Boojoyful

November 29 Awakening with a flash, I peeled my lids open praying it was a 6AM hot flash and not the 2AM one. Praise the Lord, it was 5AM. I had no clue what day it was though. Did I need to get the turkey in the oven? Were my lesson plans done? Could I sleep another couple hours until church? Were there other people staying here? I called out, "Help me Lord, I have no clue what today is!" He answered back.... rejuvenate. Ah,there was my word and it was a welcome one! Clicking on the computer, I couldn't wait to get the definition, but the phone rang. A very tired voice said, "Mom, it's time." Our first grandchild was on the way!. The Lord still comes first, so I decided it best to stay faithful and write to you before I get in the car and head out of town to welcome this little fellow. Rejuvenate :from the Latin word juvenis young; to make young or youthful again, give new vigor to; to stimulate. Wow, is that a God thing or not. I have a strong feeling thi

November 27 The turkey soaked in a brine bath all night and is waiting to be dressed! The table is elegantly set and each place setting has a place card with a name and a gold label baring a word. (Everyone balks at my game playing, but it is like a good work out, you always feel better afterwards.) The assignment is to share a thought/memory that the word evokes in you. What it does is assure each person the chance to speak at the dinner table! May you make memories with people you care about today. Rolling over this morning and looking across the room at the clock it appeared to say SOS.(5:05 AM) Realizing it was Thanksgiving I thanked God for the help He always sends. The old hymn from the early 1700's, God Our Help in Ages Past ,immediately came to mind. I thought you might enjoy these lyrics as you reflect back on the steadfastness of God! Our hope for years to come, Our shelter from the stormy blast, And our eternal home. Under the shadow of Thy throne Thy saints have dwelt s

November 26 Disconnect: to sever the connection of or between Using wireless Internet it is not unusual to try to get on and find the word "disconnnected" staring at me. Yesterday, I received a call from the son of a hospice patient I had last year. This is his first holiday season without his mother and he was obviously disconnected from everyone. He was quite drunk and shared he had been for months and had cut everyone out of his life. The question he had for me was if I thought I should allow his doctor to put him in the hospital for detox. There are times when we need to "detox" from that the world has to offer us and fall on our faces in the repentant mode and be reconnected to Christ. The Message has a couple excellent passages to draw us back. Matthew 6:14 In prayer there is a connection between what God does and what you do. You can't get forgiveness from God, for instance, without also forgiving others. If you refuse to do your part, you cut yoursel

Amazing Grace This is definitely worth the watch. It is a fabulous rendition of Amazing Grace http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtrnB4FZ-yc Copy and paste the address above.

November 25 Looking across the room I see piles of beautiful yarns I hope to weave together into rugs, blankets, and scarves. The word "woven" jumped out at me. The dictionary defines weave : to form by interlacing strands . How interesting that is what our DNA does! Heading to Bible Gateway, most of the woven references are to cloth, but Psalm 139:13-18 is all about us and our Creator! For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Hmm, I think God is preparing my heart to meet my first grandchild! He is due to arrive Thursday!

November 24 Familiarity : a state of close relationship; one who is well acquainted with something . I've been walking through a dark spot with someone who is far from their home. We realized it might be theraputic to get back to his roots, his homeland, where things were more familiar. There is such security in that position. Being raised a southern, mountain girl; that is where I feel secure. Now I still thrill when I see the ocean or the palms trees of Florida, but a comfort comes over me when I drive back into the valley where I was raised and can sit back and have a glass of freshly brewed sweet tea in my hand while I take in the beauty! Our real security is in Christ and we must become familiar, well acquainted, in close relationship with Him to experience the peace and comfort He longs to provide. He knows us and wants us to know Him! Psalm 139:3 You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Let's Pray: Lord, thank You for caring eno

November 22-23 Opening my laptop to write the evotional... there staring at me was Mel Gibson and the statement that he was paying his mistress big bucks to keep their affair a secret. I clicked to read more, but instead it took me to a quiz on whether certain stars with the same last names were related...I clicked again. Meaningless, meaningless was all that I read. Leaving the laptop I picked up a study journal I am working through and dove into Luke 17 on the Coming of the Kingdom of God. A quiz is taking place there! The Pharisees are quizzing Jesus about the kingdom of God coming...they are envisioning a kingdom that will bring material wealth...Jesus speaks of a spiritual kingdom! Luke shares a comparison of the days of the Son of Man to the days of Noah and Lot. "People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building." Interesting I was lured by Hollywood herself this morning and then read of such lifestyles. Just as we are only a click away from te

November 21 Prayer is where the action is! One of the greatest gifts given to our school is the group of mother's who gather on Wednesday mornings to pray for our students, parents, faculty and school needs. Moms In Touch is a wonderful organization that instructs these moms in the process of praying scripture. For me, prayer is an invitation to God to come into my life and lead me, love me and let me know He is in control! When our children were young and I wanted to be certain they were listening I would say; "Put your ears on." Our heavenly Father is probably saying that to us. Let's Pray some Psalms: Father we come before You comforted in just knowing that Your love endures forever. We praise your holy name with all our inmost being. We find rest, O our souls, in You alone; our hope comes from You. God, You alone are our rock, and our salvation; You are our fortress and we will not be shaken. We will trust in You at all times and pour out our hearts to You

November 20 Seeking the Lord is like a treasure hunt (at least when I am writing the evotional). One clue leads to another. This morning the word the Lord gave me was calamity a state of deep distress or misery caused by major misfortune or loss; a disastrous event marked by great loss and lasting distress and suffering. I wanted to say, "No thank You Sir, I would like another word today." Grabbing my Bible I checked the concordance for...calamity, misery, misfortune.. nope, nope, nope. I knew He had a message for me so I persevered. Ah, yes, there she be distress ! Then Jonah 2:2 stared right at me: In my distress I called to the Lord. My Language Arts class has been working on a journal project based on Jonah, so God took me write back there this morning. Yesterday, I had explained to the children that sometimes we may sense God speaking to us by how he brings the same message or verses to us over and over again in a variety of ways! Bingo, he just did that to me! The writ

November 19 It's freezing, no it is below freezing. I woke up thankful for my down comforter and wireless Internet that allows me to email right from my cozy bed! No sooner was I feeling great about the set up than Moses whined needing to go out, so out of bed I went, onto the cold tile kitchen floor to open the door to a brisk wind waiting in the darkness. The light of our lamppost was shining brightly against the stark black background of our woods. Even though my cozy solitude had been abruptly interrupted the light was a reminded that even when we are taken from our comfort zones, the Light of the World is still there. I looked up and the sky was laden with stars. The disruption had turned to delight because I was able to make a connection with God. Moses ran back into the house and went directly to his food bowl...ah, another message for me...to be hungry to feed upon the Lord. Climbing back under my comforter to click on my computer I was thankful for the Cozy Connection I ha

November 18 I hate to leave James. What a friend he is. The half-brother of Jesus is said to have become a leader of the church in Jerusalem. He cared enough to spur us on. He started by telling us to not merely be listeners of the Word, but doers of what it says. Then he closes out with the most powerful proposition... a life of faith, lived out in prayer! Verses 13, 16 Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. Prayer packs a powerful punch. The greatest advice that can be left to us by anyone is....Pray!

November 17 "Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, there's just something about that name..." That is what I woke up singing! The leaves are down and the sunrise easier to see from my bedroom window. The sky radiates with pinks and purples right now! The barren trees are no longer a hiding place for birds or squirrels, there is full exposure. We may think we are hiding at times, but God always has full exposure to our hearts and minds. Complete is the other word which has been hanging on me. James 1:4 tells is God is working on us so that we may be mature and complete, lacking in nothing. He has a plan! We've been walking in a tough place with one of our children for over a week and the word that appeared to be missing from his life was "joy." God's Word couples "complete" and "joy" together in two amazing verses which I am praying will be an encouragement to you today, wherever you may be wandering...or wondering! Philippians 2:1-4 If you have

Hoard-(definition:verb)to keep (as one's thoughts) to oneself. That was my "word" at 4AM this morning. Hmm, I thought, am I nesting for the arrival of my first grandchild and needing to clean out closets and give away things today? Is my heart responding to the great need for food at some of our community pantries? Looking up the definition, I had an "I should have had a V-8" type revelation. We often "hoard" the thoughts and promptings the Lord gives to us to share with another. Who have we invited to church with us today so that they might receive the Word of God? Both of the Bible studies I picked up yesterday were about the "coming of the Lord." Who do I need to pray for to come to the Lord? James says to the Rich Oppressors in 5:3 "You have hoarded wealth in the last days." May we never be guilty of hoarding what God has given us... not just materially, but most importantly spiritually... His Love!

November 15-16 James 5:7-11 ...be patient and stand firm, because the Lord's coming is near. Don't grumble against each other. James continues writing and is having us reflect on Job's perseverance and the happy ending that story had. An ending full of God's compassion and mercy, although none of us would want to tread where he trod, even for a double dose of blessings. So what comes from being patient and standing firm...ah...it is the closeness and familiarity we begin to possess of the one whose hand we are holding during the waiting period. We really get to know Him! We may look at the comment "the Lord's coming is near" and think...OK, that's been said for a long time now...is there truth in that...is it just a teacher or parent's trick to make us behave? I find it more to be a method of helping us meet the Master intimately! What does God want each of us to take away from these verses in James 5 today? For me "don't grumble against e

November 14 Oh woe, to me who is so worldly.Today's passage is from James 5:1-4 and there is nothing warm and fuzzy about it. I decided to go to some commentaries hoping to find something a little fluffier to brighten your up coming weekend. I Googled "James 5" and clicked on a You Tube site expecting to get a live sermon! It was about LeBron James and game 5 of some basketball series!!!!! I was so convicted. What is ahead for those who don't know the Lord is not a pretty picture and we need to have a compassion for those people. Here's the less than pretty passage. Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming upon you. Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days. Look! The wages you failed to pay the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of

November 13 James 4:15 (The Message) And now I have a word for you who brashly announce, "Today—at the latest, tomorrow —we're off to such and such a city for the year. We're going to start a business and make a lot of money ." The word is braggadocios! James says, You don't know the first thing about tomorrow. Boy we are learning that with the stock market! ... Instead, make it a habit to say, "If the Master wills it and we're still alive, we'll do this or that." Let's pray we can make His plans our plans and be pleased with that process. Father, help us figure out that our focus should be first on Your fabulous framework for our lives! For You have the knowledge of the days to come and what is best for us. Forgive us for plowing ahead with our selfish agendas and help us to turn ourselves towards you...seeking your wisdom and plans for our lives. The element to be on the watch for in our discern

November 12 James 4:11-12 speaks about not slandering or judging one another. We have enough on our plates to not have to be taking on the role of judge! Instead of "Laying Down the Law" we should try "Lifting Up in Love." If we had a body barometer (an instrument which measures pressure) I think we would be amazed at how much more beneficial positive affirmation of others is for our own bodies, than the negative, defaming, judgement calls we sometimes make. Our opinions are like pimples waiting to be popped. We just want to get them out there, but our actions make a mess and leave a real sore spot and an open wound behind. Let's Pray : Lord, You are a perfect judge and can handle all situations without our help. When we keep our minds steadfast on You, we know that You are before all things. May we hold up a mirror to ourselves and remember quite often, things are not what they seem. When we put the shoe on the other foot we can think of numerous times peopl

November 11 James 4:7-8, 10 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up. A story was shared with me about a man who gave testimony before his Christian friends of his struggle with an addiction . The man assumed his friends would become encouragers, prayer warriors and support him as he trusted Christ to strengthen him in the battle against this addiction. To the man's surprise, slowly his friends stopped being with him. The person telling me the story seemed shocked by this behavior as well. The man had chosen to come "near to God" and allow God to clean him up. My guess is the friends were uncomfortable because of some dirty spots of their own they didn't want revealed. Being around this man and his faith, made God too close for comfort! Let's Pray: Come near to us precious Father and point out the places in which we need i

November 10 I love it when God awakens me with a song in my heart.... It is so sweet to trust in Jesus And to take Him at His Word Just to rest upon His promise And to know, Thus says the Lord! Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him! How I’ve proved Him o’er and o’er Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus! Yes, ’tis sweet to trust in Jesus, Just from sin and self to cease; Just from Jesus simply taking Life and rest, and joy and peace. I’m so glad I learned to trust Thee, Precious Jesus, Savior, Friend; And I know that Thou art with me, Wilt be with me to the end. James 4 is all about submitting our selfish selves to God. He says our quarrels come from the desires that battle within us. And that we are adulterous people who forget that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? He says that when we ask we do not receive because we ask with wrong motive... for our own pleasures, not God's glory. Ok, I am battling here...for if we are not kind and reaching out to the world, why would they want

November 8-9 James asks us... Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in humility that comes from wisdom....Where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice....the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. With all the hats I wear, a day rarely goes by that I don't need wisdom. The problem arises when I don't take time to seek it from t he correct source. Yesterday was a non-stop day for me. When I finally hit the bed I was saddened when I realized I hadn't been alone with the Lord all day. I had flashed up some prayers on behalf of others, but I had never waited to hear God's take on any situation. My eyes had not searched through the Word to find a treasure beyond the morning devotional reading with its warnings about the tongue. My mind was checking off worldly require

November 7 You can brush it, wash it with antiseptic, tantalize it with incredible tastes, but I believe our hearts, minds and the Holy Spirit are the tools which ultimately tame this body part which can wound and help heal others. Oh, yes, there are many times when we have to bite it as well! ...the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. ..no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness. James 3:5-9 Let's Pray: Lord, we lift Your name on high today! Forgive us for the times our tongues have brought disappointment and pain to others. You did not intend them for that purpose. You ca

November 6 James 2: 14-26 Faith and Deeds 17... faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. 18But someone will say, "You have faith; I have deeds." Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. 19You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder. 26As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead. Deedily do and dodittly dee! Whatever God is up to; I want it to include me! Today I took my 88 year old father to the funeral home to say good-bye to a friend of 65 years. (I had to ward off the funeral home guy, who was ready to put my Daddy in a box! They met 6 months ago to discuss his plans.) My father was pleased to see his friend looking so peaceful, but hated she had not had the chance to vote yesterday! :) Then Daddy said, "Time is going so quickly. It seems as if the months have flown since summer began." What do we do with our faith.? We have believed on

November 5 James 2:1-3 Favoritism Forbidden My brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don't show favoritism. "Love your neighbor as yourself,"you are doing right. But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment! The ending of that passage sounds like a game of rock, paper, scissors! I received an email from a reader the other day who has just endured the first year anniversary of her precious daughter's death. It has been a blessing to walk along side this sister in Christ this year through email. I've never seen her face, I don't know what her house looks like or what kind of clothes she wears, but I do feel like I know her heart well. I told her I carry her in my heart and the space she holds contains both suns

November 3-4 James 1:26-27 If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. Funny...the song that came to mind after reading this passage was.... Whistle While You Work! We are better off whistling than allowing some things to come out of our mouths when we are out and about. No matter the outcome of the election, there will still be the work of the Lord to do and we still need to Be joyful always, pray without ceasing and in all things give thanks. 1 Thes. 5:16-18 God have mercy on us and keep us from the pollution of this world!

November 1 James 1:22-25 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it— he will be blessed in what he does. My husband had fallen asleep with the TV on, while I was clicking away on the computer. An episode of House about a very arrogant doctor came on. My interest was spiked as I heard the husband of a patient say he had witnessed a miracle from God when his wife's heart started beating again. Some time passed, probably a commercial too, and I heard this doctor saying very derogatory comments about God. Then he brashly said to the husband, "You better not be praying." I clicked that tube right off! I was so