New Rockford Transcript - Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883

Matthew 3:13 – “The sower went out to sow.” When we run across a familiar parable, a story we’ve heard many times over our lives, it’s fun to switch it up a bit. We always think of God as the sower. And this most definitely is true; God...

At the very end of Jesus’ sermon on the mount, he wraps up with a familiar image: two houses, two very different foundations. One is built on sand, the other built on rock. Matthew 7:24-27: “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and...

Just after the Beatitudes, where Jesus turns the normal, run-of-the-mill, follow-all-these-rules-and-you’ll-be-saved idea on its head, he shocks the listeners with this metaphor: “You are the salt of the earth.” Matthew 5:13. Salt was vital...

Humans have a tendency to follow, whether we like to admit it or not: “Follow me,” says every anti-aging ad campaign. “Follow me,” says the intentionally-curated algorithms of your social media accounts. “Follow me,” says the diet and...

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....

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...

Human beings are created for relationships. We need touch, a place to belong, and to be loved. There is no doubt that modern psychology has claimed this, as well as each of the world’s religions/philosophies. It’s such a basic truth for every...

The John Tesh radio show told me about an experiment done on competitive bicyclists. All the participants started by competing in a hot-weather bike ride. Then they were split in half, one group continued to train physically in the hot-weather...

“Wherever [Jesus] went, into villages or cities or farms, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged him that they might touch even the fringe of his cloak; and all who touched it were healed.” (Mark 6:56) So much of Jesus' ministry, his...

We’ve had a heavy and difficult year, and I still feel that in my frequent, deep sighs. The pandemic, the political fighting, the polarization of our world just feels too much to add to our already busy lives, filled with just normal ups and...

Without even saying, “be not afraid,” the familiar and beloved Ecclesiastes 3 addresses fear head on.  I think this is the reason Ecclesiastes is so beloved. Because it’s true. It’s true that half of life is suffering, and half is joy. It...

Fear can be a positive protective measure, and fear can morph into something destructive. When fear overwhelms us (2020 anyone?), we often tend to isolate ourselves, curving more and more inward. Scripture tells us the last thing we should do is to...

How have you experienced fear? What paralyzes you? What keeps you up at night? Psychology would tell us that fear is a natural defense mechanism, and can keep us from danger. We all have experiences where our fear kept us safe, avoided a dangerous...

There are 365 times in scripture that we read the words, “Be not afraid.” I’ve never gone through and counted them, so don’t quote me on it, but a simple concordance search confirms: there’s about that many. The remarkable part is to whom...