The Eastern New Mexico News - Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities

Who put Jesus on the cross? That’s a question one of my favorite Bible professors liked to ask when he wanted to make his students’ brains bleed. And it’s a question with a ho... — Updated 5/23/2023

Sad and glad. At this moment, I am both. Last week I completed the editing and page creation for the final issue of The Christian Appeal devotion magazine. I’ve served as the... — Updated 5/16/2023

No doubt, among the most influential Christian leaders who ever lived was the amazing John Wesley who, along with his brother, Charles, founded the Methodist movement within the... — Updated 5/9/2023

My laptop computer went mute recently. I can’t tell you exactly when, but I’m sure it lost its voice several days before I noticed it had lost its voice. Its speakers, I knew ... — Updated 5/2/2023

G. K. Chesterton wrote that there are no uninteresting things – “only uninterested people.” And he’s right, you know. I just returned from a few days with my three brothers... — Updated 4/25/2023

If I were asked to give the title of my favorite song, I don’t know what I would say. I like too many. If I were asked, by someone trying to make the task easier, to list 10 of... — Updated 4/18/2023

I was sleeping soundly on a nice Saturday morning. It was, to be exact, what many Christians have called for long ages “Holy Saturday,” the Saturday before Easter. It had been... — Updated 4/11/2023

“Christendom has had a series of revolutions,” writes G. K. Chesterton, “and in each one of them Christianity has died. Christianity has died many times and risen again; for... — Updated 4/4/2023

No doubt about it, I have a heart for small churches. And that means, most churches. Don’t get me wrong. I’m thankful for churches of all sizes who preach the good news about... — Updated 3/28/2023

“This is the day that the Lord has made / We will rejoice and be glad in it.” If you find your brain putting the tune to those lyrics in your head, you probably learned it in... — Updated 3/21/2023

It’s a sure sign that you’re beginning to learn at least a little about something when you begin to realize how very little you really know about it at all. And it’s an... — Updated 3/14/2023

I don’t know why, but I found myself recently looking at some Google Maps views of an old house. How, I wondered, could it be that old? It was the house that was “my” house, m... — Updated 3/7/2023

Disgusting, this day. At least, a chunk of it. Almost, I might even say, one of those “no good, very bad” days you’ve heard about. Oh, but it could always be worse, someone... — Updated 2/28/2023

I like steeples. I’ve always liked them. The church I grew up attending was an A-frame structure with a fellowship hall attached, and it looked like a church. But a steeple would... — Updated 2/21/2023

I was sick and missed school for a day or two in second grade when the teacher taught about Roman numerals. I’ve done my makeup work since then, but I’m still a bit weak on the... — Updated 2/14/2023

Perspective. It matters. You’ve heard the “ham and egg breakfast” wisdom? The chicken is involved, but the pig is committed. (Of course, these days, anyone who needs eggs is... — Updated 2/7/2023

When I start writing about the weather, my readers might logically suppose that I’m feeling uninspired, dull and unimaginative, and short of things to write about. They would be... — Updated 1/31/2023

I may need to apologize to a penguin. Are you aware that Jan. 20 was Penguin Awareness Day? I wasn’t, either, until I ran across a “news” blurb flashing across one of my... — Updated 1/24/2023

Forty-seven years. That’s how long my wife and I have been married. It probably seems longer to her. I’m counting pretty heavily on the fact that breaking in a new husband would... — Updated 1/17/2023

A new year. In the dance of the universe, the annual calendar flip always seems to me to be mostly a non-event, plastic hype, modern media “news alert” news. I never notice... — Updated 1/10/2023

Well, here we find ourselves again in January, and maybe some reflection is in order. On the one hand, author Thomas Mann is right: “Time has no divisions to mark its passage, the... — Updated 1/4/2023

And here we are. One more year. Almost as far as you can get from Christmas Day. I hope your Christmas has been, and is being, filled with everything good. I’m quoting me to me... — Updated 12/27/2022

Four candles. At church, we lit four candles. I’m talking about Advent candles. One for each of the four Sundays before Christmas. And now, only the “Christ candle,” the large... — Updated 12/20/2022

I’ve been enjoying reading Stephen Nissenbaum’s fine book “The Battle for Christmas.” Most Americans tend naturally to think that the Christmas traditions we share have... — Updated 12/13/2022

In 1850, which was before she wrote her classic “Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote a story for Christmas. One of her characters describes the difficulty of... — Updated 12/6/2022