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SMITHVILLE – The Buescher State Park has just finished construction on their historic dam and spillway, as well as introduced two new terraces for residents to take advantage of.

On Thanksgiving Day we express our gratitude to the Lord for all His blessings to us, but what goes along with that is that it also a day for us to repent of the times we have been thankless. If we are honest with ourselves, sometimes we are like Bart Simpson in one episode of the Simpsons, when he said this dinner time “prayer”: “Dear Lord, we bought this food with our own money; so thanks for nothing.” It is easy for us sinners to slip into thinking that we are self-sufficient, and to forget that everything we have is God’s gracious gift to us. Or, when things are not going as well as we would like, sometimes we even grumble about what God has given us to endure; “Thanks for nothing, God,” we think. For this we must repent, this also is why we need to pray, “Lord, give me the gift of thanksgiving.” When we confess, “I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth,” this means that there is nothing in this entire cosmos that is not created by God, and therefore we have nothing of ourselves. We are entirely dependent on Him for everything. Everything we have is from God, as a free gift we have not earned, and because of that, giving thanks to Him constantly is our duty, our obligation– giving thanks is not optional, and it is a wretched sin to omit it.

The Texas Legislature, conceived as a part-time body to meet every other year for 140 days, is now in its record fifth session (counting the regular session). When the impeachment trial of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is included, legislators have been in Austin pretty much the entire year, as the Texas Tribune noted. While legislators are paid just $7,200 a year in salary, per diem payments – meant to cover their expenses while in Austin – have mounted. If the fourth special session goes a full 30 days, taxpayers will have spent $4.8 million keeping lawmakers in Austin.

Voters showed up to polling booths across the county Nov. 7 to weigh in on 14 different propositions, most of which affect residents statewide.

What unprecedented growth means for the city’s school district

Hunting lasts until Jan. 7.

BASTROP – A new generation of attorneys have positioned themselves to be Bastrop County’s leading firm for business law.

During the season of giving, this year will be the first time that Elgin joins national volunteer organization Operation Turkey in their mission to combat hunger.

A STORY WORTH TELLING

On Sunday, Oct. 22, Elgin Methodist Church received 87 Christians as charter members into the new church. These founding members will be recorded into the history of the church that began in May of this year, and is now a local affiliate of the Global Methodist Church.

Veterans Day Tributes