Opinion

Faith in humanity restored

In a nutshell, this calendar has been nothing short of challenging.  But throughout the course of life, I find myself continually amazed by God’s ability to put the problems you are facing in perspective.

Learning from elections, whether you win or lose

After losing the 2012 presidential election, it was clear the Republican Party needed major change or it would die.  Border laxity, neo-conservative foreign policy and “Great Society” spending were popular with elites, but not everyday Americans.

Election fallout

Let’s end the hand-wringing, tears, finger-pointing, emotions, get to work and figure out what the heck happened to the Democratic message that was not heard.  Perhaps voters heard it and did not feel it addressed their concerns. I would say that is obvious.
The row of trees in the foreground of the first photo was just above where a 1987 fire was halted. Had the fire gotten any further, it would likely have burned most of the structures making up The Master’s Mission. Photo courtesy of Jade Teasdale

The row of trees in the foreground of the first photo was just above where a 1987 fire was halted. Had the fire gotten any further, it would likely have burned most of the structures making up The Master’s Mission. Photo courtesy of Jade Teasdale

Master’s Mission fire remains vivid

After 50 years of fighting brush fires, certain ones will still cross my mind.  Such is the case with a fire at The Master’s Mission on Little Snowbird over 37 years ago. I did some fact checking with Jim Teasdale, Harold Phillips, and others to jog my memory on certain facts.

Reigniting hope

Many of the blessings we use in the church are from scriptures that offer hope.  The apostle Paul closed the letter of Romans with a word of hope, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope” (Romans 15:13).

Building a bridge for the future

I served in a community where families lived on the other side of a large creek. There was an old bridge built by the families that crossed the creek. The bridge had seen better days and needed to be replaced.  They shared with me the story of how the new bridge was built.
This scarecrow can rest, now that the autumn harvest is done.

This scarecrow can rest, now that the autumn harvest is done.

Ghost stories provided early entertainment

Telling scary ghost stories was a form of entertainment for early rural families and might also have served as a behavior tool for rowdy children.  Some of the stories might not have been about ghosts, but scary just the same.

Bear with the necessities

Today, I woke up in my bed with relatively new sheets and a roof over my head. The room was heated, as the crisp October weather has driven my home thermostat crazy over the last couple of weeks.

Can a Christian vote for a Democrat?

There was a time when Republican and Democratic parties were similar enough that one’s religion didn’t play a role in which to vote for; just Google platforms of both parties from the 1950s-1970s to see for yourself.

Stealing lies

I would have hoped that our high school-educated, young adults would have known to stand up against a recent blatant lie by the former president.  Being able to properly identify this lie as a lie requires very basic knowledge of our Constitution and our government.