A L I S O N    S H E P A R D

"The Redemption of Islamic Extremists" is a name of a file folder on my computer. It's a sub folder in my photos for art references that is full of imagery about the Islamic State, the caliphate, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, as well as Christian men, women and children who have been martyred by the hands of the Islamic State in Libya, Pakistan and Syria. It stands out as a bit strange among my other art reference folders--photos of flowers, figures, and landscapes. I began gatheri

As a Christian, I am constantly seeking intimacy with my Creator. As with any relationship, an integral art of this intimacy is spending time listening. For me, this often looks like spending quiet time in the mornings with my coffee, bible, journal and an anticipation that God is going to speak to me through His Word. This was the case for me last Friday. Even though I didn't fully understand it, God was revealing something prophetic to me. But before I explain what happ

“Out of whose womb came the ice? And the hoary frost of Heaven, who hath gendered it? The waters are hid as with a stone. And the face of the deep is frozen.” -Job 38:29-30 After the ship sank, Shackleton gave strict orders to the crew that they must strip down their belongings to only the barest essentials. He exhorted them to get rid of any ounce of unnecessary weight, regardless of how valuable it was. To emphasize his point, he took out a gold cigarette case and sev

My encounter with the voyage of the SS Endurance was a fortuitous one. I was visiting a former client who owned a wooden boat shop and was flipping through his latest issue of a boating magazine called 'The Brass Bell'. I saw an image in the magazine that immediately grabbed my attention. And I said, "Can I borrow this?" It was an image of the SS Endurance wedged into pack ice and heeling to its port side. I went home and read the article; I had never heard of the SS End