Boojoyful

I"m laughing out loud. God is so in control of this devotional site. I sensed I was supposed to write an update and went on and the site said writers could chose to use the old format until August 24th. There must have been some other not to technologically savvy individuals like me. Are you getting used to having your life run by someone else? When I went to the old format and tried to post a photo and it was quite different. It posted 3 photos and I can't figure out how to delete two of them, so I guess this is my guide on what to share. God has had me in "surrender mode" the past two months and I think that is where I am to stay. So here are a few shares and I will add to them when God directs. Oh, and now I see the site will no longer allow me to separate into paragraphs or choose fonts. UGH. This may be the final hoorah. Photo number one is the view from our son's yard in Utah. We had to fly there due to a freak accident at a pool and our 5 year old

My husband and I take early morning walks near a golf course neighborhood. One day on the side of the road was a golf ball. I picked it up and put it in my pocket. My husband said, "What are you doing?  That belongs to someone."  It was beside a driving range and the ball said, "Practice." I asked for forgiveness and told him I would return the ball after using it as on object lesson with our grands.  (A lesson on stealing and on character.) All the virtues I wrote out a week ago to teach our grandchildren to practice are ones we are applying through this current tragedy. What's the song, "Everyone Needs Compassion. "  Tell that to the girl who owns the pit bull. My faith wavered with the snake bite and then the first 48 hours after the pit bull attack I only had the faith of a mustard seed. We have experienced an unbelievable outpouring of  kindness  from others. If we have to go to court may every word be spoken in honesty and t

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses,  let us throw off everything that hinders and the  sin that so easily entangles. And let us run  with perseverance the race marked out for us,  fixing our eyes on  Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross,  despising its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners,  so that you will not grow weary and lose heart" Hebrews 12:1-3 Again, this was written a week ago, before the copperhead or pit bull attacks on our grandchild here at our home.  Legally we've been advised to not share the specifics or what  is happening to our grandson and family right now, so thank you for understanding and simply upholding us up in prayer. I will say, today's message has brought me strength.  The past 38 hours I do not feel like I have been strong. A sweet friend sat with me yest

I wrote this devotional a week ago, knowing we would have a house full. We've had the snake bite and tonight a dog visiting our neighbor walked into our yard. I daughter asked the owners to come get it. They didn't budge out of the water.  The dog walked to our dock and attacked the same little grandchild who has just been able to stand today after the snake. He's in surgery now. His ear, eye and mouth mauled.  Five children were apart of this traumatic tragedy. The devil is nasty and I'm struggling right now. If I don't post for awhile it's because I'm tired. A great number of our herd is grazing here at Shiloh this summer. My prayer is that it is a place of restoration from the storm that 2020 has brought into our lives.   I know of numerous families who are hunkering down together and hopefully building one another up! As I read the beginning of Ruth's devotional today I chuckled. It's so true. "Find me a woman headed t

God's mercies are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness.  We all got a good night's sleep last night`````. The swelling has stopped increasing from the snake bite. I really need to implant  Colossians 3:17 deeply in my heart and thank God for putting it before me today.  Three of our children will be here for a while with their families. There are a lot more dirty clothes and dishes stacked up, toys and crafts strewn around and trash to be taken out, but we can rejoice that we have a house that holds us all and all these provisions, in addition to one another's love, to consume.  Everyone and everything is a gift from God. Simons' word for us on this day is...."Faithfulness in the unremarkable daily tasks often goes unnoticed-but not to the God who numbers your days. To our all-serving God, everyday faithfulness is an act of worship and not just an act of survival." She shared a this line from 18th century German poet, Johann Wolfgang

The sun comes up and the stars come out. Sounds like a song my children sang in pre-school.  No matter what chaos the world around us has entered, God is steadfast to provide our needs each day. (If this makes no sense, it's because I am going on very little sleep.) We were certainly tested in that regard yesterday.  Four hours after one of our daughter in laws arrived with her three children, the five year old was bitten by a copperhead.  Fortunately, Deke was home, killed the snake and rushed this precious one and his mom to urgent care. I alerted the staff that they were coming and they called 911 knowing he'd need to get to a hospital. He was in horrific pain and swelling had already set in.  His father fell from a ladder up on a house and had foot surgery two weeks ago and had not made the trip but drove all night and got to the hospital by 3AM and they released this sweet little one without having to administer the anti-venom which can have side effects.  The doctor

"O Lord, what is man that you regard him, or the son of man that you think of him? Man is like a breath; his days are like a passing shadow. " Psalm 144:3-4 My heart truly aches for this generation that feels challenged to be so in the spotlight. It is as if they have a daily pressure to perform and be heard.  Back when our first grandchildren were born the kids were great about mailing or email us photos. With them living so far away it was nice to get peeks of their progress. Then the social media tempo sped up.  The moms explained I needed to be on Facebook if I wanted to see photos...then the pace further increased and I was placed on Instagram and if I don't check in daily the glimpses are gone. Oh, how I long for summer and some face to face time with them just sitting on the dock eating ice cream, floating along on the pontoon looking at the mountains or simply swaying together in a hammock and seeing what shapes we see in the clouds.  I pray we all

We have a son whose family lives right outside of Minneapolis. The first day of the riots he called and said, "We are okay, but Minneapolis is not! Pray this violence stops." A couple nights later our daughter-in-law, who had to go to work as a hospice nurse that day in Minneapolis,  entered their 7 year old son's room to find he had tightly and safely tucked his stuffed animals into bed.  This picture makes me weep, for it says a lot about what our nation's children are carrying in their hearts. Our daughter-in-law said, "I just have to keep explaining to my children we all need Jesus." God's already interrupted this Beholding and Becoming  series by awakening me in the middle of the night Sunday with the word cover  on my heart. I knew immediately what the trigger was. That evening a man in our church small group shared that his 90 year old sister-in-law has beginning Alzheimers. At one point in a conversation with her she said, "I

I'm embarking on a new study. Two friends who know me very well gave me Ruth Chou Simons beautiful book Beholding and Becoming, the Art of Everyday Worship.   Each day I will attempt to post a piece of her artwork and a thought from this book If the Spirit redirects I will go with Him! My summer theme is Flexible Love and I hope we can all love one another and be flexible and not let the devil get a foothold.  We truly need to behold the gift of each day and pray that in the process of life we will be transformed more and more to the likeness of Christ. " Nearness to God brings likeness to God.The more you see God the more of God will be seen in you." Charles Spurgeon I want to share Ruth's glossary about what you will see in her paintings.  All of her books are gorgeous visually and spiritually. I encourage you to check her out. "Bees-workers that produce great dividends  Beetles-unwanted and unfavorable but sometimes secretly helpful  Bird

Bless his bones...this was a head scratching situation from one end of the property to the other. We have a creek that runs through our property, but last week it became a pond. We tried to cross this bridge only to realize it had been raised off it's foundation. Foundation-an underlying basis or principle for something. There is only one reliable foundation upon which we are to  build our lives and that is Jesus Christ. Oh Christ the Solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand.  " You are the foundation on which we stand today. You always save us and give true wisdom and knowledge Nothing means more to us than obeying you."   Isaiah 33:6 "You Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens with everyone else who belongs to the family of God.  You are like a building with the apostles and prophets as the foundation and with Christ as the most important stone.  Christ is the one who holds the building toget

 " When others are happy, be happy with them, and when they are sad, be sad ." Romans 12:15 We all need people in our lives to hear our hearts! Me oh my! I'm stopping right now and thanking God for the heart hearers in my life!  The people God sends to our door, who offer up a text, note, or email, or make that call right at that needed moment and realize God had to have been behind the encouragement. Satan is tossing those devil darts by keeping us apart from one another. Hebrews 10:25 says... " And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another,  especially now that the day of his return is drawing near."  Let's stop right now and ask God who needs our encouragement and then make the time to carry out that action. " Therefore encourage one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing." 1 Thessalonians 5:11 " Let's think of ways to motivate one another to a

Throw way back...our oldest grandson, now 11 years old imitating his Papa. Influence-"the capacity to have an effect on the character, development, or behavior of someone or something, or the effect itself." Who are some of the influencers of your life? There is a woman who was my neighbor two doors up from the only childhood home I had. This lovely lady always has time for others! Now a 96 year old widow, she is blessed to have three fabulous sons who adore her and live close by. Looking back, I can see how much she enjoyed the neighborhood girls and made a point to invite us over one at a time for tea and little chats. Her faith is enormous and she pours the Word of God into her heart every day.  Her home is the most eclectic home I've ever been in, yet it is a place of welcoming that oozes peace.  I know it has truly been a safe haven for many. I am thankful for the influence she has had on my life. She exemplifies  Titus 2:3-5. "Likewise, older wom