Marymere Falls Hike

On our weekend we went on a hike (about a mile) and visited Marymere falls.  It is a nice short hike and great views at the end.

Hurricane Ridge

These photos are from our drive up to Hurricane Ridge, it was a beautiful drive and there was a lot of snow at the top.  Unfortunately for us it was really foggy at the top, and we couldn't see any other peaks.  During the summer months when it is clear you can see a lot.  The drive is 17 miles from Port Angeles and you start at sea level and go up to 5200 feet.  Pretty amazing.

Viewpoint overlooking Port Angeles and Sequim

Weekend Away

Deb and I got away this weekend to the Olympic Peninsula, we had a great time. We stayed at Sea Cliff Gardens.  It is an amazing place, with a great view.  We went to Hurricane Ridge (although it was quite foggy), Crescent Lake and Marymere Falls, and the Hoh Rainforest.

The view from our B&B.  That is Canada on the horizon.

The Eagles flew over us for 30 minutes or so with out flapping their wings.

The view looking east down the cliff.  

Through the Ferry

Last weekend Deb and I rode the Ferry from Edmonds to Clinton, which is about an hour, and got some great photos.  The first 2 are from the trip up, and the last two are from the trip back.

Bumblebee

Saw this bumblebee the other day and was lucky enough to be able to get close enough to get some good pictures. I don't have a macro lens so this was all the closer I was able to get. I love this first one.

The Problem with the Church

While reading this quote, I want you to try to guess who said it before reading the name below.

"The contemporary church is a weak, ineffectual voice with an uncertain sound.  So often it is an archdefender of the status quo.  Far from being disturbed by the presence of the church, the power structure of the average community is consoled by the church's silent and often even vocal sanction of things as they are.
But the judgment of God is upon the church as never before.  If today's church does not recapture the sacrificial spirit of the early church, it will lose its authenticity, forfeit the loyalty of millions, and be dismissed as an irrelevant social club with no meaning for the twentieth century.  Every day I meet young people whose disappointment with the church has turned into outright disgust."  



This letter was written over 40 years ago.  It is from "Letter from the Birmingham jail. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr."  I first read it this past week in "a hole in our gospel" by Rich Sterns.  I don't think there is much to add to it.  There are those that have been successful at recapturing the sacrificial spirit and those that haven't.  I think that in this quote we have the solution to the decline of the Church in America.  The church has been loosing followers like crazy, and lots of people do dismiss it as an irrelevant social club, and are disgusted with it.  I know people like this.  How do we reach them? How do we reclaim those that have been lost?  It is by seeking justice, loving the poor, the orphan and the widow.  Too many churches have turned into state of the art entertainment places.  One could walk in and mistake it for a theater.  That is not how we make lasting change.  I think this quote is true or truer now than 40 years ago.


ISA 58:6 "Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?


JER 22:16 He defended the cause of the poor and needy,
and so all went well.
Is that not what it means to know me?"
declares the LORD.

James 1:27
Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

Cute Little Bird

I have tried to get a picture of these birds before, but they move so fast, it can be hard.  But this time it was a bright sunny day and I could use a fast shutter speed so his movements wouldn't be blurry.

Edmonds Clinton Ferry Pictures

For three weekends the Mukilteo Ferry Dock has been getting some upgrades or work done on it. So the Clinton Ferry has been coming down to the already busy Edmonds Dock.  Makes for some great pictures if one likes Ferries.

Dusk Photos

Last weekend Deb and I went down to Edmond's Waterfront to watch the sunset. It wasn't as good as we thought it would be, but we got some other good pictures.

Super Full moon

Last week was the super full moon. Where the moon was full and at it's closest point in its orbit.  Happened last I think in 1993 and will happen next in 2020's.  Not too common, luckily there was enough of a clearing in the clouds for me to get a few pictures.  It's interesting taking pictures of the moon, because you can really choose how bright it is.