Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
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This last week, I was studying my way through Romans 7 when I came to a very intriguing passage. The passage was Romans 7:14-21. The main theme in this passage is the struggle between the Apostle Paul’s two natures. A part of him is utterly fallen and sinful, and another part of him desires to please God. I found this to be very thought provoking. Most Christians would acknowledge Paul as being a stellar believer. The Apostle Paul writes about living in faith, loving God, and loving people with such passion that it is hard for people today t...
Is spring finally here? It sure looks like it. I walked to work today and didn't have to worry about slipping on the ice. It was a beautiful morning. We had so much ice this year and let's throw in wind as well. Nothing like a strong wind blowing snow over the ice to polish it up nice and shiny and slippery. I had a meeting with a family at the funeral home early this afternoon. Sometime between my walk to the office in the morning and my afternoon drive to New Rockford to the funeral home, it got quite windy, cold and even a drop a two of...
Why? So often this is a question asked by children of their parents. They see something they are not familiar with so it stands to reason that they would ask why. Even everyday occurrences, things that are so common to us we don't even notice them, can be a wonderment to little ones. Sometimes they don't know why there are rules or why they are forbidden to do some things. “Come inside, it's starting to rain,” says mom. Do we have to? Why? “Because you will get wet.” So? We get wet when we take a bath. Why can't we get wet in the rain? “Your c...
If you were to think of a single word, one which would sum up the Lent season, what would it be? Sadness? Worry? Death? Suffering? Jesus? Cross? There are any number of words that come to mind. And most likely, they would all be correct to some extent. Certainly all the ones I just listed would qualify. But the one I've come up with, the one word that to me signifies this season on our church calendar is Forgiveness. It is indeed a difficult concept to truly understand. In other religions of the world, they don't have a God that will forgive a...
No matter where we come from or how we have been taught, we are responsible for what we think, what we say, and how we act. As optimism and pessimism are learned behaviors, we know that our conduct and worldviews can be changed and controlled if this is our desire. Our spiritual understanding about who God is and who we are in Him must become more than a hope or a chance of fate. Having a personal relationship with Him is based on knowing that we have been purchased with the blood that Jesus...
I want to share a praise report of God healing someone I know personally. We hear about sickness and disease and the endless cries of why, but rarely do we learn about miracles when God intervenes and touches a person with His creative and restoring authority. In the New Testament, there are true accounts of Jesus asking what He can do for those who were suffering, and when they told Him their request, He said, “I will.” As Christians, we pray because we believe God is listening and that He wil...
This week begins the portion of the church calendar that separates Christianity from all other religions, Easter. As a prelude, a time for preparation, for nearly all Christian denominations to observe the season of Lent. The season of Lent lasts for 40 days and begins on Ash Wednesday. But if you were to count the actual days on your calendar from Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday you would find there are 44 days. The answer to this is that as Sunday is a day of worship, it is not counted as a day of preparation. So, taking the days of this...
Let’s take a moment to whine about the weather. It’s dreary, always windy, bitter cold. Our vitamin D levels are down and we can feel it. Sometimes we hear, “well, if you’re dressed right, you can enjoy the outdoors in any weather.” Right. Unless you live here. We can find a lot to whine about these days. And they are real complaints. Life is difficult, we’re polarized, we’re busy, we’re distracted. All the whining reminds me of a familiar story about Jesus: The Wedding at Cana, a.k.a. when Jesus turns water into wine. We want THAT kind of wi...
One of the greatest mysteries is the perplexing relationship between God and humans. I cannot think of a more glorious yet frustrating subject. Especially when it comes to people trying to find answers when all they have is questions. I’ve counseled and given psychological first aid to those who have gone through a traumatic crisis and I’ve listened to people in hospital waiting rooms repeat that age-old question, “Why is this happening?” They cry and beg, but many times they cannot hear a...
Just before the Israelites enter the Promised Land, God tells them: “While you’re out among the nations where God has dispersed you and the blessings and curses come in just the way I have set them before you….” (Genesis 30:1). There are two words to explore: blessings and curses. In our #blessed culture, we believe that anything good that happens is a blessing and anything bad is a curse. That’s not what the root of these words mean, in fact, I want to challenge that the opposite may be true. The Hebrew word for blessing in this passage i...
For the next three weeks, we will wander together through the early verses of Deuteronomy chapter 30. Wander deeply. First, the context: the Israelites have been led by Moses through the Red Sea (Exodus 13-15), out of the land of Egypt where they were held as slaves of Pharoah. For 40 years, they’ve been wandering. For 40 years, they’ve witnessed miracles, been in battles, done their fair share of complaining, obeyed and strayed, all holding onto the promise that they’ll eventually be gifted and led to the Promised Land. That’s where Deutero...
The Holy Spirit, in the work of creating life, gathers us into the community that is the church. This new life comes to us through the gifts of God’s word and through baptism and holy communion. These three can be termed as “means of grace”. They are visible signs of God’s love for us and promise to us. The waters of baptism bring new birth, as we are grafted by the Holy Spirit’s grace into Christ’s death and resurrection, and into the promise God made to Israel. The bread and the wine deliver to us the forgiveness of sin through the body an...
During my seminary studies, I took a full semester class on the Holy Spirit. Part of our assignment at the end of the semester was to write our own best definition of the Holy Spirit. Here's what I came up with: The Holy Spirit is a creative energy that is manifested in power and transforming love. As one of three persons of the Triune God, the Holy Spirit is more than energy, the Holy Spirit is personal, is relationship, is community. When Jesus was about to leave his disciples and ascend to the Father, he told them, “Go therefore and make dis...
On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 1:4-5) The verses above happen after Jesus’ resurrection and before his ascension. He makes clear that what he had told them was about to happen. The Holy Spirit is coming, and in just a few days; and the Holy Spirit is a gift from the Father. On the day of Pente...
John 2:1-5 - On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” Jesus’ ministry and life on earth was made up of two primary actions: teaching and miracles. The Scripture text listed above tells the story of...
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, they are a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. – 2 Corinthians 5:17 Happy New Year! I pray that your Christmas celebrations were filled with comfort and joy – comfort from the one who came to be with us in good times and bad, and joy at the gift of love and peace that is Jesus. And now, as a new year arrives, it is time for NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS! Did you make any this year? Why or why not? And if you did, how is it going? Many people find New Year’s resolutions to be a depress...
The New Year is here and I’m excited to see what 2022 has for us! My hope is this coming year will be a season of abundance, not just with material prosperity and success, but of love, health, and spiritual awareness. As we plant seeds of faith, may we have the patience and expectation to witness the harvest of God’s blessings. One of my personal resolutions is to be more generous and joyful even when things are not going well. I’m reminded of a quote by Mother Teresa who said, “Not all of us c...
"Blessed are the clean of heart: for they shall see God. Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5:8-10) These are two of the last three of the eight Beatitudes that Jesus identified in his Sermon on the Mount. Beatitude means supreme happiness or blessedness. So, following these should, by definition, result in our supreme happiness in eternal life. But, how do they relate to us, today, right now? How do we live them out in our day-to-day life? There is one current issue that is...
Perfection! Painstaking perfection is how someone could describe how God asked for His Ark of the Covenant to be built. It would be here where He dwelt with His chosen people on earth. The children of Israel were told to bring their first fruits as materials for the Ark. Only incorruptible wood and the purest gold would be used to build it. The measurements would need to be exact and only the finest artisans and experts would be used to build it. "And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring "firstfruits...
How is your Advent Season going? Have you been able to spend some time prayerfully meditating on its meaning? Have you had time to reflect on how broken our world was back then awaiting the Messiah to come to save it on Christmas morning? Have you had time to examine your own life to see where, as Isaiah reminds us, you might need to prepare a way for Jesus to enter anew this Christmas, to make Him a straight path, fill in your valleys, make low your hills, and make your rough ways smooth? Or, have you had little or no time to think about...
"For this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice. Pilate said to him, “What is truth?”’ John:18:37-38 In this exchange with Pontius Pilate, Jesus leaves no doubt that there is such a thing as truth, He testifies to it, and those who listen to His voice testify to it as well. Like many in society today, Pontius Pilate asks the question, "What is truth?" The passage leaves us room to ponder whether Pilate had a genuine desire to know what truth really is, or if it was a disda...
For those who ponder about the requirements for developing and maintaining a deeper relationship with God, we must include some vital components, and one of the most critical is desire. Ask any business person or athlete about what it takes to accomplish a goal and they will always testify about the importance of vision, perseverance, and determination. Likewise, when it comes to drawing nearer to the Lord, we must begin with old-fashioned enthusiasm. The next question is where does this...
Grace and Peace to you from God our Father. Amen. It seems like everybody says this at least once every day. Where has the time gone? I know I do. It seems to me we were just complaining about how hot it was outside and now, here we are making plans for Thanksgiving, and Christmas is right around the corner. This week’s message is a prayer. We all know what the holiday of Thanksgiving is for. It is pretty much self-explanatory. We are to be thankful for the many blessings we receive; both physical and spiritual. So, rather than go through a b...
I’ve always enjoyed Thanksgiving, but many times I become distracted from the intended purpose. I confess that between football, conversations, and the delicious meals, I often forget how much I have to be grateful for. Let us once again be reminded of the history of human suffering that is associated with the Pilgrims. It’s been recorded that the new colony gave thanks to God for His blessings and protection, as William Bradford is quoted as saying, “Being thus arrived in a good harbor, and b...
Grace and Peace to you from God our Father. Amen. Last week I talked about the bible. I enjoy reading the bible and do so every day. It's not just because I'm “in the business” and reading it is part of my job. I read the bible before I started in parish ministry. Why? Well, for a number of reasons. One is that even though the New Testament was written approximately 2,000 years ago, and the Old Testament long before that, some of it reads as if it were written to us just yesterday. Take the apostle Paul's letters to the churches he helped get s...
