Up for the Task
Messianic Wannabees
After the reign of David, Israel craved for an ideal king to maintain their culture and prestige among the nations. Disillusioned when the kingdom was divided, Israel's hope of a Messiah was projected into the future. Looking toward Bethlehem, they longed for his coming.Will the real Messiah please stand up.
"Feast for Princes and Princesses"
In 1989, the Village of Hope was established to care for the abandoned and destitute children of Ghana, West Africa. This orphanage is under the oversight of the elders of Vertical Center church of Christ in Tema, Ghana.In Africa, four of five children will die before they reach the age of five.
By Paul Goddard (30 November 2007, 01:00 AM)
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Continue reading: "Feast for Princes and Princesses" | TrackBack
Testudo of Faith
Centuries before armored personnel carriers were invented to transport troops, the testudo military formation was used by the Romans to deploy soldiers into battle. The word testudo is Latin for tortoise.There is an unseen spiritual battle being waged in heavenly realms.
Philippi, Gateway to Rome
In 42 B.C., Mark Antony and Octavius set out for Macedonia to punish the assassins of Julius Caesar. West of Philippi, they met the armies of Brutus and Cassius. Here, the Roman Republic would became the Roman Empire. Taking a defensive position, Brutus and Cassius occupied the high ground on the Via Egnatia. To outflank this placement, Mark Antony ordered his legions to attack by approaching through the marshes south of the city. ...Philippi was the scene of important battles, political and spiritual.
Retired Christian?
Accounting for almost 25% of the national budget, Social Security is the largest federally funded program in the United States. Providing financial assistance for more than 46 million retired and disabled workers, Social Security has become the main source of stability for many Americans.
Christ provides a rest which is greater than any retirement program.
A Lesson in Vigilance
Preparing to attack Corinth, Mississippi, the United States Army bivouacked alongside the Tennessee River, on the night of April 5, 1862. Not anticipating an attack from the Confederates, the unsuspecting Union generals took few precautions to defend their camps. This was a mistake, for within two miles, 44,000 enemy troops were poised for battle. ...Colonel Peabody saved the army from certain destruction.
Figurative Language
Raymond C. Kelcy served as the chairman of the Bible Department at Oklahoma Christian College from 1962 until his death in 1986. He had a profound influence on my life. A few weeks ago an individual dogmatically stated, "There's no figurative language in the Bible, for every word is literal." In response to this statement, I thought back to Dr. Kelcy's lecture "The Figurative Language of the Bible". My class notes are now yellow, but here is what he taught: ...
Raymond C. Kelcy's lecture notes show the figurative language of the Bible.
Which Way?
"Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than going to a garage makes you an automobile." -- Billy Sunday Jesus spent three years preaching, teaching, and healing people throughout the regions of Galilee, Samaria, and Judea....Jesus invites us to follow him.
By Paul Goddard (06 April 2007, 09:40 AM)
Continue reading: Which Way?
Continue reading: Which Way?
John's Babylon
"The persecution of Domitian burned itself ineradicably into the memory of history; it may be doubted by the critic, but not by the historian." --Sir William Ramsay Despised and feared by the Roman Senate, Domitian came to power during...Jesus' Revelation
By Paul Goddard (30 March 2007, 12:31 PM)
Continue reading: John's Babylon
Continue reading: John's Babylon
Darius' Babylon
"There are no compacts between lions and men." --Homer Found in the small town of Henderson, Tennessee, on the campus of Freed-Hardeman University, is a ferocious-looking African lion. Just walk through the doors of the Sports Center and peer...Daniel's Faithfulness
By Paul Goddard (09 March 2007, 07:17 AM)
Continue reading: Darius' Babylon
Continue reading: Darius' Babylon
Belshazzar's Babylon
"The conscience of us all, can read without its glasses, on revelation's wall." -- Emily Dickinson Noting that the Euphrates River ran directly under the walls of Babylon, General Ugbaru attempted to enter the city by diverting the river....Handwriting on the Wall
By Paul Goddard (23 February 2007, 07:34 AM)
Continue reading: Belshazzar's Babylon
Continue reading: Belshazzar's Babylon
Nebuchadnezzar's Babylon (Part 2)
"Well may he smell fire, whose gown burns." --George Herbert After Nebuchadnezzar's first dream was correctly interpreted, the king was so joyful that he fell prostrate before Daniel and said, "Surely your God is the God of gods and...Faith Brings Glory to God
By Paul Goddard (09 February 2007, 09:34 AM)
Continue reading: Nebuchadnezzar's Babylon (Part 2)
Continue reading: Nebuchadnezzar's Babylon (Part 2)
Nebuchadnezzar's Babylon
"It will never again be inhabited or lived in from generation to generation." Jeremiah During the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II (605 - 562 B.C.), Babylon was the most powerful city in the Fertile Crescent./1 Famous for its Hanging Gardens,...Saddam Hussein tried to rebuild it, but failed.
By Paul Goddard (26 January 2007, 07:16 AM)
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Continue reading: Nebuchadnezzar's Babylon
Not In My Bible?
"Speaking without thinking is like shooting without taking aim." --Spanish Proverb Proverbs are expressions of some experience acknowledged to be true. Every culture has some short pithy sayings. They are handed down from one generation to the next. In...Folk Proverbs
By Paul Goddard (05 January 2007, 09:17 AM)
Continue reading: Not In My Bible?
Continue reading: Not In My Bible?
Jesus Had No Closet
Money is a terrible master, but an excellent servant" - P.T. Barnum Since the beginning of time, mankind has traded one item of value for another. Over the centuries nomadic people have bartered cattle for grain, swapped goats for...Trusting God
By Paul Goddard (15 December 2006, 07:20 AM)
Continue reading: Jesus Had No Closet
Continue reading: Jesus Had No Closet
A Short History of Christmas
"If a thousand old beliefs were ruined in our march to truth we must still march on." -Stopford A. Brooke The birthday of Jesus Christ has been celebrated on December 25th since A.D. 336. During the first three centuries...What does the Bible reveal?
By Paul Goddard (08 December 2006, 09:27 AM)
Continue reading: A Short History of Christmas
Continue reading: A Short History of Christmas
Holiday Email
By now, I'm sure that you've received numerous holiday emails. Here is one that I would like to share with you. It is entitled, "A Letter from Jesus". This fictional letter has come to me in several versions. Here is...
By Paul Goddard (24 November 2006, 09:25 AM)
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Continue reading: Holiday Email
The Rock River
"O Lord, who lends me life, lend me a heart replete with thankfulness." -- William Shakespeare The Rock River is a murky tributary located about two miles from Dixon, Illinois. During one seven-year period, one local lifeguard was credited...The rescue of Barney Barnhart
By Paul Goddard (17 November 2006, 09:46 AM)
Continue reading: The Rock River
Continue reading: The Rock River
The Greatest Show on Earth
"I am a man, and whatever concerns humanity is of interest to me." -Terence Holding the NCAA single-game regular attendance record, Michigan Stadium is the largest collegiate football stadium in the country. Thousands have passed through its turnstiles to...You Will Be There!
By Paul Goddard (10 November 2006, 08:54 AM)
Continue reading: The Greatest Show on Earth
Continue reading: The Greatest Show on Earth
Whose Side Are You On?
In the spring of 1861, Southern officials, believing him loyal to their cause, commissioned Alfred Thomas Archimedes Torbert as a Lieutenant in the Confederate Army. However on the day of his confirmation, Torbert was serving as a Colonel in the 1st New Jersey Volunteers. Commissioned to serve on both sides of the conflict, he was whole-heartedly loyal the United States. He was the only officer to have the distinction of serving in both the Confederate and Union armies at the same time.Simultaneously serving two masters gives one a false sense of satisfaction.
By Paul Goddard (06 October 2006, 03:17 PM)
Continue reading: Whose Side Are You On?
Continue reading: Whose Side Are You On?
Milk and Honey
"Every brave man is a man of his word." -Pierre Corneille With your permission, I would like to give you a short Bible quiz. Name the twelve spies that Moses sent into the land of Canaan. Can you do...The Land of Rest
By Paul Goddard (29 September 2006, 01:04 PM)
Continue reading: Milk and Honey
Continue reading: Milk and Honey
Worthless?
"All that I am I owe to Jesus Christ, revealed to me in His divine Book." - David Livingstone Before the Civil War, the United States of America had no national currency. Each state printed and regulated its own...Two Dollar Bill
By Paul Goddard (15 September 2006, 07:17 AM)
Continue reading: Worthless?
Continue reading: Worthless?
We Need Each Other
"Everything that happens in the world is part of a great plan of God running through all time." -Henry Ward Beecher I first read the book, God Is No Fool, twenty-eight years ago. It challenged me then, and today I'm...Ruth and Naomi
By Paul Goddard (01 September 2006, 09:56 AM)
Continue reading: We Need Each Other
Continue reading: We Need Each Other
Bad Advice
"Youth must be led by youth." Adolf Hitler Using charismatic oratory and the symbol of the Swastika, Adolf Hitler became the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party (Nazi) on July 29, 1921. Focusing his propaganda on the...Volksgemeinschaft/1
By Paul Goddard (25 August 2006, 12:26 PM)
Continue reading: Bad Advice
Continue reading: Bad Advice
One-armed Pitcher
"I'll never forget the feeling in the pit of my stomach and in the depths of my heart when I first heard the word cancer. My world ground to a halt." Dave Dravecky David Francis Dravecky was an effective...Dave Dravecky's Battle with Cancer
By Paul Goddard (18 August 2006, 11:01 AM)
Continue reading: One-armed Pitcher
Continue reading: One-armed Pitcher
Who's Your Hero?
"Of course it's mine, I bought and paid for it." John Wayne Marion Morrison, called "Duke" by his friends, was recruited to play football for the University of Southern California. In exchange for football tickets, he started working in Hollywood....Marion Morrison
By Paul Goddard (11 August 2006, 01:09 PM)
Continue reading: Who's Your Hero?
Continue reading: Who's Your Hero?
No Books, No Pews, No Problem
Let your imagination go, and come travel with me. It's Sunday morning as we drive down a deserted street somewhere in the United States. We are strangers to the area, and we want to meet with the local assembly to...Going to Church?
By Paul Goddard (04 August 2006, 07:28 AM)
Continue reading: No Books, No Pews, No Problem
Continue reading: No Books, No Pews, No Problem
Can You See Me Now?
"The sunrise, of course, doesn't care if we watch it or not. It will keep on being beautiful, even if no one bothers to look at it. It illuminates and blesses our lives, expecting nothing in return." - Gene Amole...Evangelism
By Paul Goddard (23 June 2006, 01:00 PM)
Continue reading: Can You See Me Now?
Continue reading: Can You See Me Now?
Cherokee Christians (Part 4)
Despite James Trott's effort to raise interest in his work, his expectations were never reached. When fighting broke out between the northern and southern states in 1861, the ministry was interrupted. The Civil War divided the Cherokee Nation as Union...The Restoration Movement
By Paul Goddard (16 June 2006, 11:02 AM)
Continue reading: Cherokee Christians (Part 4)
Continue reading: Cherokee Christians (Part 4)
Cherokee Christians (Part 3)
In 1853, James Jenkins Trott was once again asked to serve as a missionary to the Cherokee tribe. Lacking finances, the actual ministry was delayed for three years. Despite this setback, he traveled three thousand miles through Arkansas and Missouri,...The Restoration Movement
By Paul Goddard (09 June 2006, 08:26 AM)
Continue reading: Cherokee Christians (Part 3)
Continue reading: Cherokee Christians (Part 3)
Cherokee Christians (Part 2)
James Jenkins Trott was the first preacher from the churches of Christ to evangelize among the Cherokees. At the age of fifteen, his parents moved from North Carolina to Tennessee where Trott joined the Methodist Episcopal church in 1821./1 The...The Restoration Movement
By Paul Goddard (02 June 2006, 07:22 AM)
Continue reading: Cherokee Christians (Part 2)
Continue reading: Cherokee Christians (Part 2)
Cherokee Christians
Between 1820 and 1845, the United States Government established Indian Territory. It included all of the area that makes up the present state of Oklahoma except for the panhandle. In 1825, John C. Calhoun, the Secretary of War, recommended that...The Restoration Movement
By Paul Goddard (26 May 2006, 08:11 AM)
Continue reading: Cherokee Christians
Continue reading: Cherokee Christians
Last Year's Nest
"The American robin, the largest of the North American thrushes, is found over most of North America in the summer months ... its familiar song begins well before daybreak and in many regions signals the start of spring." --Chipper Woods...Resurrection
By Paul Goddard (20 May 2006, 07:00 AM)
Continue reading: Last Year's Nest
Continue reading: Last Year's Nest
Navajo Nation
"I am amused to see from my window here how busily man has divided and staked off his domain. God must smile at his puny fences running hither and thither everywhere over the land." - Henry David Thoreau The Navajo...Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven.
By Paul Goddard (12 May 2006, 09:38 AM)
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Continue reading: Navajo Nation
Before Graceland
"I am following the river down the highway through the cradle of the civil war. I'm going to Graceland. Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee." Paul Simon When we moved into our house several years ago, I was amused when a elderly...Psalm 46:10
By Paul Goddard (05 May 2006, 02:20 PM)
Continue reading: Before Graceland
Continue reading: Before Graceland
Up Yonder
"But, soft! What light through yonder window breaks? It is the east, and Juliet is the sun." William Shakespeare When I lived in Detroit, I remember those wonderful Michiganders smiling at me when I would greet them on the street...Revelation 20:11-15
By Paul Goddard (28 April 2006, 09:30 AM)
Continue reading: Up Yonder
Continue reading: Up Yonder
Secret Sauce
"Of course I can keep secrets. It's the people I tell them to that can't keep them." Anthony Haden-Guest It's delicious, it's savory, and it has been delighting folks for decades. It was refined by my grandfather, and it still...Psalm 139:1-13
By Paul Goddard (21 April 2006, 07:31 AM)
Continue reading: Secret Sauce
Continue reading: Secret Sauce
Overnight in Okinawa
Henry Ershine once said, "The rule of the road is paradox quite, for if you keep to the left, you're sure to be right." Okinawa is the largest island in the Ryukyu chain of islands in the East China Sea....James 1:16-18
By Paul Goddard (14 April 2006, 07:15 AM)
Continue reading: Overnight in Okinawa
Continue reading: Overnight in Okinawa
The Luck Stops Here
Thomas Jefferson once said, "I'm a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it." Do you remember Li'l Abner, Daisy Mae, and Mammy and Pappy Yokum? If not, they were all...Faith verses Luck
By Paul Goddard (10 April 2006, 09:27 AM)
Continue reading: The Luck Stops Here
Continue reading: The Luck Stops Here
Long Live the King! (Part 2)
Elizabeth was trained in Greek and Latin, and it was during her reign that the literature of Marlowe, Shakespeare, and Spenser flourished. Her first order of business was to put down the religious unrest that had been inherited from her...1 Timothy 6:11-16
By Paul Goddard (31 March 2006, 02:42 PM)
Continue reading: Long Live the King! (Part 2)
Continue reading: Long Live the King! (Part 2)
Long Live the King!
"Britain is an island in the Ocean." Bede, A.D. 731. In 332 B.C., Pytheas of Marseilles was the first to write about this island in the Atlantic Ocean. His account was followed by Julius Caesar's spellbinding reports of the Roman...British Church History
By Paul Goddard (24 March 2006, 07:40 AM)
Continue reading: Long Live the King!
Continue reading: Long Live the King!
It Ain't Easy
Catherine Cantwell never received information on how, when, or where her husband died. The country had been at war for only a few months when Abner Cantwell rode off to enlist in Captain Tompkins's Texas Confederate Militia, on September 30,...Suffering
By Paul Goddard (17 March 2006, 01:14 PM)
Continue reading: It Ain't Easy
Continue reading: It Ain't Easy
Monuments of Stone
"It is proposed that the contemplated monument shall be like him in whose honor it is constructed, unparalleled in the world, and commensurate with gratitude, liberality, and patriotism of the people by whom it is to be erected." These words...Luke 22:1-22
By Paul Goddard (10 March 2006, 09:38 AM)
Continue reading: Monuments of Stone
Continue reading: Monuments of Stone
It's No Joke!
"One for you one for me...." On the outskirts of a small town, there was a big, old pecan tree just inside the cemetery fence. One day, two boys filled up a bucketful of nuts and sat down by the...Eschatology
By Paul Goddard (03 March 2006, 09:02 AM)
Continue reading: It's No Joke!
Continue reading: It's No Joke!
The Name
"Some Memphians can thank Mrs. Pauline W. Arnett for saving them from outlandish names that would be a constant embarrassment to them." These words were penned by Eldon Roark, a human-interest columnist who wrote for The Memphis Press-Scimitar in 1945....Exodus 3:14
By Paul Goddard (27 February 2006, 01:18 PM)
Continue reading: The Name
Continue reading: The Name
Who Told Geronimo?
"In the beginning the world was covered with darkness. There was no sun, no day. The perpetual night had no moon or stars." This quote is the opening to S.M. Barrett's 1907 biography, Geronimo's Story of His Life. Geronimo was...Universal Creator
By Paul Goddard (24 February 2006, 08:17 AM)
Continue reading: Who Told Geronimo?
Continue reading: Who Told Geronimo?
The Sooner Grill
"He has an engaging, flawless personality, which after you have been exposed to it for a long time, you examine closely for cracks because it seems too perfect. But the cracks are not there." These were the words written by...Victory in Jesus
By Paul Goddard (13 February 2006, 07:51 AM)
Continue reading: The Sooner Grill
Continue reading: The Sooner Grill
The Assasin Waits
The Assassin Waits President Ronald Reagan wrote the following to Timothy McCarthy, "There will always be the special gratitude I feel for your extraordinary heroism on that one cold day in March. It is a gratitude words could never convey."...Satan
By Paul Goddard (06 February 2006, 10:46 AM)
Continue reading: The Assasin Waits
Continue reading: The Assasin Waits
Long Division Arithmetic
Growing up near the Mexican border in 1917, Walter Swan had an exciting life. It was filled with adventures on his parents' homestead, which was just south of the mining town of Bisbee, Arizona. He hunted quail and rabbits and...Integrity
By Paul Goddard (03 February 2006, 09:47 AM)
Continue reading: Long Division Arithmetic
Continue reading: Long Division Arithmetic
Uncle Ed's Story
In 1961, Edgar Franklin Loughmiller was buried in Fairlawn Cemetery. To many people, he was just a cowboy, but to my grandmother, he was Uncle Ed. At the age of 24, he stood only five foot, seven inches tall, with...Spiritual Warfare
By Paul Goddard (27 January 2006, 10:50 AM)
Continue reading: Uncle Ed's Story
Continue reading: Uncle Ed's Story
Chief Micanopy's Surprise
It was a cold day in Florida, when multiple gun shots were fired, sending the blue-coated Federal soldiers scrabbling for cover. Just five days before on December 23, 1835, Major Francis Dade led his men out of Fort Brooke (Tampa)...Be Prepared!
By Paul Goddard (20 January 2006, 04:20 PM)
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Continue reading: Chief Micanopy's Surprise
Boss Crump
by Paul Goddard Will Rogers once said, "I don't make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts." Edward Hull "Boss" Crump was born on a small farm near Holly Springs, Mississippi, on October 2, 1874. He moved...
By Guest Writer (09 January 2006, 03:02 PM)
Continue reading: Boss Crump
Continue reading: Boss Crump
Blackberry Capital of the World
by Paul Goddard McLoud, Oklahoma, was established on June 21, 1895. The town was named after John W. McLoud, a railroad attorney for the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf Railway. It was settled by homesteaders who made the Kickapoo land run...
By Guest Writer (08 December 2005, 06:20 PM)
Continue reading: Blackberry Capital of the World
Continue reading: Blackberry Capital of the World