After TWO MONTHS of government imposed economic shutdown the VA Dept of Health and the John’s Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center confirm that as of today there are: – 170 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the Roanoke Valley. –  Zero deaths. (Source: VDH. Although recent news reports indicate that 10 individuals may have died due to…

“And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” – Matthew 10:28 On an average day in the U.S. about 8000 people die. Since the first case of Covid-19 was diagnosed in the…

“Good things as well as bad, you know, are caught by a kind of infection. If you want to get warm, you must stand near the fire: if you want to get wet you must get into the water. If you want joy, power, peace, eternal life, you must get close to, or even into,…

“FIRE!! The building is on fire – run for your lives!!!” Only it’s not. In fact, the only thing actually burning is that part of the brain that monitors logic, wisdom and the ability to remain rational. – You are one of 330 MILLION Americans. – As of Sunday March 15th there are 3045 TOTAL…

No – of course not – they are doing everything they can to help the people they serve understand the true nature of what is happening relative to the coronovirus outbreak. They are saying things like, “As of today (Weds March 11th) we have just over 4,000 deaths worldwide while the average seasonal flu kills…

Shortly after publishing last week’s missive I came across this picture of the small Hound mix that wandered in out of the wilderness to die on our back doorstep in WV. 12 week old “Pearl,” as she came to be known, was dropped off last March with 3 other siblings near our small community along…

SOME THINK A CHRISTIAN is one who necessarily believes certain things. That Jesus was the son of God, say. Or that Mary was a virgin. Or that the pope is infallible. Or that all other religions are all wrong. Some think a Christian is one who necessarily does certain things. Such as going to church….

Sometimes a picture really does speak a thousand words – and then some. Such is the one posted with this column taken by my nephew John Funkhouser who decided to adopt one of daughter Jane’s raucous German Shepherd pups. John, who has that rare innate gift for extraordinary photography – that has more to do…

That seems like an interesting enough question to answer in 247 words. Some say “God is Love” in the capital “L” sense of the word – but in my view that’s likely cutting Him short of who He ultimately is. Because God, while certainly always loving in intent and action – the very “organic beginning”…

I’ve got the Super Bowl Halftime Blues and apparently, I am not alone. Negative reaction this time around seems to have grown exponentially – just as the level of the pop cultural crotch pumping, boob dangling, self-glorifying sex show has no less amped it up along with the increase of each Roman numeral. This year’s…

The sudden and tragic death of anyone, even if they are a complete stranger, always hits us deeply – especially if the person is on the younger side. And if the individual is “famous” the magnitude of the passing seems to take on an even larger meaning. Such was the death of basketball great Kobe…

I am 58 years old and still counting – for which I am very thankful. In 1900 average life expectancy was 47 years of age – meaning I have already enjoyed over a decade of relative bonus time. Unfortunately, most people between 48 and 68 have a rather skewed view of their own mortality. To…