Boojoyful

Brotherly love! Y'all know I am a follower of the site "365 Promises." https://www.365promises.com/about-this-site.html This month, Promise #221 popped up in my inbox. "Trust in Me and do not be afraid of what others can do to you." I have put my trust in God. I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?   Psalm 56:11 We were blessed by a visit from my husband's younger brother who resides in NYC.  At one point in their lives my husband could introduce him as "my little brother," but by the time they were both playing football for UNC this younger brother was 30 pounds heavier and several inches taller.  He could put some physical hurt on my husband. I chuckled taking photos of them as my husband thought the front steps would be a good location...thus, he could stand up one step! In 365 Promises this is written: "Fear of man is a powerful, debilitating force in our world today. It prevents us from taking risks and from being the people God mad...

  Twice a year I get together with a couple long time friends.  We grew up in the same city and then raised our children in the same neighborhood.  We've loved one another through sunshine and storms.  In some of the most heart wrenching times we have  held onto God's truths together. When I saw the video below of female Christian singers, Jamie MacDonald and Lauren Daigle, sitting crossed legged on the floor singing their hearts out to the Lord I thought...Now that is some precious girlfriend time. God made us to be relational. What a gift.  The times together are even sweeter when we invite Jesus into the fellowship. You are better having a friend than to be all alone, because then you will get more enjoyment out of what you earn.  If you fall, your friend can help you up.  But if you fall without having a friend nearby, you are really in trouble.  Ecclesiastes 4;9-10 The Song "Desperate" by Jamie MacDonald with Lauren Daigle https://www.yo...

Our teenage grands are already back to school for pre-season practices on the football, field hockey and cross country fields/courses. In just a couple weeks fans will take to the stands or in the case of cross country, run crazily from one vantage point to another, to cheer on these athletes.  Hmm, maybe this year I should photograph the fans more than the athletes. I think it was on a Billy Graham site that I encountered the thought that God is cheering us on. The next time the tears are dripping down your checks or the sobs are coming from your belly and you can't see your way out of the pain, envision God on the sidelines calling out your name to keep on keeping on.  Even when we can't see it,  God knows there is a way out. Could a mother forget a child who nurses at her breast? Could she fail to love an infant who came from her own body?  Even if a mother could forget, I will never forget you.  Isaiah 49:15 CEV The Song "God is With Us" https://www.youtube...

Happy 18th Anniversary Glad you found availability at a restaurant on the lake and had a safe journey. Summer picks up the pace quite a bit here at Smith Mt Lake, VA. One thing that changes is the ease of finding availability at the top restaurants.  Availability is a word the Lord placed on my heart and I was reminded that Jesus is always available to us. There is always a spot at His table. The question then came to me...."Am I always available to God to be used in whatever manner he sees fit at that moment?" Each of you has been blessed with one of God's many wonderful gifts to be used in the service of others.  So use your gift well.   1 Peter 4:10 Don't be jealous or proud, but be humble and consider others more important than yourselves.   Philippians 2:3 Watch for a post called "Stirred into Action" and how I accepted God's call to be available the very next day after writing this. The Song "Bless God" Cody Carnes https://www.youtube.com...

Loved seeing this Tiger Swallowtail butterfly in one of our crepe myrtle trees. In 1759 Joseph Hart penned these lyrics to the hymn "Come Holy Spirit Come". "Come, Holy Spirit, come; Let Thy bright beams arise; Dispel the darkness from our minds, and open all our eyes.  Cheer our desponding hearts, Thou heavenly Paraclete; Give us to lie with humble hope at our Redeemer's feet." In O.S. Hawkins book,  The Passion Code , he writes "Recognizing the Holy Spirit is a person who lives in us and desires to get more of us, we should daily surrender to His leading in our lives....Our search will not be in trying to get more of Him; rather we we will be consumed with how we might give Him more of us." I've read this over again and again the past couple months and don't want to get stuck  trying to discern how the Holy Spirit works. He is God and I am not able to understand the ways of God. When I first started to learn about the Holy Spirit I grasped t...

This sweet grandson is using all his body parts to conquer wake boarding on Smith Mt Lake! A young man was at our home to discuss a maintenance need.  Our discussion wandered off topic and he shared how he had a wife of "pure heart" but in all his years loving Jesus he still struggles daily to live without sinning. My response, "We all carry that struggle and have to confess our short comings again and again." After he left, I thought back to a list of scriptures I had put together on praying for our body parts.  I challenge you to take these verses and turn them into prayers. Body Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 Mind Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and pro...