My Resolution

This resolution hangs on a wall in my home as well as in my office. It is a resolution that I have made to take full responsibility for my life as well as the life of my wonderful wife and precious children. I gave it to them yesterday for Father's Day. I felt impressed of the Lord to not only make this resolution, but to also speak a word of affirmation to my wife, Nichole, and to each one of our children. After affirming each one, I prayed a blessing over them, individually. It was very special, a day I will never forget and a day that I pray my children will see lived out everyday by their dad. With God's help, I plan to affirm my wife and children and pray a blessing over each one of them every Father's Day for the rest of my life and for His glory.

I was challenged to commit to this resolution from a movie that I have not even seen, Courageous, which will be in theatres starting September 30th. Be sure to click on the link to read a synopsis and watch a trailor of the movie by Sherwood Pictures, a ministry of Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, GA --the makers of Flywheel, Facing the Giants, and Fireproof. My wife and I are looking forward to the privielge of prescreening the movie with my wife and church staff and their wives next Thursday. There is a scene in the movie that I cannot wait to see where men make the same resolution I have made to be the spiritual leaders in their homes. Throughout the movie they display heroic acts of courage on behalf of citizens in their community, but their most courageous moment comes when they choose to stand as men and take responsibility for their own lives and the lives of their families.

I have been looking forward to seeing Courageous because I believe it wll be what I need to encourage me as a man to lead spiritually not only my wife and children, but the church I pastor and the community I live in. But, more than seeing a movie such as Courageous on the screne, I want to live this resolution in real, everyday life before my Father in heaven, my family at home, and the future that is here.

I completely understand that to be able to live up to this commitment, I will need my Master, my mate, and other men. If you are a man and reading this post I encourage you to make the same resolution for your family. Let's see this become a movement in hearts and homes all across America and not just a scene in a movie!

My

RESOLUTION

I DO solemnly resolve before God to take full responsibility for myself,
Nichole, and Madison, Morgan, Mallory, Meghan, Joshua, Stephen, and Maleah.

I WILL love them, protect them, serve them, and teach them
the Word of God as the spiritual leader of my home.

I WILL be faithful to my wife, Nichole, to love and honor her,
and be willing to lay down my life for her as Jesus Christ did for me.

I WILL bless my children and teach them to love God with
all of their hearts, all of their minds, all of their soul, and all of their strength.

I WILL train them to honor authority and live responsibly.

I WILL confront evil, pursue justice, and love mercy.

I WILL pray for others and treat them with kindness, respect, and compassion.

I WILL work diligently to provide for the needs of my family.

I WILL forgive those who have wronged me
and reconcile with those I have wronged.

I WILL learn from my mistakes, repent of my sins,
and walk with integrity as a man answerable to God.

I WILL seek to honor God, be faithful to
His church, obey His Word, and do His will.

I WILL courageously work with the strength God provides
to fulfill this resolution for the rest of my life and for His glory.

Keith A. Boggs
On Father’s Day the 19th day of JUNE in the year 2011


As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. Joshua 24:15





Harvesting Potatoes!

Joshua harvested these this morning, bright and early!

It has been several weeks since we posted and a lot has gone on in that time. Our garden is growing by leaps and bounds (and so are the weeds!), we spent 10 days in Michigan filling in as the family revivalist for Life Action Ministries, I am almost through my first trimester (praying the nausea and tiredness will be gone quickly!), and we are in the process of building a chicken coop for our 15 hens that are waiting on us to come and pick them up!

As you can see we are impatiently digging up some potatoes every day so we can prepare them with our meals. We have learned that we did not plant near enough and would possibly have to plant our entire yard in potatoes to have enough to eat and store for the year! Even though we only have 5-10 more good diggin's, we are thoroughly enjoying them and it has even gotten Joshua excited to see what God can do with a little work on our part. He was up early with his clothes on and asked if he could go outside and get us some potatoes for supper. How could we say no? May he always be this eager to help.

"Go to the ant, you sluggard! Consider her ways and be wise. Which, having no captain, overseer or ruler, Provides her supplies in the summer and gathers her food in the harvest. How long will you slumber, O sluggard? When will you rise from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep-So shall your poverty come on you like a prowler, and your need like an armed man." Prov. 6:6-11

Thankful for potatoes and little boys digging in the earth bringing forth the harvest,

Nichole

A Priceless Birthday Girl!

Priceless!

Dear Nichole,

Happy Birthday! Wow... what a gift you are to me, our family, and to the Kingdom of the Living God! I am so honored to have been chosen by God to be your husband. His grace in giving you to me is overwhelming when I process all that you have become as a wife, mother, and friend. You have allowed the Lord Jesus to work in you and through you, and as a result, I see His work all around us!

You need to know that God is using you to make a difference, in me. You take very good care of me and our children. As a matter of fact, you take excellent care of us! I am grateful for your desire for the simple life. I know that sometimes people ask how can it be simple with seven children, but God has used you to keep us simple so that the things that really matter (faith, family, friends) are always our focus. I also believe that you make every day count. The things that you do throughout the course of each day is recorded in heaven and will last forever.

When I look at your life and how you willingly lay it down for your family, I am humbled beyond words. I appreciate how you take specific interest in me, and each one of our children. You make me laugh, you make us laugh... you make me me cry, you make us cry... you keep me fed physically and spiritually, you keep us fed physically and spiritually... you make me want to give God all that I have and all that I am... you make me want to give God all that we have and all that we are and I so appreciate that privilege.

God has given me the high honor of being your husband and friend. He has also given me the privilege of a great heritage in being the father of our children... On your birthday, I glorify God in the Life He is living in and through you every single day. He is using you to altar (yes, "ar" not "er") my life, keeping me ever close and dependent upon Him so that you, our children, and our family will be everything He designed for us to be, and that is Priceless, and so are you, Nichole... simply Priceless.

Happy Birthday!

Your Loving Husband,
Keith

Healthy Living and Pizza!

Our basic ingredients for a delicious pizza!

We have homemade pizza almost every Friday. We have been doing this for 3 to 4 months now and none of us have gotten tired of it yet. We keep it pretty simple with our ingredients. Although, the ideas are endless on being creative with your own pizza and making it the way your family would best like it.

Two days out of the week, we try to make meatless dishes. Pizza falls into this category. We normally do not add any meat unless we have some leftover in the fridge or we are entertaining guests. This cuts down on grocery costs and we all really like just a cheese pizza. You need to have good cheese, though. Oh, and a fantastic sauce. And, two really cute cheese graters.

We order our cheese in bulk (a 6.5 lb. block of organic mozerella). Buying in bulk also cuts the cost on the cheese and it will last us about a month for our family of 9.

We also grind hard white wheat and so our pizza becomes a nutritous whole grain crust with fresh ingredients and no preservatives. 

BUT, what really makes a good pizza is the sauce. Maybe because I really like a saucey pizza. I will even dip my pizza into extra sauce while I am eating it, I like it so much!

Homemade Pizza Sauce

1 6ounce can of organic tomato paste

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil or butter, etc...

1 cup water

3/4 tsp. sea salt

1/4 tsp. ground black pepper

1/4- 1/2  tsp. red pepper flakes

3/4 tsp. sucanat or brown sugar

3/4 tsp. oregano

3/4 tsp. basil

1/4 tsp. thyme

1/2 tsp. garlic

Mix all ingredients in small saucepan on low heat until well incorporated. Add this (in generous amounts) to your pizza dough that has been partially cooked for 8-10 minutes on 400 degrees. Top with favorite cheese and place back in oven for 8-10 minutes or until cheese is slightly golden and bubbly.

Enjoy,

Nichole

Healthy Living and Pepper Jack Crackers!

Pepper Jack Crackers



This is one of the easiest snacks that a person could make. It is a great recipe to get the kids involved. Or, as we experienced last night, daddy got involved. We will keep the outcome of those crackers to ourself!! I will tell you that they were edible and we enjoyed them!

We enjoy our savory foods a little on the spicy side, so we chose to use a spicy pepper jack cheese. You could choose any cheese that you like. We have also used cheddar in the past and then you could add a drop or two or three of hot sauce. Another option would be to throw some chopped chives in there for taste and color. I am just telling you (based on last night) these are very hard to mess up.

We have a wheat mill at our house. It is small and electric and will grind about 10 cups of flour for me at one time. Anytime a recipe calls for white flour, I substitute it for freshly ground whole wheat flour. The health benefits are great and we are consuming not only a yummy cracker, but some protein, fiber, vitamins A,C, and E. You can visit over at http://www.breadbeckers.com/ to find out more of the health benefits of milling your own wheat. Of course, until then, you can use regular white flour in this recipe as well.

They go great with soup and salads or just store them in an airtight container and save them for snack time. I hope you will try them for you and your family. Here is our healthy alternative for preservative-laden, who-knows what's in them crackers you get from the grocery store!

Pepper Jack Crackers

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 cups shredded pepper jack cheese

1 1/2 cup freshly milled flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 T. chopped chives (optional)

Cream butter and cheese until smooth. Combine flour, salt, and chives. Add to the creamed mixture and mix well. I use my hands during this process. Kids will love it!

Lay dough onto lightly floured surface and begin to work it into a rectangle that is about 1/8 inch thick. Make sure the back of the dough stays floured so it doesn't stick to the countertop. Take a knife or pizza cutter and cut whatever size square you would like. Prick several times on each cracker with a fork. Place crackers on ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 12-16 minutes or until slightly golden brown.

Let them cool on a wire rack. Store in a tightly covered container. Enjoy!

Nichole

How do we give to someone who has everything?

We spoke of how we wish to give to Jesus more intentionally this year. Obviously, we cannot wrap a gift and place it under the tree hoping He will receive it and unwrap it. Although, I believe He could if He wanted to. So, how can we give to the "King, eternal, immortal, and invisible"?

Some quick ideas that we all can still do and I pray that we won't let the "Christmas Season" limit our time span on when we can do these things.

1- Give out cards with the Word of God to as many as you can afford.

2- Learn a homemade skill and take the time and energy to give to those who have blessed you this year.

3- Spend some time on the living room floor, or out around a bonfire and sing songs together as a family to the King of Kings. Christmas songs are great for this.

4- With all that practice on singing those Christmas carols as a family, think of someone you can bless   (whether you think you sing well or not) by going to see them and singing a few for them. So many experience sadness and loneliness during this time. The kids will bring a warmth and comfort to them, I promise you.

5- Our kids are putting on a Christmas drama for us this year. This was all their idea and we have encouraged them and made time for them to practice. They will perform it for us on Christmas day and then two more times as we meet together with family. Our prayer is that God will use the little children to encourage those who are faithful and plant seeds of the Gospel in the hearts of those who are lost without Christ.

6- Participate in the Lord's Supper together as a family.

7- Take the money that you saved from downsizing and pick out two or three ministries or a needy family and give it away.

8- If you are going to watch t.v., then try to center it on Christ. Pull out the old Christmas movies that have a story line of giving, sacrifice, worship. The Nativity Story, The Jesus movie, Veggie Tales Christmas movie, etc.... Fill your home with Christ-honoring music, even if it is only piano music with no words.

We could list numerous more things, but I know that even while reading you can come up with some on your own. Pray for God to show you how to give to Him this year and next year, and the next.

It is amazing to think that, "when we give to the least of these, we give to Him".

The Boggs Family

Meet Maleah Grace! #7

We have been patiently waiting to introduce our youngest because we knew that she would soon be turning one year old and as of 11:41 p.m. last night, she is officially 1!

Maleah is something else. She came into the world different than any of our other babies. She was due on the 11th of December and we welcomed her into the world a couple of days before that in our very own home.

I knew when we had our sixth child, Stephen, in the hospital (which was nearly a perfect experience) and had to wait approx. 25 minutes on the doctor to get there before I could begin to push his little self out, that I may want to consider a different option for the next baby.

A very reluctant husband humored my desires to find a midwife and consider an actual home birth. After an initial consultation and then follow-up visits we both really liked her and found her to be very caring and knowledgeable. After months of anticipation and some anxiety of the "unknown," we began laboring about 1:00 in the afternoon and about 10 hours later Maleah was born under water in a birthing pool set up in our bedroom! Not only was a home birth (and a waterbirth) a first for us, but this was also the first time we did not know the sex of the baby. That was a lot of fun. I will never forget.... once we turned her over after she had been laying on my chest, we saw that she was a girl! Our other four girls, who had witnessed the birth, began to jump up and down and celebrate! They ran down the hall to tell their Papa (who had teased them all along that we were having a boy) that he was wrong!

Another first for all of us was a total commitment to infant potty training with Maleah. We began taking her to the potty at a month old. She went the very first time! We do cloth diapers, so I figured whether she went or not, if we could just get her to have a bm in the potty it would be worth it. Who wants to clean that out?! It has definitely been an experience and a conversation piece for sure. Does she go in the potty? Yes, almost every time. Does she still wet her diapers? Yes, almost every time! Although barely wets most of the time. Babies go a lot!! Maybe one day I will post on the ups and downs and pros and cons of infant potty training.

Maleah was born chunky and dark. Very dark hair and skin. Actually she had a redness to her skin for a few days and looked like a little Indian baby. She stayed chunky through the next months. She went from chunky to plain fat. And, I didn't mind one lick if someone called her such. She was sweet and cuddly. So soft and huggable. She has been a pure joy. Maleah has a fun personality. She scrunches up her nose when she laughs. She will laugh out loud at something that she sees funny or just to get some attention. She gives great hugs and kisses already. Some of her words include."mama, daddy, papa, Joshua (sort of), bye, night-night, stop, no (yes, she has said this to me), Sam (our dog), Jake (one of her friends from church), and baby".

She began to take her first steps a couple of weeks ago. She began to crawl at 5 months old. This was earlier than any of our others. I much prefer the late crawlers. She was into everything soooo soon. She eats everything off the floor! One of her favorite places to play is in our boy's room. In there she can drive cars, bang blocks, take books out the box, open drawers and throw their clothes on the floor. She loves it! Although Maleah adores all her siblings, she can only handle so much of them. She is independent and wants some quick lovin' so she can be on her little way.

Maleah has changed quite a bit in her looks. She has gone from the very dark hair to a blonde. She has an unusual eye color. We are not sure yet what they will be. Kind of gray at this point with a touch of brown or blue...it is hard to tell. They may not be the same color as the rest of the children, but they are big like the rest of them. She has a golden color to her skin. A little round face that reminds us of her sister, Morgan.

We are blessed to have Maleah. She is a gift from God. There is a lot of work involved with having seven children. I once said that if you could have three, you can have ten. Well, easy to say for someone who didn't have ten! And, it really isn't true. There are obviously more mouths to feed, more bodies to clothe, more clothes to wash, more beds to make....

There are also more lives to instill godly character. There is school to be taught. There is a dying to self that must take place with me and Keith on a daily basis as we sacrifice our desires to give to them. I don't mean monetary things. I mean the giving of ourselves to them. Our time. Our attention. Our energy. Our prayers. Our sleep. Our food. Our love.

We are constantly asked if we will have more children. I believe our answer is genuine when we say that we really don't know. Whatever the Lord wills for us, is what we will have. Probably. We have experienced no trouble conceiving yet. We believe Psalm 139, where the Bible says that God's thoughts are precious to each one of our children... GREAT are the sum of them!! We look forward to learning what God already knows about each one of our children that have been fearfully and wonderfully made! Marvelous are His Works and that we know very well! Just as Hannah in the Old Testament was "visited" by the Lord and conceived Samuel, we believe that all seven of our children are a result of the fact that the Lord "visited" us and we accept his gift to us. Selfishly, we can say "no more", but we truly do want to honor the Lord and His control of this area of our lives.

So, where will these little feet go?

And, what will these little hands do?

What will these eyes see?

Our prayer for Maleah is that these feet, these hands, these eyes will be an extension of the Grace of God and will reach, teach, touch, and love just like Jesus... to the ends of the earth. Just like our other six children. Just like any the Lord may see fit to bless us with in the future.

Speaking Thanksgiving: Part 2

Yesterday we attended our senior adults Christmas party. They try to meet once a month for food, fellowship, and some sort of activity. We try to attend as many as we can. We love to fellowship with these dear people and we love to see our children interact with them. It has been a great blessing for our family. The decorations were beautiful. The food was great. Everyone looked festive in their Christmas attire. After dinner we had great music as a guest played several songs on his saxophone.



Above is a wonderful picture of our children. But, there is alot that took place in effort to make this picture. I spoke the other day of speaking thanksgiving to others and I even listed several things that I was thankful for. Shortly after sending out that post I thought about how easy it is to be thankful for all the things that makes us happy. I then began to think that the depth of my thankfulness will be tested in the difficult circumstances in my life. Although the story behind this picture is very minor in respect to all the difficulties in life, I am still thankful for what took place. I learned a lesson this day.

Lesson for me: No group pictures taken during an event that will cause possible disruption and distraction. You see, we borrowed my daddy's camera for a couple of days to take some photos for the blog and I thought since I had his camera I should take full opportunity of it. How often do all 7 children match and look this cute with such a great backdrop? It was too tempting. BUT, how difficult can it be to get all 7 children to look at the camera and smile like they are happy and love each other dearly? I know this and yet I forget....only to be reminded pretty quickly.

Not only did I catch Madison yawning, Meghan was on the brink of crying (she is done with pictures after the first shot), and Stephen had refused to pose and be a part of this memorable moment and so.....

We lose Stephen. Yes, he disappears temporarily. In this picture he has collapsed onto the floor beside his brother Joshua and so we are disrupting and distracting at this point. Picture time is done.

The first picture on this post with everyone somewhat smiling was taken after everything was over and only a few people were left. I also used a candy cane as a bribe, which I never do and it was a mistake. We had major melt down afterwards because I didn't break off a big enough piece or something and so chaos and confusion and craziness began. I learned that I put our children in a position, that if I would have thought more carefully about it I would have chosen not to, for increased possible failure.

I am also thankful that when we came home ( I had to get the attention of Keith to come and help me because the problem only escalated and I wasn't sure I could get them home by myself) we disciplined those who needed it and then Keith and I talked about the situation and decided to make some guidelines for them and to communicate with them our expectations. The very next day after our family Bible time we had a family meeting just like a coach would with his team. We talked of the previous day's situation and of our expectations for them. We not only talked with them, we practiced as if we were in a certain situation and how they needed to respond. It was Keith's idea. And, I loved it. I felt like we were working together as a team to help our children win.  

I pray that our children walked away from our meeting today feeling like they were loved and cared for and that mama and daddy really do want what is best for them . 

I am thankful.....

for stressful moments such as these that give us times to learn from our mistakes. 

for my mother who tried her best to help me calm some down, reason with others, and carry a little one  in her arms.

for others seeing that our family is just as real as the next. 

for a husband who came along my side and helped me see my error.

for a husband who lovingly corrected our children and creatively showed us all how we can do better.

for children who listened attentively. 

for humbling moments that make me realize my mothering is dependent upon a Holy God working through me.     

"Count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing." James 1:2-4       

Nichole

Meet Stephen Nicholas! #6

Hey, my name is Stephen, or as my daddy calls me "Stevie B". My mama calls me, WORK. I am your typical 2 year old little boy. And, instead of going on and on as if Stephen was speaking to you himself and sharing all of this wonderful stuff , I will cut to the chase and tell you all about him from our point of view.

Stephen has light brown hair and blue eyes. He loves to suck his thumb and pull on his right ear. He is super sweet and can be super ugly. Mostly sweet, though. He seems to be more laid back and quiet than his big brother, although he won't hesitate to let his sisters know when he has had enough!

Stephen is into everything!!!! More than any of the others. I am telling you that I can pick up one mess only to find that he has made another one while I was cleaning. His eyes immediately search out what he can get into. I do have to say that it seems that in the past few months it hasn't been as bad.I have decided that boys require so much physical energy. His likes to play around with different kinds of balls. He likes to ride his tricycle motorcycle. He loves to watch deer or turkey hunting on t.v. with his daddy. He is eagerly anticipating the day that he will actually get to accompany his daddy on a hunting trip. He and Joshua have been playing more together lately and enjoying time outside during this cooler weather. We love to see these brothers playing together. Even if it means we have to clean off the carport and pick up all the balls in the yard and turn off the running water and fill the holes in the ground back up with dirt or untie the ropes hanging out of the trees or bang the mud out of their shoes and scrub it out of their ears.

Stephen is our hugger and our kisser. He is very affectionate. We like to cuddle and love on Stephen, because he enjoys it as much as we do. I tell him he is my little "handsome" and he tells me, "No, I am Stephen."

One night after supper he came to me and said, "Thank you mama, that was berry good". Now won't that just melt your heart? So how could such a sweety test you to your very limits at times. He has been the first child to hit at us. Although, thanks to his daddy those times have been very few. We are working on training him to sit at the table the entire time we are all eating, to be still and quiet during church, to stop screaming when a sibling is bothering him, that temper tantrums will get him nowhere in the Boggs' house, to hold that head up when reprimanded, and please give that thumb a break!! We could go on and on. Does anyone see where I got the name WORK from? It is work to train up a child in the way of the Lord. It requires dedication, consistency, love, and joy.

Did I tell you that he loves his baby sister? Never a hint of jealousy with him since the day she was born. He immediately loved her and will just hug and kiss on her and be as gentle as any adult would with a baby. He tells her he loves her. We love him, and our prayer for him couldn't be any better than the prayer inspired by the Holy Spirit that Keith spoke over him just yesterday.

"God, I thank You that I can pray for my boy, Stephen. I love his name. I love to hear it. I long for Stephen to live according to his name... in that his life gives You maximum honor and glory. And as Stephen Nicholas grows and matures physically, I pray that he will develop spiritually into a man, as Stephen in the Bible, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost. God, crown Stephen victorious because he lives for You. Use him in our home now as he loves his mother and his siblings while I am away. In Jesus Name, Amen."

Meet Joshua Spencer! #5

Howdy! I am Joshua... also called J-Man. I am 4 years old and approaching 5 as fast as I can. I am the first boy in my family and it has been a tough task, but I've got help with my little brother, Stephen, you'll meet him next week.

Anyway, let me tell you a little about myself. I love to play ball, any kind of ball. I played Upward soccer for the first time this past year and loved it. I went all season without scoring a goal until the last game. I finally got the hang of it and scored twice. I like the "golf" ball, the "base" ball, the "foot" ball, the "soccer" ball... and probably other balls as I grow older. As a matter of fact, I like having a "ball." I like being outside and love to ride my bike and play with my daddy's stuff (tools, flashlight, hunting and fishing equipment, etc).

I also like to go hunting and fishing with my dad. I do pretty good sitting quietly and still. My favorite colors are red and black. I love to eat chicken-n-dumplings and chocolate chip muffins. One of my favorite things to do is to watch the garden grow and to pick the vegetables when it is time... waiting on the vegetables to grow is hard though.

Just a note from mama and daddy:

Joshua is a charmer for sure. He probably talked the earliest out of all the children. His vocabulary was big and very clear. This always attracted attention and Joshua has always loved attention. You know that kid that does something over and over and over just to hear you laugh one more time? That is Joshua. When we have a guest in our home for meal time, we have no need to worry for lack of conversation. He will talk to anyone. Especially senior adults. We love to see him carry on conversation with these special people. He is about the cutest thing with sandy blond hair and big blue eyes. He seems to have a small frame compared to other children his age. His spirit makes up for his size. We love to see Joshua get excited. His laugh is contagious. The biggest thing that we are trying to work on with Joshua is to teach him to be a "winner" and not a "whiner". It is a work in progress! Our prayer is that God would raise up another Joshua like one spoken of in the Old Testament. His name means, "God is Salvation." Every night at bedtime he refuses to sleep until his daddy and his mama come in to pray for him. Please join us as we pray that God would save Joshua at an early age and use him to take the Gospel to the ends of the Earth!

Meet Meghan Elizabeth! #4

My name is Meghan. I am six years old and in the first grade. My favorite color is red. I like to play with my American Girl Dolls, Molly and the twins. It is especially fun when my sisters, Madison, Morgan, and Mallory play with me. I love to go swimming in the summertime. I like to draw and color and paint. I like to ride my bike. I like to ride horses. I like to do the monkey bars on the playground.

I have played Upward Soccer for the last two years. It is fun. This year I joined the drama team at church and I like it alot. I like for my mama to cook chicken and dumplings for me. My favorite dessert is chocolate pot de creme. Yum! Mama likes for me to help with Maleah, my baby sister, sometimes and I don't mind it at all. She is sweet.

Just a note from mama and daddy:
Meghan has long, dark brown hair and brown eyes. Some say that when Meghan smiles, so do her eyes. They seem to sparkle. She has olive skin and a brown birth mark on the back of her leg. We tell her it is because of all the chocolate her mama ate while she was in the womb. Meghan has a shy and timid personality. She is also one of the sweetest little girls. Behind that pretty little smile, Meghan may very well be up to some kind of mischief!!She has been our "wanderer". If we aren't careful, we can look around after a few minutes and Meghan will be out of sight. Meghan, though somewhat quiet and bashful, has a determination in her that has surprised us all. Looking back over the last few years we can see how Meghan has basically taught herself how to swing, ride her bike, swim with no help, and even read!! Schooling her has been a breeze. She will pick up her sister's fourth grade book and try to read every word. Sounding out the words until they make sense to her. Although at this point Meghan has not vocalized the desire to know Christ as her personal Savior, we can see that through His Word and our desire to raise her in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, her heart is becoming tender and God is drawing her to Himself!

Meet Mallory Nichole! #3

   Hi! I am Mallory or as some of my family call me, Moo. Sometimes it is Moo-Moo. Daddy came up with that one and it has stuck all of these years. I am eight years old. A lot of people tell me that I look like my Nana. She was my daddy's mother. She passed away when he was 19 years old. I wish I could have met her. When I was a baby my family said that I reminded them of Barney off of the Andy Griffith show! Big eyes and a big mouth and a skinny, little body!

Some of my interests are: I like to ride horses. I like to spend time with my family. I like to go visit and spend the night with my Granna and Papa. We play games. Lots and lots of games. We watch a little t.v. and we go outside. Now that I am reading better, I really like to read. It gets me in trouble when mama asks me to do something and I want to keep reading! My favorite playmates are my sisters. I have played soccer for two years and I love it. I enjoy singing in the children's choir and acting with the drama team. My favorite subject in school is History. It is very interesting. My favorite color is red. It is pretty and dark. I love to watch the Georgia Bulldogs play football with my daddy. I like to bake brownies and make homemade pizzas with my mama. I like to go hunting with my daddy.

Just a note from mama and daddy:
Mallory is a bright young girl with long brown hair and big, big blue eyes. She is tall and slender like her daddy. As she grows, so does her gracefulness. She is a go-getter. She is a hard worker. She loves playing with the little ones. She will try and try until she gets things like she wants them. When we need to find something, we call Mallory. ( So nice to have a kid like this around!) She has a growing desire to help out in the kitchen with the cooking and cleaning. She likes to tinker with things. She wants to know the why and how about everything. A good quality to have we keep telling ourselves!! In our home Mallory has been known for her stubbornness. We do not like to put labels on the children, but we do want to recognize areas that may need working on for the Glory of Christ. So, we would like to see this stubbornness used for His glory. Persistence, endurance, perseverance, boldness and courage to stand on God's Word. We are beginning to see this develop in Mallory. Recently, Keith broke a hunting record while on a trip with Mallory. She was determined they were going to kill a deer. She kept him in the woods for nearly 6 hours in one sitting!! Ouch! The outcome was no deer. No, not even a squirrel. Keith doesn't even remember birds chirping. Way to go, Mallory. You hang in there girl. God is going to give you a deer!


Meet Morgan Gail! #2

Hi, my name is Morgan Boggs. I am the second of the Boggs children. I was born February 6, 2001 in Waycross, Georgia at 6:30 a.m. I have four sisters and two brothers. We have been back in Waycross, Ga now for two years.

I love to ride my bike. I would really like to do gymnastics. I enjoy playing outside when it isn't so hot. I love my American Girl dolls, Josephina and Chrissa. My favorite color is green and purple. I like to draw and paint. When we can, I like to watch movies and play on the computer. I like to pick pretty flowers. I loooove to play with kittens and puppies! Catching bugs is cool too! I like to go hunting with my daddy. I took horse-riding lessons when we lived in Harlem. I love to ride horses when I can. I also have learned to sew a little since we have moved back and I enjoy doing that too. Reading is fun too.

I have been blessed to have a wonderful family. Hope you have fun reading this. Bye!

Morgan

Note from mama and daddy:
Morgan has brown hair and big, beautiful, blue eyes. She has been our "wild" child since the beginning. Soooo much energy and into everything. We were sure she was supposed to be a boy. But God made her too pretty to be a boy and she is growing into a lovely young lady. When Morgan does something (except for cleaning her room), she gives it 100 percent. She is a hard worker and a big helper in the home. She takes care of the little ones when she is needed. She is beginning to learn to cook and bake and sew. She takes initiative in getting things done. She is such a giver. We can remember one time when she brought a twenty dollar bill to give one morning at church. That was half of her money! We so wanted to talk her out of it, but decided to trust God to bless her back. Morgan has a tender heart and can cry the biggest tears. We can't wait to see how God will use all the gifts that He has given her in the days to come.

Meet Madison Suzanne! #1

I was born on August 18, 1999 at 1:00 p.m. in Waycross, GA. I lived there for three and an half years. I went to Pleasant Valley Baptist Church for one year and then I moved to Mt. Calvary Baptist Church in Hoboken, Ga. for almost 2 years. I made lots of friends and I liked the house that I lived in, but God had other plans. When I was 3 and 1/2 we moved to Harlem, GA and my daddy became the pastor of Old Union Baptist Church. I didn't know anyone.

When I was five I wanted to be saved. Daddy talked to me about it and we prayed. I was baptized the next Sunday. One Thursday a few years later, daddy sat us all down at the table and asked us if we wanted to move and live closer to Papa and Granna. I almost bursted into tears! I didn't want to move. I liked where we lived. I put my hands over my mouth because I was about to cry. I started to look around my room thinking that we would not be staying here much longer. I began to ask mama questions about it and she told me that we would go to Pleasant Valley Baptist Church where daddy would preach and the church would vote on us coming there. I hoped that they would vote no. But, when daddy preached and we went into the back, Bro. Andy Hickox came in and guess what he said? They voted yes. I was a little happy, but not much. Leaving Old Union was very sad. When the day came, I did not want to move. On top of that, we could not take our dog, Molly.

When we got to PVBC I did not know anybody because we had been in Harlem for five and an half years. Time went on and I did make lots of friends. One night I began to wonder if I was actually saved. When I was little I wanted to be saved because everyone else was. I kept on telling myself, "Madison, you are saved. Don't worry about it." Well, one night I was at Mrs. Susan Strickland's house and people were talking about others getting saved. I finally realized that I was not saved, so the next Wednesday after church I told my daddy about it. He talked to me about it and I was saved that night!! I was baptized soon after. Time has gone on and I have failed before Almighty God, but I have asked for forgiveness. It is September 30, 2010 and I have been listening to PVBC choir singing at the Choirfest. I feel like I never want to leave, but I know that one day I will. I wish that it isn't until I am married!

God Bless,
Madison

Just a note from Mama and Daddy:
Madison is a beautiful 11 year old girl with a big heart. She has dark blond hair with precious freckles and big blue eyes. She is a great big help in the home. She helps cook and clean. She is the best biscuit maker in the house, can we get an "Amen?" She loves to read. Mystery books are her favorite. She looooves people. If we could have someone for dinner every night, she would be thrilled! She also enjoys singing. Fall is her favorite time of the year. She tends to get silly and loves to have fun. She is a thinker. Always analyzing things. We are seeing God slowly grow her into a young lady. It is bittersweet because we know our time with her in the home is getting shorter.Our prayer is that God would greatly use her and grow her into a godly young woman who gives Him glory in all that she does.

Fruit in its Season

(1) Madison Suzanne, (2) Morgan Gail, (3) Mallory Nichole, (4) Meghan Elizabeth

(5) Joshua Spencer, (6) Stephen Nicholas, (7) Meleah Grace

A Baseball Team? A Soccer Team? Kid's Little League?

No. May I introduce you to our Mission Field and our Discipleship Group.  We just happen to all be on the same team! Right now it is the team that makes up our family. The Boggs family. Prayerfully as they grow and mature and the Holy Spirit draws them, we will all be on the same Faith team!

It wasn't too long ago that the days were long and wearisome. Constant training and disciplining. A whole lot of whining and complaining. Selfish and sassy attitudes. Huffs and puffs of all sorts. Why are our kids (and myself included) acting this way??!! What am I doing wrong? We should be farther along than this. This is not a picture of the Lord Jesus in our home. I wanted to throw my hands up and wave the white flag of surrender. Certainly I didn't want to quit, did I?

Not too much later the Lord gently reminded me that this was in fact a picture of a battlefield. I was dealing with eight people who had a sin nature that wanted their own way! He reminded me that this was my mission field. There are several little ones who have some growing to do. They don't know Christ as Savior. My mission field. There are several older ones who have stated that they want to follow Christ. These are my discipleship group." Be strong and of good courage", the Lord told Joshua several times after Moses had passed away. He had an even bigger group of people to lead! "Be strong and of good courage, Nichole". I know He is with me and I know this is where He wants me. I wave the white flag of surrender, "Yes, Lord".

So, joyfully and prayerfully we will open up God's Word to 1 Corinthians chapter 13 and recite the truth about love. I encourage the children that this is how we treat each other and this is how we should love. It reminds me of a ball team teaching the fundamentals, the basics. We may have to read it every week until they are grown and married, but I believe and trust that His word will not return void.  You know why? Because we want numbers 1,2,3,4,5,6, and 7 to WIN!

Nichole