Eclipse 2024

Matt Miles & Ryan Cox • May 8, 2024

Eclipse 2024

On the fourth day of history, God established a covenantally-controlled governance of which we witness each and every day, confirming the dependability of His eternal Word. The steadfastness of His covenant can even be occasionally beheld through wondrous displays of His definitive and miraculous engineering. Such was the case with the April 8th eclipse.


When God said, “Let there be light” on Day 1, there was light. There was enough light brought forth from God’s glory and eternal power[1] to energize and operate the entire cosmos for however long He has decreed. Hence, the Hebrew word for “light” on Day 1 (Genesis 1:3-5) is owr. It means “source light”, declaring the true source of light and life is our Creator God.[2] It was this light He separated on the first day, setting our planet into its rotation, establishing the 24-hour day-night cycle. It was this light by which He sustained the newly created plant life on Day 3. And it was this light He took and created something very special on Day 4.


On Day 4 of the first week ever, God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens”, and God made the greater light for our daytime, the lesser light for our nighttime, and all other phenomena filling the cosmos (Genesis 1:14-18). The Hebrew word used on Day 4 for light is ma’owr, which means holder or container of light. God used a small drop of His glory and created our perfect Sun. He also created the moon and every cosmic creation we can behold through a telescope.


So precise is His engineering of the universe, He directly tied Jesus and His Kingdom to the covenant He made with day and night."2This is what the LORD says, He who made the earth, the LORD who formed it and established it – the LORD is His name… 20‘If you can break My covenant with the day and My covenant with the night, so that day and night no longer come at their appointed time, 21then My covenant with David My servant may also be broken so that he will no longer have a descendant to reign on his throne'" (Jeremiah 33:2, 20-21). That covenant was established on Day 1 in Genesis 1:4-5,[3] and we behold God’s faithfulness at sunrise and sunset every single day.


Occasionally we are also blessed to witness further testimony to the awesome works of our God. The Sun’s diameter is 400 times larger than the Moon’s diameter. The Sun is also 400 times farther away from Earth. Therefore, because of these precise sizes and distances, the Moon appears to be nearly the same size in the sky as the Sun, meaning it can perfectly block out the Sun’s light when it passes directly between the Sun and Earth. The result is called a solar eclipse.[4] To our knowledge, these perfectly designed variables that have been perfectly engineered and implemented are found only in this one place in the entire universe. 


It is possible that in the perfect creation, Earth was perfectly straight/vertical on its rotational axis and both the Earth and Moon revolved perfectly flat on the ecliptic plane (the orbital path around the Sun). If so, then Earth would experience a solar eclipse every 30 days at each new moon. Put another way, every month would begin with a solar eclipse at the equator. However, Earth is not perfectly vertical on its axis (currently 23.44° to the ecliptic plane), and the Moon is not perfectly aligned with Earth anymore (5.145° to the ecliptic plane). According to Dr. John Baumgardner (Ph.D. in geophysics from UCLA) and his Catastrophic Plate Tectonics model, the impact of the Flood altered the orbital planes to their present state.[5] As a consequence, Earth now experiences total solar eclipses about every 18 months.


On October 14, 2023 in Phoenix, AZ at an event hosted by the Institute for Creation Research, the CTF team recorded an annular eclipse with one of the ministry telescopes. In an annular eclipse, the Moon is at its apogee (farthest distance) of around 252,000 miles away. At this distance, it appears too small to block out the entire Sun, so totality is not achieved.

But on April 8, 2024, totality was achieved for those in parts of North America to behold. CTF sent teams to two different locations: 1. Cody McDaniel family’s home in southeastern Oklahoma and 2. Mark McDaniel family's home in southern Illinois. For millions of people, God’s marvelous, miraculous engineering was visible.


Our Illinois team was treated to the best conditions. Amanda Cox (CTF Book & Resource Manager) was able to capture the stepped image you see below.

The Oklahoma team dealt with clouds on and off all day. They were able to capture before and after eclipse photos as well as video. Please enjoy a few shots that also captured sunspots from Bob Dugas (CTF Vice President). Unfortunately, a minute before totality clouds moved in and obscured their view until the final 4 seconds, and they were unable to document totality from their location.

We need to thank our more than gracious hosts, Cody & Melissa McDaniel for welcoming us into your home on very short notice (actually only hours). Your hospitality was overwhelming and an extreme blessing. Also gracious thanks goes out to Mark & Rhonda McDaniel as hospitality is often expected from family but never taken for granted. It is always a blessing to experience the Lord through our brothers and sisters in this great family. Please join us in thanking the Lord for these hosts that are truly His servants with all they have, openly sharing with those that have need. And to all of our supporters, Thank You for making it possible for our team to be able to capture these wonderful aspects of creation and to share with others the Lord’s awesome handiwork!


[1] Romans 1:20; see also Luke 9:32 & Acts 7:55.

[2] Job 33:30 & Psalm 56:13.

[3] This one of many reasons why the days of Genesis 1 are 24-hour, covenantally-controlled days. See also:

“What a Day” by Matt Miles and “Does ‘Day’ mean ‘Day’?” by Ryan Cox on The Scroll at creationtruth.com/thescroll

[4] Unlocking Eclipses, by the Institute for Creation Research, 2023, p. 27, available at creationtruth.com/store

[5] Dr. John Baumgardner, “Catastrophic Plate Tectonics”, April 7, 2012, beginning at 48:54 in the video, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbagD5bOsoo&list=PLAdKzOzCc6WI2hzzrmlc5xMLTlXoDLfg4&index=2

See also: https://www.socalsem.edu/noahs-flood-the-key-to-correct-interpretation-of-earth-history/.


November 2025 Printed Newsletter

November 21, 2025
The First Thanksgiving at Plymouth by Jennie Augusta Brownscombe, 1914

The Reformation and America’s Founding

By Ryan Cox • November 21, 2025
As many saw corruption not only in the abuse of parishioners, but also in church authority and doctrine, many started to speak out for reform. Martin Luther published his 95 Theses in 1517, and thanks to Johannes Guttenberg’s printing press, was able to print many short treatises on Biblical matters. His publications are thought to amount to ⅕ of all works printed in Germany in the first third of the 1500s. Economic historian Dr. Jared Rubin published in 2014 that “the mere presence of a printing press prior to 1500 increased the probability that a city would become Protestant in 1530 by 52.1 percentage points.” 1 Over in England, King Henry VIII desired to annul his marriage to his first of 6 wives, Catherine of Aragon. Pope Clement VII wouldn’t grant it, so King Henry established the Church of England, with him as the Supreme Head. After his and his son Edward’s deaths, his daughter from Catherine named Mary was able to take over. She reinstated the Catholic faith, although she was quite vengeful, burning at the stake more than 280 dissenters in her 5-year reign, giving her the label “Bloody Mary.” During this time, many Reformers fled to Geneva where they published in 1560 the Geneva Bible. After Mary’s death, her half-sister Elizabeth became queen and restored the Church of England. After her nearly 45-year reign, her cousin James I became king upon her death. He would commence the 1604 revision of the Book of Common Prayer and the Authorized Version of the Bible, published in 1611, known today as the King James Bible. Understandably, with all this political activity, things may not have always been on the up and up in the Church of England. Consequently, there were many reform efforts that sprung up, such as the Anabaptists, Baptists, Barrowists, Behmenists, Brownists, Diggers, Enthusiasts, Familists, Fifth Monarchists, Grindletonians, Levellers, Muggletonians, Puritans, Philadelphians, Quakers, Ranters, Sabbatarians, Seekers, and Socinians, to name a few. Robert Browne was an Anglican priest who was influenced by some Puritan theologians. He eventually rejected the idea of purifying the Church of England, and helped start a separatist church in 1581. In 1592, the Seditious Sectaries Act was passed specifically outlawing Brownists and other separatists, including imprisonment. Still, more continued to be influenced. So, in 1604, Archbishop Bancroft launched his campaign of suspending or firing some 380 Puritan and Separatist ministers, many of whom started new separatist churches, such as ministers Richard Clyfton and John Robinson in 1606. The postmaster and manager of the archbishop’s Manor House in Scrooby, William Brewster, had been impressed by Clyfton’s preaching and invited the separatists to meet in the house. Brewster eventually resigned his position, being fined for his absences at the king’s church. As the congregation grew, one enthusiastic 16-year old William Bradford began attending. An orphan since age 7, he had heard Clyfton preach at age 12. Now he was a member of this house church that grew to some 50 members, making it difficult to avoid the authorities. Bradford wrote, “But after these things they could not long continue in any peaceable condition, but were hunted & persecuted on every side… For some were taken & clapt up in prison, others had their houses beset & watched night and day, & hardly escaped their hands; and the most were fain to fly & leave their houses & habitations, and the means of their livelihood.” 2
Fall leaves pic

Thanksgiving Blessings!

By Matt Miles • November 21, 2025
This year we have focused on History & Destiny. As we ready ourselves for Thanksgiving, I am reminded of the history of the season and of the future to come. It is always great to celebrate this time of year and reflect back. There is so much to be thankful for, but the providence and provision of the Lord is foremost. His enduring guidance never gets old as He takes us to churches and people that need the message He has given us. This year has taken us to many places we have been to before, letting us reconnect with old friends. At the same time the Lord has opened new doors where people have been excited to hear and see Genesis in a new light with new emphasis. What a blessing to make new friends and meet co-laborers for the Gospel! God has given us connections with young and old alike, enabling the Kingdom work to continue and flourish for His praise. We are so thankful. Another year has passed and the Lord continues to provide all we need to continue this mission, including His provision of a new truck when we needed one. Yes, we still need help to pay it off, but just to be in a position to handle all that comes with purchasing a new truck is something for which we give great thanks to the Lord. To have what we need month in and month out, even when our program schedule was thin, has been a blessing worthy of great thanks. Two mornings in November we had the opportunity to teach a group of adults that many in the world forget about - those with special needs. It was a blast to talk with them about dinosaurs and, with several attendees, Biblical history. The Lord allowed us to help a blind young woman to “see” dinosaurs for her first time. All we needed to do was take her hand and let her trace the fossils with her touch. It was a truly exceptional moment to teach someone for her first time that dinosaurs are part of the Lord’s creation. We are so thankful to have been a tool in His providence and provision for those who were able to come. Our continuing mission is supported by each and every one of you who pray for us. The power of prayer is very real and we see its manifestation so often in this ministry. The financial support from family, friends and the body of Christ, His Church, carry us each and every year. We once again enter this season with extraordinary thankfulness for our Lord and for you. Thanksgiving Blessings!
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