Art for Gods Sake

The creation sings to us with the visual beauty of God's handiwork. But what of man-made art? Much of it is devoid of sacred beauty and is often rejected by Christians. Christian artists struggle to find acceptance within the church. If all of life is to be viewed as "under the lordship of Christ," can we rediscover what Gods plan is for the arts? Philip Graham Ryken brings into sharp focus a biblical view of the arts and the artists who make art for God's sake. This is a concise yet comprehensive treatment of the major issue of the arts for all who seek answers. - Publisher.

An adman constantly strives to connect market research data to insight on a winning campaign. Ambi Parmeshwaran has developed a fascination for how Indians are getting more religious but also more consumption driven. Combining his thirty- year experience as an adman with a lifelong passion for religious studies, Ambi seeks to answer questions like: • Why has the bindi disappeared from advertisements? • How did Akshaya Trithaya become such a big deal? • What makes Lord Shiva so cool? • How did a Chennai-based department store start the New Year's Sale phenomenon? • Are Muslims more open-minded shoppers? • Why do people who have no interest in using an MBA degree still get an MBA degree? • How did the Manusmriti do a disservice to Hindu women? • What can Harvard Business School learn from the Kumbh Mela? Ambi has filled this book with personal stories, anecdotes, lessons and excerpts from research and other publications. This book is a treat for anyone interested in how religion has evolved and how clever marketers have ridden the wave by tailoring their products and services.

'The Divine Artist' - 'Art for God's Sake' "God the Divine Artist became the art - He, Jesus, hung on the wooden frame of the cross. He would provide the inspiration for the future artists in these end-times, and to emblazon buildings and canvases, with a chiaroscuro spectrum of Renaissance thought along the way of centuries' Stephen Bennett. Art and artisans can change the world, that possibility is seen all around us; through film, art, music, fashion, architecture, social media, digital platforms, an endless list. Yet, creativity is not just for the artist; creativity is at the very heart and centre of Christianity. In God's eyes everything is art, He is an artist in every sense of the word, and all things He created are for His purposes. The heavens and the world are a canvas oiled and stretched, for us to walk on, and create in. Art as an awakening is normal daily fare in our digital world; God's final purposes for art are at hand in this 21st century. He has many artistic visions to give His artisans on earth. In this book you will get to know God's character as the Divine Artist, and you can let your art be inspired for His sake"

If you’ve ever asked yourself why you do what you do, or wondered what your purpose is in life, this book is for you. The lives of an intensely-driven basketball coach, an ultra-successful CEO, and an unassuming janitor all intersect in this captivating parable about leadership, relationships, and the pursuit of success. An unforgettable story packed with profound truths, LEAD . . . for God’s Sake! will challenge you to think deeply about who you are as a leader, what success means to you, and why you do what you do. Whether you’re leading a business, a team, or your own family, this book is the first and most important step to becoming the leader you were meant to be.

Most managers today work solely on intuition rather than best practices plus intuition. People keep reinventing what it means to be a manager, instead of learning from others' experience and improving on it. People these days are not less talented; they have access to more information and they are fast learners. The problem is that there aren't enough places to learn from, as organizations — large and small — are so mercurial and unstable. This book summarizes the author's experience from two major sources: a) growing with different companies through all the management ranks up to Vice President in a mega US corporation in the computer industry, and b) from working as a consultant to dozens of companies and hundreds of managers from different backgrounds and industries. New and experienced managers will benefit from principles, approaches, and checklists for current managerial challenges. The book covers a broad range of managerial challenges — from role definition to strategy to communication. Contents: A Manager's CookbookThe Manager's JobSetting and Achieving GoalsGlobal Company StrategyCommunication Technocrat B2B Marketing BasicsSales Organization Basics for B2BOrganizations: Culture, Structure, and PeopleFriend of NumbersTurning the Curve with Sprezzatura Readership: Managers and leaders of small and medium companies and mid-level management of large companies; general public interested in managerial leadership. Keywords: Management; Experience; Leadership; Manager; Leader; Operational Strategy; Strategy; Execution; Work Management; People Management; Business Ecosystem; Setting Goals; Achieving Goals; Achievement; Business in Numbers; Sprezzatura; Organizations; Principles in Management; Marketing Basics; Sales Basics; Critical Mass; Sunk Cost Review:0

Senses of the Soul explores the way art and visual elements are incorporated into Christian worship. It incorporates research conducted in Los Angeles congregations. Through extensive interviews in a sample of Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodox congregations it looks into the way visual elements actually become part of the experience of worship. By looking at attitudes and experiences of beauty, art, and memories, it suggests that believers appropriate images and aesthetic encounters in terms of imaginative structures that have been formed through worship practices over time. By comparing responses across denominations, the book proposes that people receive visual elements in ways that have been shaped by long traditions and specific background beliefs. In addition to discussions of the differences between the major Christian traditions, the book also examines the relation of art and beauty to worship, the role of memories and everyday life, and the power of images in spirituality and worship. By its focus on the worshiper, the book seeks to make a contribution to the growing conversation between the arts and Christian worship and to the process of worship renewal.

Standing at that magical place where sand meets sea, you likely have imagined putting a message in a bottle, consigning it to the waves, hoping it might some day reach another shore, and then not only be read but, incredibly across space and time, make a difference in other lives now connected to your own. It has happened to me, and I must sing of it. In the autumn of 1966 I let the waves carry off a poem—passed around to students, family and friends, no need for even my name on it. Its message was simple: Keep heart, you are not alone; love, stronger than strong walls, will come, helping your heart in hiding grow wings, feeble perhaps at first, but wings! Word astoundingly began to come back in 1969, and has continued since, that “Please Hear What I’m Not Saying” was indeed reaching other shores, across space and time was indeed making a difference in other lives. What follows attests to the power of words from the heart to touch other hearts, sometimes even to change other lives. Read on. You, too, will sing of it.

Paradise Lost is an epic poem in twelve books, in English heroic verse without rhyme, by John Milton (C. P. P.) and was published in 1667. The subject is the fall of man, and the expulsion from Paradise.

27 Quakers from 13 Yearly Meetings in four countries tell how they combine committed membership of the Religious Society of Friends with rejection of traditional belief in a transcendent, personal and supernatural God. For some of these 'nontheist' Friends, God is no more (but no less) than a symbol of the wholly human values of 'mercy, pity, peace and love'. For others, the idea of God and 'God-language' has become an archaism and a stumbling-block. Readers who seek a faith or world-view free of supernaturalism, whether they are Friends, members of other traditions or drop-outs from old-time religion, will find themselves in the company of a varied group whose search for an authentic 21st century understanding of religion and spirituality has led them to declare themselves 'Godless - for God's Sake'.

This book holds a treasure of deep in -sights into the great mystery of breathfrom a spiritual perspective. Inspiringdis courses, eVective and safe practicesand beautiful poetry from various tradi -tions encourage the reader to explorethe wonder of breath on many levels.What is breath, really? What is themeaning of this life-giving secret? Howimportant is conscious breathing fortrue spiritual transformation? Whatdo we make of the fact that our life'spossibilities lie between an in- and anout-breath? How is breath related tothe rhythm of the universe and, thus,to time? What is its role in the "beco-ming of being" from the ever present"womb of the moment"? How can webreathe in food and distill it into thealchemical elixir needed for real changein our life to come about? How can webreathe out to change the atmospherein a room or in a given situation, in fullresponsibility for the people around usand for "the world to come"? Whatcould it mean that Jesus "walked onwater" and that "breath and Spirit areone"? What is, esoterically speaking,the relation be tween Mary, Jesus, theSpirit of God, Ruh Allah,and Christ? On the basis of his lifelong studies ofthe world's major spiritual traditions,and especially from the inner essence ofSuWteaching, Reshad Feild providesfood for thought and practical means tohelp people work with the breath ineveryday life. For more than forty yearshe has been of considerable inXuence atthe forefront of spiritual teaching inthe West. Among his books are the auto -biographical bestselling novels The LastBarrier and To Know We're Loved.

In For God's Sake ten nuns recount their life stories. These women have a unique insight into religious life and their stories cover the period 1930 to 2008. They come from all social strata and from different convents and congregations. They tell tales of a very repressive regime, of a strict social class system, of stifled emotions, and of the harsh life in the Magdalen laundries and industrial schools. For many nuns the dreams of their young lives have been shattered by events beyond their control. Each story covers some aspects of convent life and the individual responses to it, and they offer some understanding of why nobody noticed the abuse, or if they did, why they turned a blind eye.

The creation!

It's time to grow up...so that we can fulfill God's purposes for us and for our generation! For too long we've been spiritual children clinging to our mother's leg, refusing to go to school on the first day. Here David Ravenhill, son of the late Leonard Ravenhill and a seasoned pastor himself, challenges the Body of Christ to put away childish things and to mature in the things of God. There is a world that needs to be won to Christ!

All Jasmine wanted was a calm summer in Pine Bush. When she sees a UFO her first night home from college, she is willing to brush it off as swamp gas reflected off Venus, until two men arrive at her door to harass her into silence about a picture she did not take. Soon she realizes Men in Black may be the least of her worries and that ignoring the Grays and their plans for her will only embolden them. If she doesn't figure out why she is so interesting to aliens, Men in Black, and a mysterious man who seems to brush off harm, she may not have an autumn to look forward to.

Inner peace is finally within reach with Tami Shaikh's groundbreaking new book, Detox Your Soul. Do you often find yourself wishing to rid yourself of all the negative, harmful influences that often make life so difficult? Look no further than this new thirty-day program that helps you cleanse away your spiritual, mental, and emotional toxins and remove these relentless daily obstacles once and for all. Beginning with day one, you'll learn how to face your inner demons and build up your self-esteem. The strategies are designed to be incorporated into your daily life-no drastic changes to your routine are needed! Waking up just ten minutes earlier and going to bed just ten minutes later each day gives you all the time you need to see-and feel-a difference. Each of the thirty chapters provides a section for you to record your innermost thoughts, reflections on that day's exercises, and what you have achieved both physically and spiritually in the last twenty-four hours. By the end of the thirty-day program, you'll feel more in tune with your spirit, mind, and emotions. Most importantly, you'll have gained the tools to cleanse your soul for a lifetime to come.

The first major survey to reveal the ways in which Classical mythology has inspired art throughout the last 2,500 years From the films of Woody Allen and the Coen Brothers to Margaret Atwood's books and Arcade Fire's songs, Classical Greek and Roman myths continue to be a source of cultural inspiration. The struggles of heroes, both triumphant and tragic, with gods, monsters, and fate, exert a particular grip on our imagination. Visual artists have long expressed and reworked these foundational stories. This is the first book to unite myth-inspired artworks by ancient, modern, and contemporary artists, from Botticelli and Caravaggio to Jeff Koons and Damien Hirst.