Opinion

By Mike Ruffin

It was some months before I moved back to my home territory. I was speaking at a family member’s funeral.

Many of my relatives and friends were present.

When I stood to speak, I said, “Good afternoon. I used to be Mike Ruffin.” [Full Story »] 

Our fantastic Barnesville Rotary Club recently had a program presenter from a metro area club who was touting a free school lunch program in Honduras.

It seems a member of his club had taken a motorcycle trip through central America and met a starving girl at the Honduran border. He was touched and started a well-intentioned program through which hundreds of school lunches are now provided to needy students in that area. [Full Story »] 

By Mike Ruffin

The other Sunday, I was preaching about Jesus again. I seem to be stuck on that subject.

Anyway, the text was Matthew 13:1-23. In the first few verses, Jesus tells a crowd what is usually called the parable of the sower (although a better name is the parable of the soils). He just tells the story and leaves it hanging there.

He offers no explanation or interpretation to the crowd, although he does later explain it to his disciples. It’s easy to imagine the people asking each other what that was all about. [Full Story »] 

Just as they want the Holocaust to be eradicated from the history books, some Muslims are trying to ‘cleanse the narrative’ when it comes to the September 11 terrorist attacks that killed more than 3000 people. [Full Story »] 

By Mike Ruffin

Author’s note: this column is addressed to Christians. If you aren’t one, I hope you’ll read it anyway. Maybe it’ll help you understand better how Christians think—or at least how we’re supposed to think.

In my day job, I edit Bible study materials for adults. I recruit writers and shape their efforts into a form that’s suitable for publication. Hundreds of churches and thousands of people depend on our company to provide dependable materials to assist them in studying the Bible and following Jesus. I reckon it’s work worth doing.

Every great once in a while, a writer fails to come through and I have to write the lessons myself. In fact, I just finished writing five lessons on Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, which is found in Matthew 5-7. [Full Story »] 

By Walter Geiger

I cannot recall when I first stumbled across Facebook but I remember I was initially unimpressed and thought this sort of like coloring books – just for kids.

Turns out I was wrong and, yes, I am aware that there are coloring books for adults. There are even coloring rooms for students at Georgia State University. That’s the safe place the kids there fled to when they stumbled across some pro-Trump graffiti penned in chalk on campus and could not get their mommies on the cell phone. [Full Story »] 

By Mike Ruffin

When I was a third grader at Gordon Grammar School, I became interested in the Battle of the Alamo. I don’t remember why, but I did.
I thought about Googling it, but then I remembered that the Internet hadn’t been invented yet. So I asked my mother to take me to the Carnegie Library to get a book about it.

After checking to see if they had any new Hardy Boy mysteries, which they didn’t (they always had the same two that I’d already read and, no matter how much I begged, they never got any others), I looked around and found a book about the Alamo that looked interesting. It was a pretty hefty volume, but I managed to tote it to the desk and set it before the lady working there. I don’t know if she was a librarian, a volunteer, or Andrew Carnegie’s greatgreat- niece, but I remember what she said. [Full Story »] 

By Randy Vining

I read an article in the paper last week about a study that showed that acetaminophen may reduce our ability to feel empathy. The author went on to talk about empathy and our society’s lack of it. In the article, the author even explains that we are all different and we have different experiences even if we come from the same background. He goes on to talk about “judging” others by our experiences. [Full Story »] 

By Mike Ruffin

Have you taken acetaminophen lately? It’s not surprising if you have, since 23% of Americans do so regularly. You may take it without realizing it, since it’s an ingredient in more than 600 medicines.

I ask because I’m concerned about the seeming lack of empathy I perceive in many of us. Empathy is the ability to understand and share in someone else’s pain because you can imagine what their experience is like. Evidently, acetaminophen may be partly to blame for our failure to empathize.
[Full Story »] 

By Walter Geiger

It’s August, the footballs are flying and, as they do every season, gridiron hopes spring eternal.

Both the Lamar County Trojans and the Pike County Pirates have opened camp and have scrimmages on the near horizon as the regular season draws nigh. Sadly, the two teams will not play each other and the Battle of Potato Creek will be shelved at least for this fall. [Full Story »] 

By Mike Ruffin

During my boyhood, this time of year was all about going to the Barnesville swimming pool, which was located about where the Gordon Highlanders now play baseball. I’d join many others in purchasing an annual pass and using the laminating machine outside of Carter’s Drug Store to render it waterproof. [Full Story »] 

By Walter Geiger

There is a spot I pass on one of my walking routes where kudzu has taken permanent hold. It has been there for years but has not spread far because it is hemmed in by a maintained hayfield on one side and the county right of way on the other.
[Full Story »] 

I have written before of my disgust with the self esteem politics that I encountered on a brief foray into recreation football coaching many years ago.

My coaching partner and I worked hard to teach the boys football.
[Full Story »]