About a year ago every time I went to pray I felt uneasy, like something was missing. I think I knew what it was but I ignored it thinking, “Is this really from God?†But after few weeks I decided that’s it: I was going to do something about it! The problem was that I didn’t take very good of the environment, and that bothered me a lot. Mind you, I never throw garbage in public places; since my childhood my mom had taught me to carry my garbage with me until I come across a garbage bin or even take it all the way home. I always turn off the lights and electronics when I don’t need them. But I felt that there is much more to do. So I bought one of those recycle bins from Wal-Mart and I’ve been recycling my papers and soft drinks cans ever… read more
Monthly Archives: April 2011
As we study the story surrounding Jesus’ death and resurrection, we may be led to believe things that are not supported by the Bible. Easter is the central feast in the Christian liturgical year. The Gospels speaks of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion. Christians celebrate this resurrection on Easter Day or Easter Sunday (Resurrection Day or Resurrection Sunday), two days after Good Friday and three days after Maundy Thursday. Rev. Clinton Chisholm. clears up a few of the myths surrounding this much celebrated historical event. The words ‘crucifixion’ and ‘excruciating’ are derived from the Latin crux = cross. Crucifixion is primarily an extreme method of torture/punishment and is not necessarily synonymous with death. Death normally resulted from crucifixion, but in history there are cases where a crucified man survived on the cross for a few days. The nails in Jesus’ ‘hands’ were… read more
“Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem. Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to… read more
After the Romans crucified Jesus, he was buried in a new tomb but he rose from the dead and appeared to the disciples and 500 people (1 Corinthians 15:6) over a span of forty days before his return to heaven. Christians celebrate the resurrection of Jesus on Easter Sunday, the Sunday after Good Friday which marks his crucifixion. The resurrection of Jesus from the dead is a triumphant victory over death and the event is the most important event following the crucifixion. Without the resurrection our faith would be meaningless, because we would not have the hope of being raised from the dead and we would still be under the condemnation of sin. But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not… read more
The Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ is truly the wonder of all wonders. It seems that the more we know our God the more we realize there is so much more we don’t know. Yesterday as I moved to the back of the streetcar I smelled this terribly disgusting smell of someone who really needed to take a shower. The smell was so strong almost all the streetcar smelled bad except the very front of it. I immediately moved back to the front and sat there, but even there the smell was so overwhelming I was considering getting off of the streetcar, that’s when I realized how terribly disgusting I—a sinful person—must be to our Holy God. I mean, the difference between two human beings is finite no matter how much of a physical cleaning one of them needs. But the huge gap between a completely vile creature and… read more
Death by crucifixion was an especially cruel and agonizing way to die. The Romans employed this form of execution primarily for slaves, although it was also used for foreigners, traitors and the most despicable of criminals. It was generally regarded as too degrading to be utilized for Roman citizens.1 Christ’s death on the cross is God’s ultimate act of love for mankind, The cross reminds us of Jesus’ victory over death, through His death and resurrection, we have the assurance of victory over sin and the promise of eternal life. As we look at these images, lets reflect on God’s love and sacrifice, take every opportunity to share the Gospel with others. Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. Romans 5:18 [ilink url=”http://www.christinyou.net/pages/crosschrst.html”] Cross of Christ : A study of the meaning of… read more
In Part 1 of this study we looked at the book of Romans (12:1-2) and determined that there are three lessons that we can learn from the passage. We focused on the first lesson, Present your bodies as living sacrifices, it’s an easy thing to say but so hard to live out. How does our life say to God that He’s the most important thing? Take a look at the world and the things they are sacrificing themselves for, then take a look at your life and see if you are patterning it after the world or after the things of God. If we are not patterned after God, then we should be transformed by the renewing of our mind. Do not be conformed to this world, Be transformed by the renewal of your mind The first thing I see by reading through this is that by default we… read more
In my last tutorial we learned how to make our very own custom brush in Photoshop. This time around we will learn how to create one using a photo and the magic wand tool. Photoshop has a lot of great default brushes that you can customize, but its way more fun and interesting to create our own. Since the types of brushes we can create in Photoshop are limited only by our imagination, we will design a very simple brush here from a photograph, just to see how easy the whole process is. Lets get started! Tools used: Wacom Intuos4 Photoshop CS5 [sociallocker] Digital Painting – Still Life Demo part 1/2 [/sociallocker]
Today we will be studying Romans 12:1-2 and discovering some vital truths that every Christian should know to be effective in our walk with Christ. Let’s take this one step at a time, because the passage has some hard sayings which are so easy to pass over, but so desperately needs to be taken to heart if we are to be serious in our pursuit of righteousness. First of all, lets read the verses then break them down and see what God is asking of us. I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect…. read more
Create A Planetary Star Field in Photoshop: In this tutorial we’ll learn how to create a Planetary Star Field using masks and a few star brushes. Photoshop brushes are very powerful, they can simulate real life objects, like trees, birds and in our case, a Planetary Star Field. You can find many free brushes online at places like Brusheezy and Deviant Art. While this is a fairly simple process to achieve, there are a few tips and tricks that can be applied to any project to increase productivity and enhance the realism of your scene. Lets get started! Inspiration This tutorial was inspired by Tyler van der Hoeven’s Image called Star Field. Thanks to Tyler for graciously allowing me to use his high-resolution photo in the process of recreating the image. The image reminded me of Psalm 19:1-4 The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work… read more
The wisdom of God is so far above man, it is on a different level altogether. Our intelligence, even at its best, is so small. God compares it to the distance of the earth from the heavens, such a vast span, it cannot be measured. We think that science in all its Glory can solve all the problems we have in the world, but we do not understand that man’s biggest problem is not physical, but it is one that is spiritual. What is man’s spiritual problem? We have broken the law of God and in turn, we are separated from Him and now we want to become God. We look at science as something to replace God, we even start to question the existence of God. We ask, if there is a good God out there, why are so many problems in the world, why are people dying, starving… read more
Learn how to make your very own custom brush in Photoshop. Custom brushes can be very useful in speeding up your workflow, you can use them to paint various styles of digital paintings or use them as texture onto an object, create seamless tiles, and much more. Any time you find yourself using a symbol repeatedly, you can define it as a brush and you’ll always have it handy. Follow these steps to define a custom brush in Photoshop. Tools Used Wacom Intuos4 Photoshop CS5 [majaenvato market=”graphicriver” action=”popular” count=”12″ refer=”loswl” cache=”30″ thumb_width=”75″ padding=”10″ columns=”3″]
I have spent a lot of time thinking mostly about the future. For a long time I have had a plan in my mind about how my future was going to work out. As you who are older and/or wiser than me know, “the best laid plans of mice and men often go astray.†This has been a hard experience but it has also been a very healthy one. It was good to step back and take a look at life after the future I thought was so certain, vanished. I realized that God was simply a part of my plan and that ultimately I was still living life for myself. I wanted to live out my life how I had planned it and I essentially told God that He could come along for the ride, because I wanted some of Him in my life. I realized though that it’s… read more
There is a depth in God whereby one enters the friendly fire that is Him and wishes to be no place else. It consumes a person in the same way love consumes the lover. His consuming fire enters the spirit of man and burns with the same fire that burns within Him. It consumes everything in its path, like a roaring fire when it overtakes and consumes everything in its way. If there be any hesitance at entering in, that consideration melts before Him. One is totally immersed in His fire and realizes such baptism is the baptism into Him. I was pondering about this… Dross is everything that comes to the top and is burned off. Malachi 3:3 speaks of the Lord, for He is the REFINER and PURIFIER of our very being. And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the… read more
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