An Arkies Musings

My An Arkie's Faith column from the June 29, 2016, issue of The Mena Star. Last week our five-year-old granddaughter spent the week with us. We had a great time together. She really likes to ride in Papa’s old Rambler. Whenever we go for a drive, she wants to go to where the tree is in the middle of the road. She is so much fun to be around. Getting a five-year old's view of life is fascinating. They are full of questions but are willing to let you know how they see things. One of her favorite activities is pretending to cook and run a restaurant using the play kitchen that Grandma bought. It includes a refrigerator, stove, oven, sink, microwave and cabinet space. Grandma has it stocked with pots, pans, utensils and play food. I find it interesting that children want to play by pretending to do the very things that we as adults find to be drudgery. Kids want to be like us and do the things that we do. Some years ago my friend Richie Owens spent a year of his life ...

Did you know that the Bible talks about a sin that God can never forgive? Throughout the centuries since the New Testament was written, millions of people have lived in fear that they may have committed it. Is it really true? Is there something that God is unable to forgive? The Bible says in Matthew 12:31 – “the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven unto men.” So, it turns out there really is a sin that can't be forgiven, and it's blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. That raises a crucial question, just what is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit?  Well, that's a pretty important question; because this is the one sin the Bible says you can never have forgiven. If you do this one thing, if you blaspheme the Holy Spirit, you will never make it into the kingdom of heaven, and that's pretty serious. In John 16:8 the Bible is referring to the Holy Spirit when it says, “And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and...

My An Arkie's Faith column from the June 22, 2016, issue of The Mena Star. Recently we had a family outing at Little Missouri Falls. It was a beautiful day for a picnic and playing in the Little Missouri River. The kids had a great time and so did the adults. Many years ago my son-in-law had visited the Blue Hole, and he wanted to take everyone there. He had gotten directions from the internet and brought them with him. We caravaned down narrow, rough, dusty roads. After traveling down FS99 for awhile, we found that the road had a closed locked gate. We had to turn around and head back. From this point, we weren’t sure of the best way to get back home so we used our GPS. The GPS directed us down a beautiful road that I had never been on before, Long Creek Road. The road repeatedly crossed the creek. There were some beautiful new concrete bridges and some low water crossings. After several miles, the road came to an abrupt stop, and we had to turn around once again. We k...

The recent Orlando nightclub massacre was a horrific event and very disturbing on many levels. It immediately became the catalyst for political discussions on many topics such as terrorism, Muslim extremism, gay rights and gun control. One of the many news stories about the event really caught my attention. According to Tampa Bay TV station Channel 10, “A Sacramento pastor responded to the Orlando shooting that killed 49 people and injured 50 with praise, stating ‘they deserve what they got.’ A recording of the sermon, given by Pastor Roger Jimenez from Verity Baptist Church, was posted to YouTube the day after the tragedy. In the video, Jimenez preached to his congregation that they should not be grieving the homosexual victims of the shootings. ‘Are you sad that 50 pedophiles were killed today?’ asked Jimenez. ‘Um no. I think that’s great. I think that helps society. I think Orlando, Florida, is a little safer tonight. The tragedy is that more of them didn’t die.’” At fir...

My An Arkie's Faith column from the June 15, 2016, issue of The Mena Star.     Recently while I was driving down the road, I saw a man beating and kicking a dog. I cringed as I witnessed the dog being treated so cruelly. The dog cowered, and I could see the fear in its eyes. I love dogs and seeing this animal being abused broke my heart. Many people see God as someone who will treat anyone who is against Him with terrible cruelty. Some Christian writers and speakers spend a lot of time focusing on the wrath of God and how He will torture sinners. I recently read an article by John Burton titled, "Is it Time for Hell Fire Preaching Again?" In the article, he stated, "we need hell fire preachers to emerge and announce to the church and the world the reality of their situation and the measure of God's wrath and judgment that is coming. Contrary to popular belief a very real revelation of hell, of torment, is needed to draw people to the Lover of their souls....

Today is a special day. 41 years ago, I said "I Do" to my very best friend. The best decision I ever made was to marry the girl who stole my heart when she walked into Mr. Brost's History class the beginning of my senior year of high school. I know that high school romances are not supposed to be forever and that when kids get married when they are in their teens, the marriages aren't supposed to last, but we have proven those things wrong. It is still awesome to go through each day with my best friend. This is the girl that took my breath away when she walked into class that morning. I was too shy to talk to girls, so it was almost a year before she had any idea that I was interested. I think that the good Lord knew that I needed all of the help I could get so he made it so that our paths crossed in a number of ways that year. Mr. Brost selected five students to work together each week producing learning packets for History class. Gina and I were both in the g...

When my wife started doing some genealogy research she ran across a fascinating story.  It is the story of her great-great-grandmother, Sophie. Sophia Klauen was born in Copenhagen, Denmark on August 17th, 1824. When she was a young girl she married Peter Peterson.  In 1853 he died of a contagious disease.  Some time after his death, Mormon missionaries from America studied with her.  One thing that they focused on was the faithful gathering in Zion. To them, Zion was the new Mormon settlement in Salt Lake City, Utah. Sophie was baptized on December 27, 1855, and later sold her homestead in preparation to go to America.  She trusted two Elders with the money from the sale of her farm but it was never returned to her.  On May 4, 1856, Sophie and her children sailed from Liverpool, England on the ship Thornton. On the voyage across the Atlantic, her eight-year-old son Thomas fell from the upper deck and was killed.  He was buried at sea. ...

My An Arkie's Faith column from the June 8, 2016, issue of The Mena Star. As I write this week’s column, it is Memorial Day. My wife and I are spending a quiet day at home catching up on some work that needs to be done around the house. Memorial Day is a day for remembering the men and women who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. I have been fortunate enough to not have any close family members who perished in the service of their country.  But as I think about how wartime affected some family members who served and how sad their lives ended, I have come to realize what they sacrificed to serve their country. A local hero that we remember on Memorial Day is Herbert A. Littleton. He was a United States Marine, who posthumously received the Medal of Honor for saving his fellow soldiers by falling on a grenade during the Korean War. He was born on July 1, 1930, in Mena, Arkansas. He enlisting in the Marine Corps Reserve on July 29, 1948, for a one-ye...

My An Arkie's Faith column from the June 1, 2016, issue of The Mena Star. Recently my wife and I spent a wonderful weekend with our daughter and her family. We were celebrating the end of another school year. We had a great time with many activities, but the highlight for me was witnessing my granddaughter’s baptism. It is heart-warming to see a child make the decision to follow God. For our end of the school year party, we rented a suite at a hotel, and our granddaughters had a great time at the pool with friends. After going out for pizza they spent the evening watching a movie. The next afternoon my two oldest granddaughters were playing in a piano recital. We were able to attend before we had to drive home. Both girls performed beautifully. I asked them if they were nervous but they said they weren’t. As I listened to them and to the other piano students, I remembered growing up and taking music lessons. I played the trumpet and was in the band. I didn’t mind pra...