Something you can try, if you get stuck, is to just use one core shape for every aspect of your character.

E.g. Can you make a lion completely out of squares and rectagles

How about a hippo out of triangles? A bear out of circles?

What about a human? You don't have to use "straight edges and sharp jagged corners, but use the core shape to inform every thing about that character - and see what happens.

The character Design of UP! used this - Old Man was all squares, the boy was all spheres, the bad guy triangles.

Give it a shot and see what happens. It's really fun if you take a typical roly poly thing and use squares.

Acting In Comics

One of the easiest (and paradoxically most difficult) thing to do in comics to create life in your characters is to make them ACT! ALWAYS put an expression on their face - an action, or make their body language really obvious.

I've seen numbers of comics, even by the pro's where the faces look like wooden planks, and all the background characters are standing around preening or posing - but NOT DOING ANYTHING.

Give all your characters an agenda. Even if it's as simple as having a background character looking up at something that no one else is. Make them all operate as if they have something they're supposed to be doing logically in their scene. OR have them acting out in their scene, but considering their options for 15 panels from now...

Expression and body language. For everybody - even if it's slight. The biggest challenge is figuring out what do with peoples hands. Always try to find something for them to do. (Although the persistent constipation look is not an acceptable alternative.) 

COLORS:

I GIVE UP. Current comic coloring is for the birds. No joy. No life. No hope. ALL MUD. MUD, MUD, MUD. I keep viewing CBR.CC's promo's in the hopes that there will be something, ANYTHING that isn't some form of shiny over glossed mud. Reddish pinkish purple and greenish hues dominate the books.

If I didn't know any better, I'd think there were only two people who color comics in the entire industry. In the last two weeks, maybe two books in the coloring department stood out.

And why isn't anyone using Painter, or MyPaint or some equivalent to color books? Printing is at such a level and we have all these fantastic tools - but no one is using them...

Sigh...if anyone would like some brights, I'm available as always at...http://www.ihorace.com

I just created a Facebook page to promote your Christian comic book. This is your page! Please join it. I've provided a link back to CCAS as well.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Christian-comic-books/367242113292937?sk=wall

Hello my name is Sven Jacobs, CCAS regular and comic strip artist and writer. If you've been praying for a funky fresh and hip Christian comic strip competition, consider your prayers answered! Now, for the first time ever, you can be a part of Sven Jacob's Christian Comic Competition going on for the next three weeks.

BUT SVEN, WHAT COULD I WIN IF I PARTICIPATE?!?

No doubt you are saying to yourself, aside from the obvious spiritual and internal satisfaction and rewards for participating in such a prestigious venture, what else do I have to gain? Well, I am excited to announce that you could win a trophy... in a graphical JPEG format! Tangible gold trophies can break or be melted down during hard economic times, but a standard JPEG file can stand the test of time!

Look at those gradients and bold lines, which say to anyone you show your trophy to "HEY LOOK AT THIS GUY/GIRL, HE OR SHE IS A REAL WINNER!" Second and third place winners could receive a silver and copper trophy too (I KNOW IT IS JUST TOO MUCH!), with a plate that has their name! And hey, what better accomplishment to put on your resume or illustration portfolio than your winning this fine and impeccable award! You will be the bell of the ball!

OKAY THEN WHAT IS THE CONTEST?!?

Nothing can invoke the spirit of community and union than popculture references pointing back to some show or movie from one's youth. This is why television shows that parody such things, like Family Guy or Southpark, are so successful. It is why Chris Rice's otherwise horrible song "What if Cartoon Characters were Saved" was worthy of covers from teenaged girls. Who doesn't remember Doug Funny attempting to woo Patty Mayonnaise, or Bugs Bunny putting fertilizer on Elmer Fudd's head promptly before a flower sprouted from it, or a gaggle of adolescent mutant turtles fighting evil while eating pizza?

The competition requires you to create a Christian comic using characters from a cartoon that is not your own. What if the smurfs had a philosophical conversation about Jesus? What if Scrooge McDuck rejected the cross for the sake of his money. What if Garfield met a Jehovah's Witness? Whatever. Just an awesome fan strip... whether it be one panel or 60, colored or (if you are as lazy as I am) merely lineart... spotlighting a famous or infamous cartoon character.

SUBMISSION AND JUDGING CRITERIA

Post your submissions to this blog post so that nostalgia reigns while everyone comments on your awesome strip. Judging will be based on a meticulous and complex mathematical formula involving various painstaking criterion (I will pick what I like most), but should involve a cartoon character that is not your own and Christianity/Christ. Submissions will be due February 11th.

I've been mulling over possible imprint names to unite all my various independent stories under one brand name.  Would love to hear any thoughts on the various ones I have so far.  They are:

- Otherwhere

- Hangar 19 (the idea being you think you know what's in Hangar 18, but you have no idea what's next door to it in Hangar 19)

- Front Porch Entertainment

- Hyperion Entertainment (after both the epic poem by John Keats and my all-time favorite novel, Hyperion, by Dan Simmons which achieves a level of quality and imagination I could only hope to attain in my own fiction)

- Perpetual Motion

- Sons of Thunder

- Complete Geek Entertainment

- SDG Entertainment (this comes from Soli Deo Gloria, which basically means "for glory to God alone" and was used by past artists, e.g. Bach and Handel, to give God credit for their work)

You see that some of these have "Entertainment" at the end, and some have nothing (any of them could end in "Entertainment" or "Productions, but not "Comics" since it will cover all my fiction, including novels and short stories).  The idea is it would be an imprint name like Robert Kirkman's "Skybound," DC's "Vertigo," or Marc Silvestri's "Top Cow Productions." 

I've narrowed down from a ton of possibilities and these are a few remaining.  Thanks for any thoughts any of you have.

Because of what I see, hear and gleanings from the Holy Spirit I think time is short - so us comickers in the Christian sphere may need to completely re-evaluate what we are really doing with comics, how we make comics and what the outcome is supposed to be.

I am slowly coming to the conclusion: THE MESSAGE MAY BE MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE ART.

BUT - Consider that THE ART IS PART OF THAT MESSAGE. And if your art fails to convey the message - then the actual message might be missed.

Marshal McLuhan made the quote, "The medium is the message"- I don't completely agree - since message can transcend the delivery mechanism - but I think his point was,  when you are sending your message, then the entire package and delivery is part of that message.

So what does this mean in practical terms of producing comics?Below are some thoughts - these are food for thought and can be discussed, disagreed with, altered, applied or not, as one sees fit.

1. Make your message (or the Message God has given you) clear, concise and succinct.

2. In order to save money and time deliver your comic DIGITAL FIRST and go to print only if demand is there. (There is still strong merits to the printed product - but the cost factors are potentially steep. If all else fails, it can become fire-starter.)

3. NAIL DOWN YOUR AUDIENCE SPECIFICALLY. Teens? Kids? Kids from ages 4-7? Young adults? If you try to get everyone, you won't reach anyone. If you focus, that means you only have to concentrate on getting your book to a select audience. It will also mean you can focus on making your work age appropriate.

To make life easy for yourself consider some of the following:

a. Avoid making giant universes with a bazillion characters. Nobody has time to invest in all the characters, and you don't have the time to create all the back-stories, histories and it will take forever for you to promote and try and get out there. Notable attempts at this: Valiant, and Ultraverse.

This goes back to being concise - focus your story*. I especially like stand alone issues when it comes to new characters or ideas - this means I can have a contained tale - and then pick up the next book when or if it comes out. Andi if it's done well, then re-reading is a joy. Al Hartleywas a master at this. I read and re-read his books - fast, sharp, to the point. His stories MOVED.

b. Make your core idea easy to understand.

c. IF you have an ongoing idea consider doing:

• one-shots, 24, 28, 36, 42 (usually a multiple of 4 - doesn't mean your pages have to be even)
• short stories (then compile them) 1-12 pages each story - combine when you reach 24 pages.
• or graphic novels, 64+ pages
• a mini-series (4-6 issues) or a maxi-series (7-12 issues).

By focusing on single stories, this will allow you to get your stuff out faster, give you more flexibility in execution, delivery, and will allow you to not get bogged down in a universe that you might have fallen in love with, but no one else cares. I think for the most part, in this day and age, the message is more important than our self made worlds. (This was a bitter pill for me to swallow once).

d. Really think hard about who you as an artist/creator are capable of reaching. You may really really really want to reach the Marvel/DC audience, but if you really look deep in your soul, and realize your drawing is better suited for 10 year old girls then adjust accordingly. OR you might really want to do kids stuff but all your work is darker and more edgy...you might want to alter your style or just go with the gut and do stuff for teen boys or young adults.

e. Get the people/children the Big Boys don't have. This means make comics for kids. Make them for women. Make them for the 10 year old girl who loves ponies. That means you can carve a niche for yourself where they aren't and you don't have to fight with two 70+ year old geezer behemoths who are ugly and decaying.

f. Make your books look nothing like the competition. It's the only way to get noticed.

*Focusing the story - now I have to be careful here. A lot of Christian comics (dare I say most) end up being like a bat over the head with their "preachiness". There is room for the Preachy comic - but do consider a way to get the point across without browbeating. Sometimes, if Christian, there might no be any "Bible Thumping" in the book, and it's just a good story - then do that to the best of your ability.

Fonts:

If you need fonts for your independent book consider Blambot -  lot's of freebies for independent books and paid ones too or Comicraft- paid fonts -prices vary - but prime fonts. I have bought fonts from both vendors, and have been thoroughly satisfied. DON'T USE COMIC SANS! At bare minimum go grab "Zud Juice",  "Anime Ace" or "Mighty Zeo 2.0"  from Blambot.

PRINT OPTIONS:

If you really want your book to be a tangible product consider using KA-BLAM or ComiXpress. These are Print On Demand services, and from what I can see is their prices are quite reasonable for small print runs.

If you need design, layout,  consultation or packaging help, I am available for a fee.

So, again: The Medium is the Message, and if your Medium is Comics - what is the message that you portray. And would you be willing to buy your own book?

CAVEAT:All of the above is for discussion - and if the Holy Spirit leads you to produce stick figures or rocks that talk, or whatever, DO IT.

That's all for now.

Martin

Dynamic Animations just released their sequel to The Great Commission.

We hit the bottom really hard and through the lord and support of our families I have decided to start slow. but here is the next issue. Strong Holds

Thank you all and god bless

Hello, all! For my first blog post here, I would like to share this interesting bit of a sermon from 164 years ago! I found it on gracegems.org. To me, it was strongly convicting and seemed amazingly pertinate for this time - especially for us visually-oriented people. There will be a bit of mental translation needed from his time to ours; but the message is the better for it, since if it were this bad in his time, how much more terrible of a case is it now?

"I warn you against Evil Books and Evil Pictures! There is in every town an under-current which glides beneath our feet, unsuspected by the pure; out of which, notwithstanding, our sons scoop many a poisoned goblet. Books are hidden in trunks, concealed in dark holes; pictures are stored in sly portfolios, or trafficked from hand to hand; and the handiwork of depraved art is seen in forms which ought to make a harlot blush!

I would think a man would loathe himself, and wake up from owning such things, as from a horrible nightmare! Those who circulate them — are incendiaries of all morality! And those who make them — are the worst public criminals! A pure heart would shrink from these abominable things — as from death itself!

France, where true religion long ago was extinguished, smothered in immorality — has flooded the world with a species of literature redolent of the vilest depravity. Upon the plea of exhibiting human nature — novels are now scooped out of the very lava of corrupt passions. They are true to nature — but to nature as it exists in grossly vile and immoral hearts. Under a plea of reality — we have shown to us, troops of harlots — to prove that they are not so bad as purists think; and gangs of desperadoes — to show that there is nothing in crime inconsistent with the noblest feelings. We have in French and English, novels of the infernal school — humane murderers, lascivious saints, upright infidels, honest robbers. The devotion of these artists, is such as might be expected from vile thieves, in the vortex of thrice-deformed vice.

Obscene libertines are now our professors of morality. They scrape the very sediment and muck of society — to mold their creations; and their books are monster-galleries, in which the inhabitants of old Sodom would have felt at home as connoisseurs.

Over loathsome women, and unutterably vile men, huddled together in motley groups, and over all their monstrous deeds — their lies, their plots, their crimes, their horrendous pleasures, their appalling conversation — is thrown the impure light of a sensual imagination — until they glow with an infernal luster!

Such novels are the common-sewers of society, into which drain the concentrated filth of the worst passions, of the worst creatures, of the worst cities! Such novels come to us impudently pretending to be reformers of morals, and liberalizers of religion; they propose to instruct our laws, and teach justice to a discreet humanity!

The Ten Plagues have visited our literature: water is turned to blood; frogs and lice creep and hop over our most familiar things — the couch, the cradle, and the bread-box; locusts, plague, and fire — are smiting every green thing. I am ashamed and outraged, when I think that wretches could be found to open these foreign seals — and let out their plagues upon us — that any Satanic pilgrim should voyage to France to dip from the dead sea of her abomination — such immoral filth for our children.

It were a mercy compared to this, to import . . .
venomous serpents from Africa — and pour them out in our homes;
ferocious lions — and free them in our towns;
poisonous lizards and scorpions and black tarantulas — and put them in our gardens!
Men could slay these — but those offspring-reptiles of the French mind — who can kill these? You might as well draw sword on a plague — or charge malaria with the bayonet!

This black smut-lettered literature circulates in our towns, floats in our stores, nestles in the shops, is fingered and read nightly, and hatches broods of obscene thoughts in the young mind! While the parent strives to infuse Christian purity into his child's heart — he is checked by most accursed messengers of evil; and the child's heart hisses already like a nest of young and nimble vipers!"

The whole sermon can be found on their website: http://gracegems.org/D/immoral_woman.htm

Hey guys, this is really close to my heart. Comic Creators for Freedom has partnered with Open Sky Creations to raise funds and bring awareness to end human trafficking. 

Over 100 artist have donated female comic characters to raise money for organizations that work to end human trafficking.

One of the female characters being featured is Virtuous from the Faith Walker story line which is on the poster/wall paper that is available as a fund raiser.

Presently, Open Sky Creations is working on a story line to help support the web comic, Faith Walker. When the comic is done a free PDF will be sent to a select number who donates and sign up with their site.

Jan 11 is National Human Traffic Awareness Day the donation drive runs until the 20th of this month. You may not know it, but there are currently 27 million enslaved people worldwide, more than double the number of enslaved Africans during the Trans-Atlantic slave trade. UNICEF estimates that 1.2 million children every year are sold into slavery, most of it sexual.

The US Department of Justice estimates 16,000 victims of human trafficking are brought into the United States every year. Unlike slavery in the past, what is happening today is happening in secret. It won’t end until awareness is raised, and people like you and me take a stand.

The Donations Drive will last for two weeks, January 9th-20th. All proceeds will be 

split evenly between-Love 146 and Gracehaven House, two organizations working on rehabilitating 

victims, and to help prevent this type of crime.

To learn more and donate here are the two links: 

http://comiccreatorsforfreedom.com/ http://www.weareopensky.com/blog.html

I also added the cover, created by Clint D. Johnson for Open Sky Creations. 

Thanks again for your support.

One of the series I'm most pleased with that I'm working on is ClosetWorld, a webcomic (for now) that comes out in semi-regular installments.  I'm searching for an independent print publisher.  Issue 1 has been fully released, and we're working on issue 2 now. 

I just posted a layout and final penciled/inked page from issue 2 to show how my artist, John Amor, is doing.  As the writer and editor, I think I've never been more pleased with how well this artist has matched the tone and style I was going for with this project.  Hope you like what you see.

One way to get out of the doldrums of being locked into the technical aspects of art is to make your entire approach a "Visual Philosophy" - or a persistent representation of a thought.

What does this mean? This means instead of being stuck on "is this a hand?" or "is this a foot?" and "does this go here or there", can you make your visuals always represent a consistent concept.

So can you make your drawings, lines, shapes and forms always be "joyful". Or how about always "miserable"? You can make your "joyful" visual philosophy have sad characters, or your "miserable" visual philosophy have happy characters - but using a persistent "Visual Philosophy", the core emotion or idea will exude through your lines, shapes and forms, informing the reader of the emotional impact you are attempting to convey.

This can allow you to come up with some very creative visuals. The "Visual Philosophy" doesn't have to be relegated to emotions or feelings alone. It can also be used to inform just the shapes you create.

So some ideas: What if you were to draw all your characters and backgrounds with (and you are only allowed to choose one):

• Joy
• Misery
• Fluidity
• Concreteness
• Gentle-like
• Whisper-like
• Brash
• Noisy
• Sedate
• Psychotic
• Wiry
• Plastic
• Rubbery
• Marshmallow-y
• Glassy
• metallic
• Like calligraphy
• Anything else you can come up with

If you take an idea like this, and then apply it consistently across the board to your visuals, you can then create alternative styles and approaches to your art and it will definitely look different than what everyone else is producing.

Give it a thought. If you have trouble drawing hands...then maybe making everything rubbery might be the way to go...what do rubber hands look like? Or how do you draw whispers? And what does a whispers feet look like? Or a dresser or a car, or a house, or a person drawn as a whisper? Get it...?  :)

Think about it - try it. See what happens. And if you do - and you get results, post them here, I'd love to see what you come up with.

Hey CCAS family,

Just wrapped up the extended first issue of 'Samson the Nazirite', went from 22 pages to 38.

I'm giving away a free copy to the first 25 people who contact me.  (Please send your email so that I can email you link).

What's catch?  Of course there's a catch :)  But it's easy.  If you sign up to get a free copy I simply ask that you do one (or all 3) of the following;

1.  After reading complete a very short 1 page survey.  It's very short, 10 questions, 9 are multiple choice so you can knock it out in about 60 seconds.

2.  Word of Mouth - We'd like to get the word out about this project.  If you can let your friends know, like us on facebook, post us on your website, whatever, just something.

3.  Pass it Forward- We give you a free copy, in return you purchase a copy from the website for a friend.  (Hopefully in turn they pass it forward as well)

Again we just ask that you do at least 1 of the 3.  Visit the website for more details on the project; 

www.SamsontheNazirite.com

My new sci-fi short story Star Chosen and the Discovery of Eden appears in Genesis Jam, an inspiring anthology loaded with short stories, comics and art having biblical reference to the early years of humanity (Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel). I do hope you check it out at http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006RXI394

THOUGHTS
I remember the beginning of 2011, and the devotion on Dreaming Big. Did you dream big? Or did you find that in the process of doing so people tended to let you down? As this new year begins I was left to think about all the times I was let down by those who only sold me empty promises. If you are like me there are times that we get tired of the inconsistencies that we find in others and ourselves. So many times others fall short of our expectations and as such we fall short of the expectations of others. We even fall short of the Glory of God.

LET GO AND LET GOD
As we go into the year 2012 let us renew our trust in the One who will never fail us. The plans that He has for our lives are great and He will not change His mind. Remember that when we pray to God FIRST in all of our dreams and goals we receive FAVOR from God. When we have FAVOR with God, He will touch the hearts of the people and give us Favor with those we will come in contact with. God's favor never fails.

Let us let go of our trust in man, and all of the strings we have attached to them, and put our trust in the LORD. Let God control the 'all' of our lives and watch what wondrous blessings He has in store for us. For His intentions will never shatter, His heart, forever yearning for the love of His children.

We should also strive to be people of our word, doing what we say we will. Praying for others when they ask, fulfilling our obligations instead of giving empty promises, and helping others in need. Just as God does not fail us, let US not fail at shining the LIGHT that He shows through us, allowing us to be an example to a dying world. Striving to do better than we did yesterday.

PRAYER
Dear Lord we pray that we turn our focus more on You and your unconditional love. We pray that our trust will be in You and Your will and not those who may not come through. Let us also be true to our word, give us the strength to fulfill all of our obligations this year. In Jesus Name... Amen.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Till Next Time
God Bless
Amanda of AstriaLegends

Sort of building on previous things posted - here's some more "thinking" that can be applied - to any style and approach:

• Art is all about building forms. And putting them in the right place. No matter the style - flat, rounded, more 3D less 3D.
  
  
• Always step back and look at your forms - does it look right? Does that look like an arm? Is it consistent with the style you have developed? Does that look like the right spot? Analyze your work and see if you actually like what you see.
  
  
• You can make effective comics with just "symbols" - if your head is always a certain shape, or your eyes and noses always kind have have the same look - that's fine - just make sure your "symbols" are consistent -and that you do some mix and match and create new or alternative "symbols" to make things interesting from character to character.
  
  
• If starting out - simplicity is your friend.
  
  
• Form - always start with the big shape first, and work your way to the smaller shapes, and details last.
  
  
• Detail and embellishment are two different things. Detail = stitches in the pants, or the grimy shoes someone may be wearing. Embellishment =  hatching, cross-hatching, feathering, or building up of forms with shading approaches. Be judicious in what you show and don't show - you don't have to show everything all the time. This will save you lots of drawing time.

And more thoughts on coloring:

A few more notes on coloring: Just looked at the latest batch of covers to come out on CBR this week of Jan. 9, 2012 - and it's all MUD. IF you are a colorist out there, do consider adding some classic pop to the mix. Or at least bring a little bit of life to the book you might be working on. Everything lately looks like a nuclear meltdown. Maybe it's a reflection of the times we live in - but we of faith live in JOY, LOVE, PEACE - maybe it should reflect in the colors of our work. One thing I know for sure - is if you take this approach, it will stand out.

I was looking through my boxes of comics today and found a stash of "The New Crew" comic books. There are 7 new copies up for grabs. I had intended originally to pass them out at a local convention but ended up not going. So, PM me with your snail mail address and I will drop your copy in the mail this week, no charge! This book features Kevin Yong's wonderful character 'Virtue' who also appears in New Creation Now! 's "Ragged Capes" book! Be the first one to PM me and get a copy of "Ragged Capes" also for free:) Don't be shy, give these copies a good home!

If I haven't mentioned yet I work in a juvenile correctional center in the state the of Idaho.  I work with teens that have made some pretty serious mistakes and that have had life throw thema rotten hand.  So for me coming to work is a cornucopia of oppertunities to share bits of my testimony and faith.  And the most accessible way for my to talk with kids is to start drawing.  I bring my sketch pad to work and sit at a chair in the middle of the room and start to let my pencil fly.  Because of where I'm at I always keep one eye on the kids around me, looking for potential arguements of fights.  But what I end up finding the most is the kids peering over my shoulder and wanting to see what's on the page before me.

So yesterday a new juvenile that is now in the program where I work took the "artistic" bait and watched me as a drew a picture of "antman" (by the way I posted a picture of it).  He ended up sitting down and asked me if I could show him how to draw a pheonix.  Recognizing this as an oppertunity from God, I stopped what I was doing and instructed him to get some paper and a pencil.  About a half hour into my impromptu art lesson the subject changed from how to draw to how to live a good life.  It was almost seemless how the one subject flowed to the next.  God blessing the conversation as I could see the boy's heart soften with the words that were spoken.  I said to him the very words that I sometimes need to hear myself.  Words of forgiveness, and letting go, about courage to do what is right and breaking the chains of a negative legacy.  Knowing that mistakes happen and God is there to pick us up. 

I was told in sermons and by my brothers in Christ the three types of men a christian man needs in his life. A mentor, a friend, and someone to mentor.  I am blessed to have a stockpile of kids I can mentor. I feel that my mentoring to the kids that I work with is more of a blessing to me than to them.  I highly recommend that if you don't have someone to mentor, to find someone to mentor.  You'll find that your own questions and problems in life are often answered when you mentor someone else.  Mentoring gives you a chance to take stock of your own dilemas and realize that you aren't alone, and usually finding that your own problems aren't as bad as you think.

God bless.

Who knew that a blog would be the venue that I would use to unload my thoughts.  I always thought that "blogging" was cliche'.  Something about communicating to the unknown masses had always seemed to carry a certain disconnect that in all honesty I thought was artificial or fake.  Yet once a again I submit myself to God and see where this goes....

So several month ago my wife and I decided to try a new church.  The church we'd been attending was going through a rough patch.  A long strory itself, but not my place to say.  No corruption or scandal, just tough times.  Consequently my wife and I weren't feeling fed spiritually.  Stagnant is never a good feeling to have when connected to going to church, or in life for that matter.  Instead of having my pencil in hand ready to take notes during the pastor's sermons, I instead was looking at the clock on my phone waiting for the end.  "Now lets bow our head in final prayer", the pastor would say.  My internal reply would end up being, "Amen."  Not a good thing at all.  So it was time to move on.

My wife and I got up the courage to try a friend's church.  So ofcoarse the struggle to submit to God's will and digging in my heals began all over again.  Critical thoughts came pouring in my head as I walked through the door.  The usher at the door seemed too fake and would never be interested in me or my family.  The church itself was way too big.  How I was I supposed to make a connection here, impossible. The worship music was way too commercial.  I might as well be listening to the radio.  Where's the sincerity?  Oh how the enemy can mess with our heads.  Then the senior pastor got up and started his sermon.  I was ready for the worst.

Then all of the sudden my negative thoughts stopped.  The pastor's words were starting to penetrate through all my layers of assumptions and negative thoughts.  I found myself reaching for my pencil for the first time in a long time.  "Write that down!", I thought.  "Oh, that's the stuff, Amen! Amen!"  I looked at my wife and I could tell that she was feeling the same way.  Tears ran down her face as the sermon sank into her heart. 

At the end of the sermon I looked at my notes. The page was blank.  I didn't write a single note.  But oh how the words the pastor spoke still filled my head.  The rest of the day was amazing as my mind would often wonder back to the highlights of the days sermon.  So at the end of the night, before I went to bed.  I finally got my pencil and paper and wrote down what the pastor  had said.  Thats powerful stuff right there, when you can clearly remember the what the pastor said and right your notes at the end of the day.  My pencil flew on the page as I took stock in the pastor's words.  A spiritual butt kicking  is what it was, and I liked it. 

So my walk with a pencil took a turn that I didn't expect.  Once again God's wisdom put me on the path I so desperately needed.  Thank you God for all things!

Thanks for taking the time to"listen". 

So here I am.  36 years of age and living a life that balances between what God wants and what Iwant to give to God.  Most of the time it seems that I prefer the pain on my heels as I drag them in the ground attempting to not submit to God's will.  Other times I would appear to be that I'm going with God's flow and feeling good about it.  And when the dust settles I am good with following God's will.  But the internal struggle will always continue till I'm kicking it with JC himself.  So I try to take stock of my life and the gifts that God has given me.  Obviously there is salvation and forgiveness and all that great amazing stuff.  But it's the other gifts that I want to talk about.  For example, I for one seem to be able to take on extremely stressful situations and deal with them without even breaking a sweat.  I work with juveniles in a lockdown facility.  And that is why I think my calm demeanor is a gift from God.  Mind you I still struggle with the daily life of keeping my mouth shut and and abstaining from gossip and the sort. 

And since I was young I loved to draw.  The first time I saw a comic book store I thought I died and gone to heaven.  So naturally I was drawing comic book  stuff and collecting comicbooks as long as a could remember.  Now, working with the kids that I do, God in his infinite wisdom has brought me to a field that allows me to connect with kids through my artwork.  Which then opens a door for meto talk to them about God and my faith.  I seem to be good enough to keep the attention of the kids that I work with but never good enough to break into the comic book world.  So here I am... 36 years of age and finally starting to understand God's plan.... kind of.  I guess that's the point, isn't it.  To do our part in God's plan and have the faith to submit to him knowing that our knowledge will never be enough to do anything else but our own walk... In my case, a walk with a pencil.

By the way it's my first blog. So be gentle.