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Calligraphy background -
My love for calligraphy began in Junior High when a teacher asked me to do some lettering for her class. I was fascinated with the various letter forms and the way the chisel tip pen creates beautiful thick and thin strokes. My mother, Elizabeth Ann Neds, who was a commercial art major at Ohio State University, was my first teacher. She fueled my interest by providing me with tools and books, and introduced me to other teachers. Although I graduated from Bob Jones University with a degree in Music Education and worked in Information Systems for the Huntington Bank in Columbus, Ohio for almost nineteen years, I have lettered with varying levels of intensity since Junior High School, producing yearly family Christmas cards, lettering verses as inserts in church bulletins, doing calligraphy as gifts, and teaching classes at home and at Hobby Lobby stores.
In addition to my mother, I have been taught by Roll McEndollar, Kathy Bell, Ann Woods, and Bill Lilly. I owe a debt of gratitude to each of my teachers.
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"Heaven and earth shall
pass away, but My words
shall not pass away."
Matt. 24:35; Mark 13:31; Luke 21:33
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Turning to Christ -
In 1980 when I was 23, I came to a crisis in my life and seriously considered the option of suicide. By God's grace, I instead turned to the Bible where I found the truth about Jesus Christ that set me free from my sin and gave me purpose for living.
Since that time, I have been passionate about lettering the Word of God and have seen many express gratitude for the manuscripts I have done. My heart echoes the words of the prophet Jeremiah, who said, "Your words were found, and I ate them, and Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart; for I am called by Your name, O LORD God of hosts." Jeremiah 15:16. One of my major sins has been a pride in the abilities God has given me (I Corinthians 4:7). To acknowledge the means and purpose of my lettering, I sign each piece with the letters BGG FGG - By God's Grace, For God's Glory.
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Family and work -
The Lord has blessed me with a wonderful wife, Joy, and eleven enthusiastic children - Benjamin, Rebekah, Hannah, Lydia, Seth, Esther, Rachel, Julia, Daniel, Faith, and David. Wanting to be more involved in spreading the "Good News" of Jesus Christ, I took a part time position as Assistant Pastor at Rockwall Bible Church in Rockwall, Texas. Our family moved from Ohio to Texas in February of 2004 where I serve in the areas of music, education, and outreach. Our first year at RBC, the senior pastor asked me to letter a verse each month for the bulletin cover. As a result, I have ministered more through calligraphy since being in Texas than I had in several previous years put together.
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