Boojoyful

February 29 Take a leap of faith and tell someone you love them! A Love Song http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=91BF2MNU&utm_source=GodTube%20Music%20Videos&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=02/14/2012 Several people posted that this song makes them think of the gift of the Holy Spirit which God gave us. A reminder we are loved.

February 28 No Ryan O'Neal and Ali Macgraw are not featured in the video below...but someone much more talented and filled with a love beyond our imagination, someone who longs to capture our hearts. Try to imagine seeing each person you see today through Christ's eyes! Jesus is the ULTIMATE love! http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=F2EC0CNU&utm_source=GodTube%20Today&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=02/21/2012

February 27 Bible Gateway's verse yesterday was: This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him . 1 John 4:9 A fitting verse for the day my everyday friend, soul sister, monster of the faith and mischievous partner in crime, Kaye, left this world behind and headed to her heavenly home. My husband was able to be by her bedside and said he knew she heard the words of our faith that he shared. Her sweet daughter held the phone up to her ear so I could say good-bye and the brightest single star you have ever seen shown through my bedroom window as she exited this earth! Yesterday, my heart literally ached so badly that I told the Lord, "Take me too!" Wouldn't she have been surprised if I had snuck up on her in heaven and said, "Thought you were going somewhere without me, did ya." When we received the call she was ready to go, I called out to the Lord for comfort and He led me to the Bible Gat...

February 25-26 The silence in our bed said so much. My husband could tell my thoughts were far away. Lovingly he said, "You love hard, thus you set yourself up to hurt hard." Expressing honesty to a very sick friend, I confessed, "I am worried about you." Her reply, "I am sorry, I don't want to cause you to worry." My response was that I would rather love to a depth that brings heartache and concern than not have experienced that kind of love. She agreed. The weather was fabulous yesterday. I was tempted to gather a couple magazines and head to the dock to escape reality, but I knew my Jesus time needed to come first. Opening Solo, The Message, I was so thankful I hadn't missed God's love letter to me as he shared of a woman who loved Jesus hard. Luke 7:36-47 One of the Pharisees asked him over for a meal. He went to the Pharisee's house and sat down at the dinner table. Just then a woman of the village, the town harlot, having learne...

February 24 This post may simply be a rambling as I am not quite certain where my head is. Thirty-nine years ago I asked Jesus into my heart and a mustard seed faith began to grow. That first year a huge test was tossed my way when, while my parents were out of the country traveling in Europe, my grandfather, who lived right down the street, was murdered. My siblings, who were much older than me, were all married and out of the house. My journal from that time records a young faith that cried out to God. Flash forward to now and I am facing what appears to me to be a very unfair situation. I know God well enough after all these years to know He is capable of stepping in and changing the scenarios. My faith is being tested and my heart hurts. When I take the time to stop trying to figure things out and turn to the Lord, He gives me life lines to hold onto, even while the waves keep crashing. Like the disciples in the boat, I scream, "Calm this storm!" Give us a miracle...

February 23 My heart is so heavy, the prayer list so long with burdens and needs beyond any load I've ever carried to lay before the Lord. A numbness of disbelief wants to set in...the kind of feeling where you need to splash cold water in your face to bring you out of the shock of it all. Before opening my eyes or praising the Lord, I started into the list...then I stopped and simply said, "Lord, I love you, would you like to crawl in this bed and sit beside me and just hold hands." The reply.... "Oh, dear friend, my heart is so heavy, the needs of my children and those who are lost is so long." I sat up and with compassion I switched to the Lord's perspective and thought about how He aches for the lost to be found and He longs to have his children home, hating to see them suffer. He knows our earthly journey is short lived compared with eternity. Oh how He loves you and me! Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he...

February 22 An email came from a friend the other day and below her closing was the statement: "Sent from my Kindle Fire." With this being a month of reflecting on love, I thought about those words and remembered the importance of kindling the various kinds of love in our lives. Love isn't set a blaze on its' own. Whether it is a love for the Lord, a romantic love, a relational love, or a parental love the pieces of kindling (our acts of KINDness and being active and involved) keep the fire burning! The fire on the altar must be kept burning; it must not go out. Every morning the priest is to add firewood and arrange the burnt offering on the fire and burn the fat of the fellowship offerings on it. Leviticus 6:12

During the snow storm Sunday, we had a visitor on our patio. We never saw him, but it is obviously from the marks he left that he was there. Neither do we see the Spirit, but when we allow Him to have control of our lives, it is obvious He is with us by the behavior His goodness evokes in us and the imprint that leaves on others! February 21 Continuing on with yesterday's thoughts about connecting with the Holy Spirit, I wanted to share some of these thoughts of Charles Spurgeon. Born in 1834, obviously the Spirit has been impacting people for a long time. :) "Common, too common, is the sin of forgetting the Holy Spirit....He shares in the threefold ascription of Holy, holy, holy. (Isaiah 6:3) ...He is purity, truth and grace. He is good benevolently, tenderly bearing with our waywardness and striving with our rebellious wills. He quickens us from our death in sin, and then trains us for the skies as a loving nurse fosters her child. How generous, forgiving, and tender is...

February 20 CONNECTION- the word was as clear as if it had been handed out in a spelling bee. "Could I have the definition please?" "Connection-when something (or someone) is joined and linked together." Wandering through the house I looked for clues to what the lesson was in this word. Without my fingers connecting to the keys of this computer, messages would not be sent out or information gathered. Without the plugs of numerous items in our home being connected to an electrical outlet they would be useless. The information, education and entertainment of television would not come into our home without being connected to cable. A peanut butter and jelly sandwich would not delight any one's palate without the two elements connecting. And we can have the fanciest shower head available, but without a connection to the waterline nary a drip will drop out. Checking out the Bible's take on this word I came across.... "In prayer there is a connection betw...

February 18-19 There is a text message on my phone from a dear friend which reads: "We so good 4 each otha." I want God to feel that way about me....I know He doesn't need me to do squat for Him, but He did put me here for HIS purpose and I hope I am pleasing in His sight. The first thing He asks of me is to love Him. Adrain Rogers said this about God: " He made you and me in the likeness of His image, that He might have fellowship with us and that we would praise Him." Lord, I do pray I get this relationship with You right this side of heaven, so when I see you will say “Well done, good and faithful servant.’ I was struggling with the Lord over some current situations and He spoke very lovingly, but sternly back. Only minutes after our conversation, I received an email from a friend who said she had me on her heart and had just Facebooked a quote of mine, from when we worked in youth ministry together. The more you know Him, the more you love Him. The more ...

Apple brings friends together! February 17 Over a year ago, I met a gentleman in an Apple Store in Minnesota. After 64 years of marriage, he lost the love of his life. His love for her was the first thing he told me about. Now we often email about his love for the Lord and how his faith continues to grow. The day before Valentine's Day he shared how he struggles at times to let go of the past and get excited about what is to come. He did what friends in Christ do...he asked for prayer. Emailing him back one day, I thought about how blessed his wife was to be loved like this. I suggested he start journaling or maybe emailing loved ones on occasion and share a memory from his life with his wife and then something/someone in his earthly life he is thankful for. I gave examples of simple joys in my life...the BlueRidge Mts coming down to meet the Lake, looking at Moses, fresh pineapple, and the twinkle in people's eyes. He quickly replied and I will never look at a jar of peanut bu...

February 16 As you read the story of the paraplegic, in Mark 2:1-12, can you think of people you would carry to a roof top, disassemble the roof and lower into a building to see Jesus? That was some bold faith on at least the part of the four men. I guess the paraplegic was UP for it! :) Read the story below: After a few days, Jesus returned to Capernaum, and word got around that he was back home. A crowd gathered, jamming the entrance so no one could get in or out. He was teaching the Word. They brought a paraplegic to him, carried by four men. When they weren't able to get in because of the crowd, they removed part of the roof and lowered the paraplegic on his stretcher. Impressed by their bold belief, Jesus said to the paraplegic, "Son, I forgive your sins." Some religion scholars sitting there started whispering among themselves, "He can't talk that way! That's blasphemy! God and only God can forgive sins." Jesus knew right away what they were think...

February 15 The double whammy happened the other day where the same scripture reference was used in two different devotionals. The context of both was the BOLD faith of the hemorrhaging women, who reached out to touch Jesus' robe in a crowd, hoping to be healed. Spurgeon's take on this passage in Luke chapter 8 was directed towards the woman's ignorance in thinking virtue came out of Christ by a law of necessity, without His knowledge or direct will. He goes on to discuss the fact she was a stranger to Jesus' generosity and felt like she needed to steal a cure. "Misery should always place itself right in the face of mercy." He goes on to write: "After she obtained the cure, she rejoiced with trembling. She was glad that the divine virtue had worked a miracle in her, but she feared lest Christ might retract the blessing and cancel the grant of His grace. Little did she comprehend the fullness of his love. We do not have as clear a view of Him as we could w...

Happy Valentine's Day February 14th Opening Solo, The Message, I smiled as I looked at the title of Day 220's entry... Heartstrings. Quite an appropriate title for Valentine's Day and totally by coincidence, as I am way off target in my reading (I should have finished December 31). The Lord obviously knew I'd be tempted to write about worldly love on this holiday, which my husband claims had to have been developed by Hallmark! The scripture reading selected for this topic was Mark 10:17-22. To Enter God's Kingdom As he went out into the street, a man came running up, greeted him with great reverence, and asked, "Good Teacher, what must I do to get eternal life?" Jesus said, "Why are you calling me good? No one is good, only God. You know the commandments: Don't murder, don't commit adultery, don't steal, don't lie, don't cheat, honor your father and mother." He said, "Teacher, I have—from my youth—kept them all!" ...

Loving for the Long Haul February 13th What God gives us in the context of the word love is a list of things to continue doing over a long, long period of time. Edith Schaeffer But you, dear friends, carefully build yourselves up in this most holy faith by praying in the Holy Spirit, staying right at the center of God's love, keeping your arms open and outstretched, ready for the mercy of our Master, Jesus Christ. This is the unending life, the real life! Jude 1:20-21 In the book Passages of Marriage the term "transcendent love" is defined as - "a profound and peaceful perspective toward your partner and toward life." Hmm, how many years does it take for that to occur? For the marrieds out there: If you made a pie graph and entered in the amount of time you spend at work, at home care/shopping, etc, at exercise, at spiritual endeavors, caring for others than your spouse and the amount of time you romance your spouse, what does it look like? Marriages need to be...

February 11-12 Our fifth child is celebrating his birthday today and as I watched this video, I thanked the Lord for the teammates our children have been to one another. Years ago I told them I had two requests for them... 1) That they love the Lord with all their hearts. 2) That they count it a privilege to be siblings, recognize God placed them together for a reason, and always love and support one another. God knew not everyone would have siblings, so He created the Body of Christ and loaded it up with brothers and sisters in the faith. Enjoy this precious story of selfless, brotherly, love. http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=K67LPGNX&utm_source=GodTube%20Must-See%20Video&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=01/09/2012 “But I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble.” Psalm 59:16

February 10 Love is an irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired. Robert Frost Love is a free gift that is fun to give away. Boo Andrews For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me. Matthew 25:35-36 Watch this video on the power of our words. http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=Hzgzim5m7oU&vq=medium Simply sending a Valentine can send a strong message. Read over this passage and ask the Lord to help you think creatively and direct you to people in each category who can be the recipient of a Valentine f rom you. Hungry person Thirsty person Stranger In need of clothing Sick In prison They may be hungry for love, thirsty for the gospel, in need of being clothed simply with a hug. Maybe the hungry person is in the lunch room, the thirsty person at your favorite coffee sho...

February 9 OK, real life confession here...I was watching the Bachelor on TV with friends (I will not give up their identities) and cringed at a scene where the Bachelor chose two girls to be captains and choose teams for baseball. Ugh, the rejection of being a "last chosen" on national TV. Later, I asked my husband, who coached and taught PE for years, if he ever did that. "Absolutely not!" he replied and listed off numerous creative ways to randomly divide up for teams. The time of year for college acceptances, which can lead to sorority and fraternity acceptances, and boyfriend, girlfriend choices, and then job acceptances is upon us. Life is filled with rejection opportunities that hurt our hearts to the core. A good reminder for those with hurting hearts is that God CHOSE them! He created them on purpose and wants to communicate with them daily! There are so many ways we can bring smiles to others and make them feel loved and chosen. I was invited to a b...

February 9 Good Samaritan - A Bible Lesson on Love "One of the parables of Jesus was the story of the Good Samaritan found in Luke 10. A lawyer came to Jesus and wanted to prove to the Lord that he wasn't a bad person. Jesus told him that he need to love God with all his heart and his neighbors around him. The lawyer wanted to find out exactly who Jesus meant were his neighbors. In response Jesus told the story of the Good Samaritan. A Jewish man was beaten and left half dead in the street. A priest and a Levite passed by. Though they were Jews too, they chose to leave the man alone thinking that he was not their responsibility. A Samaritan saw the man and offered to nurse him back to health even though the Jews despised the Samaritans. The Samaritan paid for the needed medical care and offered to pay more as necessary. Though the Jews would not cross the street to help their fellow countryman, a Samaritan realized that all men are his neighbors and sho...

No, the Lord is all I need. He takes care of me. Psalm 16:50 God's power is very great for those who believe. Ephesians 1:19 A story on trust by Max Lucado I stand six steps from the bed's edge. My arms extended. Hands open. On the bed, Sara-all four years of her-crouches, poised like a playful kitten. She's going to jump. But she's not ready. I'm too close. "Back more, Daddy," she stands and dares. I dramatically comply, confessing admiration for her courage. After two giant steps I stop. "More?" I ask. "Yes!" Sara squeals, hopping on the bed. With each step she laughs and claps and motions for more. When I'm on the other side of the canyon, when I'm beyond reach of mortal man, when I am but a tiny figure on the horizon, she stops me. "There, stop there." "Are you sure?" "I'm sure," she shouts. I extend my arms. Once again she crouches, then springs. Superman without a cape. Skydiver without a ...

Working through Ruth Myers', 31 Days of Praise , I've looked back at what I journaled in 2001 when I did this study the first time. There's a lot on love in there! I particularly liked one entry. "What we need are hearts that are humble and recognize none of us are worth of all you offer Father." I went on to write what a music minister had shared at church one morning. A woman commented that she did not like a particular song which had been sung in church. The music minister replied, "That's ok, we weren't singing it for you!" Oh, Father, that Jesus would be the recipient of our love and praise! We need to get over ourselves and into Him! "Love is, above all, the gift of oneself". ~Jean Anouilh He must become greater; I must become less. John 3:30