My name is Mahtob

  I read this book when it came out in 2015.  I really liked it and I am now reading it again.  I had read the book "not without my daughter" told from the mom's perspective.  This book is written from the daughter's perspective.  The daughter is named Mahtob Mahmoody.  Very interesting book on what she remembers at ages 5 and 6 while being held captive in Iran.  She goes in great detail about Iran, writing about the smells, scenery, etc.  Most of the people in Iran were brainwashed by the Iranian government.  Mahtob writes about how she had to say "Death to America" at school in Iran.  It created hatred in her towards Iran and her dad.  There were some good Iranians who were not brainwashed by the government and they helped her and her mom escape.  Later in the book after she is back in America she becomes a follower of Jesus.  She experience similar brainwashing at the American University like at her school in Iran.  Here in America a person in college is ridiculed for their faith in Jesus.  It is a very interesting book.  I give it a 5 out of 5.  She tells it like it is.  She also talks about forgiveness.  She had the opportunity to meet her dad later in life.  She choose not to meet him.  To me that sounds harsh but she explains it well in her book.  She said she forgave her dad but did not want to meet him due to his bullying.  She saw how he beat her mom.  She did not want to put herself through that again.  She did forgive him though, which is important.  This is a great book.  I would love to hear her experience and ask her questions.
  It is also interesting that right now the Iranian people are demonstrating on the streets trying to have the Iranian government step down.  I need to pray for them.  Deep down we are all the same blood.  If we were in their shoes we would be brainwashed to.  Here in America we are brainwashed to a certain degree.  By God's Grace though we can find truth where in Iran or in America. 

2019 what a year

For farmers it has been a tough year.  I had a rough time getting my soybeans planted.  Usually you hope to get planted by third week of May.  This year it was first week of June.  The rain caused the delay.  The  we had some dry weather and lack of rain.  When I harvested I was hoping for 60 bushels per acre and it was instead around 41 to 42 bushels per acre.  That is disappointing.  I contribute it to late planting in better soils and then drier August weather especially first half of August.  I am thankful though to have been able to harvest them before the snow and rain.  The Lord provided just the right moisture for me to cut the soybeans when I did.  Last fall people were cutting soybeans in January and February.  The Lord helped me through this tough year.  My daughter Megan left home in August to live down in West Lafayette and to go to Ivy Tech.  The transition has went better than expected.  The Lord gave me Megan and now has taken her out in the world.  I pray for Megan to walk in Jesus.  She is in the picture below taken this summer.

2018 = selfishness and thankfulness

Hello, this is the first time I am writing for the year 2018.  So far already been quite the year.  My family has got hit with sicknesses.  We seem to be very busy for some reason.  Thankfully with the snow my work has slowed up but I still go in every day except for weekends which is nice.  I am including a picture of my children when we went to Turkey run this past November.  It was on a Saturday.  We had just got done with harvest and we picked up Michaela from school and spent the day as a family.  It was great.

They are growing up so fast.  I am thankful.  I had a situation already happen in the young year where I found out I am pretty selfish.  As humans we all are.  The Bible confirms this.  I was thankful the situation did not happen however it made me realize how selfish we all are.  I and my fellow humans need to be more thankful!!!  This picture is from Turkey Run and though it was a little chilly out(probably about 50 degrees) we made the best of it and enjoyed a nice hike.  I had been working a lot of hours the month before however it worked out best to go when did since harvest was done.  Not many people were there. 
I have been reading my uncle Jacks blog about Obama and different things and he has a lot of good points.  We need to not be sheep in this world.  The number one thing is to follow Jesus.  There will be no churches in Heaven.  I was born and raised in a conservative church.  I am thankful for my upbringing however there are and were some certain traditions about my church that I wondered about.  This past year in 2017 they okayed men wearing beards.  I am not sure why it never was accepted in the first place since it is not against the Bible to wear a beard.  A person must always go to the Bible first and then use that Biblical lense to analyze what a human or organization is trying to do.  I am thankful though for my upbringing we just all need to go to the Bible first.
Everyone have a great 2018, and I will try to write more later.