Back Home; More on Forgiveness

The children and I are back home visiting family in the western part of our state. We are having a wonderful time...now that we are all feeling well! Whew, we all had that intestinal flu bug...yuckkka! Sooooo glad we are coming through on the other side of it!

Mainly, we made the trip here to photograph my niece for the photogenic portion of a county pageant she is in. :) Also, to coach/guide her a bit on her talent portion. She's doing a beautiful job on her own though! :)) I only assisted her with fine tuning some of the movements, and she has a vocal coach she worked with as well.

We took her photos at our family farm. There is a pond and such lovely landscape...acres and acres of woods!

The photos turned out GREAT, and how wouldn't they??? My niece is gorgeous! Of course, I could have botch them...that was on my mind...I did LOTS of praying,lol! It is a little nerve racking to think that my photography/posing of her could influence/sway a judges decision. Yikes!

My niece is thrilled with them, and all who have seen them thus far are loving them! The prints turned out amazing!!! I can't wait to share them more publically on my blogs and on Facebook, but it will have to be after Saturday. ;)

We were in a time crunch to get them done!! Her schedule is so tight, and the only day we had was about an hour on Wed night. Since the days are getting shorter, we lost the light FAST. We had to do a few of them with flash in almost dark.

In the process of getting them printed (at Sam's for the sake of saving time) the lady in the photo lab would NOT release my OWN images to me without a TYPED copyright release form. Thank goodness she called to warn me before we got there!!!

In one sense it was kind of flattering; Here was this lady telling me, "These images are just too good to release without a copyright release". On the other hand...I was aggravated at what she was asking me to do on short notice.

I mean, if they require something in their files for legal purposes...for the photographer...THEY should have forms that the photographer signs, with their legal writing, etc. I have model release forms and image release forms for my clients, but they were making me create my own release form??!!!

The thing is, niether Sam's...here, or back where we live now has ever given me a problem about picking up my OWN images (that I uploaded in MY created account with Sam's photo online).

I was completely frazzled! We only had a few hours to get there before they closed, and had no printer available. I was 40 mins away from the store, AND I had to have my son at another location so our Aunt could pick him up for our counsin's ball game.

I was at my sister in law's home trying to finish them up, and get them uploaded to Sam's online...she has the wireless internet. When I get the call from the photo lab. It wasn't a great time for me to sit down to gather my thoughts to word a letter, get my loco on it, and upload it to the Sam's site (she told me that if I upload it as a jpg, they would print it out at the lab for me to sign-that was nice-I was still so aggravated though!). We all know how slow computers go when we are in a hurry!!!

The lady at Sam's would only take a business card (which I do not have) or a TYPED ONLY written release. I kept telling her that I was the owner of the images...I'm not PRO. I'm working toward pro status. I do have a business account to keep the money separate, but no business cards because right now I am not promoting myself that way. Only doing jobs via word of mouth, and mostly ministry type shoots. It seems lately my work is picking up. So...guess it is time for some business cards!!! If for no other purpose than for Sam's to staple in their files. lol!

In all of this, had to ask myself...what would keep someone from using my business card as their own??? Also, anyone could type something up and sign it! She didn't even ask to see my ID when I got there. The whole thing made no sense!! I even have a busness debit/credit card with Jennography by "my name" on it...that wasn't acceptable as proof either!!! She would not release my images without a TYPED letter.

I was already late getting my son to his location...I'm trying to rush and get this letter typed...AND uploaded to the Sam's site for them to print it out for me. Nice lab lady said once I did this, then I won't have to EVER do it again. Here's hoping...we'll see! I'll definitely be prepared if I have to pick up images at our Sam's when I return home. Usually I use an online lab.

Even though it was irritating, I'm glad to know they are cracking down on photography copyright laws. :)

So this morning, I've been reading about forgivness. HAHA, that is funny after typing about how aggravated I was!heehee. This words seems to roll around again and again in my life. That must be because there are always new things to be forgiven, and it is such a daily action...to forgive.

I love today's Proverbs 31 devotion. It compares forgiveness with spinach. It is good for us in the long run, but doesn't taste great...isn't always easy to swallow.

Forgiving ourselves is one of the most difficult things to do. Just when I get the "forgiving others" down, then have to work on forgiving myself. (I had to forgive myself for losing patience with the photo lab lady last night. haha)

Here is the devotion from today:
Friday, October 09, 2009
Forgiveness is Like Spinach
Zoe Elmore

"Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you." Colossians 3:13 (NIV)

I've heard it said, "Forgiveness is like spinach. You might not like the taste, but it's good for you." I recently had the opportunity to "chew on" this spiritual wisdom, when someone close to me hurt my feelings.

We'd been friends for ten years, so her comment stunned me. Her words cut the silence of the room, "You and your personality are just too much for me today, I want you to leave my home immediately!" I thought she was joking but the look on her face and tension in her voice were clear, she wanted me to leave without delay.

I quickly gathered my things, said good-bye to the others in the room and left her home. I was hurt and embarrassed at what had just transpired. How could she have been so mean to me? What had I done to cause such hurtful words?

Over the next few days my hurt feelings turned to anger. Again and again her words rang in my ears. Soon unforgiveness crept in, spoiling my attitude. Knowing it would be easy to slip from an unforgiving attitude to sinful actions, I began searching God's Word for wisdom on this subject.
In Matthew 18:21-35 Jesus tells of a servant forgiven a huge debt by his king. When the same servant has an opportunity to forgive someone a minor debt, he chooses to inflict punishment instead. The king finds out and is outraged:

"Then the master called the servant in. 'You wicked servant,' he said, 'I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?' In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. "This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart." (Matthew 18:32-35, NIV)

These words pierced my heart as I thought of my bitter attitude toward my friend. As I meditated on these verses, I was reminded of times I had said or done hurtful things to others. At those times the forgiveness of God was extended to me. I could no longer allow myself to withhold forgiveness.

I invited my friend for coffee to ask her forgiveness for whatever I had done to cause her displeasure with me. Sadly, she was unwilling to explain or acknowledge her actions and we parted without any resolution to the situation.

It's been months since that meeting and there are times I have to remind myself to "eat my spinach" as I continue to forgive the one who hurt me. As I have struggled with this issue, God has shown me biblical steps to take as I forgive someone who has hurt me:

1. Recognize and confess my sins.
Psalm 41:4, "I said, 'O LORD, have mercy on me; heal me, for I have sinned against you.'" (NIV)

2. Rejoice in God's forgiveness for my sins.
Ephesians 4:32, "Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you." (NIV)

3. Remember that forgiveness is a continual process.
Matthew 18:21-22a, "Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?" Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times but seventy-seven times." (NIV)

Has someone hurt your feelings or been unkind to you? Try God's steps for a forgiving spirit. I believe you'll experience Psalm 34:8 for yourself: "Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him."

Dear Lord, I acknowledge the unforgiving spirit I have had toward my friend. Help me forgive her as You forgive me. Put a guard on my mouth in order that my words would be pleasing to others and to You. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Related Resources:
Hear Lysa TerKeurst’s thoughts about “stabbing words” on our radio program today.

The Friends We Keep: A Woman's Quest for the Soul of Friendship by Sara Zacharias

How to Get Along with Difficult People by Florence Littauer

Visit Zoe’s blog - Called by a New Name

Application Steps:
Begin a forgiveness page in your journal and write out verses dealing with this subject.

Read the entire passage in Matthew 18:21-35.

Ask the Lord to show you who you need to forgive.

Reflections:
Am I a peace-maker or a grudge-holder?

Am I willing to go to those I may have hurt or offended and ask for forgiveness?

Am I willing to forgive those who have hurt me?

Power Verses:
Psalm 103:12, "As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us." (NIV)

Colossians 1:13-14, "For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (NIV)

© 2009 by Zoe Elmore. All rights reserved.
Labels: Forgiveness, Friendships, God's Perspective, Overcoming Anger, Patience, Relationships, Walking in Faith



The processing did turn out really great!