The Image
Capturing the Beauty in Your Calling
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Danny Lund currently serves as a missionary in Costa Rica, but after graduating from SAGU in 2002 with a B.S. in cross-cultural studies, he first started serving in Northern Asia with his wife Jamie. We had a chance to touch base with Danny about his experiences serving as a missionary and about his favorite hobby: photography.
For three years, Danny and Jamie studied Mandarin, then taught English and ran an English Cafe on a university campus – until Jamie found herself facing a battle with cancer.
“If God chooses to heal me in heaven, I want you to find a godly mom for Caleb and Viola. Make sure she is willing to return to Northern Asia with you!”
Little did Danny know how the Lord would answer Jamie’s wish. We asked him to share his story with us.
“One morning in 2013, I remember telling God during my morning devotions, ‘I’m not ready to meet anyone for a while. But when I am ready, I believe you can bring someone into my life whom I knew as a child in Africa. She needs to be someone who loves you, who will be a godly mom to Caleb and Viola, and who will be willing to spend the rest of her life in Northern Asia.’ God answered that prayer by bringing Faith into my life later that year.”
Faith and Danny had grown up together as missionary kids. And when the time was right, God reunited them. They married and returned to Northern Asia in 2016, where they spent two years in language study. They also helped mentor university students, conducted summer English seminars in rural schools, and developed contextualized discipleship curriculum.
However, in 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic meant that the door to Northern Asia was closed to them. Danny recounted:
“We felt God leading us to Latin America and the Caribbean to reach the Northern Asia populations here. We have been in Costa Rica for a year and a half now. We studied Spanish at CINCEL for a year and now we are beginning to make new friends among the Northern Asian population here. We are developing relationships with local believers to build a team that is locally led to reach the Northern Asian population and plant communities of faith among them.”
In addition to the life-giving work Danny and Faith do in Costa Rica, Danny also captures the beauty of God’s creation through photography. While in Africa together, his father first taught him how to take pictures when he was just eight years old. Danny now focuses on photographing wildlife, birds, and landscapes through macro and candid portraits.
Photography became a connection to God and comfort through the hardships he has faced. Nature tells of God’s glory. For Danny, it’s about much more than just snapping a photo or getting a shot with great lighting. He shared,
“David wrote, “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above declares his handiwork” (Psalm 19:1). I remember days when great waves of grief would crash around me and overwhelm me when I relied on my own strength. But as I sat silently and watched the sunrise or sunset, I heard His still small voice and felt His tangible peace wrap around me. Looking through my macro lens at a bee collecting pollen on a beautiful flower, focusing my 60-600mm lens on the vivid colors of a Lesson's motmot, framing a landscape picture as I stand in the mountains above the beautiful blue Qinghai Lake amidst the sound of thousands of brightly-colored Tibetan prayer flags flapping in the wind near me, I hear God’s quiet voice. I believe we need to recapture a sense of awe of our Great God! I challenge you to sit silently in wonder and watch a sunset, and you will hear His still small voice speaking to you.”
Danny Lund has been a SAGU student, served as a missionary for years, and faced many trials in life. Along his walk of faith, he has gathered wisdom that we can learn from. We asked him if he had any advice for current students, and this is what he shared:
“I would tell students reading this the same thing I told more than 300 guys when I was their RA at Southwestern:
Fix your eyes on Jesus and pay attention to your studies. Seek after God with your whole heart and get everything you can out of your classes. Have fun and go out in groups of friends, worship together, and pray together. Don’t look for a spouse. I believe that if you draw close to God and honor him, in His time, He will bring someone into your life who is doing the same thing. If you like someone, ask him or her to hang out with you and your friends. That way, you will get to know what they are really like by how they treat your friends and their friends.
Spend more time at the altar after chapel in God’s presence. Let God give you a burden for the lost at world prayer. There is nothing more satisfying in life than obeying God.
Wherever you work and whatever you do, be a Christ-follower first. Often true victory is not when God takes our trials away, but when he walks with us through them, carrying us with His strength. God doesn’t look for someone with great talents or gifts but someone who is available and willing.”
For more content from Danny Lund:
See more of his photography at https://dannylund.picfair.com/
You can also purchase his e-book, Fearfully & Wonderfully Made Nature Photography, Scriptures & Reflections available on Amazon.