Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
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In the first chapter of Acts, Luke writes about Jesus teaching the disciples before he would be taken up into heaven. During that time one of the disciples asked about God restoring Israel, too, which Jesus replied that was for the Father to do, and for them not to worry about it. Jesus goes on to tell them they were to wait in Jerusalem until they had received the promise from the Father, which was to be baptized (immersed) in the Holy Spirit, and they would receive power when the Holy Spirit came upon them. They were to be witnesses whenever...
It’s fall! A new season. You can tell by the crisp morning air, the warm afternoons, people – including me – tending to their gardens and yards to ready them for the new season. Maintaining them sometimes is all it gets, mow, water. Well to really make it flourish you have to do more than maintain. You need to pull weeds, turn the soil, plant new bulbs, throw in some fertilizer then mulch to keep it warm during the cold months. Yes, the extra care you put into it now, are amazing in the spring when the gardens start blooming with color. Our liv...
Did you know that a bicycle can’t stand alone? It is two tired. Or did you hear about the guy who fell onto an upholstery machine? He’s now fully recovered. And then there’s my favorite saying: Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana. The gift of humor is a marvelous gift from God. (I know the preceding jokes are pretty bad, but I think they are funny). There was a time when I was down in the dumps. I had experienced personal tragedy, things in my professional life weren’t going well and my soul felt empty. I left the small town I l...
The month of October is almost here, and by now students in our schools and universities should be back into the routine of daily education. They should all be back to their books. The time they spend reading and studying these books can be valuable for a life time. Obviously, reading alone will not guarantee learning, but it is a crucial first step toward knowledge that can change a person’s life. The same is true for those who claim to have a relationship with God. Reading, knowing and obeying the Word of God is crucial for any l...
Fear is one of the greatest obstacles we have to overcome. Everyone deals with it in a different way. Some panic and run around in circles, accomplishing nothing. Others simply shut down, too frightened to do anything. Still others implode into themselves in the face of fear, and again, they accomplish nothing. The enemy uses fear to knock Christians out of the spiritual battle that we are in. Where did fear come from? In Genesis, after they had sinned and made coverings for themselves, Adam and Eve, “heard the sound of the Lord God walking i...
Recently, we were blessed with the birth of our 13th great-grandchild … a sweet little baby girl. We have not yet met her nor will we be able to see her anytime soon. Distance makes it very difficult. Yet, in spite of the distance, our hearts are full of love for her and we know so much about her through pictures and updates from her parents and grandparents. However, at this stage of her life, she has no idea how much she is loved by us. Our prayer is that someday she will know us and love us in return. This reminded me of a quote by author R...
A little more than 2,000 years ago, a young Jewish man – born in Bethlehem and raised in Nazareth – began the life of an itinerant preacher. He chose 12 men to assist him in this work and many others chose to follow him. He preached repentance for sin and claimed to be the Son of God who had come to call sinners into a renewed unity with their Creator. During his lifetime and in the years following his death, his followers preached his message in the then-known parts of the world, which we now call the Middle East. They went from Jerusalem wher...
Imagine this if you will. Before the Grand Canyon was formed, before the sun rose in the East and set in the West, before mountains were formed and before creation began, we were on God’s mind. In fact, we were in his heart. The divine architect created each of us in the total design of his plan of creation and salvation. Ephesians 1:3 expresses to us, “Blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ who have blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ.” Can you even imagine? I have a vivid imagination, but I...
Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” Jesus said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came toward Jesus. But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” When they got into the boat, the wind ceased. – Matthew 14: 28-32 I have heard sermons on these passages, for many years, most seem to say...
Today is my 27th wedding anniversary. As I write this, I am reflecting back on many years of mountain top experiences, vacations, family water fights, laughing so hard I tear up, the births of each of our nine children. Each of these experiences added a small amount of who we are as individuals, but also added to who we are as a couple. I also am looking back at the valleys in our lives. Those times when we were at rock bottom and could not see the light at the top. One of my wife’s favorite sayings is “the preacher said ‘til death do us part...
It happened a long time ago. There were nearly 100 kids attending the Adventist Junior Camp at Broken Arrow Ranch, located on the shores of Tuttle Creek Reservoir, near Manhattan, Kansas. The week long camp for 10-12 year olds involved a lot of water activities, because of its location on the lake. It was the afternoon swim time, following the craft activity, when three girl friends went down to the lake shore for some fun in the water. As I heard the story, the 3 girls were playing a little game of “Dare” by seeing who could stay under the wat...
We who are the body of Christ have lost our Unity. God did not ordain the different Denominations; He called us to Unity. He gave us each unique gifts and ministries. But we all have the same GOD. We were not meant to be separate but Unified. We are supposed to build each other up and lead lives that tell the world who we belong to (which is Christ). We as the church need to find the common ground and emphasize our Unity. The world is suffering, and we the Body of Christ need to come together and reach the lost. Each believer in each Church...
Harvest Time and Stone Soup taken from a 1808 Robert Moser Story. Once upon a time a stranger rode his tired horse down a back country road on his way home from a long journey. It was late afternoon and the man was tired and hungry. Ahead he saw a small village. “I’ll get something to eat there and find a place for the night,” he thought. Suddenly the horse tripped, throwing the stranger to the ground. As he brushed himself off, he saw that the horse had stumbled over a rock sticking out of the ground in the middle of the road. He walked over...
If you think back to your math classes in high school or college, you may remember that many of the problems involved the use of variables. Changing these variables around in any fashion would change the outcome of the problem. Similar situations occur in life all the time. To illustrate: If you look at the need to manage your retirement income so that you can’t outlive it as a “problem” to be solved, you will need to adjust some variables to arrive at the solution you seek. That’s why it’s so important you be aware of the key variables...
Sometimes when I hear teenagers complain about their parents who won’t get them the kind of cell phone they want, I tell them that my parents wouldn’t let me get my first cell phone until I was 40 years old! Actually both of my parents died before the age of cell phones. They didn’t even know that there was such a thing. Yes, I know, I’m old. The first phone I remember had an operator. You just picked up the receiver and told her who you wanted to talk to. (Of course Siri will do that for me now!) When I was away from home, I had to find a...
One week ago we celebrated another Fourth of July, and once again we were reminded of the precious freedoms that we possess as a nation. The United States has been blessed by God with the kind of freedom that most of the world has never experienced. We cherish our declared rights of “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” However, at times it seems like Americans can be almost obsessed with “freedom.” Too many people want to do whatever they want – whenever they want – with whomever they want – no matter what the cost. As a result they a...
It has been a privilege to be a resident of Sidney and pastor of St. Patrick’s Parish for the past 7 years. What a blessing to have lived in a dynamic community where growth is the norm and faith runs deep. The diverse church denominations that serve the people of God faithfully in this part of western Nebraska stands as a testament that the work of building the Kingdom of God on earth is progressing here. What a joy to have been part of that for these past years. My move to St. James Parish in Kearney will be my eighth since being ordained a p...
I am sure most all of you have seen the poster or tee shirt that proclaims “Freedom isn’t Free!”. These words drive home an important message, whether it pertains to the freedom we enjoy as an American or to our being set free as a Christian. Someone paid the price! As free Americans, we owe so much to so many. Past generations of brave men and women gave the ultimate sacrifice and a new generation is now giving of themselves to protect our country. Our prayer is for God to protect them as they protect us. We must not take our freedom for g...
A few weeks ago, in the Holy city of Jerusalem, at the Church of Holy Sepulcher, an historic meeting took place. It was hosted by His Beatitude, Theophilos III, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem. The meeting was a 50th anniversary commemoration of the meeting of His Holiness, Pope Paul VI, Pope of Rome and His All-Holiness, Athenagoras, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Constantinople. At that meeting both the Pope and the Patriarch had discussions that resulted in the mutual lifting of the anathemas that divided their churches since year 1054....
Divine Design is a theme I will be writing about all year in all my articles. God has a plan for our lives along with a blueprint for our success. As we follow God, He will direct our paths and our spiritual construction if you will to make us strong and effective in every area of our life. If our foundation is Jesus Christ, we will have a well built structure that will be eternal. I remember one night, our family came together to view the floor plan and basic blueprints for our new home. It was exciting as we reviewed all the pages of these...
“And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. “ Acts 2:2 We in the Panhandle know about wind. In the Bible wind is a synonym for the work of the Holy Spirit. It can be gentle or life altering. In the case of that first Pentecost, it was life altering. It came like a mighty or violent wind and it changed the life of the disciples forever. The mighty wind drives them out into the street where they begin proclaiming the Good News of the gospel. These dis...
My family and I are new to this area and while we have lived in many areas of our beautiful country, we are also new to the “high plains” flora and fauna. The first two things we noticed when we moved here were: a) The wind. My first week here I was told by no less than seven people that the wind “wasn’t always like this.” I soon realized that the unsaid end of that statement really was “it’s sometimes worse!” and, b) The weather. I have lived in southern California and South Carolina, Minnesota and Texas and more than a few places in betwe...
Well, it’s Memorial Weekend. Some look at it as the first part of summer, with the annual trip to the Lake, fun in the sun, reunions and family fellowship, and a weekend of relaxation. Some celebrate it as a holiday from working, just a break in the monotony of making a living. But to most, it is a day to remember the loss of loved ones in death. Memorial Day, or originally called Decoration Day, was first officially observed on May 30, 1868, on the order of General John Alexander Logan for the purpose of decorating the graves of the A...
We all have read the New Testament about the life of Jesus, His miraculous birth, his life as a young boy, where men of learning marveled at his insight and knowledge, but has anyone gone into the Old Testament to see Jesus. I invite you to read and study Isaiah chapter 53, this is the center of the gospel we believe. God Reveals to Isaiah the Messiah would be born and be tender root ( a child like no other child in the flesh) but the Messiah was not any ordinary child, the Messiah would be ordinary looking with no beauty or majesty to attract...
“Congratulations! Today is your day. You’re off to Great Places! You’re off and away! You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose. You’re on your own. And you know what you know. You are the guy who’ll decide where to go.” —Dr. Seuss, “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” Oh, the Places You’ll Go is so true. You’ve run the course and passed the finish line! So much hope and promise lie before you. Here are a few pieces of advice that will help you navigate your brave new world. Friend...
