Alva Review-Courier -

I’ve been looking forward to preaching through the Gospel of Mark! No matter what other subjects we might cover from the pulpit, I am always anxious to get back to the Gospel accounts. While Matthew, Luke and John give a great deal of insight into t...

One of the personality disorders that plague me more than others is the unwillingness to trust other people to do good things in the Kingdom. The problem presents itself in a number of different ways. Please allow me to share just a few. First of...

It’s that fantasy football time of year, again! Since I’ve never taken part in a “league” or chosen players for my “team,” I don’t know a great deal about the game. I do know enough to understand that one is able to gather a mixed roster of pla...

Today, I made a “routine” call to my credit card company. I was interested in moving some money for the betterment of my monthly cash flow. That part of the call was short, sweet and successful. Then the (extremely well-trained) person on the other e...

If you’ve been around me much, these last few weeks, I’ve probably mentioned a book I’ve been reading by Ken Ham called “Gospel Reset” (salvation made RELEVANT). I have to admit, the title kept me from beginning this read for quite a while. It seemed...

“None of us are the sum total of the worst thing we’ve ever done.” I believe that statement, from a woman identified only as “Lisa,” is dead on target. Her son was killed while committing a crime. When his name was released by the news media, th...

Today, I received a forwarded message on Facebook announcing the decree that the Rialto would no longer be able to provide their free afternoon movies. Then, when we stopped by for Becky’s afternoon libation (32oz Pepsi, please), the news was s...

I remember the first time I typed information into a computer mainframe. I was a junior at Harding University (go Bison) and was enrolled in a math class designed, I believe, to keep football players eligible to play. As a Bible major, destined to...

Please accept my sincere apologies for skipping last week’s edition. I think I must have experienced one of those famous senior moments. I woke up Friday morning with the nagging feeling that I’d forgotten something and, soon after, realized what tha...

This month, the world is engrossed with its favorite sport. Football. Of course, we’re not talking about good old American, Friday night, do or die, pom-poms and marching bands football. The sport in question is commonly referred to as “soccer” by we...

About four and a half years ago, when Lynn Martin first offered me the opportunity to write a weekly column for the ARC Friday edition, I felt really honored and raring to go. He warned me that, given time, a weekly deadline (even just one) could...

Well folks, the Alva School of Music has officially gone to the dogs. The bittersweet news was announced Friday evening at the final exercises of the 47th Annual Singing School. Next year’s school will be held in Weatherford (home of SWOSU – Boo Dog...

It’s Monday afternoon of Singing School week. According to the flier, this is the 47th annual Alva School of Music and the congregation is playing host to around 35 students from Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas. The euphemism, “herding cats” might come cl...

When I was a little kid, my parents often had “singings” at our home. Daddy was a talented worship leader and loved to host gatherings where 15 or 20 friends would cram into our living room and sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Of course, the...

Who are your favorite Hebrew heroes? You know the ones I mean. Old Testament men and women of faith who: “conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and e...

When the Israelites crossed the Red Sea, it was the end of a 400-year sojourn in the land of Egypt; but it’s also remembered as a new beginning. When Joshua led the next generation of Hebrews across the Jordan some 40 years later, it marked the e...

On any given day, when classes are in session at NWOSU (Ride Rangers Ride), the parking lot at College Hill is packed to the borders with student vehicles. There are no signs indicating that the lot is available for class-time parking but folks have...

James 4:7-10: Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double-minded. Be afflicted, and mourn, and...

About a year ago, the Lord blessed Becky with a motor home. When I say, “The Lord blessed Becky,” I don’t mean to imply that I don’t enjoy the gift as well, but this is something my wife has wanted for years and had almost given up hope of ever ac...

From this preacher’s perspective, Easter Sunday is a mixed bag of blessings. There is, of course, the hope that attendance will increase as “two timers” (those who only attend services on Christmas and Easter) reclaim their connections to the Chris...

Life has been going by rather quickly as of late. Friends of mine, more senior than myself, assure me that time speeds up as we age. Forgive me, but I’m not sure how that makes any sense. Perhaps it has something to do with how long it takes to p...

Part of this morning’s lecture in Ethics rotated around the teachings of Confucius, the 6th century BC scholar who wanted to bring China up from the brink of ruin. While we were discussing Confucius’ ideas on “the morally superior person” we came ac...

I’ve started over on my exercise routine. For months, I’ve been finding a reason every day at 3 not to go across the street to the Wellness Center and invest in my future health. As a result, my back hurts from carrying my front. So, Monday, Mar...

Since the schools are out for spring break this week, I’ve been thinking about all the places our friends, family and students might be. The Northwestern News included a few candid shots of students along with their travel plans for the week. Of c...

Our granddaughter is six. Our “living room” has several hundred square feet of open floor space, with just a few narrow columns to interrupt our play. As a result, Papa and “Binky” spend a lot of time doing dribble practice, swatting a balloon...