Boojoyful

 Peace Like a River (Isaiah 48:18-19) October 31 Do you have a spiritual mentor in your life?  A person whom you know will speak truth over you in love and always direct you to the Word of God.  I cherish the women who have played this role in my life.  A few days after the stroke a godly woman in my life emailed this message to Betty Ashton. "The Lord seems to be telling me to tell Boo to listen for His singing...how awesome is our Father!!! He gave me both these scriptures twice today with the urging to pass them along...and to tell her to be listening! How Great is our God!!!" The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you' in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing. Zephaniah 3:17 The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace. Numbers 6:25-26  The other day this same wom...

I thank God for this sunny 80 degree day in the end of October! What does a little mind think as it looks at the vastness of an ocean? "God Of Wonders" By Chris Tomlin comes to my mind! Lord of all creationOf water, earth and sky The heavens are your tabernacle Glory to the Lord on high God of wonders beyond our galaxy You are holy, holy The universe declares Your Majesty You are holy, holy October 30 Discussing the limits of life right now with a dear friend, he "stunned me" with the question he posed. "What fills you with joy right now?"   My initial response was "Being alive and getting to be with my husband." The question has stayed with me for several days and I realized equally as elating is realizing the Lord is with me and up to good even though life has looked quite different these past 7 weeks. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves  fully  to the work of the Lord, because you kn...

WOW! What a gift these women showered us with by cleaning our whole house. Deke and I will never forget this selfless act of kindness. October 29 The things that have added spice to life around Shiloh, those things which are not of eternal value but bring a smile to your face, are things missing now from my modus operandi.  My brain knows that in pre-stroke days I would have done these things, but in the lethargy of life right now there is no follow through for these ideas.  Right now life is rather simple and SLOW, but it's obviously a part of God's plan. Three friends teamed up and descended upon our house to clean, dust, vacuum up the stink bugs and freshen up the toilets.  I knew I wanted to photograph them and record this offering of generosity and friendship.  To take the photo I wanted, required heading down to our costume corner and digging out some wigs. The dress up idea didn't come to fruition, but they did let me take a photo of them in this incre...

One of our dogwoods is showing off her new fall attire. Shaking her tail feathers before she becomes naked. The scripture sign below her reminds us to take the initiative if we want to be near God. October 28 Sarah Young writes in Jesus Calling : "True confidence comes from knowing you are complete in My Presence.  Everything you need has its counterpart in Me." We've been blessed to be part of a an exciting church plant the past three years.  This Sunday was one of the most amazing experiences of our lives as we were able to "Come near to God" with an estimated 800 people in our new church building on the top of a hill, surrounded by God's majestic mountains here in rural Franklin County, VA.  If you Google Burnt Chimney, VA you won't find much, but it is the site of where God has done and is doing a mighty work and we give him thanks and praise.  Please come visit CrossPointe sometime. "Perseverance must finish its work so t...

October 27 Sorry, a little late today. Rough couple days with sciatica.  Telling that devil to take off in the name of Jesus! Each  morning when I awaken my mind drifts back to both in and out patient rehab and the people who are struggling there on this particular day.  Scared, defeated, wondering if they will ever be whole again and all I can do is pray for them. My hearts desire was to get up Saturday morning and make pancakes for my husband!  My girlfriend had picked up the essential perishable ingredients I was lacking: buttermilk, eggs and butter.  It took awhile, but they turned out grand!  The sight of the those ingredients triggered my mind to realize I could also bake him a buttermilk pie! I was elated and hope he was as well. We had a whole Saturday before us and would have normally worked ourselves silly, but my "umph" was not pushing me out the door to weed or into the closet for the mop and dust cloth. Instead I opened the Jesus Ca...

Our next to youngest grandchild and his beautiful, beloved, Mama! October 26 Real life is a bit unfamiliar to me now.  The simplest things seem to take 5 times longer! Lining up a way to get home for the weekend to attend the Grand Opening of our new church site, so my sweet hubby didn't have to make his sixth weekend jaunt in a row, took some effort.  An, oh, so thoughtful friend, had arranged a ride for me from point B to C, but I had to get from A to B and it wasn't working out.  Not trusting the Lord, I took the reins and reserved a rental car.  At the last moment, our son looked at me and said, "I'm driving you!" Probably the wisest decision. In Crewe, VA he passed me off to a lovely lady, who has a home on Smith Mt Lake.  This total stranger, had made her car so welcoming. She had drinks, snacks and a freshly washed pillow so I could sleep. She was so much fun, I never closed my eyes until I reached my bed and then I slept like a log f...

October 25 Back in the day, junior high school brought the opportunity to meet friends from outside your immediate neighborhood.  I look back on those days with such fondness, except the day the math teacher measured my skirt length and told me it was not within the limits and I was to never wear that dress again. One of my very favorite friends from those days messaged me the other day and said, "Be kind to yourself, my friend.  All things in God's time." She had some more specific words of encouragement, which were spot on and brought on a wall of tears pouring down my face. The Biblegateway verse, which my grandson and I had read that same morning, came to mind and I messaged it back to my friend. Congenial conversation-what a pleasure! The right word at the right time-beautiful! Proverbs 15:23 Galatians 6:2 from The Message translation pours out godly advice as well. "Live creatively, friends.  If someone falls into sin, forgivingly restore...

Isn't this tree amazing how it is stretching out over the water. "If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy,  the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world." C. S. Lewis October 24 I made my husband really nervous as I was practicing driving last week.  The song, "I Can Only Imagine" came on the radio and my hand shot up in the air in praise to the Lord. He was afraid, I'd take both hands off the wheel and praise! The song doesn't give hugging Jesus as one of the options, but I think that is what I will do when I see him face to face.  The other day, I had the privilege of saying good-bye on the phone to a precious friend in Minnesota, whose family had called in hospice.  I said, "Bob, please hug Jesus for me and tell him I love him and can't wait to get there!" Death is inevitable for us all. I don't fear death, for the best is yet to come for those of us who love Je...

"Great are the works of the Lord; they are pondered by all who delight in them." Psalm 111:2 October 23 I walked close to 2 miles the other day.  Yup, came inside and collapsed, but I made an increase in my walking progress.  Our grandson asked me if I thought I could jog for a little while. Pondering the proposition, I explained I couldn't trust my left foot to have enough get up and go to do that. I was afraid I would trip and scuff myself up on the asphalt.   While I've been pushing the physical aspect of this recovery and excited to see improvement, I think I have pumpkin brain...ya know...full of a messy mush and I don't know how to fix that. My thoughts are totally clear and rational (so I think), yet they are slow, sluggish and missing the boojoyful element, the Energizer Bunny attitude, and the creative desires just aren't there right now.  While it seems so weird and is a reminder there is an issue in my brain, I'm rather non...

Bessie is positioned right in the center of the upstairs family room at  The Andrews' new home in Va Beach. I had fun accessorizing her for Halloween. October 22 Positioning is key!  Whether it is my attempt to stand on one foot, balance on the Bosu Ball, or walk toe to heel across  a board on the floor.  Positioning ourselves before the Lord is also key!  Taking time out the other day I read Paul David Tripp's thoughts on life's difficulties. "The difficulties of your life are not in the way of God's plan; they are a tool of it.  They're crafted to advance his work of grace.  Perhaps the two most important questions you could ask between your conversion and your final resurrection are: 1) What in the world is God doing right here, right now? 2) How in the world should I respond to what God is doing? The way that you answer these questions determines; in a real way, the character of your faith and the direction of your life...God is em...

Sweet baby love, Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7   October 21 Each physician we've met, through the course of this post stroke life, has looked at my husband and compassionately said, "How are you doing?"  They know from experience how difficult it is for a caregiver to see such dramatic changes in a loved one. So, I stop today and say thank you to an amazing husband who has driven over 4,000 miles this past month and will do even more in the weeks to come to be by my side.  I say thanks to his amazing faculty and staff at Christian Heritage Academy for picking up the slack during his absence and making him feel so loved.  A big thanks to Julie and Debbie for feeding him! As my husband returned home from yet another weekend jaunt, he found our power out, do to a fried squirrel on our transformer.  All three refrigerator/freezers where a mess and had to be totally cleaned out.  :-(   Rea...

October 20 Arriving at our son and daughter in law's new home was euphoric!  To think that our next to youngest child built this home caused the tears to cascade down my cheeks as I entered their foyer.  Then when our daughter in law took us into our bedroom the feeling of being loved poured all over us.  It is one of my very favorite colors, the bed donned in linens to rival any 5 star hotel, personalized accessories to speak right to my heart (even a framed photo of my parents) and fresh flowers to boot!  But the next morning, the unfamiliar set in again and after my shower I stood in front of a beautiful new sink for probably 10 minutes before finally asking for help. Take delight in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4 Taking a time out to nap, around 10AM,  I greeted the Lord.  It was as if He said, "Well, good morning to you, I wondered if you were ever going to speak."  Reflecting on my morning, I ca...

These fun tree hugger statues were scattered around Cheekwood Plantation in Nashville, TN. For those who find me find life and receive favor from the Lord. Proverbs 8:35 October 19 Continued... Two godly women spoke the same phrase over me while in Nashville.  "Be a good receiver," they each said.  One said, "If you can't receive well from others, maybe you aren't receiving what God has for you."  Hmm, maybe I need to go out and hug a tree and contemplate this thought? Often I tell our grandchildren to try to learn something new everyday.  That's been easy for me the past weeks.  During the first few weeks of this recovery I was willing to try anything the doctors and therapist told me (with the exception of medications).  A little stubborn in that area.  Coming home for a few days and realizing how difficult simple sequential tasks are to complete I now need to train myself how to do certain "life moves" again.  I told some frien...

Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. Psalm 27:14 October 18 Today's Biblegateway verse above reminds me of a note I received, along with a gift from a friend of our daughter's who is a neurologist.  (The gift was the book Stroke of Insight.)  Not sure if I wrote about the God-incident where this woman's baby sitter passed our daughter's house and saw the ambulance and called this doctor.  Later that evening in ICU there stood this beautiful woman, our own private neurologist,  with our daughter.  She visited me in the rehab facility and also later when I was recovering at our daughter's home.  We will be forever friends.  Anyway, the end of her note to me said, "Give yourself time!"  Yup, wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and give yourself time.! Continued from yesterday... (fortunately, my memory is still in tack) Heading home, EXHAUSTED, I put on my pjs and crawled into bed even though it w...

My sweet husband wanted to take a picture of me as we walked in Centennial Park last week. He told me to stand by this pretty planter.  It wasn't until we saw the photo that we realized there were two huge dead leaves right in front of me. We started to trash the photo and then it hit me...there are dead parts in my brain and maybe this is God telling me not everyone will notice them! October 17 Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice!  Strive for full restoration, encourage one another , be of one mind, live in peace.   And the God of love and peace will be with you. 2 Corinthians 13:11 God just keeps on giving.  He gave me a message on encouragement to share and then through that led me to this verse which has oodles of lessons for me. 1) Strive for full restoration (Never, never, never give up.) 2) Encourage one another    (For you never know what another person is facing.) 3) Be of one mind  (His whisper, "I will heal you...

The Parthenon in Centennial Park, Nashville, TN October 16 The second graders at my husband's school sent precious handmade cards. Their teacher sent a card which said, "Praying for daily doses of sufficient grace as you progress toward a full recovery." Is that perfect or what? "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."  2 Corinthians 12:9 HUGE praise to the Lord for my new primary care doctor.  I love her. She was so patient with me and helped me understand every question on my list!   "Lists and sticky notes will be key for awhile," she explained. So here's the stay tuned part: For the most part I feel like I'm making really good progress physically, but it's some of the simplest things which are "show stoppers" or a bit frustrating.  My husband took me to a grocery store in a nearby city, so I wouldn't run into people I know. (Communicating can be exhausting, be it on ...

My best friend from college flew to Nashville last weekend and was amazing support. October 15 When my mind flutters to what I've lost, all I have to do is think back to all the people I love whom I've been blessed to spend time with and to the new friends I have made this past month.  My life is truly so much richer.  On today's agenda is meeting a new primary care doctor. I'm battling the virus our grandsons had and dealing with an awful sore throat and fever.  The new PCP was not available yesterday, so I went to an urgent care to be certain I didn't have strep.  The physician stated he never would have known I'd had a stroke except for the facial drooping on my left side.  Heading from there to a dermatology appointment that doctor said the same thing.  With the overwhelming demands of PT and OT, I opted to forego speech therapy, while in Nashville, but after today's droopy comments I may need to rethink that. Several years ago I was asked ...

Missing this little man. October 14 Yesterday, I walked 26 minutes and 5 seconds, but whose counting.  Ugh, I am. Swinging would be much more fun than these strengthening exercises. We now begin to wade through local doctor selection and appointments, as well as medication regulating.  Our nurse daughter in law, Jenna, has been a fabulous resource.  Everyone needs a medical advocate! Finally, I've been able to research  strokes  and  medications  online and feel as if I am beginning to become a little more educated about my situation. While riding with my husband to Roanoke, I opened the Biblegateway app and was thrilled to read Jeremiah 29:11.  Pretty perfect verse  to accompany me into the next stage of this journey. "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." Hopefully, those plans don't include knife thro...

Prayer shawls made by Brentwood Baptist Church A lady who came by the house nicknamed us Betty Boo. I'm going to miss my gorgeous side kick! October 13 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds,  because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.   Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.   James 1:2-4 Passing the baton to my husband to write today and try to explain where we think we are at this point. Love to you all, Boo Probably the best way to describe where things are right now is the road we are literally on... I-81 headed home. We are still in a valley, but can see the mountain tops on both sides. Many great things going on but not there yet! First of all, Mama Boo passed her driver's test Sunday morning. As usual for this journey, that turned out to be a time of sharing and praying with the test admini...

October 12 Yesterday morning, before my eyelids lifted, I was greeting God for the day and said, "You are perfect." As for God, his way is perfect:  The Lord's word is flawless' he shields all who take refuge in him. Psalm 18:30 You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you. Isaiah 26:3 Lying in bed with my husband yesterday morning I said, "I'm so excited I may be going home with you."  (We are proposing to my neurologist I ride home, breaking the trip up into two days, and establish a relationship with a new primary care physician before I head to our son's home in VA Beach.)  After saying that I realized I feel the same way about Jesus and am prepared to say the same thing when He calls me home..."Jesus, I'm so excited to be going home with you!" "Do not let your hearts be troubled.  You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father's house has many r...

October 11 Here I am!  I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door,  I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me. Revelation 3:20  This is the beautiful entrance to our daughter's home.  It is always so welcoming. She and her husband have offered hospitality without grumbling for a month now! While my communication with the Lord, in the first week, was mainly a crying out for courage, trust, and strength, now I'm in listening mode asking for wisdom and understanding. "Listen to advice and accept discipline, and at the end you will be counted among the wise. Many are the plans of a person's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails. Proverbs 19:20-21 As I quieted myself for my morning nap yesterday, I asked the Lord to speak.  Here is what I heard: " Don't go before Me. Go with Me. This is a partnership." One piece of advice I received from  my speech the...

October 10 I'm feeling overwhelmed once again by the enormous love God has poured out upon me and the healing power, which comes from that. Yesterday, a physical therapist friend of our daughter's came over with her essential oils and said, "The Bible instructs us to anoint one another with oil. I've brought some of my oils and would just like to pray over you and love on you." Frankincense, bergamot, lemongrass, marjoram, lavender and geranium oils were rubbed into my feet and head as this young woman who loves Jesus gave of her time and resources to love on a stranger. May all our eyes be opened today to those in our path who may just need to feel loved. When Jiewon was visiting, I asked her to use her talents as a writer to try to put into words some of what I was feeling related to how God's love is poured upon us through others.  Enjoy! "In Him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit."  Ephe...

October 9 Yesterday's therapy took place at home with our grandsons, whose fevers have broken. Thank You Jesus!  Play dough, finger painting, legos and trains were the tools of choice.  Later in the afternoon we loaded up the runny noses and coughing heads and went for a ride to a beautiful estate in Nashville called Cheekwood. While the boys remained in the car, I boldly set foot alone onto the grounds carrying my camera for my first brief photo shoot.  The air was a glorious 84 degrees!  There amongst the butterflies and mums was this sculpture, which I found to be quite exemplary of what a stroke victim feels like!  I wish I had a bus and could go gather up all my stroke buddies and we could roll our wheel chairs and walkers out onto the lawn and sit in the sun with this fellow. This morning I awakened very early and sought the Lord in the quiet darkness before sunrise.  Opening my phone app for Jesus Calling , I headed the lesson within and o...