Boojoyful

July 31 6:28AM...rang out in orange lights on the digital clock by my bed yesterday morning... I'd stayed up late watching the Olympics and really wasn't ready to greet the day.  My husband came in the room to say he'd been up since 3:30AM... Moses had demanded to go out and moon gaze. No sooner had we finished chatting than I saw the "red ball rising" in the east.  "Get your camera," I sensed God saying.  Instead I decided to open emails.  The first one was the Adrian Rogers devotional below. July 30 Obedience Brings Blessing “Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people: and walk ye in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well unto you.” - Jeremiah 7:23 In 2 Kings 5:10, we read that God chose to heal Naaman, who was a leper, in a very unique way. God told Elisha to tell Naaman to wash seven times in the Jordan and he would be healed. Why seven times? Why not eight or five times? Because the number...

July 30 Double your order today for free ! After comparison shopping online for over three hours for printed cocktail napkins, I about "lost it".  Each site looked to have an amazing deal.  The "double your order for free" sounded amazing, until I realized the original order was "double the price" of the other sites. Last month our son in law was saving up for a great 30% off your total order at a pharmacy.  It was later that he realized even with the 30% off, Target would have been less expensive.  There are no real deals except Jesus! God has no gimmicks!  The gospel is clear and simple. If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and   be lieve in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will   be   saved .   Romans 10:9   The "R" glossary terms in my Bible go right along with this process.   Repent  -to consciously turn from sin to God; to be sorry for what you have done and to resolve not to do it ag...

Whoever can be   trust ed   with   very   little   can also be   trust ed   with   much,  and whoever is dishonest   with   very   little   will also be dishonest   with   much.   Luke 16:10 July 28-29 The tears dripped down my cheeks as the prayer time continued...I knew I had failed the test and my heart broke.  The task had been simple. While praying the other day, the Lord gave me a vision of some small children's building blocks sitting on my husband's desk at work (He is Head Master at a Christian school).  I didn't even go with the Lord and listen further, I just thought there was no way my husband was going to let me set children's blocks on his office desk.  The next day he and I were in a time of prayer for something totally unrelated and I began to pray for my husband and his faculty.  I prayed:  "Lord, equip them to be encouragers, as Paul was to young Timothy...

HIGH PLACES  :) July 27 Offerings and Places There were so many specific types of  offerings  in Old Testament times.  I wonder who kept the calendar to know when to do what?  Burnt (for sins), Drink (a sacrifice of dedication to God), Fellowship (symbolizing peace and fellowship with God), Grain (an act of worship), Guilt (eased guilty consciences with restitution for sin), Sin (required blood sacrifice), Thank (expression of gratitude), Wave (ceremony where offerings are lifted up in dedication to the Lord). How blessed we are now to not be bound by the law, but by our hearts.  Have you offered your heart, mind and soul to the Lord?  What is your heart attitude when the offering plate is passed? Reading in 2 Timothy 4:1-8 MSG this morning, Paul has a take on offerings, as he encourages Timothy:"You take over. I'm about to die, my LIFE an offering on God's altar." The Bible refers to  The Holy Place, The Most Holy ...

July 26 Rushing into the kitchen to grab a bite of lunch, I was wishing I had time to make a bowl of fresh peach/mango salsa like I had the day before.  I decided to just eat the peach and the mango and be satisfied.  There was no time for chopping and tossing! My thoughts shifted to our intake of Jesus. It can come into us, like a full course meal, with praise music, hymn singing, scripture reading, corporate prayer and a lengthy sermon; or there are times when we  only have time to bite directly into the Word, or to stop and prayer, or sing Hallelujah as we drive along.  We still get nourishment, it just comes more in a self-serve or drive through fashion at times. So however you can, serve  up the Word of God today...don't go without it. For   the   word   of   God   is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges   the   thoughts ...

July 25 Grabbing my husband's hand we entered into a time before the Lord yesterday. While listening I heard these powerful words: "Be still and know that I am God.   It is the advancement of my kingdom that should be your greatest cause." Again, I respond to the question, "How do you know when it is the voice of God?" "A clue for me is when it is NOT something you would tell yourself, but a statement which alines with the Word of God." The glossary words I chose for today line up with my seeking this week.  The difference is easily distinguished when a measuring line is held to the things of the world which we are drawn to, in comparison to the things which God calls us to do. We felt the Lord was testing us this spring to be willing to place Shiloh on the altar for three months by listing it "For Sale". While the process of getting it ready to sell was hard work, we felt that the sale would make life easier financially and physically...

July 24 Wanting an encounter with Christ I packed a bag with my Bible, a notebook and a few other reference books.  I also packed my camera and a zoom lens, before locking the door and heading out.  I regretted not taking an iPod loaded with praise music.  An overcast Monday usually affords privacy on our dock.  This past weekend a blue heron had appeared strutting his stuff for our grandson and I hoped he would reappear.  Most of all I hoped Jesus would show up and speak to me. My soul felt as if it had been eating junk food the past six weeks and  sense that before I could begin to feed upon meat and vegetables I needed to detox spiritually (repent).  Inviting the Holy Spirit to embark upon a sin search is a process in which I tend to procrastinate.  Turning my heart to the Lord, two blue herons appeared in the distance.  I took this as notification that Christ would come near when I confessed and cleaned up my act. Watching and waiting...

July 23 We will go for a double hitter on " H oly K iss". "A sign of mutual respect and trust; the equivalent of a handshake or hug." There is a woman from our home town who was a big "greet ME with a kiss" person.  If you entered her presence, she presented her cheek to you for you to kiss.  It drove my husband crazy.  The concept is Biblical. Greet one another with a  holy kiss.  2 Corinthians 13:12 Pictured above are some sweet kisses.   I play a game with one of our grandsons requiring a kiss.  When he comes to me asking for something, I say..."It's going to cost you."  He grins and says..."A kiss?"  I nod and he lays a sweet one on me! I am glad God thought up kissing!  :)  Greet someone in the name of Christ and bestow on them a holy kiss today! Intercede "To pray for another person, usually to obtain God's help.   For   this reason, since the day we heard about you, we...

(I'm doubling up this week, as I have double the love to spread around here with a couple cute grands.) July 20-22 Fear of the Lord "An attitude of reverence or worship in the presence of God-an attitude of humility and awe more than dread and fright." The first time I looked down into the Grand Canyon I was in awe of God. I'd seen pictures of the Grand Canyon and even stood amazed in a surround theatre at Disney, as the camera took you on an aerial flight through the canyon, but none of those prepared me for standing there in person.  My guess is that "high" is  minuscule in comparison to the state of elation we will experience when we enter into Heaven and stand in the presence of God. I am thankful our grandchildren have a respectful fear of the water.  Viewing how immense it is they know better than to jump right in.  Likewise, Moses has the same respect even in is life jacket. A respectful fear of the Lord is a good thing! The rev...

Took us awhile to figure out how to make this baby bathtub work in the kitchen sink.   Reading the directions helped! July 18-19 The standard of measure below sounds like the way I measure ingredients when I cook  (a pinch here and a smidgeon there). It obviously got the job done in Old Testament Days and is good enough for a heavenly construction reference, but would probably drive our builder son nuts!  I guess you'd have to be sure all your workers arms measured out to equal cubits!  The three glossary words I have chosen today remind us whether related to our work, our way of life or what we wear, God is into details.  If we take the time to seek Him, He will direct our path. “You're blessed when you stay on course, walking steadily on the road revealed by God. You're blessed when you follow his directions, doing your best to find him. That's right—you don't go off on your own; you walk straight along the road he set. You, God, prescribed the r...

July 17 Breastpiece- A colorful pouch nine inches square, attached to the attire of the Old Testament high priest. Twelve precious stones on the pouch represent the 12 tribes of Israel-so when it hung around the priest's neck, the people could be close to his heart. Maybe the tradition of wearing crosses or the names of our children on charms came from this description of the priest's breastplate.  I visited a sweet friend this weekend who has a cross which contains some of his wife's ashes. He said, "She is always with me." A friend of mine sent our daughter in law a heart charm with a blue footprint to honor her new baby boy. Beelzebub -Satan, the prince of demons.  In the Old Testament, Baal was a Canaanite deity, whose name was expanded to Beelzebul (meaning  Exalted  or  Prince Baal) . Going on a Beelzebub hunt I came across this profound thought.  (This passage from Matthew chapter 12 is following up Jesus healing a demon possessed man who ...

July 16 Flipping through my Women of Faith Bible, page 2096 came into view.  The "Dictionary of Terms".  I have a personal challenge of learning something new everyday and thought I'd dig deep and hopefully come up with something new (a term definition or verse) for each of you!  Let's take what we learn and ask God to apply it to our lives in an unexpected manner. Abba -An Aramaic (the common language in Palestine at the time of Jesus) word best translated Daddy.   Abba was a deeply personally and affectionate  word, that most of Jesus' contemporaries would have considered disrespectful in addressing God. Abba , Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will .  Mark 14:36 Abyss -A bottomless pit where, at the end of the age, Satan will be banished for a time.  The Greeks used this word to describe the underworld or spirits, suggesting a place so deep it is unfathomable.  [...

July 13-15 Taking an early morning walk with my husband, we were taken back as a black cat began to cross our path.  Being an animal lover I was tempted to go pet the cat, but obeyed my man's urge to keep my hands to myself.  Jokingly he shared that his father had always warned them to stay clear of black cats...especially on Friday the 13th.  He chuckled and continued saying, "What would God think of us being superstitious?"  Turning around to go the other direction we were stopped in our tracks as FIVE deer, one being a large buck, ran right in front of us.  We laughed at the damage those deer could have done to us compared to one little black cat. Philippians 4:6 Do not   be   anxious   about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

July 12   My man has no problem dozing off "wherever" to catch up on needed sleep!  Glad he has a strong "football hold" when he does it with one of the grandchildren in his arms. The other night I could not sleep.  A nightmare (funny, first I typed "night mare"....a horse in the dark) combined with a bulldog wanting to go outside had awakened me.  Trying to get back to sleep, I began by telling the Lord how much I love him and then began "breaking out in exclamations of thanks" to God for each of you and lifting you up in prayer! This verse gives me a happy heart! How blessed we are to have one another! Every time you cross my mind, I break out in exclamations of thanks to God.  Each exclamation is a trigger to prayer.  I find myself praying for you with a glad heart. I am so pleased that you have continued on in this with us, believing and proclaiming God's Message, from the day you heard it right up to the present.  There has never ...

July 11 Summer cherries are so delicious.  As I sat eating some the other day, I thought about three of the elements of a cherry.  The stem, the seed and the delectable substance.  All are necessary for the cherry to be all God intended it to be. Thinking about those three elements in relationship to our lives, being all God intends for them to be, I realized we need a stem/spirit connecting us to Christ and keeping us in communication with him.  We need a vibrant seed or heart willing to produce fruit in our lives and we need the substance of who we are (our minds, talents, gifts, personalities) to be pleasing in God's sight and attractive to others so we will be an effective witness.

July 10 When your heart is ripped out and stomped on, when you see no way out of your circumstances, or when life hands you a load of hopelessness, where do you take your hurt?  The pills, alcohol and chocolate are within reach, so are the credit cards and online shopping tempts you to buy your happiness. Heading to the gym to workout the disappointment is an option or driving to see whoever might have a sympathetic ear. David didn't have easy access to our modern day fixes, but he did have wine and women. Being a man after God's own heart, he learned to pour his heart out to God. "Psalm 143 is a prayer of David, during a time when he is obviously under a great deal of stress, possibly written while Saul is persecuting him. In this Psalm, David asks God to speak to his heart first thing in the morning and give him reassurance. He pours out his heart to God, expressing his fears and even his weaknesses. He admits his feelings of hopelessness an...