You may remember the Robin Williams line from the movie, Dead Poet’s Society, where he tells his students, “Carpe Diem,” meaning “seize the day.” Roger Cooper used that introduction to his message this week in encouraging us toward our own personal revival. We need to look for opportunities to get closer to God and then make the most of those opportunities.

DON'T JUDGE. How many times have you heard or read of someone essentially quoting what Jesus said in Matthew 7:1, 'Judge not, that you be not judged.' They might not know where it's found in the Bible. And they often don't realize that it was Jesus who said it. But they are quick to make the comeback to someone who 'judges' someone else. So, what did Jesus mean? The context makes it clear. Basically Jesus was telling His disciples to make sure their own lives were squared away with God before being concerned about 'the speck' or minor sin problem in someone else's life. He essentially said, 'Remove the telephone poll from your eye before trying to remove the little splinter from the eye of another.' In the same chapter, Jesus also warned His disciples, saying, 'Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits.' IOW, Jesus told His disciples that they must judge others. Implied in the context is that we must be able to discern the false teaching of false teachers by comparing their lives to God's Word. We judge the fruit of their lives comparing it to Biblical truth. God exhorted Christians through Peter in 2 Peter 2:1-2, 'But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed.' If someone claims to be a Christian, but their life doesn't match up with God's Word, then there is reason to be concerned about them, about their teaching, about their eternity, and also about the influence they could have on others. In John 7:24, Jesus said, 'Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.' The imperative is knowing God's Word!

A total of 1,624 students earned places on the Dean’s Honor Roll at Fort Hays State University for the fall 2022 semester. The Dean’s Honor Roll includes undergraduate students only.

FOOL. Seeing it's difficult to imagine that his parents were crazy enough to name their son, 'Nabal,' it could well have been a nickname. Regardless, his name means 'fool.' And from the little we know about him, the name fits. As recorded in 1 Samuel 25, Nabal lived during the time of David before he became king. In fact, David is on the run because Saul is seeking to kill him. It was during this time that David and his 600 men showed grace to some shepherds of Nabal by protecting them and their sheep from harm for a period of time. And they also didn't slaughter any sheep for their own benefit. However, as the saying goes, 'No good deed goes unpunished.' After hearing that Nabal was shearing his sheep, David sent some men to ask Nabal to show kindness to him and his men by giving some food to them due to the previous kindness they had shown. However, Nabal foolishly stated in 1 Samuel 25:10, 'Who is David?' Seeing that everyone would have known David after his slaying of Goliath, in short, Nabal was just flatout refusing to honor those who had honored him and his shepherds. One of Nabal's problems was that he was extremely rich (25:2). No, there's nothing wrong with being rich, however, riches can easily lead to arrogance, self-sufficiency, and lack of spiritual incli-nations. So it appears that Nabal was certainly a prideful fool. But he's also described as 'harsh' and 'evil.' What Nabal didn't know was that his wife, Abigail, found out about his foolishness. In response, she loaded up donkeys with food and took it to David to keep him from avenging himself rather than trusting God. David told Abigail, 'blessed is your advice and blessed are you, because you have kept me this day from coming to bloodshed and from avenging myself with my own hand' (25:33). In the end, God took Nabal's life (25:38). Nabal was a fool. But David almost became a fool by not trusting God. May God help us to trust Him!

We enjoyed some nice warmer days this week. I was hoping to retire my tall bog boots, but hopefully, the forecast for rain will prevent that from happening. I took advantage of the sun and cleaned one chicken coop; the chickens should be happy with fresh straw and cedar mulch. I still have one more to clean this week. Since eggs are getting pricey, I read a recipe for substituting eggs in baking using one tablespoon of cornstarch mixed with two tablespoons of water for each egg. I'm not convinced this is a sure thing.

Cameron Balthazor winner of raffle.

“You gave me love, when no one gave me a prayer” is the title of a well-known B. J. Thomas song that can accurately describe our relationship with God. When we go through hard times in this life, God is there for us if we just let Him in. That is the message Roger Cooper gave the church this week—“Give me a call.”

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE STOCKTON FFA MEATS JUDGING TEAMS.

CAUGHT ON CAMERA!

April 12th, 1917: The County Commissioners made their selection for the courthouse site. The site selected were the nine lots in Block No. 5,just east of the Stockton Library. The lots were owned by P.B. Griebel, Newachuba Masonic Lodge 189 and Smith Hardware and Furniture company warehouse. The commissioners submitted their selection to the citizens of the City of Stockton for their approval and the securing of said lots.