Is it Real or Fake?

by   May 23, 2026 with No Comments

By Doug Creamer

Is it Real or Fake?

            A while back I was going through a tough time. I felt like I was in a hole and couldn’t find my way out. One night while I was scrolling social media I discovered a podcaster. I was about to scroll past her when something she said caught my attention. I listened and her words comforted and encouraged me in my situation. I watched additional posts from her and found some rays of hope that lifted my spirit.

            It’s never one thing that pulls us out of a rough spot. It takes the prayers and encouragement of good friends. In my case, talking with my pastor and his wife helped to get my thinking straightened out. Sometimes we need help to work through the challenges of life. God sends help from a variety of places, including a podcaster.

            Last week I was scrolling social media when a neuroscientist offered some insight into how our brains work. I listened to several short clips from her as they popped up on my feed. Many of her clips were focused on positive motivation. She explained how the brain can aid us if stimulated properly, which I found fascinating.

            Her posts were generated from her home office, in her car, out by the swimming pool, and sitting in her living room. I wanted to find out more about her background, so I Googled her. The search brought up a movie star with the same name. I dug deeper and discovered that she didn’t have a website. She only had a presence on Instagram and Facebook.

I went to her Facebook page and discovered something unbelievable to me. She was not a real person. The videos of this woman were all AI generated. That means this woman does not exist. The AI created character has quite a few videos on a variety of topics. The homepage plainly states that this is not a real person but an AI generated character. The information is neurological science on how to be motivated to change.

I wasn’t sure how to take this discovery. The AI character seems warm and friendly. The information provided should be based on facts and research, but would I trust it? We all trust Google when we ask a question, but can we trust an AI character that shares information that we are seeking?

I have used AI to help develop curriculum for teaching. I wondered what else I could get AI to do. I went to an AI platform and asked it to write a column in my personality. I gave it some specific guidelines and sent it to my website. Then I waited a few minutes and out popped a column. I have to admit the AI did a good job, but not a great job. In some places you could obviously tell it was not my style, but in others it picked up on the way I write pretty well. With a little extra training…who knows?

There is one place we can all look to find the truth in a world that has made it increasingly more difficult to distinguish between what is real and fake. The Bible is God’s truth and it can be trusted in every situation to tell us the truth. It can guide us as we make important life choices. It can reveal the true character of God: His faithfulness, kindness, love, mercy, and forgiveness. It can encourage us in and through difficult times. It can challenge us to change and live up to higher standards.

In an AI world filled with fake news it is comforting to look into God’s Word where truth is revealed and darkness is shattered. God wants to reveal the truth to you and set you free from the lies you have heard. He wants you to know that He created you and that you are beautiful in His sight. You are His son or daughter with complete access to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Your prayers are heard, valued, and answered. You have influence with God. He knows everything about you and loves you more deeply than you can understand. That’s the truth!

I want to encourage you to open your Bible and read the truth. You can trust God and His Word completely. You can learn about His character. You can learn His ways. You can learn to hear His voice. You can enter His presence without fear. You can believe His Word and trust in His promises. God is real and He has great things planned for you. That is the truth and you can trust and believe it.

Contact Doug Creamer at PO Box 777, Faith, NC 28041or doug@dougcreamer.com

War in the Mind

by   May 22, 2026 with No Comments

By Ed Traut

2 Corinthians 10:5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

  • The enemy tries to sow bad and difficult thoughts in our heads.
  • But by the power of God, we destroy those arguments and the thoughts that come to us.
  • Taking captive every thought that is not from Him and submitting it to the word of God and focussing our thoughts on all Gods ways.

Prayer:  Lord I yield my mind and take every thought captive that it is subjective to the word of God and to God’s plan.  I will not allow the enemy to make my mind rush into different directions and think different things.  I yield my thoughts to Your life and let the Spirit of God renew it daily.  Amen.

Ed Traut
Prophetic Life

My Bucket List Done and Undone

by   May 21, 2026 with No Comments

By David Freeze

My Bucket List Done and Undone!

    Things have been very busy in the running world lately, and internationally and back here in Rowan County. It seems every week that a new marathon record gets set and now that we are officially under two hours for 26.2 miles, how low can it go? American women did extremely well in the Boston Marathon, something they almost never do, this year taking four of the top 10 places. I am excited about all things running, just as I usually am. I decided to order a book offered on Amazon called The Runner Bucket List by Jeff Horowitz.

    Bucket list items are special to me! In my mid-50s, I started making my own list and attacking it. Many of you remember my cross-country and regional bike rides, every one of them on my bucket list. Two were the best, Astoria, Oregon to Myrtle Beach over 54 days, and also first on my bucket list. The second was the bike ride from Carson City, Nevada to Anchorage, Alaska because it took me so deep into the unknown. My run across North Carolina in the winter was high on the list but only after good friend Ed Dupree asked me to do it.

     Others that developed were biking in all 50 states, visiting all the 100 county seats in North Carolina and marathons in New York City, Montreal, London, Boston and plenty more. All of these are complete, with great memories and not a shred of regret.  

     On the list right now are at least a few of those super long Amtrak trips across the US, highlighted by many areas that can only best be seen by train. Another is visiting all the NC State Historic Sites. I’m getting that urge.

    When Amazon sent me the offer on the Runner Bucket List, I ordered it, just to see what I have already done, and maybe a few ideas of runs that I can still do.

     So here goes. This is a great little hardback book, and it’s very reasonably priced. I am now devouring it! Some of it is about bucket list items that superhuman athletes do, but most could be done by anyone. For the rest of this column, I am going to touch on a few things covered in the book that I have already done, just regular things that made the list. Some are big ticket items, and a few are available just about any day at little cost. 

      Take a coaching class, I did this through Road Runners Club of America and loved it. Then I did a level 2 class, another big win. Next, I read about running in bad weather, one of my favorite things. After getting caught in horrendous, lightning and wind filled thunderstorms many times on the bike when I was totally alone, little around here seems daunting. I will say it till the day I die; nothing beats running in snow during light wind, another item that made the list. Running in falling snow early in the storm is of course the best, while the footing is still good. Also on the list, join a running club, which I am sure was a great move that paid off almost 40 years ago.

     Gear choices mentioned that I did right include various running logs and always having a good watch to measure distance, pace, time and now heart rate. I don’t care about much of that other stuff the $1,000 watches do.

     In Chapter 10, under ways to give back, sits a segment called simply “Be a race volunteer” I know people who have run hundreds of races but have never once been a volunteer. There are always plenty of jobs to do, and most are easy. And not a single race will happen without volunteers. Certain runners seem unaware of volunteers, just focused on their own struggle or goals. Be a volunteer!

    And finally, run at least one of the world’s major marathons. These are the big ones, London which topped out about 60,000 runners last week, Boston and New York are the ones I have done. Berlin, Tokyo and Chicago are the ones I haven’t done. I do have a Chicago half marathon along Lake Michigan, one of my all-time favorites races, but even more spectacular in the dark.  

     With that, I will save the items still on my bucket list and undone for an upcoming column.

    An omission from last week’s column was Adalie Harrison’s finishing time for her Nashville Marathon time. Her time was 3 hours, 35 minutes and 35 seconds.

     Our next race is the Ed Dupree 5K on May 16th at East Rowan High School. Proceeds go to the Ed Dupree Scholarship and Hospice. Look for this and other upcoming events at www.salisburyrowanrunners.org

Gotta’ Run: My bucket list done and undone!

Church Jerky

by   May 20, 2026 with No Comments

By Lynna Clark

church sign2

Our hometown of Salisbury, NC is beautiful, especially Fulton Street. We drive that way often just to enjoy the view of homes and churches. As we circled a block so I could get a better picture of one of the homes, we passed this sign at a church.

Yep. That’s gonna cause a ruckus. Better get there early to beat the rush. But I guess just as I’m attracted to old homes with fern lined porches, others are drawn to the melodious sonnets of church organs. Different strokes I suppose.

On a different day, my husband passed this church sign and went back to take a picture.

church sign

Wow. Can’t you just feel the love?

This one conjures up images of ushers becoming bouncers as they toss visitors into the street for an inadvertent foot tapping.

“Hey buddy. God loves you, but don’t let that trickle down to your feet.”

It’s not just church signs that make me wonder. As we traveled south on I-85 David spotted an advertisement for a Jerky Outlet. It did NOT say “beef jerky.” I guess here in the south there’s apparently a large market for shrunken flesh of any kind, at least enough to fill an outlet store. Because you know… nobody wants to pay full price for jerky.

I think I have a solution to help these groups enjoy their diversity. Perhaps the folks with the new organ could invite the ones from the other church over for a time of fellowship. Organ music generally does not incite dancing. Even when played at a ballgame it only instigates the crowd to raucous singing and the buying of peanuts and crackerjacks. Perhaps the corruption could be kept to a minimum if folks from the Jerky Outlet would hand out samples at the gathering. With all the effort it takes to get jerky down, the service would be kept quiet and orderly… lots of chewing; no dancing. Friends would be made, bouncers could go back to being ushers, and the new organ would be thoroughly enjoyed by tons of well-fed visitors.

Of course the congregation would be reminded to keep their smacking and yummy noises low so as not to interrupt the melodious sonnets. If there were questions about the origin of the jerky, such as “Is this Turkey Jerky or Donkey?” ushers could field those questions as well, especially since their bouncer jobs have been taken away.

Yep. I think it could work! Now if we can just agree on a dress code…

Hmmm… that could be a deal breaker. I bet nobody’s gonna want to get dressed up to eat jerky.

Can We Still say God is Good?

by   May 17, 2026 with No Comments

By Ashlie Miller

Early Monday morning, I was shocked and saddened to see that an older couple had succumbed to the flames of a house fire in Rowan County just before midnight Sunday. Life taken in such a way is nothing short of tragic.

Yet, later in the day, as reported online by the local paper, I saw the couple’s church – Homestead Baptist – post encouraging scripture and announcing a prayer vigil. My husband and I were honored to serve this family for a couple of years at that church when we were young in ministry over 20 years ago. To call them pillars of their community is an understatement, as many attested at the prayer vigil Monday evening.

What struck me most, in the midst of tears and sorrows, was that there was still talk of God’s goodness. Indeed, the night ended with CeCe Winans’ rendition of The Goodness of God. This church is clearly clinging to the verse they shared –                    1 Thessalonians 4:13-14 – “that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.” 

But what about others?

Being a Christian and a minister’s wife has given me unique opportunities to be by bedsides, in funeral parlors, and in homes of many who grieve. While many profess to know God, not all who profess such things grieve with hope.

Anger is a common response to the death of a loved one; in fact, many recognize it as one of the stages of grief. Even righteous Job in the Bible sat in this stage, believing God to be an unjust tyrant for a season. But while some can still say or will eventually remember that “God is good,” there are many who will live much of their lives believing “God is cruel” for taking a loved one, regardless of age or situation.

In tragic losses, how can we still see God as good and not a cruel tyrant? It may help to begin with questions about the faith system we lean into:

Do my beliefs point to an eternity manipulated by mankind? Does heavenly assurance have more to do with works on my own behalf or prayers said and works done on behalf of another? What if the way I view the scales when my works are weighed is different from my god’s point of view? Could he mercilessly revoke earnings? If so, it would be easy to see why I could believe that God could be cruel.

Do my beliefs reflect confidence in God’s grace and mercy—given through the perfect sacrifice of Jesus and leading to eternal peace—or do they reflect confidence in my own efforts to earn a place there? Do I realize that breath is a gift from God that He gives and can take at His will for His glory? If so, then whatever death befalls me or my loved one may be the result of living in a fallen, sinful world, but the gift available for eternal life reveals a good God.

Next week, the headlines will reflect more tragedies, perhaps one close to you. Once past the shock and natural stages of anger, will you, too, be able to say, “God is good”?

Thankful for Mom(s)

by   May 16, 2026 with No Comments

By Doug Creamer

Thankful for Mom(s)

            I grew up watching the Brady Bunch and Leave it to Beaver. These were iconic families. They were perfect families. We watched because we enjoyed the show but I think there was a small part of all of us that wished our families were like those families. We wanted the perfect mom and dad and lots of love.

            No one had that kind of perfect childhood. No parent, no matter how hard they try or want to be, is perfect. As adults we all make bad choices because we live in a fallen world. Parents have to try and do the best they can in each situation. Sometimes things turn out great, other times things aren’t so great.

            I feel lucky and blessed to have grown up in a home where my needs were met. I had good food, nice clothes, and a good roof over my head. There are many people who aren’t so lucky. I grew up in a safe and stable environment. My parents were not perfect but they did the best they could for our family.  

            Since Mother’s Day was last weekend, I was thinking specifically about my mother. My mom was a stay-at-home mom. She has always been active in the community and until recently she was active in church. Mom has always loved a bargain and passed that love on to her four children. Mom has always loved gardening and still loves planting flowers and growing vegetables. She has also been an avid reader. She would sometimes have several books going at the same time. Both my parents could be found reading when we went on family vacations.

            Mom has a green thumb and she knows how to revive those plants that are on the discount table. Mom is a very creative person. She ran a flower business when I was a kid and arranged the flowers for my wedding. Her creativity wasn’t limited to flowers; she could write, too. She writes an annual Christmas letter to family and friends, a tradition my brother and I maintain.

            My mother taught me right from wrong. Switches were out of style when I was coming along so she used the metal spatula. Sometimes all she had to do was rattle the drawer that held the spatula to get us back in line. Mom believes in treating people right and she modeled that for us kids. She taught us to believe and look for the best in people and I really appreciate that and try to practice that as I teach my students.

            I feel lucky that my mom is still with us. I have been reflecting on the idea that sometimes God gives us “extra” moms. Naturally, a mother-in-law becomes extra mom. My wife and I found a special person when we were in college who became like an extra mom for us. She and her husband gave us some home-cooked meals and took us on adventures. I told my Dad’s significant other that she was like an extra Mom. I believe we can’t have too many people investing in us, caring about us, speaking words of encouragement, and helping guide us through the many ins and outs of life.

            The Bible encourages us to honor our parents, and it’s nice that we set aside a day in May to honor moms and a day in June to honor dads. If we are lucky enough to have good parents, we can receive great deposits from them. I’ll admit that sometimes we pick up our parent’s quirks within those deposits, but that is part of what makes life interesting. Still, we should stop, reflect, and appreciate all that our parents did to raise us and encourage us to spread our wings and fly. My mom did a good job raising her four children and helping each of us grow into responsible adults. I honor her for the good job that she did with each of us.

            I want to encourage you to reflect on your life and consider the impact your parents, especially your mom, had on your trajectory in life. Remember to be thankful for all that she did and sacrificed for you. Take time to express that thanks to her. If your mom has passed then let the seeds she planted in your heart grow and produce a harvest in her memory. Moms live so selflessly all their lives, wanting to make sure that their kids grow up to have a positive impact in their little corner of the world. Thanks, Mom, for a job well done. I hope we make you proud. I love you, Mom! 

Contact Doug Creamer at PO Box 777, Faith, NC 28041or doug@dougcreamer.com

Irises

by   May 15, 2026 with No Comments

By Roger Barbee

 Irises

On the Lake Norman road where we lived was a brick rambler with many outbuildings, a few derelict cars scattered about, and other items. It was a bit over-run to say the least. However, the first spring we were there I admired a long row of glorious irises near the road—peach, yellow, purple, and red-all of various shades- seemed to flag me down each time I drove past the overgrown yard. On one of our outings, I pointed them out to Mike.

Mike and I had been competitors during our high school wrestling careers. He was a year behind me, but for two years we faced each other. Strangely enough, when Mary Ann and I moved to Mooresville, where he lived, he and I re-united. Terri his wife was an agent for a beauty product that my wife used and during their first conversation their husband’s names emerged and when Terri told Mike about the conversation, he remembered me. The four of us met for lunch, and Mike and I began sharing a weekly time. Two old competitors who shared a great deal, such as growing up in different but small cotton mill towns.  However, we differed on religion and politics which led to lively discussions. I still remember him once looking at me during one such talk and asking, “Are you that naïve?”

Being a native of the area and an engineer for Duke Power, the company that built lake Norman, Mike was a source of knowledge of the lake and its area. We often drove through the vicinity as he shared history of the flooding of the Catawba River and the rise of not only the water, but the energy for which the lake was designed. Once we went to Troutman for him to show me where his father and he would fish next to a now flooded grist mill, and he told me that the Route 150  metal bridge that had spanned the river was still there, but just under about 100 feet of lake water. I once asked him what was most difficult in building the lake and he grinned, saying, “Getting it level.”

On one spring day, as we were passing the house with the irises, I asked him if he would help me out. I explained that I wanted to ask the owner  about the row of flowers, but my wheelchair made it impossible to approach the house. Without a pause he said, “Pull in.”

The curved drive led us past even more “stuff” than was visible from the road. The yard was jammed with discarded items giving it the look of a permanent yard sale. The carport of the 1960’s rambler had no car, but many other items-such as riding lawnmowers. However, as soon as I parked, Mike got out and walked to the door. An elderly woman wearing a housecoat answered his knock, heard his explanation about a man in a wheelchair, and gracefully walked down the brick steps to stand in a space of the carport to talk with the man in the wheelchair—me.

Mrs. Bumgardner and her husband had had a farm, but Duke Power claimed it through Eminent Domain to build the lake. Their farm had stretched to the now flooded Catawba River basin, and they had to move to the new brick rambler to make room for the lake in the early 1960’s . Her husband was deceased, but a granddaughter lived with her and helped manage things . She seemed delighted that I admired her irises and gave me permission to come back and remove a few for our garden “down the road.”

Before long, after the bloom, Mary Ann and I returned to remove a few irises. I most liked  the deep, almost black, purple ones and chose several of those, but also a few white/purple mixed ones and some pale, yellow ones. On his next visit Mike helped me plant them in a small bed beside our garden gate. They did well, and for many springs we enjoyed their brightness in the corner beside our garden gate.

But everything else changed while the little iris garden grew, spreading its glory in that corner.

Mike’s cancer returned. Years before he had battled prostate cancer, and now Terri and he travelled often to Durham for treatments. Yet, on each weekly visit with me he stoically shared his medical report as we continued our shared time. He always called before coming and would ask, “Want a coffee?” After arriving with my coffee and his soda, he would sit on my shop deck and talk about his family, especially his grandson’s approaching wedding. He would do small, but important things for me in the shop or yard—such as hang a bird box on a pine tree. He would also rake pine needles for mulching in his yard. Before long we stopped going to lunch because that took too much of our available time. We sat in the shop and talked because shared words became more important than food. I can’t remember his last visit to my shop, but I know that it was one like all our times before. No food but lots of nourishment.

I have read that the last sense we lose is our hearing. So the last time I saw Mike, who was then in hospice, he did not know I was there, but I held his hand and told him many things. I like to believe he heard me.

Not long afterwards we sold our Lake Norman house to return to the Shenandoah Valley. But I told the purchasers that I was taking a few of the irises.

Now, at the end of April 2026, there is a flush of dark, almost black, purple, and other colors gracing a spot near our back garden gate.

Adalie Harrison Nails Her First Marathon!

by   May 14, 2026 with No Comments

By David Freeze

Adalie Harrison Nails Her First Marathon!

    Originally signed by Lenoir Rhyne University for basketball, Adalie Harrison didn’t waste much time before she moved on to running track and cross country. Then she transferred to USC Upstate, where she continued running while working toward her nursing degree. Now employed as an OR nurse for Atrium Health, Harrison has continued running. She took a big step forward with her running last Saturday, April 25th, by completing her first marathon (26.2 miles) in Nashville, Tennessee.

    Harrison said, “I decided to do the Rock and Roll Marathon just to say I have done one in my life. I have a lot of things I want to do, and the list seems to get bigger and longer every time I look at it. But that is okay because we only get one life and have to make the best of it! I picked Nashville because I love to travel and have never been there. It was a perfect fit, not too far from home and easy to make the experience a weekend trip.”

    I asked Adalie to list her favorite running memories. She said, “Well, there are a lot of those- having the school record at Erwin for the mile, winning first place in the county/conference in high school, qualifying for regional and state meets, meeting some of my best friends in college through running and breaking 20 minutes in the 5K, both in cross country and track.

    Adalie started running in 6th grade with Girls on the Run at Erwin Middle School, wanting something to do with the school. Back then, 6th graders could not play sports, so seeing GOTR as her only opportunity, she took it.

    Addressing immediate running plans after the marathon, Adalie said, “As of right now, I don’t have any major plans, I was looking into training for a Hyrox competition next but two little birdies have told me I should find a fast marathon to run. I can try to qualify for Boston as I am only 10 mins off after my first ever marathon on a hilly course.” 

   I asked Adalie to describe her marathon. She said, “I know I was putting in a hard effort, but did not feel like it until mile 18, I felt great the whole way, especially the first 15 miles. I was actually told to slow down but I didn’t since I felt so good. I was about 7:45-50 pace through the first 15 then started to hit low 8s followed by some low 9s, then got back into the 7:50s the last 2 miles to the finish. The best memory without a doubt is the amount of people cheering me on even though they have no idea who I am. (Adalie’s first name was on her bib) I loved all the funny signs people made saying some of the most random things and got lost in reading all of them. The worst point was realizing at mile 16.5 that the course got changed and from mile 17-23 were all big hills, Originally the course was supposed to flatten out after mile 18. The unexplained course change netted 26.65 miles, more than the regulation 26.2 miles.”

   “I slowed down a lot on the back end on the hills because they were so awful, people were falling out left and right. I have never seen so many people walking in a race. My slowest miles were 22 (9:26) and 24 (9:22), both of which had the biggest and longest hills to climb, On mile 22, I was rethinking this whole marathon thing.” 

     Always cool, Adalie sweats little on even the hottest days. She said, “A couple standing near my mom at the finish thought I didn’t even look tired or as if I had been sweating. My coworkers saw the pictures and accused me of freshening up before the photos.” She never got sore afterwards, suggesting there is more in the tank.

    Adalie’s hobbies and other interests include anything exercise: running, lifting, hiking, photography, being outside and traveling. She said, “I’ve been to a lot of places. Also, I have gotten into reading since being out of school and not studying, but you know that will change soon! I will be off to nurse practitioner school this fall. Otherwise, anything that gets the heart rate up. I have been skydiving, cliff jumping into the ocean, swimming with sharks, and rode along for stunts in an aerobatic high-performance airplane. Call me an adrenaline junkie!” 

    Our next local run is the Girls on the Run 5K Celebration at Salisbury Community Park on Saturday, May 2nd.  And the Special Olympics Torch Run is set for Thursday, May 7th. Look for more information on both at www.salisuryrowanrunners.org

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