Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
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Did you ever get in such a place that everything just didn't seem to work out? I forgot an appointment. I accidentally dropped a bowl of oatmeal and it went all over the kitchen. A cat slept on top of our car and scratched it trying to get off when I scared him. Those are little things, but when a loved one is ill or a serious problem brings on a big stressful situation, we need a rest. The Bible tells us there is a rest for the people of God. I have found in Hebrews chapters three and four a solution. Each of us can "rest"...
I look forward to the county fair this time of year. The sights, sounds and smells entice me. I marvel at people's talents. The creativity and ingenuity of all the participants is overwhelming. The crafts, art displays, booths, food preservation and all the many other things remind me of God's abundance upon our lives. I love James 1:17, "Every good action and every perfect gift is from God. These good gifts come down from the Creator of the sun, moon, and stars, who does not change like their shifting shadows." (NCV) God's...
Each dawn brings a new day and it is one that has never been lived before. It comes tiptoeing through my window with spectacular splendor. Pink streaks with rays of sunshine are painted with indescribable beauty. The mockingbird's overture begins as he cheerfully bows before nature's audience. Even the trees clap their hands while welcoming a new day. This new day comes as a present wrapped in God's love. It's a precious gift for happy living. Life is an exciting adventure. It can be lived with gratefulness or it can be...
Any deviation from Biblical principles is an open door for disaster. This concept is as old as time itself. It can be traced in history as far back as can be pursued. An undeniable result of transgression is that it never happens in isolation. The fact that "one does as he or she pleases as long as it doesn't hurt someone else" is impossible to achieve. Sin is not an island. This concept applies in every walk of life whether it is in the highest ranking office of the land or in the common working man. The harsh realization...
Of all the wonderful blessings we have been given in this life the thing I love the most is the Lord. Just to know that Jesus died for all of us and to live forever in heaven is such a joy. Won't it be great to see those who have already gone. We will see them again. Our loved ones here we share and enjoy their company. My aunts in the rest home blossomed when they saw us coming. Our children are grown and gone but we relish the times we get together. I'm a "people" person. I enjoy people. I like to "send thought" prayers at...
Have you ever had the "what if's or what I call "stinking thinking?" It's the pits! It comes with all kinds of problems like overdue accounts, misunderstandings, or more bills than money. Thought misery thrives in negative environments. Miserable thoughts cause sadness and worries that bring on physical malfunctions. Wrong thoughts rob happiness. The joy and gusto for life is wiped out and suddenly we find ourselves in depression. Yet Proverbs 23:7 says "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he…" (KJV) I really had a "...
Life has a way of being "daily." We sometimes slide into complacency, taking life for granted. We are not guaranteed our number of years, but we can agree with Job 7:6 that our "days are swifter than a waver's shuttle." It is so important to come to the end of our life with no regrets … to leave good memories to those around us. It would be sad indeed to not even be missed like the wicked kings in the Old Testament. So what would you do on your last days? Would you be critical? Disagreeable" Fault-finding? Negative? Selfish?...
I love my country and I want it back. I don't want our anthem changed. I don't want my flag disrespected. When I pledge the flag I say, "One Nation Under God." I want my money to have "In God We Trust" on it. Our founding fathers had the wisdom to govern our constitution on biblical principles and these principles have endured for over 200 years. They have led to blessings and prosperity until now. On this 4th of July I will celebrate and appreciate what America stands for "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." I was...
There are many scriptures about angels in the Bible. I love to read Psalm 91:11: "For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways" (NRSV). Another favorite is Hebrews 1:14 "Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?" In Luke 4: we can read that "He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone." Many books and magazines have been about angels. We...
Fathers, it's your day. May you be happy and prosperous! You work and bring home the bacon and we appreciate you. I know a man who had many wonderful Father's Days. He had three sons and they all had many excursions. One day he bought a suction toy for his baby and played with it first. He stuck it against his forehead and when he took it off he had a big purple circle. The next time he saw one of his friends, guess what? He had a round purple on his forehead too. The man I know wrestled with his boys as they grew up. As...
First the frost of last year took six trees and the heat now is working on some more. I love trees. What would we do without them? I love the shade they give. Think of all the things they bring like fruit, wood, furniture and buildings. God has made you and me, even animals what we need to survive. We were driving to Clovis one day and I saw a deer eating leaves off a tree. "No you didn't see that," my husband said. "Even if you did a deer wouldn't be out in this heat." So I held my ground. "Okay" he said, "I'll turn around...
Many voices compete for our attention. The demands of employment, family obligations and other activities seldom leave a quiet time in our busy schedules. Finding time is important for bodies and souls. Let's get alone with God and keep silent. After all life can only be lived one day at a time. We can only accomplish a task one at a time and it takes some silence. I like to read this scripture when I'm stressed. "Be still and know that I am God I will be exdalted among the heathen, I wil be exalted in the earth" (Psalm 46:10...
One of the many blessings in my life comes from former students. Thirty-one years of teaching left me with happy memories. A special bond between teacher and student lasts forever. Such was the case when a lieutenant colonel walked up to me in a restaurant. "Aren't you Mrs. Clayton?" My eyes searched his as I wondered just how many students I had been privileged to teach in my career. "I had you in second grade," this man continued. "Let me look at you," I said with enthusiasm. Many of my ex-students keep the same facial...
Someone has defined a "friend," as being someone who knows everything about you and loves you anyway. Friends bring sunshine and sparkle into our lives. Friends stick by us through "thick and thin." It has been said friends are like postage stamps. They "see us through, even if they have to take a licking." "A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother" (Proverbs 18:24). Friends, whether they are young, old and all the way in between, are such great blessings. My neighbors...
"Be still and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth" (Psalm 46:10, KJV). Many voices compete for our attention. The demands of employment, family obligations and other activities seldom leave a quiet time in our busy schedules. Finding a quiet time is important for our bodies and souls. Let's get alone with God and keep silent. After all, life can only be lived one day at a time. We can only wear one thing at a time. We can only accomplish a task one at a time and it takes...
National Day of Prayer is Thursday. Please be in prayer lifting up the needs of our nation. We must have a deep resolve. We do this with conviction looking the enemy in the eye saying, "You cannot have this country!" Let us seek the Lord for the spiritual revival in our land. May we listen to God's call. It is a call to righteousness, to repentance and holiness. We respond by praying as a nation together. Especially Thursday please be in prayer. It is so easy to take everything for granted. Otherwise it can be eventually...
Do you like to look at old family pictures? It seems I have had to do a lot of that lately. Sorting through family photos is hard for me. I go through the gamut of emotions with joy, laughter and tears. I also have a profound realization of the brevity of time. It seems only a few years ago I was planning my grandparents' 60th wedding anniversary party. Surely it was only yesterday that I was giving my parents a 50-anniversary celebration. Looking through family photos reminds me of my spiritual heritage I will never take...
The tomb is empty. The stone's been rolled away bringing endless hope to the human heart. We have been redeemed. Let the world rejoice. He is risen! It is the greatest moment in the annals of time. Easter symbolizes victory. Jesus is our champion. The one who endured the cross still reaches out to hurting mankind. Jesus makes his home in hearts filling them with wondrous abiding love and mercy. He is the daystar causing the shadows of darkness to flee. The anxious heart runs rampant until "The Prince of Peace" reigns,...
Today is the time to live, love, laugh and praise God. Today is the day to leave a good memory, to say, "I love you," to forgive a wrong, to mend a broken relationship. Today is the day to give your appreciation to someone you have long admired. It means more now than all the words spoken at a funeral. God has set eternity in the hearts of all of us. It is imperative to number our days and to live them with wisdom, understanding and purpose. This world seems impatient with time. The young can't wait to grow up. The young...
Life is not always easy, but I love it. If you never wanted to be hurt you would have to move to a desert island and be a hermit. Think of the loneliness. You would never know the joy and ecstasy of loving someone. You would never know the sacrifice love takes and most of all you wouldn't know Jesus nor the eternal bliss that awaits his children. I've always said, "The best is yet to be!" "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him" (1Corinthians 2:9 NIV). So life is...
The closing of another school year will soon be here. It brings back many thoughts filed in my mental book of memories. The simple trust and faith of children are traits I need everyday. When facing obstacles in my life, I think of problems from children's perspective. "We have to go on to third grade because we're growing up," one of my second grade students told me near the end of school. Then I remembered the trauma I felt when our own sons began to leave the nest. To me they were still supposed to be at home. "You've...
When my granddaughter Traci was small, she said, "My mawmaw is a Christian because she cries a lot." I guess crying is what I do best. To me a good cry is tears of love. I cry when my children go home after a visit. I cry when I hear the song "Sentimental Journey," our song while Emmitt was in the Army. I cry in a movie. I cry when my pets die. I believe that crying is showing that you care. My tears are a relief for me. It doesn't mean I'm not trusting God. It means I'm a human in this world. I'm not in heaven yet, where...
It’s been said, “What you said yesterday is what you are living today.” In other words, we are a product of our words. Words have power, positive or negative. It is sobering to realize you and I have within us the potential for building or destroying and we do it with words. Words go before us and shape the future. Words represent who we are. Negative and worry filled words reflect our personality. Words have a way of locating where one stands. Words spoken go forward and shape the future. I heard someone say, “Our biggest...
It's been said, "What you said yesterday is what you are living today." In other words, we are a product of our words. Words have power, positive or negative. It is sobering to realize you and I have within us the potential for building or destroying and we do it with words. Words go before us and shape the future. Words represent who we are. Negative and worry filled words reflect our personality. Words have a way of locating where one stands. Words spoken go forward and shape the future. I heard someone say, "Our biggest...
I heard a mocking bird the other day. I thought the mocking bird would blow away the windstorm raged so hard. During the lulls of the storm I heard the mockingbird singing as if nothing surrounded him. He could have been blown away. He could have found a safe place but he stood his ground and pursued his calling in life. The next morning diamond dewdrops kissed glistening rays of sunlight that sparkled through my bedroom window. And what did I hear … the melodious sound of my mocking bird greeting the dawn with joyful m...
