Opinion

E arly voting in the March 5 primary election ends Friday with a host of candidates on the ballot in both parties, including president, U.S. Senate, all 38 Texas U.S. representatives, all 150 Texas House representatives, and down to local races for district attorney, sheriff and other positions.

Comfort can make us indifferent toward God, but we shouldn’t’t assume that pain is always the right solution. Consider the well-known scene of the two criminals crucified with Jesus. One man confessed his sin and admitted that he deserved his punishment of crucifixion, and he appealed to Jesus’ mercy by asking to be remembered when Jesus’ kingdom comes.

It has been around for thousands of years and is worldwide. It was popular in ancient Egypt over 4000 thousand years ago and during the Greek and Roman empires. It is still popular in Africa, India, and Japan today. The actors would put on a mask and play out a particular character or sometimes they played several characters. The plays or dramas could last from an hour or up to a whole day. Play acting, hypocrisy, or putting up a fake front goes on in life and even in churches today. If you do not think it is happening today just watch some politicians for a while. It is really dishonesty and can even be in the form of flattery, for instance a woman may tell her friend she thinks her new dress looks so nice but she really thinks it looks horrible. Or we can act like we care about someone very much but we really despise them. The Bible instructs Christians to refrain from it, (Matthew 23:28, Romans 12:1). It can become a way of life and is also contagious to others, (Luke 12:1, Galatians 2:13). It can hinder our relationship to God and stunt our spiritual growth, (1 Peter 2:13). In the end times some will be led astray by it, (1 Timothy 4:1-3). Hypocrisy, deception or falsehood does not come from God because God is 100% truthful, (James 3:17).

Afederal judge is expected to rule quickly on the constitutionality of a Texas law about to go into effect that institutes new state penalties for illegal border crossings. During a hearing last week, U.S. District Judge David Ezra said he had concerns that other states would follow Texas’ lead in creating their own immigration laws – a power given exclusively to the federal government under the U.S. Constitution.

The border crisis turns everything it touches to ash. Fort Stockton is no exception. What was once a getaway from big Texas cities is now a hub for highspeed chases, property damage, and migrant bailouts. People here should not have to live in a state of constant worry. That is why I have worked side by side with Pecos County officials like Sheriff T.J. Perkins to take a stand and end this chaos.

When I was in Bible college I was also on staff at a large church. My mother gave me some advice about working for other people and working in an office. As I had not worked in an office before. She said, “you observe your boss and learn the office procedures. Like when and how to talk with him. Also, a time when he is in good humor.”

We have been looking at how to respond in a season of disinterest in God; when we feel no desire for him. Very often, although not always, these seasons of spiritual apathy occur in times of relative comfort—when we are untested by trials and unworried by difficult circumstances. In other words, we often do not want God when we feel no need for him.

Acouple of days ago, I retrieved one (of about a hundred) of our family doglets’ chew bones from the seemingly unreachable chasm under my youngest and quietest daughter’s bed using an ingenious invention of my own making – namely a straightened-out wire clothes hanger.

Lt. Gov Dan Patrick joined with the world’s largest investment firm to pitch investors on building natural gas power plants in Texas at a summit held last week in Houston.

Last night we watched the Super Bowl. As we all watched intently it looked like my team was going to lose. My team did not give in and in some spectacular way they won. Hurray! That event reminds me of something in the Bible. Around 2000 years ago a great battle took place. No, it was not a place where great armies lined up on the battlefield and fought it out.