The people of Kilgore did exceptionally well with the Christmas parade Tuesday evening in spite of road construction and new routes. The re-naming of Kilgore Street to Steve Torrence Street through the month of December was one of the highlights of the evening, along with seeing well-designe…

“Oh, give thanks to the LORD! Call upon His name; make known His deeds among the peoples!” Psalm 105:1

With Thanksgiving this Thursday, mouths already may be watering at the prospect of choosing from among roasted or fried turkey; dressing or stuffing; sweet potatoes or yams and mashed potatoes with gravy; green-bean or corn casseroles; whole or jellied cranberries; pumpkin or pecan pie; and …

The previous owner of Kilgore News Herald used to warn me about trying to “preach to the crowd” but would let me slide by on special occasions like Easter or Christmas. The new owners at M. Roberts Media have yet to say anything and just tend to let me do my own thing. Let’s face it — somebo…

“Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For a time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers;…

Kilgore friends and customers are catching their breath upon hearing the click of an answering machine with a message that states, “We have made the decision to retire and are no longer bringing in new work. We will call you when your order is complete.” A sign upon the door matches the mess…

“What’s in a name?” Juliet asks herself in William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet and then continues, “That which we call a rose / By any other name would smell as sweet” (Act II, Scene II, Lines 43-44).

It is the people within the community that makes a difference. Kilgore seems to be exceptionally blessed with those whose vision and talent makes an indelible mark in the world. Like some communities, Kilgore resembles the hub of a wheel with spokes reaching out not only to neighboring commu…

Recently, a Pilgrim member was told that his truck’s transmission was trying to shift into two gears at the same time, which cost him some money to repair and also struck me as an illustration of what Christians are like in relationship to God.

When Mother Nature decides to stir things up, you have to admit she does a good job of it. Hats off to those who embraced the harsh wind in support of the East Texas Oilman’s Chili Cook-Off held on Thursday. As for me, I enjoyed the ostrich chili over the possum and deer chili this year, and…

Colossians 1:13-14

Her recipe for living a good life is having the right attitude. After all, it has worked for her, and on Sunday, Oct. 24, Kathryn Dean will be 104 years old.

Pilgrim’s Midweek Bible Study, titled “Salvation History is Our Story,” presently is making its way through the book of Acts, which describes Jesus’s Spirit-empowered apostles’ serving as His witnesses in Jerusalem; in all Judea and Samaria; and to the end of the earth (Acts 1:8).

She is called the Mother Church because her roots are deep and strong and has branched out to other areas of our East Texas Communities.

“By faith Noah, being divinely warned … prepared an Ark.”

Pet owners brought their animal companions to St. Paul’s Episcopal Church of Kilgore Saturday for the “Blessing of the Animals” ceremony.

On my most-recent vacation, my mother and I went to Eureka Springs, Arkansas, for the Great Passion Play and other associated attractions, including a Bible museum and religious-art museum.

“Claiming to be wise they became fools” Romans 1:22

Some people’s highest priority is their life in this world, while other people’s highest priority is their life in the world to come.

Jinna Katelyn Olvera, a graduate of Rahab’s Retreat and Ranch, was awarded a P.E.O. Program for Continuing Education Grant from the P.E.O. Sisterhood. She was sponsored by Chapter CU Mineola. She is enrolled in Tyler Junior College and began her education in August 2021 to become a licensed barber.

“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.” Luke 14:26-27

At the start of 2021, most folks in Kilgore were looking forward to the new year ahead, hoping and praying it would be better than the last. Many hoped for a return to normalcy after the chaotic nature of 2020.

Regardless of our political affiliations, many of us have been captivated in recent weeks by the dramatic events taking place in Afghanistan, perhaps especially the American and other efforts to rescue U.S. citizens from the Taliban who were rapidly taking over the country.

My mom makes these amazingly-tender roasts in a stovetop pressure-cooker, though as a boy I was a little scared of the pressure-cooker, and a reported decline in the use of pressure-cookers is partly attributed to fear of pressure-cookers’ exploding.

Isaiah 5:20

Whether sudden or long-expected, the earthly deaths of family and friends can happen at any time, so we tell them about Jesus and pray for them to believe now.

Especially frustrating during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, or “public health emergency” declared in January of 2020 and reportedly repeatedly renewed since, are the seemingly-contradictory scientific conclusions and the resulting constantly-changing guidelines and recommendations from h…

Jeremiah 1:5

Last Sunday I enjoyed being in the audience for the Texas Shakespeare Festival’s fine production of Romeo and Juliet: a story I cannot remember for sure when I saw dramatized last, and a story I do not think I have so deeply considered as an ordained clergyman ever.

Romans 3:20

Happy 245th birthday to the United States of America tomorrow!

II Corinthians 4:3-4

Some four years ago the popular musical group the Killers released a plaintive track titled “Have All The Songs Been Written,” which reportedly came from the subject line of an email that front man Brandon Flowers sent to his friend, U2’s Bono, while Flowers was experiencing writer’s block.

II Kings 18:20

If you had only two hours to tell the life of Jesus, what would you include and what would you exclude?

In the beginning, God the Father created the heavens and the earth by His Word while the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters (Genesis 1:1-2), and the three Persons of the one God spoke about creating humankind (Genesis 1:26, plural and singular).

Ecclesiastes 1:2

Someone recently asked me to which blessed person of the Holy Trinity our prayers should be addressed, an especially timely question, with May 30’s being the Feast of the Holy Trinity.

The Christian Women’s Job Corps of Gregg County started in 2019 with a belief that God would provide.

Editor's Note: This column was originally printed with the wrong byline. The News Herald regrets the error.

When we read the Bible, we can easily wonder how God communicated to His chosen and sent human messengers and how those messengers in turn communicated to God’s people, the answers to both of which questions relate to how God communicates with us now.