what a great movie.

last week a bought a holga toy film camera and im still learning to use it but here is a shot from yesterday with no photoshop just me+holga+film= really cool (i think)

april 2

so today was great. i have some awesome roomates, we get to live life together and talk about girls, Jesus, school, and work... not necessarily in that order, but often in that order(hahaha) ever week as a group we practice Psalms 119:147

"I rise early, before the sun is up; I cry out for help and put my hope in your words."

today was that day for us, it was so refreshing to ask God to give us a platform to love and serve our community we prayed Jeremiah 29:7
"Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper"

we prayed for creativity and imagination so that we might "Shine like Stars" as paul writes in Phillippians 2:15. it was an incredible time for us to focus and connect our hearts with Gods.

thank you Jesus for calling us your children

after i spent the morning with a good friend Dwight Watson. dwight is a guy who believes in the power of the Gospel to transform Las Vegas and the whole world. he pastors several groups of simple faith communities that meet in homes all over the valley they collectively are called The River. we shared a cup of coffee and some conversation and i was so encouraged to follow the passions God has given me, thank you dwight for letting me see Jesus in you.

finally on thursday nights i get to meet with some college student for my church at the TABLE. we talked tonight about community, and how valuable God's family is in our lives it was a great time.

i believe this verse in Colossians 4:6 tells the story of my day

"Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone."

april 2 you were great tell you're friend to keep the good times comin!

see ya soon

micah

come with me

2009-04-01T19:56:00.000-07:00

so i realize its been awhile.... sorry, i love you forgive me.

this is a big month for me and by the end of it i will be 22 the big double dueces! that means a have very little time left to be 21,which is sad but also very exciting. i want to go on a pilgrimage, everyday this month i want to blog maybe alot maybe just a little. i want to see and document where i go and what i do in the last days of my 21st year.

april 1

i started the day at springs perserve (which is a wild life museum kinda thing) taking pictures for my newest project called the Las Vegas the wild side... great images cool place more details on that to come.

but anyway, most of my wednesday are spent talkin about Jesus with some friends(i love it). first with cameron and ross, 2 guys i mentor. we ment at saxbys coffee, great joint. we talked about Isaiah 43:25 “I—yes, I alone—will blot out your sins for my own sake and will never think of them again." we asked why God would help us for His sake, like what does He have to gain? great talk ending with God does that so we can love Him way more(that is the real fast answer but pretty right on) p.s. cameron ross and i are coffee shop thugs hahaha

after that i went to hangout with a guy named billy combs, he mentors me. hes the man so basically tells me everything i suck at, like hes readin my journal! (i hope you have someone like that) its awesome. i always leave so encouraged and challenged to go love and serve and study and live its incredible... so today i shot great images and enjoyed Jesus and His family. simply wonderful im sooo lucky

so thats day 1. i hope the whole month is great like today. so here goes our 1 month odyss i promise if you'll sick with me we'll have a good time. until tommorrow....

see ya soon

micah

chain me down

2009-03-10T13:31:00.000-07:00

so last week i had a project called las vegas high up,
these are some of my results.

it was a cool task; climbing hills, going to tall buildings, jumping overpass barriers, peeking through fences, and getting kicked out of parking garages by rent-a-cops, i had a great time. the shots were very cool with angles we don't often see... these intrigue me. thus, it was a beautiful shoot. i mean how many days are we hundreds of feet off the ground?

having said that, i think i'm supposed to be on the ground. you know, its great sticking your head off a huge skyscraper, or shoving your camera through a break in the fence, but for me it was simply overwhelming.

how do i show intricacy when the whole city is before me?

i find it hard to see smallness when surrounded by bigness.

how do i get down in the dirt when i'm so far from it?

i felt caged "in" and "up."

i find in life i get the same way when i cry out to God: what's next, where am i going, what do i do? and then he shows me a little portion and i'm so overwhelmed that i miss the splendor of today. likewise i desire to be covered "dirty" in my work, but being far from what i love it's just not possible. do you ever get that way, does that happen to you? i feel like sometimes i "miss the the forest for the tree," and as life happens all around me i get selfish and long to be in the sky far from the ground, and there, because of me, i miss the joy of life.

heres my question,

what are you doing right now that you're good at, but not passionate about?

i've been trying to answer that lately and it keeps unwrapping more questions. thus i have come up with a great answer,

"enjoy the trees"

i cant see my way out, i dont know whats next, but i can climb and explore and rest here, in the trees.

so i've come to see that i love the ground it blessed me, and makes me feel at home.

so in turn i would like to share a list, of 5 things about the ground i love.

here we go:

1)trees (especially ones that are great for climbing)

2)puddles (i wish vegas had more)

3)sidewalks chalk (we're never thankful we have roads for our feet, and we can paint them)

4)TOMS (awesome shoes you should by some)

5)dirt (it is just fulfilling to be filthy from a day of hard work, made possible only by dirt)

so all that to say, the ground rocks(no pun intended). i mean i love flying, bridges, and even really tall climbing trees, but the ground is my fav so i'm gonna start trying to be thankful for the ground that i love but often forget about.

see ya soon

micah

empty bowls, full hearts

2009-02-19T00:06:00.000-08:00

these are simply bowls. nothing special or out of the ordinary about them. however, just over a week ago they were made into something radical!

as my friend scott and i prepared to talk to around 140 students about questions they had concerning the bible, faith, and Jesus; to our surprise Jesus was about to ask us a question. a lady walked in with a small child, explaining to me that her family wasnt doing to well in the current economy(to put it very mildly). she went on to say that she and 11 family members(at least 8 under 18) were staying in one of those day to day motels right off las vegas blvd, but were unable to sell enough of their things(mainly a tool chest today) to make rent that night. so here i am completely astonished, and think like 1,000 things: it's sunday night we cant get them a check because no one is here. where is travis? what am i gonna talk to these students about? and i cant throw these people on the street.... just to name a few. so i pulled scott into a room and told him i didnt know how but we were gonna pay for this families room tonight, he agreed and so we told them to come back at 7 and we would have the money.(wow what were we thinkin?) so i jump on stage at 6:00 and explained the situation to a group of 6th-12th graders(not exactly the most wealthy part of a church) totally unsure how they would take it or even if they could help. i shared with them that we talk a lot about loving people, and meeting folks at their greatest point of need, and this was our chance to stop talking and start doing something! i told them i wasnt 100% sure that the cause was legit, but that we were asked to judge we were asked to help, and help, we would, to our fullest. after saying this we took the bowls and passed them around. i watched through misty eyes as students emptied their wallets, pockets, and bags, it was incredible. i saw money that was "supposed" to be in-N-out burger or taco bell, money for a new album or t-shirt, money that was theirs..... but not anymore. i watched as the bowls filled with dollars and coins, yes, but also with love, hope, and another chance.

that cold windy las vegas night some students were able to see "even greater things" they were able to become Jesus to a family who was, as my friend jake says, "hurting, poor, weak, and marginalized", "just the people Jesus chose to hangout with." they showed them that they were loved and deserved something more. that night middle and high school students gave $250 to people they will probably never meet or even see. they were the Church. they saw the BIG picture, they got it. they didnt fill bowls, they filled hearts.

i was inspired!

see ya soon

micah

things unseen

2009-02-04T23:36:00.000-08:00

so this week i hit a milestone i meet one of my heros. his name is david molnar he is a nashville based photographer who is AMAZING (http://davidmolnar.com/). you should for real check out his work hes a baller. so back to my story i got meet david and his wife tammy, they were incredible, i mean that took great pictures and all but much more than that it blew me how down to earth they were. they honestly cared about what was goin on with me and offered advice on how i could be a better photographer, hope i have a chance to speak into someone like that! david shared a quote with me that really rocked my wolrd, and i would like to share it with you:

ludwig mies van der rohe said,

"God is in the details."

that really spoke to me. i dont know about you but i run around crazy most of the time. i would like to say im an artist(or at least one in training) so im trying to look at crazy angles and weird shapes, though, how often do i look for, as telecast puts it "the beauty of simplicity"? it is crazy to think that as life is happening all around me i stumble through and want to find the bright lights and the loud music, but completely miss the magnificent details just under my feet. do you ever think that God laughs at our prays for beauty and grace, as He says slow down and open your eyes a little more.

anyway, i recently went on a shoot of freemont st, las vegas. as i was there i tryed to see the thing that maybe went unnoticed and were skipped over. my goal was simply to see beauty like perhaps i never had before. my images blew me away! colors, emotions, angles, depth, people, they all moved me somehow tuning me into the these God sized details, it was truly incredible.

so i wanted to share my pictures with you to see if you might feel and see some of the same things i did, i hope you enjoy!

so could we slow down, open up, and see that God is way BIG, but also that He is in the details that often go unseen!

see ya soon

micah

all you need is....... love?

2009-01-13T19:06:00.000-08:00

can i love?

i hear about love.

i read about love.

i watch tv and movies based all around love.

and i mean who doesn't "love" a good love song

it seems the world i live in is all about love. some dying to find it, others doing everything possible to avoid it.

where do i fit in how do i love?

can i love?

i have tried to pray lately that God would teach me to love his word like the psalmist wrote:

I deeply love your Law!

I think about it all day.

-Psalms 119:97

how do i love like that, can i love? how do i move pass reading and understanding to actually loving the Words of God. has American Christianity taught me its ok to simply visit and enjoy God from time to time, but not to take rest and live in constant fellowship with the Light? have i bought into the lie that living a life where im drowning in the matchless love of Jesus isnt possible, that constant walking with Jesus is out of reach?

i believe that the bible is absolute truth, and that even though i struggle to live it out, its instruction is unwavering.

i find it hard to slow down enough to enjoy all that life has for me, and that scares me to death. as i look at the life of Jesus i see that He did not seem rushed. leadership requires relationships, relationships require time, time requires slow paced presence.

i pray that i will slow down and drown in Jesus, i pray that God will teach me to LOVE His Word.

i can love.....can you love......

YES!!!

good ol' athens town

2008-12-27T01:18:00.000-08:00

so it has been a whirlwind of a week. athens to cleveland to vegas. it was crazy, but also a lot of fun!

athens was a blast everything i hoped for, and way more. from the first moment i got there it was hugs and face love(a great way to begin, right!!!) i got to meet a few of frankie's friends... these are my findings.... hahaha

-i met ben, he is great. he's a musician and we had a few great talks about guitars and good bands. he is also the king of shuffleboard and corn hole(although i had never played either so he had an unfair advantage) ben is full of good times and great jokes. seriously, every moments you spend with him just incredible.(i might just have a man crush)

-i met theresa, (she was the first of many huggers) she is kinda the mom of the group. not bad annoying mom, more like, is everyone ok and happy and ready to have the best time ever mom. i dont think she said one mean word the whole time i was there, shes super encouraging and such a blessing to be around.

-i met lauren, she is a dancer who has like been all over the world, and has incredible stories to tell, and she bought this really cool lamp while i was there she even named it.(i men your lamp is pretty cool if it gets a name right) lauren also smiles and laughs all the time, dont you love those kinds of people, they just make you feel like like a million bucks!

-i met jessica the first time i was in athens, but these time was our get to know each other party. jess is amazing! i mean what should i even say? jess brings life wherever she goes, its like fun and spontaneity just follow her around. from arguing about music to late night waffle house and unexpected face love jess and i totally hit it off and had a killer time.

-i got to hangout with frankie..... where do i begin, from i second i was welcomed with a "hey dude" till our getting lost in rainy ATL i had a 24/7 smile! man hangoutin with frankie is always phenomenal. takin pictures in the coolest places, eating great food, and meeting the greatest people, time with frankie is always larger than life. and i could write about it for days, but maybe a few pictures might say it better.

i met a hungout with many more people and they were all awesome you dont even know. i love athens it is really one of the coolest place ever, its a great town with a huge variety of places to go and things to do while still be a rather small place. it the best of both worlds.

so i realize im a week behind but this has been a little about athens ga by micah ogle.

hope you've enjoyed, more great christmas/travel stories to come.....

see ya soon

micah

leavin on a jet plane

2008-12-17T07:28:00.000-08:00

so can i start of by saying im on an airplane sitting on the way the Athens GA, which i could not be more excited about. athens is one of my favorite places simply because i have some great friends there, and by the end of these few days i hope to have many more! so on top of this im in the exit row(which is awesome, im normally stuck between the two biggest people on the plane, and behind some little kid who puts the seat all the way back and crushes my knees, but today im free and can almost dance around with all this room, its great) i have over the rhine filling my ears and im writing to you guys(ive always wanted to blog on a plane) so thats the setup....
december 16th is on my top 5 days of the year. it started at midnight havin fun talkin with jordan as i shoved way to much stuff in this awesome suitcase i found at jeff and deborahs, (i mean its amazing, it was a wedding gift they received like 30 years ago,hahaha, well not that long ago but its so cool its a samsonite and it been like everywhere. so starting now im gonna do a photo series on it and i think ill call it moving me) so as we packed and talked and laughed, we quickly realized it was getting late and we both had to get up early. but, we had a blast and it was well worth the missed sleep. so after my semi late night i work up to a cold room, you know the kind that make you run to the shower and want to stay ther all day(i love those). so it has been pretty cold in vegas lately so i add a hoodie layer to normal tee shirt and jacket wardrobe, and because of the cold ive also had o start wearing sox, which im not a big fan of( i mean i always lose one or travis steals my good ones so i just started a boycott) so i grab my things and headed out the door to my windowless jeep(if you know where my windows are please give the back im freezing!!!!!) and headed to work. i am super lucky and get to live in a nice part of the city pushed right up against the mountains to the south of the city, so i have an incredible view of the las vegas valley from my house. due to all the cold weather weve been having and the rain yesterday the mountains all around the valley where covered in snow. it was beautiful,it was as if God was just like good morning, have you noticed how AMAZING i am lately(like on a God sized billboard you know) so i get to work early and sit down to talk to Jesus and read a bit, and read about john the baptist and how he was so humble, even though he was the man, and how he wanted with his whole life to scream that Jesus is on the way. so on this day john is teaching and to some people when Jesus shows up to get baptisted. like right then john tells all his followers to leave him, and follow Jesus. I want to be able to do that, to tell the people that I have influence over to leave me behind and go after Jesus with all they have(wow). so when I got done I went in to prayer (I work at this great church and we all meet every morning for 30 mins or so and we pray, simply becuase without for Jesus we are totally incappable of anything good) so after prayer my and my partner in crime and cubical mate Scott had a great conversation about the bible and Jesus and dumb things Christians phreakout and get pissed at each other about, man I love Scott and how he pushes me to love God more. so then I had to do some stuff to get ready for the weekend because I wasn't gonna be there. then went to lunch at jasons deil and had a Sargent Peper, which is a great sandwhich along with a fabulous beatles song. then it was off tto the airport, to head to athens to see pretty much one of the most phenomenal people in the world frankie nicole porter. she is an old friend from swat, who is a just crazy and fun and artsy and loves Jesus incredibly.
while in athens i will get, for the first time really, to meet frankies friends, and can i say that im alittle nervous. i mean we kinda got off on the wrong foot to start with due to a little musical misunderstanding,hahaha, but in the last week a few of her friends have emailed me that they are super excited about me comin and cant wait to meet me, so im gonna do my best to live up to the hype.......

but I just landed and I have to go meet Frankie, and i stupid excited!!!
I'll talk to you in a bit, I have to go see her and complete my awesome day, but don't worry I'll finish this I promise, im sure ill have lots of great stories to tell tomorrow

a little night music

2008-12-12T12:28:00.000-08:00

so welcome back! might i start by apologizing to all the people i forgot to mention formerly, please know you are loved(but to make sure i write about you remember christmas is comin up and i am not beyond bribery). well anyway i guess if your still reading then #1 wasnt so bad, or maybe you are lucky enough to know me, and couldnt help being swayed by my charm.... but your probably just board and none of your friends are on facebook so you came back to check me out..... ill take that. (haha)
so im not sure if you guys know it, but im a lover of photography. i love to study great artists, i love searching for the things that go unseen, i love walkin around with my camera even when carrying it gets on my nerves, i love loading pictures for the first time with such great anticipation in hope ill find that one shot that just wows you. that being said over the last year i have become a student of photography, learning everything i possibly can about this amazing art form.
so day 1 of my first photo class we talked all about exposures, and of course the key to any exposure is proper lighting. and as i have progressed i have learned how valuable that perfect light source can be, recently i have been shooting alot at night, trying to capture the things that go on when the sun goes off. it has been a blast to take a picture that stops time to look at the things that so quickly move past our eye, or to open my shutter for a while and see all the things that are just to slow for our busy eyes to take in. the images, however, long or short very quickly become so bizarre, as the lights, some we see and some we cant, come from everywhere and in a rainbow of colors to flood the scene. i have been shooting franticly, everything from caesars hands and feet to stars trailing across the sky have pasted through my lens, and just about everything in-between. it has been exciting to play with my camera trying to recreate not only the scene but, the feeling of standing in the middle of the desert at midnight, or on las vegas blvd's crowded sidewalks with thousands of tourist and buzzing neons.

the task has been super challenging but so interesting. i have slowly started to understand light, its power to see into dark places, its ability to be where we cant always see it, or maybe where we dont think it can penetrate, light is fast and strong and way cooler than i give it credit for.

and as i understand more and more about light i see why Jesus says we are the light of the world. man maybe its just me but as i read the stories of the gospel i cant help but see some crazy examples of light.

like as john the baptist lived a reckless life that declares "Jesus is on the way"(and i think he had dread) i guys Jesus said was like the best dude ever(thats an exact Jesus quote by the way)

rahab who was a hooker turn Jesus lover,and a woman risked her life to save some people she barley knew, thats gnarly!

david who was rugged and crazy but loved people like God does, and he kill a phreakin bear and lion and giant(like davie crockett....kinda)

timothy who didnt let anything hold him back, even his age or experience

ananias who loved a guy that hated Christians, and had a great impact on one of the most influential people in all of history

paul who wanted more than anything to lift up Jesus, no matter the cost!

peter who was crazy passionate but messed up a lot! and was still used to build the Church, even though he didnt always think things through(that gives me hope)

its insane that these people come from places so different but all wanted the same thing, to know God and make Him known. just like light, it's not till we back up and take a look there lives as a whole that we see different colors, directions, and intensities. we see the light of Jesus in a hooker, maybe a place we think it could go, or the light of God in a king who messed up, but the light didnt leave, or in a young kid who would back down. when we look casually we find light that we dont understand or dont see the point in it shining. but when we slow down we see that it makes a beautiful image, thats a bit bizarre maybe confusing from some angles but as a whole its breathtaking.

where is your light shining, where is my light shining, what image is more beautiful because of you? walk with that light!

good night

see ya soon

my first time

2008-12-04T10:59:00.000-08:00

wow this is officially or unofficially my first blog. what in the world am i doing, how does this work, do people read this, am i interesting....

well, good or bad im gonna try this thing, but first i have to warn you i kinda suck at this or maybe i dont, maybe im just insecure.

ok well all pretenses aside here it is.

as i sit at my desk on december 4 im blown away at the year 2008, man so much has changed. where has time gone it seems like yesterday i was laughing and watching the firework show on the strip from on top of gibson hill(my favorite view of the city) as beka yelled at me and ashley laughed with ben.

but now here comes 2009, which makes me think what will the glasses look like in 2010? wont that be kinda wierd? oh well thats why people smarter than me have that job. im very excited about what the oppertunitys that the new year will bring, but even more im so filled with gratitude with how ive been blessed. just last weekend i was camping with my bestfriends in the world and as we sat around a camp fire in the snow at 11k feet we watched the most beautiful sunset ive ever seen. all i could think of is how i have such an amazing life(other than the fact that my toes were completely numb). i thought alot about the people who made an impact on my life, and how i am froever changed because of there love which it seems i was at some points buried under. so if you would allow me i would like to tell you about some of the most amazing people in the world

people like:

melvin swafford- who taught me how important the bible is, and that God has a HUGE message that everyone has to hear

ron german & chuck clark- who showed me what it meant to be and athlete and still love Jesus with everything i have

robby winter- who pushed me to be a leader when i just wanted to get introuble

heath eslinger- who made me grow up and stop talkin and start fighting! he taught me how to study the bible, and use Gods word as more that a book to talk about sometimes, it is something that is to be lived out... and can i just say that i remember how much i hated heath. i can even remember hanginout with him at ihop, and everyone was laughing and having a great time and all i could think about was how much i hated heath!!! hahaha man how he loved me through me stupidity. heath took my wild uncontrolled passion and focused it on stuff that matters

stane gibson- taught me more than anyone about the kingdom of God and how its unstoppable

jake stum- made me question what i believe about God, he told me i could change what people thought about Jesus, that i had something to offer the world and cleveland wasnt big enough to hold me, hahaha. i remember me and jake wondering if it was weird that a 19 year was hanginout with a 30 year old, but i dont remmeber what the final thought on that was? jake taught me how to love people defently and that sushi was awesome... jake also broke down alot of my christian stereotypes i would tell you how but he works at a church, we talk all the time and he says i cant say stuff or he'll get fired. jake also taught me its ok to cuss if you make this special face, you should get him to show it to you....

jon messarra- wow he is one of those guys that like has Jesus on speed dial, i feel like jon has always been talkin to God about me. everytime we talk it like he knows whats goin on in my life and how i need to respond. jon taught me Gods plans unfold alot slower that we think they should, but they are also alot better than we think they should be. and how to hug a man

travis ogle- man how can i begin to tell you what my brother has taught me about life & Jesus, really the only thing travis hasnt taught me is how to be nice.

mike mead- taught me about photography and LOVE like ive never seen before the way he cares for people and genuinely wants to know whats going and how your heart feels blows me away (man how i long to love like that!)

jeff and deborah korhenon- taught me how to give and love and share, they are the some of the greatest people i know, and ive never met anyone that thinks any different

i am not even gonna write about my mom and dad but im blessed to call them mine!

i have the greatest friends in the world and people like logan durham, jordan goff, ben lunn, daniel griffith(we know hes useless but he can make me laugh sometimes), todd stevison, leah gibson, scott worthington(we used to hate each other),paule stippich, ryan spoon, jason cox, john gibson, melissa gilesppie, jenifer lockerman, zeke tomaselli, cameron corrnish, julie gibson.... i mean seriously i could go on and on, with people that have shaped my life but that is a good starter list

so that is my entourage i am them i dont have original thought, its all them!

man life is good i love who i am and where im at. God has been awesome to me. 2009 will be a great year, but first i have alot of 2008 to finish up.

good new guys it christmas time ...... its the most wonderful time of the year, its the hap happyest season of all!

oh well i guess thats enough for today, this blog thing might not be so bad

see ya soon

micah