Where God Guides He Provides

When Integrity Pays - Ezra 7:11-28

January 28, 2026 • Scott Richards • 2 Corinthians 3:3, Ezra 7:11–28, Luke 16:10–13, Proverbs 22:1

Ezra is returned to Israel with the resources and legal authority to beautify the Temple and officially establish the nation legally. It was decades in the making, but the timing was always perfect. Ezra himself served as the kind of people we want to become as we wait for His work to continue.

1. God can develop your integrity through your faithfulness with small things.

2. A Godly reputation is the best kind of testimony.

3. God will handle the timing of His answers. We simply need to focus on our ability to handle those answers when they come.

How to Beat the Blame Game

February 18, 2026 • Scott Richards • Ezra 10, Philippians 2:1–5, Proverbs 3:11–12, Amos 3:3

Ezra's initial ministry concludes with a call to confession and reconciliation with God. The process wasn't good for the men's reputations, but it was the best thing for their future here and in eternity. 1. The goal of fasting is to make God more of a priority than whatever you're replacing that time spent with. 2. If you put your family before God, there will come a point where you have to choose one over the other. 3. Sin has consequences, but God offers restoration.

An Astonishing Answer to a Christian Crisis

February 11, 2026 • Scott Richards • Ezra 9, Deuteronomy 7:1–5, 1 Peter 4:12–16, Psalm 32

Ezra’s return to Jerusalem was astonishing. It was disappointing, discouraging, and depressing. Yet in spite of the negative emotions this rightly produced, he ultimately responded through fellowship with God’s people, patience, and prayer. 1. Emotions are good servants, but poor masters. 2. Prayer aligns our will with God’s, not the other way around. 3. None of us should want what we deserve before a Holy God.

Faith That Works

February 4, 2026 • Scott Richards • Ezra 8:1–23, 2 Corinthians 13:5–6, Acts 6:1–7, Matthew 6:16–18

Ezra’s return to Jerusalem was a major step of faith for him and everyone involved. They not only had to trust God to see them safely across the Fertile Crescent, but to be the kind of people who could be trusted with those resources. God saw both done through the same means He can also see that work accomplished in our lives as well. 1. The Christian life is one lived for an audience of one. 2. Fasting is about making God a greater source of enjoyment than what you’re exchanging for that time. 3. A life lived through Jesus will look like Him.