My Lord and My God! My Spiritual Awakening to the Joy of the Cross

All lives are touched by God, although oftentimes they are touched unknowingly, amid the complexity of daily life and within the simplicity of the sublime. In life, unexpected events can arise that shake us to the very core of our being. Such is the case of the miraculous journey experienced by photographer and author, Terry Holt. Join Terry on his remarkable journey shaped by two near-death experiences that forever changed his life.

Terry had planned his first-ever Photo Show titled 'An Evening in Black and White' to be held at a local art gallery on June 15, 2018. For the event, Terry had chosen to showcase 19 breathtaking black-and-white photographs capturing the majesty of waterfalls, mountains, clouds, oceans, and flowers he had taken over the years in New Zealand, Costa Rica, and the United States. However, instead of unveiling his amazing photos that night, Terry found himself confined to a hospital Intensive Care Unit battling acute, non-alcohol-related pancreatitis, while his wife, Ann, represented him at his Photo Show.

At the hospital, Terry's condition takes a turn for the worse on June 20, 2018, when Terry has the first of two cardiac arrests. Terry's life hangs by a thread as life-threatening complications and sepsis necessitate Terry being put on full life support for a full month at a Trauma/Surgical Intensive Care Unit. Terry struggles to survive during his staggering total 103-day-long hospital stay.

Fast forward to 2023, when Ann approaches Terry with a poignant realization; amid their five-year focus on Terry's arduous health crisis and ongoing recovery, they had never truly celebrated Terry's first-ever Photo Show in 2018. Ann suggests they compile a book featuring some of Terry's photos, and leave a photographic legacy for their children and grandchildren to cherish. Terry shares that, independent of Ann, he has been thinking of
creating a book of his photographs, complemented by brief spiritual reflections mirroring his spiritual awakening and transformation in the hospital in 2018. And so, together, this husband-and-wife team embark on a fun, challenging, and satisfying adventure to create just such a book!

What begins as a book project of 28 photos for family members is edited many times over and gradually undergoes a seemingly directed and extensive metamorphosis as Terry and Ann explore a new and deeper purpose for their book. The emerging purpose of the evolving book is to share the divine revelation and message borne from the crucible of Terry's hospital experience in 2018 when he had twice faced the precipice of death. With the addition of Holy Spirit-inspired Spiritual Reflections given to both of them, Terry and Ann now begin to feel they are being divinely led to create and share this inspired book with the world. Terry and Ann immerse the book project in prayer, ask God what message He wants made known, and give all the glory, honor, and praise to God!

The result of this months-long journey is Terry and Ann's captivating coffee table-style book titled 'My Lord And My God! My Spiritual Awakening To The Joy Of The Cross.' This remarkable book features 50 amazing black-and-white photographs of God's wonderful creation paired with Holy Spirit-inspired Spiritual Reflections, and personal notes to the reader from the photographer.

Themes of God's Goodness, Mercy, Grace, Virtue, and Comfort, and themes of repentance, forgiveness, surrender, and obedience to God are declared throughout this book. This book offers hope to the hopeless and generously blesses each reader. Additionally, this book gives testament to the fragile nature of life, and more importantly, testament to the undeniable Presence and Goodness of God in all things.

God has given Terry and Ann this book and has blessed them with a new Praise Ministry! And, in response, Terry and Ann joyfully proclaim in praise and shout in song "COME SEE WHAT GOD IS DOING! COME SEE WHAT GOD HAS DONE!"

Terry's passion for black-and-white photography began when he took photography classes during college. Since that time, Terry has traveled a path of self-discovery in photography, with the intent of taking photos that capture the 'extraordinary within the ordinary.' Moreover, his photographic images affirm God's design in life and connect with the viewer.

Terry is a naturalist. He has a degree in Education, with an emphasis in the Natural Sciences. Employed with the US Army Corps of Engineers for 32 years, Terry was the first National Program Manager for the Corps' Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) Program. The Program's first major deployment was to the Hurricane Katrina Disaster Relief efforts in New Orleans, and other locations in Louisiana, in the United States of America, in 2005.

Ann grew up in a family of writers and editors, with each family member having their own signature style! She excitedly writes with a dictionary and thesaurus at-hand, in order to determine the precise word choice! Indeed, Ann considers writing to be a clever craft! Ann draws upon her degree in Business Administration and her minors in Speech Communication and Piano Composition for the technical and creative aspects of writing.

Terry and Ann are blessed to have raised four remarkable children! Additionally, to date, they have two wonderful daughters-in-law, and six precious grandchildren! Throughout the years, Terry and Ann have enjoyed the companionship of seven Labrador Retrievers. Terry enjoys spending time with their current Lab Pup, Willow, whom he has trained to be his Certified Service Dog.

With Terry's amazing photographs, Terry and Ann's diligent and detailed writing and editing, and inspiration from the Holy Spirit, Terry and Ann have self-published their first book. They consider the outreach of the book to be a Praise Ministry, and they give all the glory, honor, and praise to God!