Jan Smith
For many decades, I have had a passion for outdoor photography. At one time, it was my desire to make my living doing outdoor photography. But I never did, and I’ll tell you why.

Back in the 1970’s and into the 1980’s, there were several well-known photographers whose work I admired. Their work was widely published. They were well known and admired. I wanted to be like them… I thought. But as I studied their lives, I discovered something very unsettling. In order to get to where they were, they had to spend weeks and months away from home. Many had actually abandoned their families in order to pursue their careers.

It occurred on me that there had to have been a moment, for each one of them, when they had to make a decision. They each had to choose: do I leave all and pursue my passion? Or do I stay with my family? Which is most important? They all made their choices… and I made mine. For me, the price some of them had to pay was too high. Next to God, my wife and children were then — and always shall be — the most important people in my life. The thought of leaving them has always been one I could never live with.

But now… look at what has happened. In the Spring of 2005, God miraculously provided a way for me to get everything we needed to get Word Blessings up and running. This included a high-end digital camera. As you can see on our web site, we combine photos with Bible verses. It is “the power of God’s Word combined with the beauty of God’s Creation”.

Last summer, God provided a way for us to travel to Alaska for our daughter’s wedding without having to go even one penny into debt! The trip included extra days when we could be… photographers. For several days, we lived our heart’s desire! Do you see the tiny figure in the Scripture card above? That’s me, kneeling in the dirt as I strained to interpret the rugged Alaska coastline in digital images. I was having FUN!

A few days ago, our son Jeff told us about a place on the Internet called ImageKind.com where we could upload and sell our photographs. I checked it out and — long story short — we’ve opened a photo gallery. I’ve posted over 20 photos so far. As time permits, I’ll add more. The best part is: once I upload them and set some options, I’m done! Someone else does all the work!

Joanne and I would love for our friends to just pop over there and take a look at what we’re doing. I don’t intend for people to feel obligated to buy anything; we’d just like to show you what we’ve done.

There’s a link in the sidebar. Just click, and you’ll be at our gallery. Better yet, click here to see one of the photos I was taking when Joanne took the picture of me that you see above.

You see? This is an example of how the Lord works in peoples’ lives when they delight themselves in Him. As promised, He’s giving Joanne and me the desires of our heart.

Enjoy!

jan