When I heard Illustration Friday’s word was “ferocious,” I spotted this sketch in my sketchbook. Basketball is king in Indiana and if things aren’t going well, the coach can get quite ferocious. It they get worse, the fans get ferocious and the poor coach begins to fear for his life!
Chip gives Rodney a cheery greeting. Rodney sees it as a veiled threat.
This was the first in a series of comic strips I drew for a NAEN Ministries about ten years ago. The ministry has since left the Internet, so it was time to bring them back.
Chip is a nice guy working in a technology company. Rodney is the bitter, older curmudgeon who sees Chip’s cheery disposition and a threat to all humanity. Yet, they seem to get along.
I’ll see about posting the strip each Monday.
Tina Houser’s Children’s Ministry Encounter is coming Saturday, September 24 to Madison Park Church of God in Anderson, Indiana. My employer, Warner Press is sponsoring the conference.
I will be there performing various duties, so I hope to see you there.
Tina is an experienced children’s pastor who is now the Publications Director of K! Magazine. Her emphasis is to train and encourage others to be creative in children’s ministry. She will be discussing various topics, such as…
If you are a children’s ministry teacher who wants to learn from a dynamic, creative veteran, Then I highly recommend it.
You can find the details and register at this link.
PS: The illustration above was created by Christian Elden, another fine Warner Press employee.
Cartoon of two men. One says, “If it rains any more we’ll have to rename our church the ‘Floating Bethel.'”
The cartoon I did for this month’s Church of God newsletter was an inside joke. I had written this idea when Hurricane Irene drenched the east coast. I had hear of many churches that had been caught in the floods.
This was about the time the cartoon was due. Part of the history of the Church of God always stuck out in my mind. Part of the evangelistic efforts was to outfit a barge for missions. They called it the Floating Bethel.
There was something about a floating church that has always intrigued me. Is it the Noah’s Ark story? Is it the idea that it could be a challenge reading a hymnal while the waves rocked the sanctuary around? Who knows!
I was definitely playing to my audience on this one. Not many people would get it without the lesson in Church of God history. But I thought the imagery would lend itself to some humor nonetheless. I like the language of that time too and how disjointed it feels with today’s vernacular.
I hope the recovery is going along well after the deluge and that no churches had to resort to becoming floating chapels.
Cartoon of a dad reading a bedtime story to his son. The son says, “Read me the one about the dad who loved his son no matter what!”
USA Today has an article about the guys from JibJab getting into the picture book market. Gregg and Evan Spiridellis are using iPads and what they’ve learned from the e-card market  to bring kids into the picture book… literally.
I loved the fact that technology can bring picture books into a new realm. Just think what could happen in a couple of years! We could have animated picture books where the child is embedded into the story as if it was a home movie. There could be pop-up books that utilize 3D technology to put the child in the story. How would a kid react to see themselves pop out of the story? Wouldn’t that be awesome?
Some people may see this as a bad thing. But I believe any technology used to tell a story can be just as legitimate as any other. Content is the important thing. A poor story will flounder whether it is done traditionally or with every bell and whistle a programmer can throw at it. At the same time, a good story will shine whether it is done on back of napkins or in an iPad app.
However, technology can get in the way of a parent. If an e-reader is used in the place of a dad who doesn’t want to read that dad-blamed story for the one-hundredth time, then something very valuable is lost. Kids need to have their parents read to them whenever it is possible.
What are your thoughts?