WORKING OUT. There's no doubt about it. Exercise does the body good. The Apostle Paul even told Timothy, "while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come" (1 Tim. 4:8). God, through Paul, is essentially telling true Christians that "spiritual exercise" is good for the soul since it profits us in this life but also throughout eternity. In other words, those whose lives have been transformed by the power and grace of God, need to then exercise so that they can be spiritually strong. The Christian life is a life of action or of doing rather than being a spiritual couch potato. What I find interesting are the many commands that God gives to this end in His Word. He commands us in 1 Corinthians 9:24, "Run in such a way that you may obtain it (an imperishable crown)." The verb "RUN" is a present active imperative meaning it is a command to continually, habitually be running. God also commands us to seek, saying "If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God" (Colossians 3:1). Again, the verb "SEEK" is a present active imperative or a command to continually, habitually be seeking heavenly, eternal treasure. Another present active imperative command is found in 2 Peter 3:18, "but GROW in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." A fourth command for the Christian life is that we're to fight. God, through Paul, commands Timothy, "Fight the good fight of faith" (1 Tim. 6:12). More literally, the command is: "Be continually, habitually agonizing the good agony of faith." To agonize is to strain every muscle to win a race or any athletic contest. Our mindset, as Christians, must be that of continually running, seeking, growing, and agonizing to be more like the Lord Jesus Christ. Are we willing to obey God's commands?

COME IN AND CHECK US OUT!!!! New books for adults include: • “Hush Hush” by Stuart Woods • “One for the Books” by Jenn McKinley • “Mimi Lee Reads Between the lines” by Jennifer Chow • “Spin” by Patricia Cornwell New books for children include: • “I Talk Like a River” by Jordan Scott • “Shark and Hippo” by Elliott Kalan • “Albert Hopper, Science Hero Worming to the Center of the Earth” by John Himmelman • “I Want to Sleep Under the Stars” by Mo Willems • “Jack and Santa” by Mac Barnett & Greg Pizzoli • “A Collie Called Sky” by Helen Peters • “Fox Versus Winter” by Corey Tabor • “The Doll in the Hall and Other Scary Stories” by Max Ballier • “Moose, Goose, and Mouse” by Mordicai Gerstein • “Our Little Kitchen” by Jiallian Tamaki Your library staff, Chris Sander, Crystal Dunlap, & Beth Hazen.

Time is short. Knowing that, how do you spend your 86,400 seconds each day? Each person on earth has the same exact amount of time each day, but for the Christian believer, each day should have some sense of urgency. That was the message of brother Darrel this week at FCC.

The Woodston United Methodist Church held services on Sunday, January 24, 2020. Joan Balderston played, “Just A Closer Walk With Thee” for the special. Pastor Michelle Byerly chose scripture from Jonah 1, 3: 1-5, as the scripture. The sermon was titled, “When God Calls: When We Don’t Want To Go.” The closing hymn was, “I Surrender All.” Services next week, January 31, will be a joint service with Stockton United Methodist Church at Stockton at 10:50 a.m. It is snowing and we are

The wind sure did blow last week. Several things changed addresses for two days on the farm.

The November meeting of the Star 4-H Club was called to order on November 8, 2020, at 7 p.m., at Harding Hall by president Ryan Mongeau. Hosts were the Andy Muir family. The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Olivia and the 4-H Pledge led by Jonathan. Roll Call was, “What is your favorite Thanksgiving food?” It was answered by 16 members and one leader. Last month’s minutes were read by Temprance and approved. The Treasurer’s Report was given by Brin. There was no Reporter’s Report. The 4-H Council is to meet Monday, November 9th, 2020. The Leader’s Report was given by Andy. All members need to sign up for program and update contact information. He went over the newsletter and reminded everyone to get signed up online. We will vote on a Christmas party tonight. The Junior Leader’s Report was given by Ryan, Bodye and Olivia. There were no Communications. In Committee Reports, we voted to do a bowling party for Christmas. In New Business, we discussed fundraisers and community projects like cleaning backyards. There were no bills to pay. Christmas ornaments were made during the Program. Everyone is to finish them up by the end of the week. Andy will pick them up. The next meeting is December 13, 2020, at 7:30 p.m., at Harding Hall. Meeting was adjourned at 7:55 p.m.—Garrison Mongeau, Reporter

What is on your bucket list? Most people have things such as accomplishing a certain task, visiting a location, or making a purchase, for example, that would be considered bucket list items. There is something inside that drives you toward accomplishing this goal. The German word, sehnsucht, describes it as “a deep, persistent longing.”

The Stockton Area Chamber of Commerce met for its first meeting of the new year on Tuesday, January 12th at the Chamber Office. Those present discussed Old Business, noting that the Jingle Mingle and election of board members held in December went well. Serving on the board are president Linda Conyac who is also the schools representative, vice president Chelsey Peterson, secretary Jana Slansky, treasurer Julie Kriley, members-at-large Libby Kester and Holly Bedore, city representative Courtney Flower, and executive director Jayne Prockish.

The meeting of the Rooks County 4-H Council was called to order on January 11, 2021. The checking account has a balance of $27,840.09 and the saving’s account has a balance of $29,710.36. The Achievement Celebration was discussed. No date has been set yet. Ideas included: Highlights/photos of the kids, Tiktok videos, Kahoot trivia (4-H, etc.) and to possibly incorporate it within County Club Days since it will likely need to be virtual due to Coronavirus. It was decided to take the idea back to clubs and bring it back to the next council meeting. County Club Days was also discussed. A majority vote was to have it on weekends. The meeting was adjourned. The next Rooks County 4-H Council meeting will be March 8, 2021.—Submitted by 4-H Council Reporter, Melissa Ard