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I didn’t think I would actually write three blog entries in a row … most of my attempts at journaling failed so far. I will try not to write just for writing’s sake, promised.

Had breakfast with my friend Christian, who just returned from an 18 months’ stay in San Jose, California (and whose apartment I’ve been renting since he had left). I’ve been through the same culture shock twice. It was good to get together and talk over freshly baked, warm German Brötchen (rolls) with delicious, home-made apple-blackberry-banana jelly. Only an hour ago, he rang at my door when I was almost ready to go to bed, asking if I would like to share a soup. Two nice meals with a friend in one day – very special.

In between, I went to the opening of the exhibition of the Saxon State Award for Design here in Dresden, where I was invited to do some presentations of Kaleidotype (which had won second prize). I was delighted to see Professor Rayan Abdullah again, professor for typography at the School for Graphic Design and Book Arts in Leipzig and member of the jury. (Incidentally, I once applied to the school for graphic design when I had just finished highschool, but didn’t get accepted.) Here you can see him play with the Kaleidotype software.

Do you know that feeling when, at the end of a day, things come full circle and suddenly connect? Today was such a day.

In the morning, the pastor at the Dresden Vineyard preached on priorities, particularly Matthew 6,33: “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” I’m not going to go into this much more; one of the key things I wrote down was the motto “ora et labora”, meaning that we should be both expecting the kingdom of God coming in the future and working here and now to help people and give a glimpse of what is to come.

Something completely different was on my mind for the rest of the day: I recently bought a digital SLR camera, thanks to the prize money from the Saxon State Award for Design which my former employer Buttgereit und Heidenreich GmbH and I won for my program Kaleidotype (see also my page on it). As often happens, I had second thoughts on my purchase (should I have bought a different model instead etc.), mainly due to reading some reviews on the internet. My advice: don’t read those too much, but go out and test for yourself. However, I just came across Ken Rockwell’s website, where I read an essay entitled Your Camera Does Not Matter. Here are two paragraphs which especially struck me:

You probably already have all the equipment you need, if you’d just learn to make the best of it. Better gear will not make you any better photos, since the gear can’t make you a better photographer.

You need to learn to see and compose. The more time you waste worrying about your equipment the less time you’ll have to put into creating great images. Worry about your images, not your equipment.

While comforting me in my camera purchase confusion, these thoughts can be applied to other areas as well, including the Christian life. Just substitute some of the words, and this could be right out of a passionate sermon:

You probably already have all the knowledge and spiritual gifts you need, if you’d just learn to make the best of it …

You need to learn to pray and obey. The more time you waste worrying about your ability the less time you’ll have to put into doing the works God has prepared for you to do …

Of course, this analogy should not be driven too far, and I am certainly aware of our need to grow and mature, but it did touch me that my petty hunting for some kind of affirmation in my decision could lead me to something much more valuable and lasting.

Good night, everyone!