Israel had been in captivity for seventy years. As the story is told in Ezra, they began to return, rebuild, and repopulate (as is told in Nehemiah).

MOWING LAWNS

For a while, I lived in Indiana, and the last year I was there, I oversaw the maintenance in our apartment complex. I took care of the simple jobs such as shoveling snow, fixing minor household repairs, and mowing lawns. (The grass grew unbelievably fast!)

In the Garden of Eden, God gave a direct command to Adam to “keep the garden.” From the beginning, the job to protect and provide was given to the man. Satan entered the Garden and turned to Eve to introduce sin; the result obviously showed that Adam had failed in the hour of need. Later in the book of Titus, the woman is told to keep the house:

We are all aware of the trouble in life; trouble is common. Trouble was predicted by our Lord when He said, "In the world ye shall have tribulation,” (John 16:33) yet it still catches us off guard. We still struggle when we face a trial that forces us to our knees not knowing what to do next. Any kind of Christian has people on his prayer list that make him sit back and simply pray, almost in disbelief, for the grief they bear. Trouble is more real than any of us wish to admit.

Growing up in a home in which we believed in hard work and proper preparation, it is hard to accept the failure mentality that is so prevalent in our society.  I watched my parents try the most unusual ventures and succeed.  I saw my dad build, design, create and do just about anything imaginable (because brains can always be borrowed as long as someone is willing to do the work). 

Paul had some physical troubles, but these people loved him and learned the Gospel from him.

In our culture, men get a lot of praise. They throw a ball, build a business, or play an instrument, but who deserves the praise?

Good Morning,

Matthew 10:34 “Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword."

We will always find people in each area of life who are exceptional, and according to their role or their place in life, it is proper to give them the honor that is due them.

When Peter wrote of Noah and Lot, he referred to the world in which we live. (2 Peter 2:5-7) The picture is sad, and the results are tragic, yet God will allow men to travel the road of their own choosing. The destination though is out of their control.

Nehemiah 1:3 “And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.”


Merry Christmas from Mrs. Goddard and me. 

Christmas is certainly a time of encouraging fellowship, enjoying family reunions, exchanging gifts, and expressing love.  To Americans, Christmas is a few days off, extra food, and spending a little extra time with those we love.  I am certainly in complete favor of all the above.

A battle is raging. Do we ever wonder why the battles come? Of course we do, yet God said we are "soldiers" and that we are to "war a good warfare." Satan has no use for churches that continue to train folks to live for the Lord.

James 1:22 “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.”

I have heard people say they were disillusioned with church. I find it interesting how many other things people are not disillusioned with that are just as frail and often disappointing. Whining about being “disillusioned” is due to two basic mistakes we make. 

I heard pastor Domelle make a statement on his morning youtube video: "Go fund me or God fund me?"   He was speaking of how we run to a social media platform when trouble comes instead of going to God.  I am 100% in agreement.  I have never sent money through "Go fund me.”  I will send a check or cash to help with a need, or I will do whatever I can to help people I know (and those I do not know). Regardless of the need, I will not participate in a program that makes God-hating liberals rich, and will keep money back if they do not like the cause.

What happened to prayer, the church, and Christian friends?

Years ago, I had a dentist that I loved to visit. He had the personality of a doorknob (absolutely none at all), but the guy was punctual, financially reasonable, and made my teeth better. I do not visit the dentist office looking for a friend, I want my teeth to work and I do not want to wait forever to get in the office. He retired, and I have yet to find his equal.

Job lost ten children and all his wealth, and he handled it okay. Another attack of Satan brought about the loss of health. Job’s answer to his wife was still one of faith, "Shall we receive good at the hand of the Lord and not evil also." It was not those things that brought Job to the precipice of wrong.

Many times, God is busy working, yet men have no concept that He is.  Consider the situations surrounding one's salvation or the great success of a business. These situations often seem random, but we understand that God works exactly where He sees fit.