Sandy Silverthorne's Blog, page 3

Wait in the Water- Joshua Chapter 3

Jordan River from Sandy Silverthorne on Vimeo.

Well I don’t know about you but I hate to wait, especially when I’m waiting for God to answer a prayer. Well I want you to look at this account out of Joshua Chapter 3. This is the Jordan River, over here is the Promised Land. Where they want to go but as you can see You Are Here- they’re on the other side of the river. They need to cross it- what they really need is a miracle. So God tells Joshua have the priests take the Ark of the Covenant, now if you saw Raiders of the Lost Ark that’s pretty much what this looked like, it was a big solid gold box and it represented the presence of the Lord. And the priests carried it wherever it went. As you can see it’s on poles. So God said have the priests take the ark into the middle of the water and as soon as their feet touch the water I will stop up the river and all of you will be able to cross over on dry land. So they obeyed that, they did that and God was good for his word, He stopped the river at that exact second.

But what they didn’t know- here they are, here’s the priests down here in the river standing at the beginning of the river- and here are all the children of Israel. That God stopped the river but He stopped it up at a place called Adam which was 20 miles from everybody. Now I’ve never studied water flow or anything like that but I’m thinking how long did it take for the water to dry up from 20 miles upstream? 3 hours? A day? Well I don’t know about you but sometimes I feel like those guys standing in the water, waiting for God to do something. And I guess we all get there so when we do that, I guess we should remember to:

Hang on

Be patient

Trust God  

Because He’s up to something that we may not even see.

 

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How to Draw a 3-D Box

3-D Box from Sandy Silverthorne on Vimeo.

On this quick tutorial we’re going to see how to make something look three dimensional- that is not flat but with some depth to it. We’ll start with a square and then we’re going to add the secret ingredient- the Vanishing Point. The Vanishing Point is a little dot off in the distance; you can put it anywhere you want on your paper but the important thing to remember is all of your lines will need to head towards the Vanishing Point. We’ll draw lines from the corners of the box off the VP. It looks a little funny at first but now when we erase the extra lines we’ve got a pretty good looking little box.

 Now why would I want to draw a 3-D Box you might ask? Well if you want to draw a picture of a birthday present it works pretty well. Just draw your box, add some ribbon and a little color and there you go- a birthday gift for Grandma.

 Or you can try using this cool 3-D technique to draw a city street. Start with your square again, then we’ll have the Vanishing Point way over to the right. Have all the lines head towards the Vanishing Point. Then we can make these into the buildings on the street, add windows, doors, maybe a little awning, and you’ve got a street that could be New York, Chicago or maybe Philadelphia. Add a tree and some extra detail and you’ve got a big city street.

 You might need to practice this a little bit, but once you’ve got it, it’ll stick with you forever.

 So remember, draw the square, then place your Vanishing Point wherever you want it. Then make sure all your side lines go straight to the VP. Erase your extra lines and you’ve got a 3-D box. Easy.

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A Different Take on Creativity

Here I am in the marching band at Young Life’s Malibu Camp in Canada.

Happy New Year everyone, I hope your Holidays were truly blessed. I love the Christmas season and this one was especially great.

Since I’m involved in the business of writing and illustrating, I get a chance to be around some really creative people. It’s kind of cool to be “creative” nowadays- you know someone who’s talented in the arts, music, painting, writing, dance, all of those things that we deem “creative”. And those are really cool, it’s so great to see someone with amazing talent using his or her gifts to create a work of art, a story or a piece of music.

But what about the people who aren’t artistic? So often I meet people- almost always adults- who tell me they can’t draw a straight line. I love how Red Skelton used to answer that. He’d say “So draw an earthquake.”

But seriously what about the people who aren’t “creative”? Well, in my humble opinion there’s no such thing. “What?” You may ask, “you haven’t seen me draw or heard me sing and there’s no way on earth I could ever come up with a book idea!”

Well, Genesis 1:1 says “In the beginning God created the Heavens and the Earth.” Obviously He’s the most creative Being in the entire universe. And He did it all with a Word. He spoke things into existence. But then Genesis 1:26  says that we are created In His Image and Likeness. That says to me that if we’re created in His Image then we are by nature creative beings. But we’ve got to expand our view of creativity. I have several friends who are car mechanics. I believe that what they do all day long is super creative. First of all they can understand how that whole engine thing works. That’s amazing in itself. Then they use their creative ability to solve the problem and get the car running again. Now that’s creative. How about a mom with two toddlers running around? Do you think it takes creativity to manage the household as well as help shape the lives of these young children? Look around you- there’s creative people all over. A teacher who spends time with a child so they can keep up, an Emergency Room nurse who helps diagnose and treat a frightened patient, a computer programmer, a Pastor, a farmer, car salesman, personal trainer, shop owner, pharmacist, well, you get the idea.

We’re all creative in our way and in the image of God. Take a couple minutes and think about the special gifts that God has implanted inside of you. What can you do that other people can’t? What are some gifts, talents and abilities that are uniquely yours? And how can you use them- whether they seem creative or not- to help people get closer to God? That might just be part of His plan for you. And me.

 

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Turkey, Pie and Being Thankful

Thanksgiving is almost here and with this wonderful holiday come thoughts of gathering with friends and family, watching some football and of course delicious food. Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, rolls and pumpkin pie. All my favorites.

Speaking of turkey, this short cartoon video will help you learn how to draw a little pilgrim turkey. It’s easy, quick and fun and would make a great addition to a Happy Thanksgiving card for your mom, dad or teacher. So check it out. And send me a scan of your drawing, it might just appear in our website.

And make sure this Thanksgiving season that sometime you write down 5 things you’re really thankful for. You don’t have to show your list to anyone but it’s a really good practice to stop for a couple seconds every day (not just on Thanksgiving) and realize all the good stuff going on in your life.

 Well, get out your paper and pencil, enjoy the video and make sure you have a great Thanksgiving!

 

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The Benefits of Being Thankful

I just saw yet another study on how being thankful can improve your health and perhaps even add years to your life. More and more we’re realizing that being thankful and content and grateful actually improves our lives emotionally, mentally and even physically. So why is it so easy to forget that and instead look on the negative side of life?

1. I think we sometimes just get in the habit of looking at the negative side of things. All around us the newspapers, TV and even friends and family seem to be stuck in a cycle of negativity. Sure, there’s plenty wrong with the world but it’s OK to take a moment once or twice a day and recognize all the good things we have.

2. Sometimes we’re fearful to see the positive things in our lives. We have the irrational thought that if we think about the good things, they might just go away.

3. Often our pride gets in the way of being thankful. None of us wants to look like a Pollyanna- “Come on everybody. Let’s look on the bright side!” So instead we go with the flow and once again focus on the negative. But where does that get us?

 

The story of the Ten Lepers in Luke Chapter 17 paints such a clear picture of one of the benefits of being thankful. Here are ten guys stricken with one of the worst possible illnesses of their day- leprosy. The slow erosion of their bodies may have started months or even years ago. The minute it was determined that those white and pink patches on their skin were indeed the dreaded leprosy, the victim was whisked away from their families, friends and worship community for fear they might contaminate someone else.

So even as their bodies started to whither up and decay, the physical process simply mirrored what was going on inside of their souls. A slow, decay was taking place. They were being cut off from their support systems, left alone outside of town in a refuge for the sick, lest they come in contact with another human being. So it must have taken all of their desperate courage to hike into the village and take a chance of seeing Jesus. This One who’s been known to heal blindness, paralysis and yes, even leprosy. Is it worth the effort? What if He- like everyone else- turns us away?

So the story goes that the ten men stood afar off, because of their disease, and yelled to the travelling Savior. “Jesus, have mercy on us!”

Jesus instructed them to show themselves to the priest- an act that was reserved for a healed leper. But they obeyed and as they walked in their obedience they were healed. What a celebration that must have been. Legs strengthened, arms made whole again and the telltale signs of the decaying disease, completely wiped clean from their skin.

In the midst of the celebration one of the men- a Samaritan, an outsider from the Jewish community, stopped and turned around. He came back, glorifying God and kneeling at Jesus’ feet. He wanted to show his gratitude.

His friends celebration continued in the background. Yes, all ten men were healed but this Samaritan got something else. The thing Jesus commended in the life of His friend Mary. The best thing. This hopeless leper started out afar off, but ended up at Jesus’ feet. About as close as anyone can get to another person.

You want to get closer to God? Try being thankful. Look around, we have so much to be grateful for.

Take a moment right now and write down 5 things you’re thankful for.

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What’s New

I get really excited when I have a new book coming out. So I’m over the top right now because I have two new books that have just come out. Let me tell you about them.

The first one is called You Can Draw Bible Stories for Kids and it’s new from Harvest House Publishers. We had a great time putting this one together. Here’s how it works- We’ve got the well-known stories from the Bible- Adam and Eve, Noah’s Ark, David and Goliath, Zaccheaus, Feeding the 5000, Palm Sunday and tons more. Then along with the stories I teach you how to draw the different people, places and things in the story. In Adam and Eve you learn how to draw a tiger, a zebra and a skunk. You’ll learn how to draw Noah’s Ark, The Red Sea parting, David’s five smooth stones, The Bethlehem manger scene, A Roman soldier, Zaccheaus’ tree and, well you get the idea. It’s a fun, fresh way to learn the stories of the Old and New Testaments and improve your drawing skills at the same time.

The second book’s called Wild and Wacky Bible Adventures for Kids, also from Harvest House. In this book we take some of the familiar stories and ask What If? What if Moses had a GPS? What if Samson was your P.E. Teacher? Yikes! Or what if Jesus texted us the Beatitudes? We take things from modern day life, like TV, cell phones, video games, fast food, and (with some major literary license) fit them into Bible stories. But we always keep true to the Bible throughout. The book is illustrated all the way through with cartoons and it’s a lot of fun. It helps kids see that God’s Word is just as important now as it was when it was written.

You can check both books out on our library page.

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If it’s Meant to Happen

If It’s Meant To Happen…

There’s a lot of talk going around today about getting a book published. Who do I send it to? Do I have to have a perfect pitch? Should I get an agent? There really are a lot of questions. First and foremost you need to have a great book, make sure you’ve done a few rewrites and if possible have someone you trust- besides your mom- take a look at it and give you constructive feedback.

Then you get to start the hard work of getting it out there. And it is work. It probably won’t be easy but the Bible says in “All labor there is profit.” In other words, work hard and it’ll pay off in some way.

That being said I’ve got to tell you about a proposal I sent in once. It was an idea for a children’s series. I put together a great proposal. Talked all about the book ideas, told about myself, even sent in some review of some of my other work. It was perfect. The only thing I forget to put ANYWHERE IN THE ENTIRE PACKET- was my contact information. You know, email, phone number. Even address. These people didn’t even know what state I lived in! So a few weeks later I get a call from one of the publishers mentioned in one of the reviews I’d included in the proposal. They told me that this other publisher was looking for me and would I please give them a call?

I file this story under “If it’s meant to happen, even if you do everything wrong, which I did, it’s going to happen.”

And don’t worry, I’ve got plenty of stories of when I did everything right and still didn’t get a book deal, but we’ll save that for another time. In the meantime, take care, keep doing what you’re supposed to be doing and trust that God’s going to take care of the details. And don’t forget to put your contact information in your proposal.

Keep writing (and illustrating) and have fun.

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Welcome to Drawing

Drawing is a lot easier than most people think! It’s really just a few lines on paper or on your tablet.

Check out these simple, easy to follow video tutorials that’ll take you step by step to your finished cartoon drawing. It’s easy, fun and something you can do right now!

So grab a couple sheets of paper, a pen, pencil or marker and follow the instructions on the screen. Click here to see the latest tutorials: tutorials  Have fun!

Once you’re finished, send it in and we’ll post it on the site.

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The Canyon

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Vegetable Fun

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