White Oaks, New Mexico doesn’t need no stinking cathedral or post-bank-style building for worship services. A TUFF SHED® with a steeple does just fine.
A colorful cacti in the churchyard, and a second TUFF SHED® used for fellowship hall.
The Harvest Moon rising last night with Saturn peeking through the clouds on the right. Saturn in the center photo. The Harvest Moon shining through the clouds.
There was lightning to the north last night. Saturn and its moons in plaid. The Harvest moon finally rose above the clouds.
Off Center & Not Even 
Very striking nightscapes! I love the church.
I really like that church. I think the White Oaks adherents have their priorities right. Thanks, Liz.
You’re welcome, Tim. My dad would have agreed with you. He’d get very frustrated when the parishioners wanted to spend what little money they had on prettifying the building instead of helping the less fortunate in the community.
These days with churchgoers becoming more scarce, churches with large buildings are having a rough time maintaining them.
Around here, even the smaller churches are having a hard time maintaining their buildings (as well as their congregations). A friend of mine was telling me about the deconsecration of the church his family had always attended prior to its being torn down. It was cheaper to tear it down and repair it. Very sad.
Deferred maintenance is a real menace for everything, especially buildings and vehicles. The thing people often don’t consider in the affordability equation is whether or not they can afford to maintain a building or a vehicle. It’s especially precarious for churches that depend on adherents and their willingness to give.
Definitely.
Most practical church architecture. When you want to go to a different location, just hire a couple of low boys and voila! church and fellowship hall are off to that revival a couple of counties over. Brilliant. (As were your sky shots, Tim.)
Absolutely. Thanks, Maj & Sher.
Those sheds are so versatile. Lovely pics of the moon. I saw the moon in the middle of the night, was stunning.
Thanks, Jeff.
Welcome, Tim.
Hey, G-d is everywhere! I feel like G-d likes a TUFF SHED®. (I can’t comment; I have no familiarity with TUFF SHED®)
As I mentioned to Maj & Sher, the good citizens of White Oaks have the priorities right when it comes to worship. A simple, inexpensive building to shelter them from the elements. A place they can concentrate n worship with few distractions. When you get a house with a yard, you might find yourself in need of a TUFF SHED® to store all the obligatory tools and implements necessary for having a house with a yard.
I like the TUFF SHED® church. Simple works!
Thanks for the moon views. We didn’t see her last night up here. Enough smoke cleared by evening to catch a dull orange moon rising tonight. It is still pretty dry. Even the slugs who normally cruise in great numbers in the morning damp were keeping close to their moist hideouts today.
Thanks, Lavinia. cloudy last night, but the moon and Jupiter (close together) were shining through the clouds before dawn this morning.
Love this. And true believers and worshippers know that a building is a building until… Fabulous photos of the night skies, too.
Thanks, Dale. Churches slend so much money on buildings, and it gets difficult for them to maintain them when attendance drops.
So true.
They spend, also. I can’t type for crap anymore. Spell check didn’t mark “slend”. I looked it up. Acording to the urban dictionary, “slend” is stealing something that was borrowed. I learned something new today.
I giggle. And, that would be a Freudian slip to me because my feelings about the church and organised religions is pretty much that they spend and slend (my autocorrect kept changing it!!) And now I know a new word. I cannot count the number of things that friends and families have hmmm slent? Slended?
Slending so to be more of the new normal.
Think we can start a new trend in utilizing the word Slend?
I think the next time someone asks me if they can borrow something, I’m going to say “You mean ‘slend’ it to you?” We should introduce “sbarrow” for borrowing with intent to steal. I looked it up. No entry in the Urban Dic, but it is a sir name with one family name Sbarrow recorded in Nebraska in 1920. I’ll bet it was a typo that got into the records since there is only one instance and 100% occurrence in Nebraska.
I am definitely going to use it and it only makes sense that they would have the personal version. Should it be Sborrow?
I bet it was a typo for that surname!
Yes it should be Sborrow. Another stupid typo. Sad state of communicating in the digital world.
Ahhh… the joys. Fear not!
The Mexicans are right, faith is not directly proportional to the magnificence of the building in which you practice your faith.
Harvest Moon is rising indeed in all her wonderful glory courtesy of you Timothy.
Lovely images , truly.
Thanks, Shey.
That’s a beautiful church, Tim. Your Harvest Moon, lightning, nightskies and alignment are brilliant! 🙏🏻
Thanks, Marina.
At first, I thought, that colourful tree was yarn-bombed, not painted, but i think, painted coulours were matching better in an area like this.
Now I have an ear-worm even without really listening to Neil Young’s ‘Harvest Moon’. Must look for it …
The cacti is painted. I hope you found the song. It’s funny what will remind you of a song and then you have to listen to it. Thanks, Heidi.
I just can’t take my eyes off the skies.
The skies are intreguing and full of wonder. Thanks, Eunice.
You are welcome.
It doesn’t matter where you worship, a church can be made anywhere 🥰
Absolutely. Jesus preached on the streets, in the hills, along the seashore, wherever he happened to be. The early Christians met in homes. John Wesley had small groups in homes. There is no need for a huge congregation and large building to worship. Thanks, LaShelle.
You’re welcome! I always enjoy your posts Tim 😊
Practicality works! Don’t need large crystal cathedrals.
What beautiful shots!
No they don’t. Thanks, Nancy.
Love the Harvest Moon!
Had to look up Tuff Shed. I think people can worship anywhere, anytime their hearts desire. Thanks Tim!
They sure can. Thanks, Resa.
Take that Joel Osteen!
I had to look up paster Joel. I’m quite culturally illiterate. One site on him closes with “It is said that Joel owns a whole garage full of automobiles, but as far as we know, he drives a Ferrari 458 Italia, an Italian sports car estimated to be worth 4.5-million.” He’s had a tough life as a pastor. Thanks, Brian.
Yep, makes me a bit ill when I see that – not a fan.
It’s down right dispicable in my FPO, which doesn’t amount to much.