Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
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I’m sure many of us know John 3:16. As the most famous verse in the Bible, almost everyone who’s been in a church has it memorized, and many outside the church as well. However, the entire section is excellent. Including this little gem in John 3:19. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. John 3:19 This is a statement that I understood, but gained a deeper understanding of lately. Sin loves the dark. The dark conceals things, it removes cla...
I am attending a wedding this week. What is amazing to me is that not so very long ago, those who knew me would have been very surprised at that statement. Truth is, I would go to great lengths to avoid such gatherings. I don't really know for sure why that was but I just didn't go to them unless absolutely necessary. If it were a family event involving a sibling or a nephew or niece, that was different. It was always great to see relatives I hadn't seen for a while and the partying was usually pretty good also. But other than that, I didn't...
Greetings dear friends in Christ. It’s hardly news anymore. I can’t imagine there is any person, anywhere, that isn’t aware of COVID-19. In actuality, it hasn’t been that long since the coronavirus first made the news even though it seems like it's been around forever. As I recall, back then it was a news item but not of any particular importance. IT was just another bug, somewhat reminiscent of the Swine Flu or the Bird Flu of a few years back. We would just let it run its course and all would be fine. Well, it hasn’t worked out that way....
The Christian worldview of life is about learning what God requires and willingly accepting the call to become a devoted disciple of Christ. This life-changing decision has everything to do with yielding mind, body, and soul to the Creator of heaven and earth. It’s definitely worth considering since He has promised with all certainty that He is the way, the truth and the life. Most Bible scholars are convinced there are two categories of judgment and are commonly referred to as the saved and the unsaved. Even though there are levels of good a...
Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death. James 1:15 One of the things I’ve learned lately is how sin starts small. Perhaps it’s different for others, but for me, I was surprised to discover that my sin issue could be traced back to a point when I made a small decision. Not a huge, life-hangs-in-the-balance sort of decision, but a small one. The kind of decision that we make dozens of every day. When I look back at that very first moment, that very first choice where I first vee...
Someone mentioned the other day about how after pouring out some heated frustrations on one of their Facebook sessions, they had a headache and was terribly depressed. For those who read this column regularly, you know I do not talk a lot about politics or social issues. I just feel we already have all the arguments and opinions we need and besides, I’m more into sharing about how God so loved the world that He gave His only son so that whoever would believe in Him would not perish but have e...
Do not fear. Fear not. Do not be afraid. All these commands are found in the bible. The angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and announced that she was to become the mother of our Savior. He tells her to not be afraid. It is certainly understandable that when all of a sudden an archangel from God appears, at first she would have been afraid. Joseph is visited by an angel in a dream and is told that he is not to be afraid to continue his betrothment, to take Mary as his wife even though she is with child. It was the will of God. Shepherds, keeping...
On Sunday, August 2, the "JT Rice North Dakota Chapter of Pilots for Christ" will be hosting a FREE Golf Ball Drop and Celebration fly-in. This is the eighth annual ball drop for the organization and again this year the members would like to give back in appreciation of all that has been given to them through donations of time, talent, resources, and funding. The group formed a prize committee to choose prizes to be given away. The committee chose 1) a gas grill. 2) a one-hour helicopter tour....
Within the Christian life, there are many pillars of truth which are critical to our spiritual development and one of these is discernment. The word may have several meanings, but mostly it's associated with having spiritual sensitivity. Within the Biblical view it is used to identify whether something is good or evil and being able to interpret and understand God's voice. You see, we cannot hear what he is saying if we are not walking close to him or even aware of his presence. It's elementary...
There was a television program some time ago, reruns continue today. “Fraiser” was based on a psychiatrist who had given up private practice and now had a radio program where people would call in with problems of various levels of seriousness, though usually intended to be humorous. On one particular episode, the psychiatrist was told that he had to have a little song to be played as an intro to his program. Eventually, at the program’s ending, what they came up with was if you wanted help, no matter what your problem, if you wanted help,...
Greetings. What a wonderful time of year. Swimming pools are open, we can again have picnics in the park, chase that little white ball around golf courses, and enjoy leisurely walks in the evenings, listening to the birds singing. If you have the inclination, you can even sit back and relax in the sun with a fishing pole in your hand. We have no worries about icy roads, wondering if the car will start, and so forth. But, this year, after such a cold winter, we were so looking forward to finally having spring and then the coronavirus hit. While...
I really appreciate readers who send me emails and even hand-written letters, they are truly an encouragement. Actually, I received a wonderful letter the other day by a gentleman from South Carolina who had recently lost his wife and he said one of these columns touched him deeply. My topic was about how God’s eye is always on the sparrow, and this reminded him of a precious memory that he and his wife had experienced many years ago. He sent along some photos and it was just a very kind e...
And I know He watches me I was working out in the yard the other day and a tiny sparrow landed on the ground just a few feet from me. I watched as it moved its head around and then flew off with lightning speed. I was reminded of the passage in Matthew chapter ten which states that God keeps His eye on every sparrow and how He watches us even more closely. What a comfort to know that wherever we are or what experiences we are going through, we can rest assured that He is attentively observing ev...
I’ve had several conversations with different people about anxiety lately. Last week I wrote about worry and stress, but I think anxiety can fall into an entirely different category. Yes, most of us have everyday things we are anxious and worried about, but these conversations have been about the type of anxiety that consumes you and stops you in your tracks. Some people have anxiety that stops them from functioning, makes it hard to get up in the morning, or makes the simplest of things seem like life or death. These conversations made me r...
He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” -Psalm 46:10 The Lord has been reminding me of the basics lately. He has been bringing me back to him, his heart and the building blocks of knowing him. Two weeks ago, I wrote about prayer, last week I talked about love, and this week I want to explore the idea of being still. I want to explore what that means and why it’s important in our lives. Last week I had a busy week. I went to Fargo, went camping, had to work and got ready...
1 Peter 4:8 “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.” These last few weeks... no, months, have made 2020 one for the history books. Not only do we have a virus that has almost shut our country down, now riots have hit the streets and people are loudly protesting the injustices in our world. I’ve watched the news and scrolled social media, all the while wondering what can I do to help. How can I make an impact in our world when it seems to be spinning too fast around me? Last week I wrote about pra...
“Make your life a prayer.” 1 Thessalonians 5:17 TPT The Lord has been teaching me about prayer, a lot, lately. Prayer is a subject I think we can become ambivalent or casual towards. We know the spiel, “it’s important, it works, and it’s how we communicate with God.” But do we really understand the power of prayer? How by simply asking, God can change his mind and alter the future of a people, a nation and the world. The world has become a crazy place and seems to be getting crazier by the day. We watch the news and see anger, violence, r...
If our mind is filled with a world of thoughts that are contrary or even dishonorable to God, how can there be room for us to concentrate on His goodness, peace, and hope? When Mary was about to give birth and there was no room in the Inn, God was also allowing us to see that many people in this world have no room in their life for Jesus. Their heart and mind is filled with carnality, selfishness, arrogance, and negative influences. This is why the enemy of our soul has created many obstacles an...
What is the meaning and purpose of life? This is a question I would not have been able to answer a few years ago. At that point, my biggest worries were enjoying life and managing what other people thought of me. Going into college, I was so hung up on this question of identity that I took a class about it my first semester. Goals, Drives, and the Search for Identity. Interestingly enough, it was not this class that helped me figure it out. About halfway through my freshman year, I began a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Through...
Something that God has been continuing to teach me lately is how to better love people. Simple, but far from easy. The other day, I read through Luke 6:27-36. This passage is quoted from one of Jesus’ sermons and is about love for enemies. “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” (27-28) God knows that our natural, sinful desire is self-interest. We worry about people being unfair, treating us poorly, and saying terrible things about us. Yet, we are called to love these...
Be still. It is said several times throughout the Bible, and is quite a popular phrase among the home décor section of Hobby Lobby. He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Psalm 46:10 The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still. Exodus 14:14 Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes. Psalm 37:7 It seems we have heard God’s call for us to be still, but are we actua...
“The Centurion’s Faith” Over the course of his three years of ministry, Jesus interacts with many different people. Obviously, religious leaders, fishermen and his disciples; but also prostitutes, tax collectors and many other people. Some of them had faith in Jesus, some did not. But across the board, only once does he seem surprised by a person’s faith. That person was not a religious leader, or a faithful blue-color fisherman, or even a Jew, but a Roman soldier. A man whose name is not recorded, but rank of centurion is. The story goes th...
Christians like to talk a good game. We love to brag about how this is a Christian nation. We champion conservative causes. We claim victories when abortion laws get passed. We’re proud of how in North Dakota, Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings are still kept mostly clear for church activities. Let’s be honest, we consider New Rockford to be a by-and-large Christian community, don’t we? I suppose I can’t speak for the world, but I can say from my life experiences, Midwestern Christians have a lot of pride. And the root of that confide...
New Rockford church goers took to the streets to celebrate Palm Sunday. Whereas normally church parishioners, often youth, proceed through church aisles waving palm branches while singing, this year church buildings were closed due to COVID-19 restrictions. Ministerial members and congregants refused to let social distancing get in the way of their celebration though. Locals made paper palm fronds, waved pom poms, and attached tree branches to their vehicles and drove up and down the streets of...
