Rick Patrick ECB Publishing, Inc. Many people make a goal for themselves to read the Bible in the course of a year. Achieving this takes a large commitment, requiring a person to…
Category: Faith & Family
The 12th day of Christmas
Rev. John Hicks Guest Columnist Christmas Day was last week. The New Year begins tomorrow. However, we are still in the 12 days of Christmas, which started the day after Christmas and…
Beast Feast set for Jan. 10
Bryant Thigpen Contributor St. John’s Missionary Baptist Church will be hosting their Seventh Annual Beast Feast on Saturday, Jan. 10, at 6 p.m. This year’s event will be held at a new…
Casa Bianca M. B. Church distributes blankets at Brynwood
Story Submitted During the recent holiday season, Casa Bianca Missionary Baptist Church distributed 91 “blankets of love” to residents of Brynwood Health and Rehabilitation Center. The women’s ministry of the church helped…
What can God do with our dedicated lives?
Sheryl H. Boldt Guest Columnist Are you eagerly looking forward to 2026? Or has 2025 been so bad that you dread another day, much less another year? Could it be that experiencing…
Post-holiday blues
Ted Okolichany Guest Columnist The article below by Don Williams has just been published in our December Heart to Heart magazine with the title “Are You Down in the Pit(s)?” Since many…
Do you hear what I hear?
Rev. John Hicks Guest Columnist 1942. As the story goes, a young boy named Bruce was to be the Wise Man from the East in a Christmas pageant at a rural church…
Are you experiencing a prolonged spiritual dry spell?
Sheryl H. Boldt Guest Columnist Has it been a while since you truly felt that God heard your prayers? Maybe you haven’t even wanted to pray. Do you feel unworthy? Insignificant? Do…
A true Christmas story
Halie Wetherington ECB Publishing, Inc. “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon His shoulder, and His name shall be called…
Celebrate the wonder
Rev. John Hicks Guest Columnist Often what we see and we hear in life depends not so much upon the events as much as who we are as people. It’s not just…
Gordon Scott shares thoughts on Islam at Christmas prayer breakfast
Laura Young ECB Publishing, Inc. The fellowship hall of St. Margaret Catholic Church was bedecked beautifully for the Christmas season on Dec. 4, when they took their turn hosting the Monticello Community…
First graders sing at LLL
Jackie Clemens Contributor At the Dec. 9 meeting of Triple-L at First Baptist Church Monticello, the program featured first graders from Aucilla Christian Academy. The children recited scriptures, sang Christmas songs and…
The Grinch, Rudolph and the miracle
Rev. John Hicks Guest Columnist The Grinch’s plan is simple. He figures that if he takes away all the Christmas “stuff” the Who’s won’t be able to celebrate Christmas. But the Grinch…
Christ, the firstborn
Carlton McPeak Guest Columnist After identifying the Christ as being the one who has rescued people and transferred them into His kingdom, Paul gives evidence to identify Him. Paul begins by saying…
Step by step
Rev. Cheryl Cruce Columnist I’m sure it happened like this, though I don’t remember my first steps. Nonetheless, I imagine Mom there, her two fingers tucked safely in my little hands as…
Don Condon presented with Diocesan Medal of Honor
Story submitted On Nov. 6, 2025, Don Condon of St. Margaret Catholic Church was presented with the Diocesan Medal of Honor for Lifetime Achievement at the 50th Anniversary Celebration of the Founding of the Diocese…
From my mom’s typewriter to my first children’s book
Sheryl H. Boldt Guest Columnist I’ve loved writing ever since I watched my mother – an aspiring author – peck away on her Royal manual typewriter. Her example sparked my own passion…
Riverlyn Odiorne receives early gift from Jesus
Mickey Starling ECB Publishing, Inc. Five years ago, Adam and Haley Odiorne were doubly blessed as Haley gave birth to two vibrant twins, Baylor and Riverlyn. The joy of their arrival came…
Christmas reflections with a touch of grace: There must be a tree
Mickey Starling Columnist In Florida, getting in the Christmas spirit can be a little tricky. December may be the wearer of many meteorological hats. It can be as “hot as blue blazes”…
Thanksgiving blessings, one meal at a time
Shirley Gilley Contributor Rev. Martha B. Wilson had a vision about giving and described it this way: “I just wanted to bless anyone, by the aid of God by the Holy Spirit.”…