SPS on Twitter

SoulPerSuit is now on twitter.




Follow SPS and get:

• Study updates
• Blog summaries
• Discussion questions
• Quotes
• Links to artists
• Links to study resources
• Book recommendations
• Movie recommendations
• and other fun stuff

What can SPS do for you through twitter?

SPS on Facebook

Updated 03/16/2009

Are you on Facebook? So are we.

If you'd like to be a part of the SoulPerSuit Group on Facebook, let us know so we can send you an invitation. You can leave your Facebook account name in the comments or e-mail it to us at soulpersuit at soulpersuit dot com. just do a search for "soulpersuit". When the search results show up, click the "Groups" tab. We should appear on the first page. Click "Request to join" and we'll approve it asap!

In the group you can post your SPS cards, participate in discussion questions, and get to know the whole SPS community.

Are there any other social networks that you use?

Colossians Resources

Perhaps you've joined the SPS Yahoo group that's been going through Colossians--and making some cool creations, as you can see. Or maybe you're doing a study on your own. Either way, here are some Colossians resources:

Bible.org has wonderful audio messages, articles, and textual notes on Colossians.

Dr. Tom Constable, a professor at Dallas Seminary, has compiled extensive notes on the Book of Colossians. He makes his notes available online for free. You can access the .pdf file by following this link: Constable notes

Go here for Matthew Henry's complete commentary on Colossians

For online searches of biblical art relating to Colossians, follow this link to biblical art

After the NET Bible notes, my favorite commentary on Colossians is by Kent Hughes.

Feed Your Artist Soul

If you want to know how to use the SoulPerSuit concept to interact with spiritual truth, go here.

We have lots of new photos of cards that people have created as they've interacted with biblical truth (like the one you see here). You can click on any of the pictures you find here to see more.

If you want to do some creative activities in preparation for studying the Book of Colossians, go here.

Our Yahoo group for Colossians is full, but don't let that keep you from doing your own creative study of the book solo. Or grab some friends and go through it together. For a calendar to give you some structure, go here.

Some Links

If you're the creative type (and you probably are if you've found our blog), below you'll find some links to artsy sites you should know about. (The blogs from the Arts Pastor and the one that follows I heard about from Erin.)

The Christian Pulse

Diary of an Arts Pastor

Stuff White People Like (just for laughs)

Newsletters from Speaking of Faith

Image Journal

Free Bible Study

If you want access to a free Bible study series I (Sandi) wrote that you can use with SPS, you can find one at bible.org, (a great place to get such resources). The topic is: Your Worth in Christ, and it explores how precious you are to God. Here are the topics and links:

Defaced But Not Erased (Lesson 1)
Fearfully and Wonderfully Made (Lesson 2)
Adopted as God’s Child (Lesson 3)
Disciplined as God’s Child (Lesson 4)
Restored and Rejoiced Over as God’s Child (Lesson 5)
Justified, Sanctified, and Headed for Glory (Lesson 6)
Broken but Usable For His Glory (Lesson 7)

SoulPerSuit Site

Sometimes new ideas are as close as the stuff we peruse frequently. When was the last time you spent some time wandering around the SoulPerSuit web site? For a detailed, illustrated explanation of how SoulPerSuit (SPS) works, click here. For some free art tips, click here. For the gallery of creations from the Mocha on the Mount study, click on the pictures here. Send your own creations, questions, or comments here.

More Ruth Resources

As our online discussion/art group gets going in the Book of Ruth, we continue to accumulate a wealth of resources that tap into both sides of the brain. Here are some faves:

Bible.org has wonderful textual notes on Ruth.

Heather Goodman has written a nice, brainy Literary Analysis of the Book of Ruth.

InterVarsity has an interesting online Bible study in the book.

Dr. Tom Constable, prof at Dallas Seminary, freely provides his notes (.pdf) on The Book of Ruth.

For online searches of biblical art, follow this link: Biblical art. You can view Naomi and Her Daughter-in-Law by Gustave Doré, and Rembrandt's Boaz and Ruth.

Select The Story of Ruth (1960) with Gregory Peck for your Netflix queue. And read this review of it.

If you're into animation, try this version: Animated story of Ruth (1966)

Or to read the Book of Ruth placed in a modern setting read Dr. Reg Grant's Ebony Moon.

A self-described unobservant Jewish man/writer for Slate blogs as he reads the Bible. Here's the link to what he said about the Book of Ruth.

Or listen instead of read, when you check out the audio book of Ruth.

What are your favorite resources? Any others we should add?

Ruth Resources

Our on-line group begins studying Premium Roast with Ruth this week. In Week 1 we look at the history of two nations: Israel, Naomi's nationality and Moab, Ruth's nationality.

In studying Week 1 I was drawn to visuals. I wanted to see maps, time lines and genealogies so that I could put everything in context. It's just the way I think. I like to know how far apart the cities are, how everyone is related and when it all happened in reference to other events in the Bible.

If this is the way you study or you think these things might be helpful, I have provided links to what I found below. You can also find these same links in the right hand column on each of the Ruth pages on the web site. *Respect Copyright.

• Maps - PreceptAustin.org is a site FULL of Bible study resources. The map I found most useful for this study is here.


• Genealogy - Jim Belote, cultural anthropologist, put together a great genealogy of the Old Testament. You may just want to bookmark this link because the chart is about 43" long.


• One page genealogy - To insert in your books, I put together a one page PDF of the genealogy from Noah to Solomon.


• Timeline - Available on WordSight.org, this is a textual time line from Genesis to Revelation. Bookmark this page and use it to search for specific events and/or people in your browser using "Find in this Page..." under the "Edit" option.


• Color Timeline - SundaySchoolResources has a great color coded time line. You can reference it on-line or send e-mail to request a PDF print version for free.

You will notice that an 8 1/2" x 11" piece of paper, folded in half, fits perfectly in the back of the Coffee Cup Bible Study books. Use permanent or temporary adhesive to adhere 1/2 of a folded sheet to the inside back cover to keep from losing it. You could also glue a pocket or envelope (A-7 fits perfectly) on the back cover if you want to keep several resources and your SPS art cards in your study book.

*Always remember to respect copyright. These folks are freely making available the fruits of their hard work. You may print this information for your personal use or link to it from your web sites and blogs but don't redistribute it as your own, sell it, or copy it in part or in whole onto your web site or blog.

Great Resource for artists

One evening when my Oregonian mother was visiting me in Dallas, we stopped channel surfing when we saw a guy playing "the aquarium section" at a symphony performance. If you've seen Sandra Bullock's character in Miss Congeniality play the musical water glasses, you know the sort of "instrument" I'm talking about. (I have since learned that the musician, Jamey Turner, is called a "glass harpist.") Mom and I stopped and watched what turned out to be a great television program. It was the broadcast of a Catholic Communications production titled, "Creativity: Touching the Divine." We later tracked it down for purchase. Since then I have shown it every time I've taught Christian Journalism at Dallas Seminary (four or five years).

The fim explores "the universal virtue of creativity ranging from the fine arts to daily living." It was my first introduction to Frederick Hart, the sculptor responsible for the creation scene over the doors of the Washington National Cathedral, where I try to go once every holiday seaon. It also includes Madeleine L'Engle, whose book A Wrinkle in Time had a profound impact on my imagation in the sixth grade.

Have a look. If you love the marriage of faith and art, you'll find yourself savoring a feast.