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On the first day of school last week, we attended the “Meet the Rattlers” event for Tucumcari’s fall athletes, including two of our grandsons. The program included a video promoting good sportsmanship, including by fans. I suspect that was appropriate because the event was likely attended by the most potentially rabid fans — parents and grandparents. While the video was right on about good sportsmanship, it included statements that the main goal shouldn’t be to win. I agree with that philosophy only to an extent because it’s likely that insuff...
Recently, I participated in a Facebook conversation initiated when someone complained about getting an opened bag of corn chips from the cabinet, only to find that someone else had left only the crumby remnants. I and many others understood the disappointment, but several of us commented about the beneficial use of such leftovers for cooking or as a treat. Shortly after my initial response, I realized the topic was a food-for-thought opportunity. So here’s what came tumbling out of my mind. Crumbs are associated with less-than-desirable t...
My last article in the Quay County Sun on July 17 was about the splendors of God’s love for us with an introduction that our appropriate response to that love through obedience to become his child (John 14:15-21; Acts 2:38-39; 5:32; Galatians 3:26-4:7; Romans 8:9-17). We’re to continue in that relationship of love by loving others as he loved us because he loves the whole world and wants them as his children (John 3:16; 13:34-35; Ephesians 5:1-2; Romans 5:6-8; 2 Peter 3:9). Love, therefore, is the basis for the first and second greatest com...
I was recently reminded of the Andy Williams song, "Love Is a Many Splendored Thing," which describes some of the splendors of love with these phrases: "It's the April rose that only grows in early spring; love is nature's way of giving a reason to be living; the golden crown that makes a man a king." These words put limits on love that weren't intended from the beginning because they're based on whimsical emotion triggered by physical contact (the kiss and the touch). Although, I like that,...
Last year, my Independence Day article was published in the Quay County Sun on July 5. I lamented in that article the holiday is now commonly called July 4th by those who may not be as concerned about the history and meaning of the holiday as they are about having another day off from work and doing fun things such as fireworks. I recognize that many, including myself, also call it July 4th out of convenience, but the origin still has great meaning to us. Generally, dates move backward one weekday from year to year, but because 2024 is a leap...
I learned something interesting while reading about Father’s Day, celebrated this past Sunday. While Mother’s Day has always been focused on one’s mother and is, therefore, singular possessive, Father’s Day was originally meant to be a celebration of fatherhood, in general, as most of the world observes it, and was proposed as the plural possessive, Fathers’ Day, but the singular precedent already set by Mother’s Day won out. In the USA, a Father’s Day holiday was initially rejected because Mother’s Day had become immensely commercialized....
We’re to sing about our hope of heaven to bolster our faith and encourage each other (Ephesians 5:15-21; Colossians 3:12-17). So while my wife’s dear friend was dying recently, without knowing whether her friend could hear, my wife played hymns on her phone. We’ll also sing in heaven and some of the family present wondered what kind of songs we’d sing when we get there, we’ll no longer need faith because we’ll be living by sight (2 Corinthians 5:1-10, especially vs. 7; 1 John 3:1-3). The Book of Revelation provides some insight into presen...
It occurred to me that this year, Memorial Day will fall about halfway between Mother’s Day, which I wrote about in my last article, and Father’s Day, which I’ll write about in a future article. All three holidays were established to remember specific people. While it’s easy to recognize who we remember on Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, the focus of Memorial Day has changed over the years — from concentrating on those who gave their lives in military service to America to all Americans who’ve passed on as indicated by the decorating of m...
Mother’s Day is this coming Sunday and, while many will celebrate with their mothers, others of us will fondly remember our mothers and be grateful for those who were godly and led us in paths of righteousness so we could know that, despite their passing away from this life, they still live, as Jesus promised (John 11:25-27). The name of the holiday is singular possessive because it’s set aside to honor each one’s mother, as is the case for Father’s Day, while Grandparents’ Day is plural possessive, likely because we all have several grandpare...
While traveling back from Albuquerque recently and knowing we’d get home in time for supper for a change, I asked the family whether we should stop along the way or pick something up for supper in Tucumcari. The teenage grandson immediately said he was hungry, which is his typical response, even shortly after lunch. So, we opened the package of beef jerky we keep in the car for such purposes. After finishing the package, I noticed my wife reading the label and asked, “What does it say, ‘Best if used by yesterday’?” After a momentary pause, sh...
Question: Why did the cat change its mind about crossing the road? I actually saw that happen while driving down Tucumcari’s Lake Street recently. My first thought was the cat had tried crossing unsuccessfully eight times before and decided not to take any more chances when a car was approaching. In this case, the cat had plenty of time before I’d get to the crossing point. Still, perhaps the cat realized it had only one life left to live. That’s all any of us have, for there’s a (singular) time to be born and a (singular) time to die after whi...
Most have likely heard the phrase, “In like a lion, out like a lamb; in like a lamb, out like a lion,” regarding March weather. There’s much discussion about meanings, with some relating lion weather to harshness because lions are fierce, while others relate it more to the lion’s coat as giving a sunny or warm feeling. For the lamb, the harsh weather is related to the whiteness of snow indicated by the lamb’s wool, while the fair weather is related to the gentleness generally attributed to a lamblike disposition. Generally, the concept i...
Probably every child heard their parents say something like, “If I told you once, I’ve told you a thousand times!” — usually because the child keeps repeating the same mistakes or outright acts of disobedience. As I heard John 1:1-3 read at church recently, I realized the Bible has a lot of repetitions. John 1:1-3 includes two repetitive concepts: 1) The Word (Jesus) was in the beginning with God, and 2) Everything was made through him and without him, nothing was made. Since all Scripture is God-breathed, originating from the Word himself...
During my junior high school years, we lived in south-central Kentucky about 15 miles south of the Dogpatch Trading Post, a tourist trap based upon the “Li’l Abner” newspaper cartoon series. The cartoon included a character named Sadie Hawkins, the homeliest girl on earth for whom Sadie Hawkins Day is named. To get her a husband, Sadie’s father initiated a race in which bachelors got a head start on being chased by spinsters. Like running from a lion, you needn’t be the fastest, but you wanted to be faster than spinsters in pursuit. Originall...
Today is Valentine’s Day, but I have a question for you that’s not “Will you be my valentine?” Rather, it’s “What do Valentine’s Day, Cupid and the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre have in common?” The answer is love, even for the massacre. The massacre was based in the love of money, leading to all kinds of evil that pierces with many griefs (1 Timothy 6:9-10; Ecclesiastes 5:10). It took place during Prohibition when, to satisfy love of money, many took advantage of people’s inappropriate love for alcohol. Those slain that day were riddled with b...
My wife related a recent incident to me involving her and our youngest grandson. She reviewed and approved of this article. Several of the grandchildren were outside in two separate areas of our yard, and some were oblivious to the situation. One of the older ones was playing with a toy she wouldn’t let the youngest grandson play with. So, when he came inside complaining, my wife came up with the wise idea of telling him to get a cheese stick and ask his cousin if she wanted to go inside and get one. After thinking for a moment, his c...
While reading through the Bible last year, I came across an “I am” statement by Jesus I hadn’t previously recognized as being one of his well-known statements (John 6:35; 8:12; 10:7-14; 11:25; 14:6; 15:1-5). But it struck me as one of the best “I am” statements, encompassing all those and more. I searched for “I am in the Bible,” finding a website (bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/I-Am-The-Lord) listing 62 Old Testament occurrences of “I am the Lord.” Space prevents me from listing all those or their references, but you can check the website for...
Well, another new year has begun! It seems the years are flying by and, now, even generations, because I can recall my childhood and also have over 10 grandchildren. I remember during high school that teachers having their first child looked old, but now, even some teachers whose children are grown look like kids to me. A generation is considered to be 20-30 years, the average time from birth to child-bearing. But that doesn’t fit Bible times because Abraham was 100 years when Isaac was born, and Isaac was 60 when Esau and Jacob were born (...
My little sister, Margaret Grace, succumbed to COVID on Dec. 22, 2020, while in a nursing home in Hazard, Kentucky, near where we spent most of my childhood and she spent nearly all her life. While I knew her first name came from a longtime family friend, I never knew where she got her middle name. My father’s sister passed away right before Thanksgiving. I don’t recall ever meeting her because she and my father were estranged over her husband, which is really sad, but I learned her middle name was “Grace” when I read her obituary. So, I email...
’Tis the season to be joyful! Having just celebrated Thanksgiving, we’re now reminded we should be most thankful and joyful because of the good news of great joy that the Savior had been born (Luke 2:8-14). Jesus, the Savior, was/is the greatest gift to humankind for all eternity (James 1:16-17; Romans 3:23; 6:23; John 3:16-17). Because the Christmas season is the giving season, pleas to help the needy have increased. Also for about 10 years, we’ve had Giving Tuesday that comes right after Thanksgiving and soon enough before Christmas to not in...
America celebrates Thanksgiving this week, but things have seemed pretty bleak for some time with all the evil that’s happening in our nation and around the world. While evil will increase over time, there’s still hope that life will get better (2 Timothy 3:12-13; Matthew 24:4-13, 21-22). But this article isn’t about the present evils. It’s about our blessings and how we should still be thankful despite all that’s going on around us and that we shouldn’t let ourselves get so distracted by evil that we forget about God because he’s our on...
Well, over the past two weeks, we’ve had Halloween’s spookiness, the idiocy of falling back to end daylight savings time and local elections. While, as I write this, the outcome of the election is unknown, our state and national elections are becoming scarier all the time and our country seems to be falling apart at the seams. Halloween isn’t so bad, and our local elections give us the opportunity to personally represent ourselves regarding taxation for local improvements. Falling back to standard time, on the other hand, mainly just throws our...
Many people have put up decorations, told creepy stories, watched spooky movies and selected costumes during this Halloween season. Although not particularly Halloween-related, while going to church recently, one of our 3-year-old granddaughters sang the “Itsy, Bitsy Spider” nursery rhyme song. You’ve probably heard it, “The itsy bitsy spider crawled up the water spout. Down came the rain, and washed the spider out. Out came the sun, and dried up all the rain, and the itsy bitsy spider went up the spout again.” Often, children repeat songs ove...
Besides specific holidays, October is designated as the month of remembrance for many things. Likely, we all have special memories in October; some glad, some sad. For me, the month includes several special events – starting my first job after college, quitting smoking before my first child’s birth, my first date with Lisa, going to the Balloon Fiesta, and the births of Lisa’s mother and daughter (on the same day of the month) and my first granddaughter. Some memories should be kept; others are best forgotten. For example, because love keeps...
My wife approves my church attire. Recently, having picked out everything but a shirt, I asked what shirt to wear, to which she replied, “Cream.” As we loaded to go to church, she said my shirt was white instead of cream. I held something white against it and it certainly looked white. Shortly after we turned east into the sun, I noticed that the shirt was clearly cream-colored. So, I exclaimed, “Hey, when light is shed on any subject, the truth comes out!” Light is critical for many things. Light was the second act of creation after the ear...