Queen & King.

In the final verse of John 16, Jesus, after being thanked by his disciples for speaking clearly and without figurative speech, tells them, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” The verse can be comforting and disconcerting at the same time. After all, we all want peace, and we can certainly appreciate the fact that Jesus has overcome the world. But do we really have to experience trouble?

THE SCARIEST BIBLE VERSE. No, we can't prove that it's the scariest verse in the Bible. However, I sure wouldn't want Jesus to say it to me! First of all, we see from God's Word that Jesus knows everyone. He knows me. And He knows you. Jesus said in Matthew 7:21, 'Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.' Here we see that Jesus knows everyone and why we do what we do. He knows whether or not we're actually doing the will of His Father. Implied in this is that some people, bornagain Christians, do the Father's will because they truly know Him, love Him, serve Him, and desire to please Him. Also implied is that some people think they're okay with God but don't genuinely know, love, serve, or truly aim to please Him. They say with their mouth, 'Lord, Lord,' but they essentially say with their life, 'Not Your will be done, but my will be done.' Jesus continued in Matthew 7:22, saying, 'Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' In other words, not to be detoured from their belief system and hopes of heaven, this group of self-deceived

The Rooks County Commission approved the 2023 Rooks County Free Fair Board appointments at their regular meeting on Tuesday, January 17th. Fair board members for this year are as follows: Dean Hrabe (president), Kelly Muir (secretary), Ruthmary Muir (treasurer), Leonard Bristow (first vice president), Steve Cook (second vice president), Joe Becker, Rod Becker, Cade Beesley, Tom Benoit, Jody Barker Cole, Kirk Green, Jessica Iwanski, Doug Keas, Jeff Keller, Dan Kriley, Anna Luna, Dixie Miller, Jerry Miller, Laura Moffet, Jason Ochampaugh, David Pieper, Brian Pelton, Steve Riffel, Shawn Roy and Henry Sander.

Mary Smith of Stockton was among Washburn University's fall 2022 graduating class. She graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.

This week started off badly but ended great due to the nice wet snow we received. I’m guessing we had a half inch of rain followed by 5-6 inches of snow. I didn’t care for the amount of mud accumulated on the pickup Thursday. I carried a lot of Rooks County soil to Salina on Friday and left it in a car wash. Steve drove a truck and trailer to Scott City, dropped off the trailer and returned to Salina. I spent the day shopping, running errands and having a short visit at Bennington with the Stillwagons. Steve returned to Salina covered partially in grease, and after cleaning him up, he was allowed in the pickup. When he walked into Freightliner earlier, a man asked if he had had a bad day!

The Stockton Scholars Bowl team participated in the MCL meet on Monday, January 9th at Smith Center. The students at the meet were Dylan Baxter, Holden Burton, Deacon Creighton, Jaxon Dunlap, and Jack Gasper. They ended the competition by coming in third in their pool, so they did not go on to the finals. Not skipping a beat, they then began preparing for their next meet at Ellis on Thursday, January 12th, where they placed fourth. The students tied for second with two other teams, but Stockton had lost to them both in their head-to-head rounds, so they ended up with the fourth-place finish. The team at Ellis consisted of Cheyene Carlson, Raegan Shepherd, Holden Burton, Deacon Creighton, Piper Creighton, and Paytyn McNulty. The Scholars Bowl coach is Crystal Dunlap. The team was in Osborne on January 19.

SEE YOU SOON. At funerals, we often hear said, 'We're gathered here today to pay our final respects to....' I never gave much thought to that until this morning. This past Saturday, the Lord Jesus called a dear brother in Christ home to glory. As I was recalling our sweet times of fellowship together, I realized how wrong is that saying for there is no 'paying final respects' among Christians. That led me to a blessed time of meditating on Psalm 23 and these three truths. (1) The secret of living a happy life is personally and savingly knowing the Lord Jesus. That's because He alone can save our sinful souls and be the Shepherd to protect, guide, and provide our every need in this earthly life. David wrote in Psalm 23:1, 'The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want (or I shall not lack).' David himself was a great shepherd as he protected his father's sheep even from a bear and a lion (1 Sam. 17:34-37). David also was a great shepherd of God's people, Israel, for 40 years (Psa. 78:70-72). But David knew he needed the Almighty to be the Great Shepherd of his soul and his life. And so David trusted the LORD— Jehovah—the One Who always will be what He always has been. (2) The secret of dying a happy death is walking closely with the Lord Jesus, and all the more as we near the end of our earthly journey. God led David to write in Psalm 23:4, 'Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil; for You are with me.' David was still walking with his Lord even as it appears he was nearing the end of his life. (3) The secret of a happy eternity is resting on God's promise of our eternal home with Him. David ended Psalm 23, saying, 'Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.' Paul put it this way, 'For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain' (Phil. 1:2). We'll miss you, but see you soon, Bro. Morris!

Each of us has a calling in our life. We have Godgiven gifts, strengths, talents, and abilities. We may make a living from these gifts, or we may make a life. The Bible instructs us that we are to use our gifts for the betterment of others, and to bring them to knowing and loving the Good Lord. After all, it should be our goal to one day hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” What is your life goal?