Praying with Pictures: Paths to Creative Contemplation

You have heard the old adage that a picture is worth a thousand words, but how many prayers is one picture worth? We can find prayer-filled inspiration in the sights and senses all around us. It infuses the scenery we witness while walking through peaceful woods, gazing at a starry sky, or listening to all the creatures and life along the way. The unlimited potential and power of prayer hide in every page of the stunning life and landscape photography found inside author Nancy I. Penton’s Praying with Pictures: Paths to Creative Contemplation. While there may be many books about prayer, few books invite readers to focus on creatively praying with eyes wide open, marveling at the sheer beauty of God and God’s handiwork in creation. Notice the compilation carefully captured here in each inspired word, blessing, and photograph. Penton’s collection invites you to prayerfully immerse yourself in the Scriptures, and interact in meditation with the pictures, as you listen to your Inner Guide, the Holy Spirit. Readers and viewers will also find many prayer-filled reflection exercises and examples to spur further creative prayer practice and spiritual thought. What started as the author’s response to discontinued travel to faraway locations and national parks in the 2020 pandemic, this book emerged from Penton’s collection of inspirational thoughts and weekly blessings on social media to the compiled, creative panorama of prayer, purposeful meditations, and engaging photographs found within these pages. So, go ahead. Flip through the vast journey of color, art, and photography found inside. Be inspired. Then begin to create and express your prayers.