Daily Photo Parable

Photo and Commentary ©2025 by Maylan Schurch
Friday, April 11, 2025

A bit over a week ago on a morning walk, I glanced up and spotted this truly impressive jet contrail. I’d never seen anything exactly like it. I’ve often noticed contrails spread and scattered by the upper air, but never in such an artistic pattern – almost like calligraphy.

This whole photo speaks of creativity. The airliner which caused the contrail came together through the creative efforts of aircraft designers and other technicians. The house whose roof we can see was carefully planned and constructed.

But the trees, and the tint of the sky, not to mention the ice crystals which make up the brush-swirl, are all God’s artistry. And all we can do is stare in awe, and study the scene for all the evidences God does truly care.

As Ida L. Reed’s children’s song puts it:

O the lark sings in the meadow,
In the pleasant, flow-ry meadow,
And a happy song sings he!
Perched upon a bough so slender,
Hear him sing in accents tender,
“Oh He cares, God cares for me.”

God cares for me,
Bright is the day before me,
And ev’rywhere I go
Right well I know
His loving care is o’er me.
— Ida L. Reed

Photo and Commentary ©2025 by Russell Jurgensen
Thursday, April 10, 2025

I’m drawn to mountain scenes, so when Mount Rainier appeared in this view of Seattle from the Space Needle, I had to snap a picture.

Even when presented with modern achievements, God’s nature draws us just like Mount Rainier draws our attention.

The whole earth is filled with awe at your wonders;
where morning dawns, where evening fades,
you call forth songs of joy.
Psalm 65:8

Let’s think about God’s wonders and goodness as we move forward in our modern environment.

Photo and Commentary ©2025 by Darren Milam
Wednesday, April 9, 2025

We all know the way God promised the galaxy that He would never cover the planet with water, after the flood. It was a beautiful rainbow. Ever wonder why He chose that symbol? Why did He choose all the colors to show His promise? I won’t pretend to know the reason, but I am certainly thankful for the creative approach and all the incredible colors.

Genesis 9:13 -15

I have sent my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life.

Not in the form of a rainbow, but instead God has created these jaw-dropping colors in flowers and foliage. These English Daisies show off the red, yellow, and various shades of pink, surrounded by the lush green leaves. The image doesn’t capture the full spectrum of the color palette, but it certainly has a few of the selections.

When we come across these colors in nature, we know that God created these colors, these are God’s colors. He specifically chose these hues for our enjoyment. What a wonderful way of thinking of yet another form of communication we can receive from our Father.

Photo and Commentary ©2025 by Robert Howson
Tuesday, April 8, 2025

One of the earliest flowers to bloom in the Pacific Northwest is also one that flaunts the most dramatic flash of contrasting colors, the Western Skunk Cabbage. Almost any walk in the wetlands will reveal clumps of vibrant green leaves among which a bright yellow spathe emerges. From this arises a pungent spadix which gives the plant its common name. The distinctive odor which many believe to be “skunky” apparently attracts flies and beetles which act as pollinators before other insects, which are still dormant, become active. Some suggest the leaves, when crushed, will emit the same characteristic odor.

Perhaps you’re familiar with anthurium, those waxy red flowers often used in tropical arrangements. Both it and the Western Skunk Cabbage belong to the arum family. Both have that long spadix which contains tiny male and female flowers, only the anthurium doesn’t carry with it the objectionable odor which many find so repulsive. Both are beautiful, one is valued and found in flower shops, while the other distained.

It would be foolish to suggest that we should all value the same things. But it’s also important to remember that in order to appreciate something’s worth we must be open to seeing its true value. Paul reminds us of this when he writes: “The unspiritual self, just as it is by nature, can’t receive the gifts of God’s Spirit. There’s no capacity for them. They seem like so much silliness. Spirit can be known only by spirit—God’s Spirit and our spirits in open communion. (1 Corinthians 2:14 MSG) May we not turn up our noses at the gifts God has to give us.

Photo and Commentary ©2025 by Shelley Schurch
Sunday and Monday, April 6 and 7, 2025

Every spring I hang this big, beautiful, bright banner from a slim rod on our front porch. It’s our traditional good-bye to winter and hello to longer days, more sunshine, warmer weather, blossoming trees, and spring flowers.

Last Sunday we returned to our driveway after many hours out and about, and the first thing I noticed was the banner was gone, and the rod was hanging dejectedly down from one end. We thought the windy weather must have somehow whipped it around until it became untethered, so we looked for it on the porch, then in our small front yard, under bushes . . . but our big, beautiful, bright banner was gone.

We figured if the wind wasn’t the culprit, a human being must be. Someone with bad intent must have come up on our porch, yanked the rod out of one of its wire sockets, and swiped the banner.

Now I felt much worse about its absence. I love our neighborhood. How could someone, in broad daylight, invade our peaceful street and do something as ugly as steal our banner?

I texted our neighbors across the street – had they seen anyone visit our driveway or porch? Michelle replied that her daughter had noticed something in the street when they drove out on errands; she would check her surveillance camera and see. She sent us the results; a grainy video of folds of fabric lying in the street behind a car, mid-afternoon.

Hooray! We didn’t have our banner back yet, but my peace of mind returned. We had not been ripped off!

We widened our search, with flashlights. It had been a very windy day; no telling where the banner ended up. Maybe it was still traveling. I told the Lord He knew where it was, and it was a very small matter, but we would love to be reunited with it, if possible.

Three days later I walked across the street and down one house to deliver a birthday gift to one of our favorite five-year olds. She and her father greeted me at the door, and soon her mother joined the welcome, holding our neatly-folded banner in her arms. “We’ve been meaning to get this over to you,” she said. “We found it in our driveway a couple days ago.”

I’m not sure who was happier – the young birthday girl unwrapping her gift, or her beaming neighbor, holding her wayward banner. The lost and wind-tossed was found and restored.

And yes, this reminds me of Jesus. He’s definitely in the lost-finding and restoring business. And I remembered there were banners in the Bible. I started searching for them and discovered they were usually found in scenes of conflict, when victory was declared.

The first instance I found was in Exodus 17:

The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim. Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hands.”

So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset. So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword.

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it, because I will completely blot out the name of Amalek from under heaven.”

Moses built an altar and called it The Lord is my Banner. (Exodus 17:8-15 NIV)

The Lord was their Victory.

The first Biblical banner I thought of did not involve a battle, though; it takes us in an entirely different direction:

He brought me to the banqueting house,
And his banner over me was love. (Song of Solomon 2:4 NKJV)

Banners of victory and love. That sounds like Jesus to me, Jesus on the cross. It didn’t look like victory then, but it certainly looked like love.

As we step out into this brand-new week, may you live with His banner flowing over you: Jesus is your Way, your Truth, your Life, your Victory, and your Love.

Photo and Commentary ©2025 by Maylan Schurch
Sabbath, April 5, 2025

Our local library has reserved a couple of tables for students needing tutoring, and two or three days a week a rotating group of three or four tutors help kids with their homework.

Usually the tables are packed with kids, and if you’re nearby you hear the confident, complacent voices of the tutors doing their best to explain math principles to the youngsters.

But today (in this case, this past Tuesday) there are three tutors, but no kids. This is very rare – all this assistance and wisdom, but nobody to learn from it. I think it was a pretty day outside, and maybe that’s why these tutors have no customers.

Where am I going with this? I’m going directly to what the Bible says about spiritual wisdom, the most important kind. What is it? Why do I need it? Where can I find it? Check it out.

https://www.bibleinfo.com/en/topics/wisdom

Photo and Commentary ©2025 by Maylan Schurch
Friday, April 4, 2025

Last Sabbath during Sabbath School I went down to the Beginners’ (ages 0 – about 4) classroom. There weren’t any kids there at that point, so I practiced some songs I needed to play later.

In the corner on a counter I noticed what at first might appear to be pizza boxes. But I knew what they really were, and a feeling of deep reverence flooded over me.

These are “felt sets,” and down through the decades the Sabbath School teachers have used them to tell Bible stories to little kids. The programs are prepared so that the teacher can select what’s needed – whether the Sea of Galilee, crowd scenes, animal scenes, Jesus speaking, and so on – and display them on a felt background. It’s unimaginable how many children of many denominations all over the world have had these scenes imprinted on their minds, accompanied by the gentle voices of dedicated saints. The figures themselves are made of felt, and are often painstakingly hand-colored by the very teachers who will use them. When presented, each lesson is a true “living Bible” event.

The Bible has a lot to say about children and their importance to Jesus. The Savior’s most bloodcurdling threats are reserved for those who abuse children (see Matthew 18:6). Let’s pray for our youngsters.

For more of what the Bible says about children, click the link just below:

https://www.bibleinfo.com/en/topics/children