Providential Photography

Born on Sept. 28th 2010

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Praise God, my son is finally here! He is the handsomest fellow i have ever met and a great joy to me and my wife! His name is Ethan Paul Gatdula, born weighing 7.0lbs & 19.75" long. Sorry for the delay in getting his first picture posted. We have been so busy getting settled down since his birth day but the Lord is good and faithful to provide us with such loving family and friends to help us out! Ethan is our first child and, of course, the most spoiled. Stay tuned for more pics and posts!

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7months

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My darling wife is now 7 months pregnant!

American Flag

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"...one nation, UNDER GOD". If you are an American citizen, you should be able to recite the 'pledge of allegiance' to the American flag by memory. Some people would like to remove the 'under God' phrase. Even if it were to be removed from the pledge, the nation would STILL be under God because the American government has been established by God (Romans 13:1).

Beware of false teachers

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"You will know them by their fruit" (Matthew 7:15-16).

Religion will not save you....

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...Only Jesus Saves (Acts 4:12).

City Silhouette

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Baltimore

Swords

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"For the Word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart."
Hebrews 4:12 (NASB)

Book of the Month: Foundations of Grace

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Steve Lawson demonstrates how God's sovereign grace is taught in the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. In this book, he lays down the comprehensive teachings of the Doctrines of Grace with an exposition of Scripture and a biography through the lives of godly men. The foreward is by John MacArthur and the afterward is by R.C. Sproul.

Patterson Park Fountain

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Sorry. The fountain is dry. No baptisms (by immersion) today! ....John (the Baptist) answered and said to them all, "As for me, I baptize you with water, but One (Jesus Christ) is coming who is mightier than I , and I am not fit to untie the thong of His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. (Luke 3:16 NASB)

Rules that speak for themselves.

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You should be familiar with these rules if you ever had to do a research paper. click on the picture.

Snapshot of the Old Testament

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Here is a diagram of the Old Testament which has 39 Books. A good way to remember this outline of the Old Testament is the code 17-5-17. Click on the picture to get a glimpse of what I am saying.

To Whom do you thank?

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The rear bumper of an automobile is a notorious place for stickers. You can learn a lot about people without ever uttering a single word to them by just reading the things they put on their automobiles. You can know their political views, their sense of humor, their school or military or religious backgrounds, etc. This particular one says, "Thank Jesus". Being rather concise and to the point, it is potentially packed with tons of theology regarding Christ's redemptive work and His Deity. We can safely speculate that this person is grateful for salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ because there are no other bumper stickers that contradict or impose on this one. This sticker conveys a proper eternal perspective on life. It possesses the right attitude of a Christian: Gratitude to Christ. In respect to the Holiness of God and the Total Depravity of mankind, we can see the extreme necessity for a Savior. To simply put it, D.A. Carson said, "Hell is being in the presence of God; heaven is being in the presence of God with a Mediator". Although the astute Puritan, Jonathan Edwards, did not like to put too much emphasis on gratitude, it is still a mark of a Christian. A dichotomous illustration for Edward's argument would be that Christians find God beautiful, and non-Christians find God useful.

Therefore, the question on Thanksgiving Day and everyday of our lives should be "To Whom do you thank?" Christianity is about a personal relationship with Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and a person's lifestyle should convey that relationship. Abiding in the Word daily, obedience to the Word, church membership, willingness to serve in the church, tithing, having a burden for the lost, constant prayer to God,desire for God's glory, and fellowship with other like-minded believers in Christ are a few evidences that manifest salvation of a genuine believer in Christ. These activities, my friends, do not save a person. These are just the fruit/product of genuine salvation. It is Jesus Christ who saves!! Repentance of sins and Faith in Christ is the initial step and lifetime steps of a believer. That initial faith and repentance comes by hearing the Word of Jesus Christ! It is profoundly stupid if someone professes to be a Christian and has no desire for any of those things, or if his/her life does not manifest any of those things. Before I start rambling into a serious soteriological monologue, let me close with a verse that is appropriate for the statement, "Thank Jesus". "He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." (2 Corinthians 5:21 NASB) That verse, my friends, is the heart of the Gospel!!

Book of the Month-Truth Endures

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Commemorating 40yrs of Unleashing God's Truth One Verse at a Time 1969-2009 Landmark Sermons by John MacArthur- "This commemorative book celebrates John MacArthur’s 40th anniversary as the Pastor-Teacher of Grace Community Church. It contains twelve powerful sermons that span forty years of John’s pulpit ministry, a testimony to the power and relevancy of God’s Word. A 60-page essay by renowned biographer, Iain H. Murray, serves as an introduction to the sermons. Murray’s work is not only fascinating in its detail, but it is also insightful in how it places the life and ministry of John MacArthur into historical context. You’ll come away appreciating the significance of all God has done through his ministry." “This book was assembled entirely without John MacArthur’s knowledge, as a surprise to him, to honor him on his golden anniversary in ministry and his fortieth year as pastor of Grace Community Church.” —Phil Johnson, Executive Director, Grace to You

Paradox of the lottery. . .

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Providential Dyson!

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My gracious, loving mother bought me this Dyson vacuum cleaner as a house warming present when i purchased my home a few years ago. At that time i didn’t have any pets or much carpet to vacuum. In fact, I just had wooden floors installed in most of my house before she purchased me this vacuum! I felt bad because I didn’t really have much of a need for it at the time, and the fact that she spent several hundreds of dollars on this hi-tech machine! This Dyson is the specific model designed for pet owners in which it is superior in picking up pet hair, lint, heavy dust, etc. Since the Lord has called me out of my job and my house, I now live in my brother's house with 4 cats and much more carpet!!! This vacuum is one of my best friends in the house, aside from the four little furry guys! Every time i plug it in, I have another good reason to praise God and glorify him!!! A few verses come to my mind and they are Romans 8:28 "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those that love Him to those who are called according to His purpose.", 1 Corinthians 10:31 "Whether, then, you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.", and Psalm 139:16 "Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; And in Your book were all written the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them." God knows the things we need before we even need those things....So why worry! many more verses come to my mind, but this blog will be too long if i don’t stop here. The 3 listed above were the first ones that came to my mind. How about you? What verses come to your mind in situations like these? =P

Book of the month: Willing to Believe by R.C. Sproul

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This book defines the doctrines of man's total depravity and Gods effectual grace. The controversy of man's free-will and Gods sovereignty dates back to the 5th century and continues til this day. What did Jesus mean, in John3:3-8, when He said 'Unless one is born again, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. . .'? Does anyone cause his/her own birth? What is the 'free-will' of man? Is man able to choose God on his own? R.C. Sproul elaborates on the historical controversies between the early church fathers/theologians. 'You will see how this debate colors our view of our humanity and shapes our understanding of God's character.'

''This, the power of the cross. Christ became sin for us;

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. . .Took the blame, bore the wrath- We stand forgiven at the cross!''

Treasure found! Click on picture to see what it is!!

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. . .The whole Word of God for just $1.00 at the dollar store! That is awesome!...wayyy better than winning ANY lottery!

Uh-Oh!!! Lets get out of here.....

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.....Master just walked in the house and YOU didnt use the litter box!!!

Can I see your foto id's? You guys dont look like cats!?

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Max likes to relax!

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The other kulet!

Jojo is kulet

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This little guy is so makulet and Graabeee!

God's gift of salvation is truly amazing and gracious!

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"He(God the Father) made Him (Jesus Christ) who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." 2 Corinthians 5:21 (NASB)

My brother Russ is cool because. . .

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. . .He loves to read the Word of God!

'Make a joyful noise unto the Lord!'

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We use the piano, geetah, electric keys, and a printer to print p&w music!

One of my favourite commands and promises of the Lord. . .

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"Be anxious for NOTHING, but in PRAYER and supplication with THANKSGIVING let your requests be made known to God. And the PEACE OF GOD, which surpasses all comprehension will guard your hearts and your minds IN CHRIST JESUS." (Philippians 4:6-7) NASB

Another good way. . .

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. . .to glorify God and fellowship with other like-minded believers!

If you want to find out how much a church knows about the Bible and its doctrines. . .

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. . .Look at the Pastor's personal library!

Christocentric (Christ-Centered) Preaching

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There's an old saying "All roads lead to Rome". Well, that is true with the Bible and Jesus Christ. In the Bible, ALL texts lead to Christ. ALL verses point to Christ. There is no magical formula or secret equation about this. All of the Old Testament points to Christ. This is not a mere conjecture on my part. Jesus himself makes this claim. (Luke 24:27,44). Obviously the Four Gospels are about Christ. If you read through the Pauline epistles, the general epistles and pastoral epistles, essentially all the books of the New Testament, you will also notice the over- arching theme is Jesus Christ. Colossians 1:13-20 are just a few verses to belabor my point. Furthermore, The Bible says nothing good about man (Rom. 3:10-18). Therefore, the Gospel of Jesus Christ should be preached as the climax in every sermon. The aim of every sermon should be to make Jesus Christ visible. Some may ask what is the difference between preaching and teaching? Jokingly, someone said the difference is 'volume'! but we know that isnt the correct answer! The goal of teaching is to transfer information. In a sermon, the goal is to get people to worship and to exalt Christ. We must remember that a sermon is also a major part of worship. It is terrible to think that music is the only or primary form of worship.

In expositional preaching, we need to ask a few questions. Is it sound?(in truth) Is it clear? is Christ the climax? Or was Christ just added or missing? Is there an application? Is Jesus the solution to the people's problem or were they told to just try harder? The existential aspect: Is there a sense of God in the sermon? What's the essential metaphor? Was it gripping to get past the intellectual? Was Jesus made visible or only talked about? Lets quickly define some other forms of preaching before we discuss some more on Christocentric (Christ-centered) Preaching.

Doctrinal Preaching focuses too much on the intellect and not on the heart. It focuses too much on the expounding and on the aspects. Essentially, it does not lead hearers to worship.

Practical Preaching puts all the emphasis on application. It hits the will rather than the heart or intellect. It doesn't challenge the mind and it doesn't incorporate hearers to worship on the spot. This type is huge in American churches today. The sermons tell us "How to raise your family", "How to be a good spouse", "How to raise your kids", etc and they are all "How to's"... There is very little exposition of the text and very little theology.

Narrative Preaching- It is telling stories to get right to the heart. It goes right to the emotions. Its not theological. Its a devotional approach that goes for the emotions. It may feel like worship but it is not true worship. We must not forget that we are to worship in Spirit and in Truth.
God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.(John 4:24)

A Christocentric model of preaching means that Christ is the focus. Its only as you show how the text reveals Christ that you change peoples lives. Revealing Christ is where you move from lecture to worship. It keeps you from preaching Doctrinal, Practical, or Narrative.

A good and easy illustration would be David and Goliath:

Practical Preaching: David shows how we are to face and stand against the "big giants" in our lives. We need to trust in God like David. There's nothing morally wrong with this application, but there is nothing mentioned about Christ. We can virtually take any secular story and give similar life applications. This sermon does not exalt Christ nor lead people to Christ.

Christocentric Preaching: David was a Christ type where he risked his life to face Goliath. If David wins the battle, Israel wins. If David loses the battle, Israel loses. He had victory over the giant and imputed his victory to the nation of Israel. David points to a greater descendant, CHRIST. The nation of Israel didn't have to do anything to earn the victory. David defeated the enemy all by himself for the nation and the nation was credited Davids victory.
Therefore, the Christocentric approach says the text of David and Goliath is about Christ, and the Practical approach says this is about you! The Christocentric approach shows what Christ has accomplished and points out that the message of the Bible is Christ. The other approach shows that the texts of the Bible is about you and what you need to do.

Finally, the Bible is not just a written text where we just read it and try to understand it. It is the revelation and voice of the living God. You must approach it humbly and must read it to hear what God has to say to you. Therefore, we preach as instruments, as mouthpieces for God.

2 Corinthians 4:5 (KJV)
For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake.
1 Corinthians 1:23-24 (KJV)
But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;
But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.

Book of the month: '9 Marks of a Healthy Church' by Mark Dever

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If u are looking for a church or even if u are a leader in a church, you should consider reading this book among many others of this astute pastor-teacher. I am highly an advocate of this book because its teachings are purely biblical.

God is Merciful!!

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USAirways flight 1549 crashes into Hudson River caused by flock of birds flying into left wing motor? All 150 passengers and 5 crew memebers alive and well. PRAISE THE LORD! The only reason each and one of them is alive is because God is merciful and still has a purpose for each of their lives. The Word of God has much to say to us when we make plans in our lives without any consideration of God... "Come now, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit'- yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring, What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, If the Lord wills, we will live to do this or that." (James 4:13-15) (Proverbs 27:1)

Hangin loose in D.C. Aug2008 w/ Ptr. Dennis

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The Lord called these 2 lads to the ministry?!?!

Morning by morning new mercies I see!!!

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Great is Thy faithfulness, O Lord! Lamentations 3:23

This picture says it all.

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My wonderful mother!

Why hunger and thirst?

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Food is basic to our existence and is part of our daily routine. Why did God design life so that man needs food to sustain his own life? God could have created man without the necessity of food. Why hunger and why thirst? John Piper gives a good explanation: "God created bread so that we would have some idea of what the Son of God is like when he says, 'I am the bread of life' (John 6:35). The rhythm of thirst and satisfaction gives us the idea of what Christ means when He says, 'He who believes in me will never thirst' (John 6:35)."
The next time you are starving because you missed a meal or two, or three, think about the Lord and His Word. Do you hunger for the Lord and His Word just as you do for the food? Sometimes when we haven't eaten, what dwells inside us can surface quickly such as anger, pride, bitterness, sorrow, jealousy, etc. Our hunger dictates our direction in life literally and spiritually. Our hunger for His Word can be suppressed by the cares of this world. We may substitute the things in this world, even the gifts from God, in place of God. C.S. Lewis quotes, "The more you walk with Christ, the hungrier you get for Christ, the more homesick you get for heaven, the more you want all the fullness of God...". If we focus on the grace and mercy of God through Jesus Christ and the Gospel daily, we will be satisfied. Piper quotes,"God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him". "What we hunger for most, we worship."

Sometimes the best answer is. . .

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'I dont know'. Especially if u are a theologian!

Little moon behind a gloomy tree.

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Taken at Stone Mtn Lake Atlanta, GA.

Joey likes to keep us company when we IM!

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MK5ever Jeddah!

Joey likes to take breaks. . .

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. . .while others work kasi he is a kulit and dats wat they do best!

My favourite time of day

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Breakfast with Princess tapos we read Bible 2gether! XOXOXO!

1 grande americano with extra shot of espresso and leave room for cream pleez. :-P

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Starbucks in Mall of Georgia.

Thinking

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What is the proper name for this hydro wheel thingy?

Hmm, is dat a black paw and gray paw under my door?

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Could it be da Makulits!?

Hi Princess! I hope i can take u here 1 day!

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Tapos this foto can have both of us in it! XOXOXO! MK5EVER!

There are 2 kinds of people in the world . . .

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. . .people who love Pizza Hut, & people who love Pizza Hut!

Self portrait @ H&M Atlanta GA mall.

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YEP! I ate too much these past holidays! Nothing in this store fits me!

Can you see the carving of 3 men on Stone Mtn?

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Im not sure who the men are in the carving, but thats me and my cousins Josh and James below.

Panoramic view of river at Stone Mtn.

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Atlanta Georgia

Isosceles-Triangular Fotothon

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Im taking a picture of my brother Scott who is taking a picture of our cousin Mark who is also taking a picture of me taking a picture of Scott. . .

वहत अ ग्रासिओउस लोर्ड वे हवे व्हो रिंग्स न्यू लाइफ इन्तो थिस वर्ल्ड!!

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थी लोर्ड इस ग्रासिओउस एंड गुड! हे ब्रिंग्स न्यू लाइफ इन्तो थिस वर्ल्ड!!!

He is called Luke Ezekial Garalde, my nephew and son of Brian and Bambi Garalde. . . 9months old in this picture.

Lots of :-P smileys

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Me and my 2 little angel nieces, Elizbeth and Lara, IMing my Princess Jeddah!

Paranoia

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Im sleeping in the 'guest room' at my cousins house in GA. As I lay on the bottom bunkbed, I look up and see all my nieces furry friends staring at me!!

Thumbs up from Elizabeth!

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We just arrived in GA after a 11hr drive today frm MD! Time for late dinner!

Mostly-Sunny or Partly-Cloudly?

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What are yer hermeneutics on this picture?

What are important marks of a healthy church?

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Check out www.9marks.org

Christmas 1982

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Steve, Darlene, Karen

Definitely not model material!!

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Praise the Lord this body is temporary!

Jesus paid it ALL!

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ALL to Him I owe!

My Princess

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. . .in Singapore

Day after Christmas 2008

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View from our front door

Life is a blur without Christ.

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Focus on the Word day and nite.

Camera trick

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I got 3 shots of my same brother in this pic from my SE Phone!

Days of Vengeance- by David Chilton

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My part-pret friend, JoshC, loaned me this book. . .It has begun.

Ahhh, behold, Logos!

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Logos is perhaps the worlds most powerful Bible software in the world. It is a must-have for every person who takes the Word of God seriously! Buy yers today at www.logos.com

The Blues guitarist

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Rockin da flyin-V!!