Alva Review-Courier -

Last week marked a busy one across District 19 as we continued with wheat harvest in western Oklahoma. I was honored to have Lt. Gov. Matt Pinnell join me to see first-hand the hard work and dedication it takes each year to make harvest a success. We hosted a meet and greet event in Burlington, and it was a pleasure to show the lieutenant governor around our community.

Last fall, I had the honor of joining Lt. Gov. Pinnell on an agricultural trade mission to Taiwan to advocate for Oklahoma’s global interests with Taiwanese officials. Oklahoma is in a strong position to trade with other countries who demand the high-quality agricultural products we produce, and it was a great experience for the lieutenant governor to see firsthand exactly what I was advocating for on the trip.

Although I’ve been keeping busy, my heart has been heavy regarding the racial tension that can be found in our state and nation. I was raised to love people regardless of their color, religion, education or background. In fact, our family heritages and differences should all be celebrated and embraced.

The Bible is pretty clear when it tells us to love one another, and there are no caveats to this message. “Love” is mentioned more than 500 times in the Bible, and I believe that’s a pretty clear depiction of God’s wish for our world.

1 Corinthians 13:13 says: “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

We must have faith that we can all come together for the greater good and work together as brothers and sisters in Christ. We must have hope for the future – hope that our children and grandchildren will continue to seek God’s word and leave this world better than they found it. And we must have love – for our family, friends, enemies and strangers.

I challenge you to leave a positive mark on your community by taking a moment to do something kind out of love for your neighbor. Let’s all come together and truly embody the Oklahoma Standard that makes our state so great.

It’s an absolute honor to be your voice at the State Capitol. Please remember to reach out to my office if there is something I can do to assist you. You can contact me at 405-521-5630 or [email protected].