Reading

As I said in the post below, reading a lot again.

Just read The Time traveler's Wife, good book, love story with a twist, highly recommended.

Also just read, Pushing Ice, Sci-Fi, again good book, describes itself as a Space Opera

Just in the process of reading a biography of Spurgeon.

Good book, easy read, very full life this man had.

But....

The only problem I have with this type of book is that I can't relate to these people. They don't seem to lead normal lives.

"Aha", I hear you say, "the Christian life isn't normal"

Maybe not to the man in the street, but I am a Christian, it is who I am, not what I do, but I still lead a life where I go to work to put food on the table, have a wife and two children and have constant contact with the people who live in this world.

But these godly men I read about seem to be super human and the only sins they seem to have are the sins of omission.

You never read that Spurgeon shouted at the kids because they got on his nerves or shouted at the wife because he had a bad day at the Tabernacle.

You never read that they didn't read their bible for a week because they got complacent or that they couldn't get to the meeting because their wife said they had to decorate the back bedroom.

Their prayers are eloquent and always seem to be answered, their preaching is powerful and fill churches. There wives are equally godly people and you never hear much about the children apart from how many they had (unless they went on to be great themselves then they have their own book)

Maybe things are harder these days, we have to compete with TV, game boys, x-boxes, computers. Instant gratification. A sermon over 20 minutes is too long for people, and they have to be multimedia performances.

Surely there were distractions in the 1800s

Why don't you read that that Spurgeon got stuck in traffic and came into the pulpit hot and sweaty and dying for the loo.

(they did have traffic jams in the 1800s, London streets used to get clogged up with horses and carriages, there was no High Way Code then)

Don't get me wrong, he was one of the greatest preachers in our history

But will someone make these guys real.

I had read that there is a biography/autobiography out there that runs into six volumes - maybe this will be the one to read.

God Bless

Creatist

Mr Brown

Hi Bro my comment to your blog

I have read the book, and yes, I agree that some of my "brothers" have taken up too much of their time "promoting" this book, but their problem is that Mr Brown does say at the beginning of the book that it is historically correct.

Hence, knickers, twist

There are many out there who would agree with him but there are also many out there (non Christian as well as Christian) who show that it is not historically correct and a lot of the "signs" he speaks of are open to interpretation in many ways.

Now my faith is strong enough not to be swayed by such a thing that

one, has been said in the past, and

two, will blow over and be forgotten about in a couple of months when the media frenzy has died down.

In fact I have found it a good opportunity to talk to people about what I believe.

Just as an aside, the authors of Holy Blood, Holy Grail (written 15 years ago), took Dan Brown to court saying that he had copied their work. Big media coverage.

(it turns out Mrs Brown found most of the stuff on the net).

But, they both had the same publisher, and low and behold the latter book is now back on the shelves, (updated of course:)

So if you want to sell a book by the millions, arrange to have it banned......Hmmmm what was that book about Islam that they tried to have banned and the author got death threats?

To finish, if Mr Brown did this intentionally, then he has done very well out of it, but if he actually believes it he is a poorer man for it.

God Bless

p.s book about Gospel of Judas? Someone has. WH Smiths for about £15.00

and the Gospel of James

and every other disciple

but thats another post

p.p.s I also read once that a cow jumped over the moon, I wonder if I can prove it.........

Creatist

Recently

Can’t believe that it has been nearly five months since I last left anything on here!!

What’s been happening? Well let’s say that the only thing that is constant is change.

Additional hobby – Woodturning – addictedJ

New office @ work
New responsibilities @ work – my colleague and counterpart left too sunnier climes, now interviewing for replacement

Wood turning

Reading (on the grounds that for every book I buy, I give one away)

Furniture restoration (Can you make my table smaller?)

Woodturning

Changes in responsibilities @ church

Oh, and did I mention Woodturning

Holiday to St Ives (fantastic weather)

Holiday to Scotland (next week)

And of course Woodturning

Creatist

Kill the Wabbit

You will have to forgive me if this is not my usual, Spiritual blog.

Been having problems with the old modem for a couple of weeks very up and down since provider upped the bandwidth.

Friday evening downloaded new drivers for "frog" and this seems to have cured the problem though line still drops occasionally.

So thought, will have to get up to date with e-mails, reading blogs etc.

But Bugs Bunny struck again. I say again because a couple of weeks ago our darling pet wabbit, Bramble, chewed through the cable to the mouse,

while I was using it,

not funny.

Out came the black insulating tape and mouse back in action.

So lesson having been learnt, door to computer room is shut when wabbit is having her daily wander.

But today, taking a leaf out of urbanshamen's book, (telly switched off) sat in lounge, (posh in 'our 'ouse) reading latest woodworking mag that has dropped on the doormat when SWMBA says, "Where's Bramble?"

Me, engrossed in the delights of a bit of 2 be 2 and the electrical gadgets to turn it into a Chippendale (that’s the furniture maker, not the ones with oily chests), says, "Under the settee where she usually sits when she is supposed to be having her run round"

"Nope, not there." she quips, "Already looked."

"Has she gone upstairs, sweetness?" I say, thinking of a good use for a band saw.

A shout comes from upstairs, "She's in your computer room"

Knowing habits of said wabbit I tear up the stairs to find evil bunny under the desk having a feast of spaghetti, the computer wire type.

Wabbit is banished to cage in basement.

Damage to computer =

Speaker wires

Cable to monitor,

smell of ozone,

hot wires!

Pull plug quick!

How little grey fluffy wabbit did not end up as even smaller, black and smoking wabbit I do not know.

So out came the insulating tape again and after half an hour of stripping ridiculously small wires of their insulation, tying them back together monitor is back up and running.

My next creative urge is to run the mains cable from the fuse box through the rabbit cage.

That reminds me, it’s a long time since I’ve had rabbit stew!

God Bless

Creatist

Just Creating

As requested I have started another blog for just my "other" artwork. http://just-creating.blogspot.com

I hope the pictures bring some pleasure to you.

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It has been said that I am not creating but copying, that I am copying what the creator has already made.

They are right in saying this.

But each piece of work is a part of me is some shape or form, each stroke of pen or pencil has taken a part of me and put it down in a tangible form that cannot be totally described.

In her book “Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain”, Betty Edwards talks about a place that you reach when you are drawing, a switch from the logical left brain activity to the right brain, that eureka moment, where everything falls into place.

I have been there, but this does not totally describe that almost (have to be careful here) “spiritual” time where, as you paint, draw etc. you lose all sense of time, space. A place where nothing else matters but the subject in front of you.

Yes, I am copying; I copy the world around me but in a form that is pleasing to me and hopefully pleasing to others.

Some have also said that, what we artists do is a God given gift. That it is something that cannot be learnt, that it is something we are born with. I would have to disagree with them.

Is a mathematician any different or a singer or a dancer, were all these born with the “gifts” they have? I am sure a lot of them worked very hard to achieve the level they are at.

In some ways this is a public confession, I have never verbally given Him the credit because, yes, God has everything to do with it, he created me, he created me with a brain, with hands (though if you know the Mouth and Foot Painting Artist, this is not a requirement http://www.mfpa.co.uk/) but He also created me with a will of my own and it is through choice and desire that I have worked the last twenty odd years continually trying to better express the world around me in different media and showing maybe just a little of God the Creator.

I think in some ways I have a bit of narcissism in me in that through my art I sometime feel I am saying “Look at me, look at what I can do. Aren’t I great!” but then I look at my work, weeks, months even years down the line and think “What a load of rubbish that is!” (You should hear some of my sermons, aaaaargh)

If I have to put it down explicitly, I think, if anything, He wants me to work at it, and sweat over it and look more closely at the world around me, then work at it some more.

God created in me the “desire” to create. In creating the creature, the Creator left something of himself on the paper of my life.

I know I can’t create the life He has put in his creations but even if I can show a small part of this in my meagre work then I will keep working at it.

But as I have always said to my kids, “Try your best at everything you do! You might not always get it right but if you do the best you are capable of, you are on the right track."

As for my “creations” judge for yourself, I will put them up there “warts and all.”

p.s. A note to my artistic twin, I am getting there with my picture sermon. Might start with the first seven days of Genesis, what do you think?

p.p.s the picture is some digital art I created based on a dream my daughter had.

God Bless

Creatist

A Thousand Words

Just to let you all know that I have created a new blog http://just-photos.blogspot.com/ you will not see any text just photos that I have taken which have appealed to me. Some will have been manipulated slightly but only things like contrast or a change to B&W.

And as a picture paints a thousand words you can't complain about me not posting:)

Let me know what you think

God Bless

Creatist

The Gift That Lasts

Hi all

I will give you a tip. Type your blog in Word first.

For 2 reasons:

1) You can turn on spellcheck
2) YOU DON’T LOSE EVERYTHING YOU HAVE JUST BEEN TYPING FOR THE LAST 10 MINUTES BY PRESSING THE WRONG BUTTON!

Ahhh, that’s better.

So here goes, a bit of waffle and a bit of ramble.

Thanks for the posts, it’s nice to see someone is reading these.

My question to you is; who buys York Fruits?

Someone must, as they appear in the shops at Christmas year after year (and earlier each year). I can cope with Chocolate Brazils, (I admit to buying these, but not at Christmas).

But York Fruits?

The people who buy these need their bumps feeling.

Is there anyone out there who actually likes them or do you think, when you get them as a present, “Well they really gave some thought to what I wanted for Christmas.”

Maybe there is some vague religious significance I have missed all my Christian life.

I can just see it now,

The Kings (or Wise Man if you prefer) enter the smelly stable, shoving the donkey out of the way, trying to avoid treading in something nasty.

First King: Hi Mary, how ya doing. Jus come from from t'North.....

Mary: Don't you mean the East?

First King: Sort of luv, North-East. Anyway lass, just popped by t' drop you and the ankle biter a pressie off.

Mary: Oooh, Lovely, a nice bag of Gold, that will do very nicely f' when the bailiffs come knocking again.

Second King (bowing and scraping): Oh great and mighty female of the Lord, I bring you offerings that are not worthy of your praise and ask that you receive them from my humble self; I bring you frankincense and myrrh.

Mary: Don’t be so daft Fred. That’s grand. Sit down and have a cuppa; they will do nicely for covering up a few baby smells.

Third King (rushes in out of breath):
All great theologians know there were only three:)

Mary, (puff pant)

sorry love, (heavy breathing),

had a busy few months, (puff, puff, pant),

Christmas got sprung on me this year, (sits down heavily)

and haven’t had time to do any real shopping, (mops brow)

so I nipped into Morrisons, (wrings hanky out)

and got you some, (puff, pant, sweat, mop, wring)

York Fruits.

And the rest, as they say, is history:)

God Bless

Creatist

Eye hath not seen

Hi People

After being chastised by Bigsheff, I thought I would write a bit more on the blog. Mainly because I have a bit of time now as "She who must be adored" (from now on to be referred to SWMBA) has gone off to work and the mini 1 and 2 are in bed.

Those of you who know me will like this one

Get settled, it is a long one.

End of last week after very hectic week at the grindstone (not that pub Bigsheff), thought, must have some time off to recharge the batteries. So booked following Friday off.

Then thought, I won't tell SWMBA and surprise her on the day. But kept checking her social diary just in case she decided to take a trip to western China or something at the last minute.

So the day comes (today), we both take mini 1&2 to their seat of learning and I pretend to head off to sweat shop while she takes mini 1&2 into play (they don't have to do any work until they leave school these days)

I wait for a couple of minutes to make sure SWMBA is out of sight, double back, and wait outside front gates of said seat of learning, just across the road, leaning against a lamp post, looking highly suspicious, and feeling like I am going to be arrested any minute for loitering in area where young peeps are.

There I was, stood there, thinking to myself, she will be surprised to see me and when I tell her that I have took the day of "just to be with her" she will be over the moon.

See SWMBA walking away from seat of learning talking to guardian of mini 2's friend. Both chatting happily away…..

Me standing there thinking, she will be surprised any minute...

SWMBA walks through play area chatting happily away.....

Me standing there thinking, she will be surprised any minute...

SWMBA walks through gate chatting happily away....

Any second now she is only 10 foot away.....Me standing there thinking, she will be suprised any minute...

SWMBA crosses the road chatting happily away....

Any millisecond now she is only 2 foot away.....Me standing there thinking, she will be surprised any millisecond....

SWMBA walks straight past................

Now you would think that after 13 years of marital bliss that SWMBA would spot her own hunk of glory a mile away, never mind 2 foot away.

There have been a couple times in my life when I thought I must be invisible, and a couple more where I wished I was, but this one took the biscuit.

So what did I do, apart from standing there stunned for a couple of seconds, what could I do? She was "chatting happily away" so I couldn't shout out "Oy! missus are you blind" or "Can I borrow yer white stick luv" So what did I do?

I know I thought, I will walk a couple of steps behind and eventually she will notice....

200 yards later, nothing, not a sausage, they could have had a mad axe man behind them and they wouldn't have noticed.

At this point, the said guardian of mini 2's friend parts company with SWMBA, so me thinks again. She must notice now.....

Nope, blind as a bat, off she walks another 100 yards to road where she would have to stop for traffic and she is bound to notice me there.

Nope, might as well have been tree, or bush or any other object that doesn't make a habit of following you down the road.

So SWMBA is just about to cross road, so invisible man says, "Good morning missus".

SWMBA says "Good morning." turns to cross road then......

Have you ever seen those cartoons where light suddenly goes on in brain box. I swear that is what happened here. Expression went from blank, 'I am just passing the time of day' expression to (though left unsaid, her being a lady of breeding) "What the bloody hell are you doing here!"

It was classic! I was worth every second of being an invisible man just to see that look and one I will remember for ever.

After this dramatic start to the day, it was very pleasant to spend some time together without mini 1&2 snapping at our heels and I won't bore you with the details, but.....

NEXT WEEK SHE IS GOING TO THE OPTICIANS!!

By the way the title is taken from:

1Co 2:9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

And as you can see from this tale, he prepares some strange things for you:)

God Bless

Creatist

Saints Rest

Greetings

As some of my family are doing this I thought I would try one myself.

Hopefully here you will find inspiration and someblessing, but don't be suprised if it gets a bit silly or even frightening.

Word for today = Whoopa Wheyhey

God bless

Creatist