The Word to the World — NLJ columnist’s work finds an international audience

Mary Stroka

NLJ Reporter

Dean Butler, who writes “Dean’s Bible Blog” and “Bible Bits” for the News Letter Journal, recently had his work included in an international devotional, and he feels blessed by how much his writing has taken off in the year since he first started producing written works for the local newspaper.

“People don’t know what they don’t know, and I am compelled to try to teach as many people as much as I can in the few years I have left to serve God,” he said, explaining that he was caught completely unaware by the news that his audience had expanded so far beyond Weston County.

Butler told the NLJ that around April 23, he received, to his surprise, a package with the weekly devotional “Power for Living,” which looks like a small magazine. Before he had had a chance to read the devotional, he called some of his friends to see if they had sent him the package, but they hadn’t, according to Butler. 

The mystery was resolved on April 25, when he received a phone call from a representative of the nonprofit Christian publisher David C. Cook, which is based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The representative wanted to ensure that Butler had received a contract from the company for his work, which he had submitted to them more than a year ago. At the time, Butler said, he was just seeking a publisher as he hadn’t started submitting his work to the newspaper yet.

“I had heard of David C. Cook, but I can’t say I really knew what it (Power of Living) was,” Butler told the NLJ.

The phone call led him to read more about the publisher, and he discovered that “Power of Living” is distributed both nationally and internationally. Butler said the publication “is known for encouraging believers and sharing God’s truth in everyday life,” and admits he was “really blown away.”

Butler said that he has been writing for a long time but only began publishing his Bible studies after he met Kim Dean, the managing editor of NLJ, in early 2024. He offered to write Bible-based content for the newspaper, and that’s how the newspaper column “Bible Bits” began. The weekly “Dean’s Bible Blog” debuted on newslj.com on April 17, 2024, and Butler said he believes it was God’s will that led him to Dean, and eventually to publisher Bob Bonnar.

“If the News Letter Journal hadn’t given me the opportunity to start writing, none of the rest of it would have been possible,” he said.

Butler’s article in the “Power of Living” devotional is titled “Healing Hearts: The Power of Forgiveness and Reconciliation.”

“Forgiveness is central to Christianity, through God’s Word,” he said. “We are instructed to forgive. There is a reason for that.”

Forgiveness is just one of the themes Butler discussed in the countless works he produces for Dean’s Bible Blog, which draws from his own experiences and observations as somebody who has been a practicing Christian for more than 50 years.

“What I love most about writing is that it allows me to share the truth of God’s Word with others, helping them grow in their faith and encouraging them to walk closely with God,” he said.

Before coming to faith, however, Butler said he had only been to church one time. That happened when he was in the United States Marine Corps, where he said it was highly recommended that he go to a church.

“I didn’t know anything about Christ,” he said. “I didn’t know anything about God.”

Butler was born in Newcastle, but he and his wife, Linda, were both raised in Niobrara County, and he eventually learned about God from a “cowboy evangelist” who came to “a little country church” in Lance Creek on Jan. 24, 1974. The evangelist and Butler, who’s also a cowboy, “hit it right off.”

“After he delivered a message, he asked if anyone wanted to give their life to Christ, and my wife and I accepted that and accepted Christ,” Butler said.

Butler was so inspired that he eventually would go on to receive an associate’s degree in Christian education from Hillsdale Bible College and a bachelor’s degree in Christian counseling from Eastern New Mexico University in Portales.

For 30 years, the couple lived in Colorado, and they moved to Newcastle a few years ago, where Butler teaches a Bible study to a group that gathers at 2 p.m. every Sunday at 222 Main St. in Newcastle. He is the administrator for the Facebook group “Newcastle WY & Weston Co Bible Believers” and also one of the administrators of the Facebook group “Hope in Christ.” He has written two books, “Embracing God’s Wisdom: A Journey of Faith and Reflection” and “Embracing God’s Wisdom: Paul’s Commands for Victorious Living.” They are available for sale on Amazon.com and at the News Letter Journal.