Boojoyful

October 29-31 Base your happiness on your hope in Christ. When trials come endure them patiently; steadfastly maintain the habit of prayer. Romans 12:12 (Phillips) Enviously, we've heard stories or received emails about people who purchased or inherited something not being aware of the value of what they had. There is a song that went something like this..."You don't know what you've got till it's gone." Probably from a good ole country, break up song! Two thoughts... Once our love affair with Christ begins, He never leaves us. We may wander and have regrets over what could have been, but His love is steadfast and open armed. The other is that because we are not capable of understanding the ways of God, we are clueless to all that is available to us when we've "got" Christ. Most of us don't even begin to tap into the peace, purpose and power which is available to us. While the Holy Spirit will never be gone from us, the opportunities w...

October 28 Dogging the storms yesterday, I went out on our deck to enjoy the beautiful fall weather. Placing a cushion in a chair, an interesting insect stared up at me. I questioned, "Are you a spider, a cricket, or an off shoot of a stink bug (being the same grayish color)? My mind drifted back to my daughter's middle school days when she shared about asking a classmate if she was a Christian and the girl replied, "No, I am an Episcopalian." If asked today, "Who are you?" How would you reply? Are you able to say, "I am a child of the King and a sinner saved by grace." Chatting with my daughter yesterday, I inquired...."What do you know?" When it comes to the things of God Psalm 139:6 says: Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain it. While God may not answer all our inquires and let us know it all, the contemplative process with God leads us to a realization of how marvelous and magnanimous God is. Walki...

October 27 While putting on my shoes, Moses rose to his feet. Walking into my bedroom to grab my purse caused him to turn 360's. The final straw which puts him over the top and has him rushing to the door, spinning circles the whole time, is when I pick up the car keys. Moses knows my out the door routine, the cues that signal my departure. Do you have distinct routines your neighbors recognize? Up early an out for a run each morning, regular carpools or play groups for your children. Maybe you are a sports mom on the run. Are you seen Sunday morning heading off to church, Wednesday night not home until 8:00 because of a prayer service, maybe a routine group of friends who come over for Bible study? The patterns of our lives say a lot about us. Often our schedules and routines keep us from freely going with the Father and experiencing the Great Adventure. Wasn't there a hymn that had the lyric...where You lead I will follow? Routines and commitments are good things, but...

October 26 Forgive me Lord, but I started house cleaning before I began writing for You today. You know the sound your vacuum makes when you suck up something more than dirt? We have a central vac, which is much easier on my back issues, but the risk is vacuuming up something that might get stuck in the inner walls of your home. Once I got to close to a string of pearls and in they went. My immediate reaction was devastating like over correcting a vehicle. Hitting the off button, my hope was to catch the pearls in the hose, but what happened is they got into the pipeline and took a plunge. Had I left the vacuum on they probably would have made it to the final dumping ground and I could have gotten them. (Now don't plot a treasure house and come tear my walls apart, I came up with a solution and finally forced them out). This morning as I was in a bathroom, not my own, I heard the clink, clink noise and realized I had accidentally intercepted something larger than dirt! I to...

October 25 Chatting with a friend, I so related when she said, "I want to do whatever the Lord wants, but I don't know what He is doing." A week ago I joined a Spiritual Formation Group, which is basically a spiritual growth accountability to group. God has knocked my socks off already with confirmations this week. My assignment was to put on the armor of God (Eph.6:10-17). List the different pieces of armor and ask the Spirit which one you need most at this time. When the answer comes, ask the Spirit to add this piece to your array of virtues so that you can withstand the devil's attacks. I thought the piece I needed most was the shield of faith, with which to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one, but what I really needed was to stand firm with the belt of truth buckled around my waist and recognize deception and then pray in the Spirit. I told this friend that I thought I knew what God was up to, but I was totally off target and I almost missed goin...

October 23-24 Looking at the cover of a magazine, one of the subtitles was... "Nashville-1 City-5 Ways" Recently, I'd been in a restaurant and the waitress asked if I wanted my egg: scrambled, poached, fried or boiled. It is pretty amazing the variety of ways a simple egg can take on such astonishingly different styles and bring can bring pleasure to different taste buds. My mind flashed to Jesus and thought- "1 Jesus-4 Ways and 4 so many Different People." Christ is Savior, Teacher, Lord and Friend. A relationship with Him satisfies the old, the young; the rich, the poor; male and female; and every culture on the globe. For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him Romans 10:12 Neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord . Romans 8:39

October 22 My prayer journal for this day begins..Holy Spirit, please begin working a new in my life in a powerful way. I surrender all. Change the way I think and live. Turn my annoyances to compassion. Turn the compassion into prayer time. Turn prayer time into equipping me through the Spirit to do your will. Next He laid three people on my heart who want nothing to do with the Lord. His explanation: "They feel a walk with Christ is not socially acceptable in their circles and is threatening to their worldly friendships in which they find fulfillment." "Oh, Father," I replied, "show me how to love them." His suggestion: "Take time to listen and not talk. The sweetness of Christ needs to dissolve in their lives like sugar in hot tea. Do not come across as threatening, but exemplify honest, urgent love. Feel like a warm blanket on a winter's day, not a measuring stick for them to live up to and remember... every one needs a little laughter i...

October 21 Yuck, I had one of those nights where you wake up every two hours. The before dawn thought on my mind was: "Help me Jesus! Please order my day. Keep the phone and doorbell from ringing, the dog from throwing up and me from getting distracted from what is most important to You that I accomplish today." Ha, ha, ha. Then I thought....His ways are not my ways. God's plan today could be for me to minister through the phone or someone stopping by. Maybe while cleaning up throw up on the floor, I will stay down there and pray awhile and have a great God encounter. The more I think about it, the things which are important to me are mostly household/family related and probably not even on His "Boo do" list for October 21st! Finally, brothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living. 1 Thessalonians 4:1 Let's Pray: Almighty King, the One whose desire is to see us all enter eternity, be the Commander of our li...

October 20 Traipsing off this morning to that all familiar passage of Galatians 5:22-23 and the fruit of the Spirit, brought about an interesting exercise initiated by the Spirit. My drawing abilities are limited, but I was to draw a human figure. The questioned posed in my mind was: "What percentage of these spiritual gifts (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control) fill you up today?" Hmm. I wasn't sure if I was to make a colored pie chart of percentages, use a red pen and fill in the body image I had drawn to see what percentage of me was spirit-filled, or what? Instead I drew lines to parts of the body in which I could choose to utilize these gifts today. Love- in my heart for Christ and others Joy- to come out of my mouth in the form of praise and encouraging others Peace- in my mind because I know who holds today and is in control. Patience- this could have gone with my heart, mouth, mind, but since they were alre...

October 19 1 Kings 4:29 God gave Solomon wisdom and very great insight, and a breadth of understanding as measureless as the sand on the seashore. So who is the smiling face in the stunning Hong Kong silk dinner jacket gracing my blog today? That would be my spunky 90 year old father, who somewhere along the way must have asked the Lord for wisdom, for he is full of it. We have a very valuable resource available to us in our senior citizens. It would behoove us as a nation and as individuals to sit at the feet of these people and take in the wisdom they can provide. It will also benefit those of us coming along behind that generation to seek the Lord for the gift of wisdom ourselves. Proverbs 4:5 Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words or swerve from them. While visiting with my physician, I asked about his children. One of his daughters is engaged and when I asked about the young man she is marrying his response was quite unique. "He is slow to answer. You can ...

October 18 A favorite song of mine is entitled "Testify to Love" For as long as I shall live I will testify to love I'll be a witness in the silences when words are not enough With every breath I take I will give thanks to God above For as long as I shall live I will testify to love From the mountains to the valleys From the rivers to the sea Every hand that reaches out Every hand that reaches out to offer peace Every simple act of mercy Every step to kingdom come All the hope in every heart will speak what love has done Tonight I had the privilege of attending a hot dog roast on a beach on the Lake and sitting around a campfire singing praise songs as the sunset. Then we were challenged to testify to what we have seen the Lord do lately. Applause rang out again and again as these women share the power of a God who is just as involved in our lives today as He was in the days of Da

October 16-17 Stink bugs have been the pests of persistence around our area and though not minute in size, these creatures can slide through tiny cracks. Yesterday, I noticed a window sill full and realized I had not pulled down the lock latch on our window and though it appeared to be closed these bugs were sliding through, trying to find warmth and actually finding death as they became trapped in the window sill and unable to slither back out. While amazed that they could get in this way, I thought about the similarity to sin. It can creep into our lives given the tiniest opening. Like the bugs' demise, sin brings death and robs joy. Once again I had a double hitter as 1 John 1:9-10 enlightened my path through two different sources today. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives. Various methods have arise...

October 15 The wedding dinner tables were adorned with roses housed in silver punch cups, goblets, and sherbets which were all family gifts. The bread was wrapped in linen napkins and laid in silver bread trays, also family heirlooms. The lace tablecloths adorning many of the serving tables came from my parents. A silver punch bowl and silver pitchers, which had belonged to my husband's grandmother, offered refreshment on a hot fall day. The pendant on the necklace around my neck had been an earring of my mother's. There was so much joy in using these special pieces for our son's wedding and we realize how blessed we have been by gifts from our parents. Reflecting on this, the Lord brought to mind a verse which reminds us of the depth of His love for us and of what an amazing gift giver He is! If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him ! Matthew 7:11 Whi...

October 14 For any of you who have planned a wedding or big event you may be able to relate to what I am about to share. For the past 5 weeks I've had a massive "to do" list. Praise God for friends who kept my hand to the plow and had me start early. Each morning I would awaken and shift my mind into wedding gear and what needed to be accomplished. Well, the wedding was last Sunday and a fairy tale event, but I am still waking up in preparation mode. This morning I was dreaming about stuffing boxwood and roses into floral arrangements. God is a detailed planner and there are two of my favorite verses which attest to this fact. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. John 14:2 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future . Jeremiah 29:11 Lord, open our eyes today to Your plans. Help us to e...

October 13 The 68 table cloths and 70 linen napkins my friends and I prepared for this past wedding weekend have all been washed, but once again need pressing. My husband was out at a board meeting last night and I knocked out about 3 hours worth of ironing. This morning I started on to the linen napkins. My ironing press is in front of a window and as I looked out to the yard I watched the leaves falling from the trees. The seasons change so quickly, the view in front of me would not last forever and I thought...."What is pressing here?" Turning off the iron, I called to Moses, "Let's hit the trails and head to the woods and take in God's glory." Tomorrow I have a consultation with a surgeon, which I have put off for way too long. If I am honest with myself, the scurrying I am doing to get this house back in order is because I am allowing the enemy to invade my peace and cause me to anticipate bad news and I don't want to leave my husband with a me...

October 11-12 Romans 7:15 says... I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. That is the way I've felt the past two days. Sunday our son was married here at Shiloh and my husband performed the ceremony. My desire had been to get up early, go off and be with the Lord in a quiet place and then have the opportunity to be alone in quiet prayer with my son. The day was fabulous, but didn't unfold quite that way. Yesterday, we still had a houseful to get up and out and a friend who was willing to stay and help me begin to put this property back together, but I never wrote the devotional or even put on praise music. Today I want to fulfill John 4:24... God is spirit and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth. The Lord has provided probably the last upper 80's day of weather for the season and I am sneaking off with Jesus to enjoy a time of intimate fellowship. Hmm, that is hopefully what my son and his new bride are doing...

October 8-10 Our son and fiance arrived Wednesday and have been helping us put the final touches on their wedding weekend. God has blessed us with gorgeous fall weather beyond our expectations. He has also blessed us with friends who have helped in ways we never imagined. For me the most uplifting part has been the scriptures He has provided in daily devotionals I read which are perfect for the situations we face. Over and over again I say, "Stay plugged into His word so you don't miss seeing how personal God is and how much He loves you. Someone told our son to save the moment of his wedding weekend, because it will fly by. When earthly things bring comfort and satisfaction it is easy to fore go the unseen (like God), but I say..."Savor the moments with God, for they make the special earthly times that much more meaningful." God slipped me some wonderful wisdom and encouragement today! I will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint. Jeremiah 31:25 Do everythin...

October 8 God makes me smile! I didn't go to bed until after midnight and was up at 4:00...what's on my mind....our son's wedding at our home this weekend! Finally, I surrendered to the sleeplessness and decided to do my quiet time and some wash. Well, Moses throwing up all over our carpet helped to get me up! I think the stress is getting to him, he has no clue what is happening, he knows it is not Christmas, but senses there is something big brewing. Now your thinking...and God makes her smile? Check out the verses in two of my devotional books for Oct. 8th Peace to you. Our friends greet you. Greet the friends by name. 1 John 14 Before the bride to be went to bed last night she pulled out her computer and showed me pictures of the people who are coming so I could familiarize myself with them!!!!! Now I can greet them by name! Then I opened Streams in the Desert (I can't believe I didn't type "dessert" after all the sweets I've been cooking.)...

October 7 Years ago, B.C. (Before children), I attended a cooking seminar at the Greenbrier resort. From souffles, to sauces, to spinning sugar, I was amazed by what the chef created. The difference in his kitchen and mine, which stood out the most, was the fact he had two helpers behind him doing all the prep work. They measured, chopped, cracked, etc and all he had to do was pour items in the pan or pot! The prep work is a big part of cooking. I am preparing for a wedding at our home this weekend and have some cooking to do today. Last night, I measured out many of the ingredients, so they are ready to just be dropped in this morning. Good tools...kitchen aide mixer, sharp knives, etc make cooking more enjoyable. Our days can go a lot smoother if we take advantage of the prep work available to us such as being in a weekly Bible study or having a daily devotional which we read (guess you are doing that). These give God the opportunity to take his best tool, scripture, and speak to...

October 6 Waking to the thought of "Clean up on aisle four" my mind wandered to my grocery list for this weekend. A grocery list was not where God was heading with me. Gently, He reminded me that my "to do" list and my prayer "request" list were getting way out in front of my confession time. I've been polishing a lot of silver and some pieces required a toothbrush to get into the ornate spots. God is requiring me to allow Him to get into those tiny grooves in my own life, you know, the sin pockets way down deep that we think no one will notice. Well, God notices. The past three days God has sent messages from the book of Habakkuk to me. That sounds like a board game doesn't it? Habakkuk was a prophet, in the nation of Judah, back around 600 B.C. Like many of us, Mr. H. was concerned about his nation's spiritual decline and he calls out to God. The refreshing thing about this fellow is how real he is. He questions if God is really list...

October 4 Beep, beep, beep, beep. My cell phone let me know there was a text. It was from a young high school boy in SC, who is like a grandson to us. The text said, "Another shut out. We are now 6-0!" The report related to the football team on which he plays. The Bible says it is God's desire for there to be a shut out...well, actually He wants no one shut out of heaven. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9 Father, Your ways are wise! We desperately need Your spirit to coach us. Forgive us when we take the ball and try to score on our own without consulting Your game plan. Make us team players who unite to score for Your kingdom's cause. When You hand us the ball may we carry out the play just as You have instructed, for within that course is the victory. In Jesus' Name, Amen

October 2-3 This quote caught my attention this morning. "Contact with others in society is not what causes the soul to grow most vigorously. In fact, one quiet hour of prayer will often yield greater results than man days spent in the company of others. It is in the desert that the dew is freshest and the air is the most pure." Andrew Bonar Praying for an hour takes discipline of the mind and even more discipline of what we do with our time! Look ahead at the next two days and schedule an appointment with God! Why is it we struggle to be alone with the One who loves us and knows us best? Hmm, maybe we think we have all of eternity with Him and we want to make the most of our time with people on earth. When God does nudge us to have contact with society, we should go for it. I had another wonderful confirmation yesterday. Two weeks ago God put a man on my heart to pray for, so I called him and asked if there was something he needed prayer for. He was taken back a bit and ...

October 1 Knowing the mess things are in here wedding prep wise, after two days of torrential down pours, my precious neighbor came to steal me away for a little reprieve. She has the coziest leather couch, which my body melted down into. Her grandson had stopped by to have his grandmother help him find a suit to wear to the homecoming dance this weekend. His grandfather died over a year ago, but his clothes still hang in his closet. What a sweet moment I got to share in and how thrilled that grandfather would have been to see this young man in his suit! Oh, we must savor those moments which fill our hearts with joy. We were sitting by her fireplace telling tales of years past. I shared a story of how I had given my all to make something happen for someone and said to my husband...."And they better be nice to me!" When I said that I immediately thought of what Christ did for us and how easy it would have been to turn to his Father and say, "I've given my life...