Bless Haiti

In my opinion, living life the way it was meant to be lived is about two things...knowing your purpose and discovering your passion(s). Without a doubt, I know that my purpose in this life is to love God and love people. And, again without a doubt, I know that my passions include my God, my family, my friends, music and photography, among other things. The greatest blessing in this life for me is when I'm able to do something that fulfills my purpose via my passions.

It's probably no secret by now that I've had a passion for photography for a very long time. In fact, if I hadn't found my niche in the world as a musician/worship leader, there's a very high probability I would have pursued photography as a lifelong career. But, up until very recently, photography has been just a passion.

But, over the past few years, I've begun to see photography as a means for me to realize my purpose in new ways. Despite my best efforts to avoid it (literally, I said, "No way!" when a photographer friend asked me in June of this past year if I'd seriously thought of doing some professional shooting), the opportunity to begin a photography business has hunted me down, and I am finally giving in. By the end of this past year, without any advertising of my own, several of you (my blog readers) emailed me about shooting some photos during family vacations here on the Outer Banks. I found the time to do a few of those shoots this in 2009 and am already booking several shoots for 2010. Through this recent experience, it's been confirmed in my heart and mind that professional photography is something I can do.

As I've been praying and thinking about this, my biggest desire has been to use this new endeavor to continue living out my purpose to love God and love others. Although I'll only be doing this part-time, I will be looking for ways to use the majority of the profits to bless others. Honestly, if I end this coming year with a few new pieces of equipment that will help me become better at this art, I'll be very happy for myself.

So, having said all of that, I'm very pleased to tell you about my brand new photography website, NathanLawrenson.com. I'll be specializing in candid, beach photography/family portraits. To celebrate my new business adventure and to set the precedent that I will be using this as a means to bless others, I'm going to be doing two things:

1) For every 2010 photo shoot that I book from today until midnight, January 31, I'll donate $50 of my paycheck to go directly to the relief work in Haiti via Samaritan's Purse.

2) For every unique visitor that NathanLawrenson.com receives from today until midnight, January 31, I'll donate an additional 5c of my own money to the relief work in Haiti via Samaritan's Purse.

I'm sure, by now, everyone reading this has heard, read or seen the news about the incredibly devastating earthquake in Haiti. This massive quake, which has possibly left well over one-hundred thousand dead, is only the most recent in a long series of natural disasters which have, in part, given Haiti the recognition as the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Reports are saying that thousands of people are, right now, still alive, trapped in the rubble of fallen buildings. And, with the absence of electricity, clean water and medical supplies, the death toll could rise dramatically in the next several days unless dramatic action is taken.

To join with me to support the relief efforts in Haiti, you can do three things:

1) Visit NathanLawrenson.com.

2) Tell everyone you know to visit NathanLawrenson.com.

3) Book a photo session with NathanLawrensonPhotography by the end of January.

It's that easy for you to help me support the relief efforts in Haiti.

I have personally been supporting Samaritan's Purse for several years...the video below explains the work they are currently doing in Haiti to help those affected by the earthquake.



Thanks!

Nate

A special "Thank you!" for the encouragement from my family, friends and blog readers over the past few years concerning my photography skills. Your words of encouragement and guidance have given me the motivation to get this project up and running.