Thankful For Heaven

 Hey Friends,

This is Odie; today is a travel day for us. We are changing states this time around. The BoggsMobile is headed toward Wichita, Kansas. We anticipate a great week with Pastor John DiZazzo and the Bethany Revival Center church family!

It is November, our Thanksgiving month in the USA. I decided to write about things I am thankful for this month. This week, I have been thinking a lot about Heaven. I am so grateful that I can look forward to Heaven! 

We have had several friends finish their earthly lives this year. Lately, we seem to get sad news far too often. It has been hard to think I will not get to be with them again here.

The person who has left this life gets to leave this crazy world behind. Now, they forever live in a perfect place. They have finished their race. Heaven was their ultimate goal! They are winners! Once they have reached Heaven, they are healed, happy and whole. Most of all, they have met Jesus face to face!

Part of me is happy that they completed their life's journey. Then my heart aches for the family and friends left behind! I wish I knew what to do or say to help people in their time of pain! I always feel extremely inadequate in this area.

Saying goodbye down here seems so final. Nothing ever fully prepares you for those sad days! I do not care if it is an expected event or comes as a complete shock. The finality of that friend or family member taking their last breath on earth never gets easier.

There is a song Titled Better Off There by The Browns. It was released in 2020. I  have loved the message in this song for years. Earlier this year, I pulled it up to play for Mom. That is when I discovered Sonya Isaacs Yeary, her husband Jimmy Yeary and Wayne Haun co-wrote the song. No wonder the message is strong in the lyrics! Sonya and Jimmy are two of my favorite writers!

I have found this song coming to my mind many times over the last several months. I will forever miss all of my family and friends that have gone home before me. I know they are Better Off There! We will meet again someday soon!

I am so thankful that I have Heaven to look forward to. Do not get me wrong, I love my life now! I am blessed beyond measure and eternally grateful! When God says, my time is here is finished. I am looking forward to Heaven.

We all have a set time to live. God has numbered our days. Once a Christian has left this life, we get the reward of Heaven. If we have received Christ as our Savior and lived according to His word in the Bible. We will see Him and our Christian loved ones in Heaven! Oh, What a blessed hope we have!

Most of you reading this post are looking forward to achieving your goal of Heaven, too! It will not be long until we are all there together with Christ! We can praise Him for the first million years for all of His goodness to us! Then, meet me on the streets of gold. I will be running, catch me if you can! We will all be Better Off There!

There is one more thing I have to get out today before I sign off. Friend, if you are not a born again believer in Christ, I pray for you! Life here without having God to guide you is miserable. When this life is over, without Christ, hell and torment are all you have to look forward to. I do not want one more soul to have to experience hell. There is nothing fun or beautiful there! It will be a place of utter pain! Please do not go there!

I encourage you to find someone to talk to about Christ right now. You can always reach out to us if you need help finding Christ! We love to show others how to get to Him! Contact us here.

See you next week!

Odie

Karen Peck And New River September 2023

Hey Friends,

This is Odie reporting in from Mississippi. We have had a great week with our dear friends in Richton. Tent revival with Pastor Scott Morris, the people of First Assembly and the friends who join us during the meeting is a highlight of our year! 

I am so thankful to God for helping us this week! Thanks to many of you who prayed for us this week! God heard and answered those prayers! I  wish you could have been in the services with us!

Today's blog post topic discusses one of my favorite things: music. I am always listening to music! I enjoy finding new music from older and new groups alike. My music catalog is constantly expanding.

A handful of groups have been in my favorites category for years! Their music, talent and songs have stood the test of time. I can not believe some group has been in my library of songs for thirty years!

One of those groups has been Karen Peck and New River. I first remember hearing KPNR 30 years ago. Their Restoration CD was the first of their projects in my library. I have listened to just about everything they have produced since then.

I have had the opportunity to see them sing live many times through the years. Every time, it has been excellent. They have always been so kind with every interaction with them! I first met Karen Peck Gooch and her sister, Susan Peck Jackson, when I was around 11.

Karen and Susan were both expecting back then. Those "babies," Kari Faith and Joseph, are now 26! Kari Faith got married this year. I watched their children grow up from a distance! 

Recently, We had the chance to attend a fun Karen Peck and New River concert in Alabama. This is a yearly event for the group and Lusk Baptist church. I always see it on the KPNR schedule but never have been able to attend.

We were in the area a few years ago but had to be at another church. We passed their bus as they were headed to Lusk! I was so disappointed back then. I am glad it worked out where we could go this time around.

This is an outdoor event. It had been extremely hot that day, but the weather was nice by evening! Great music and weather made for a beautiful night! Here are some of my pictures.

The Pastor of Lusk Baptist Church.

KPNR

The members of the current KPNR are Grant Gibson, Karen Peck Gooch, Kari Faith, Susan Peck Jackson and Mathew Gooch. Karen's husband Ricky is always working behind the scenes!

The Crowd

Prayer time.

Karen asked this young lady to sing her favorite song with KPNR to end the night. I know it made her day!

This picture was taken with permission! Kari had shed her heels and opted for new fashionable footwear. 

Karen Peck Gooch has a unique way of making everyone feel like her friends! Whenever I start a blog post with "Hey Friends," I hear Karen's voice saying, "Hey Friend." 😊She is genuinely so sweet.

I always enjoy visiting with Karen's son Mathew. He and his wife will soon have two children! God has blessed them!

It was a joy to see KPNR one more time! I plan to see them again early next year! I am looking forward to it already!

This was not our first time to visit Lusk Baptist Church. We spent time there with the Isaacs in February 2017. Then, it was way too cold to be outside. We were packed into their church building that night. Look back on that night by clicking here.

Thanks for visiting with me today.

Odie

The Isaacs In Blanchester, Ohio August 2023

Hey Friends,

This is Odie checking in for another Saturday post. I hope you are doing well today. Things are going good for me. I have enjoyed my time at home the last couple of weeks. We have been busy but had a blast in the process.

Today, I will give you a glimpse into one of our fun days. We were able to see The Isaacs for an afternoon and evening. They were 30 minutes away from us, in Blanchester, Ohio.

We were thrilled to see, visit, and hear our family again! Yes, we just saw them two months ago in Oklahoma. Click here if you missed that post. I was ecstatic to be with my family again and not have to wait so long between visits. I could see them every week and not get tired of it!

Elevation Community Church hosted this night with the Isaacs. This was the first event in a worship series the church is starting. They picked a fantastic group to begin the new endeavor to reach their community.

Pastor Phil Nelson and everyone connected to the church were friendly and accommodating. It was a wonderful evening! Below are my pictures from that night.

I had to get a picture of Mom and Sonya together. Two of my favorite ladies in one photo!

Becky is an amazing person! Love her so much! She is high atop my vocal heroes list!

I am the self-proclaimed Ben Isaacs #1 Fan! Ben proudly has me show off my phone case, declaring my fan status to others around. I do love my Ben! He loves me back deeply!

I loved spending some time with my sweet cousin Evya Yeary! She is always making me laugh!

Levi Bowman will forever be my buddy! He is a sweetheart!

VeeVee works so hard, mainly behind the scenes. She is a wonderful lady!

Ready for a night of excellent music and singing.

The night kicked off with the song Walk On.

Josh Swift is an incredible addition to the band. The dobro is one of my favorite instruments.

Greg Ritchie is a phenomenal percussionist! I love getting to hear him showcase his talents! 

I love hearing my family! I have lost count of how many times we have seen them perform. We have crossed paths with them in around 17 states.

  

Every time I hear them, I sit in awe with a gigantic smile on my face. It just keeps getting better. I am trying to figure out how the best of the best keeps improving!

Becky has come so far since her car wreck last year. She is a walking miracle! Thank you for helping us pray for her. She still has daily hardships! We will continue to pray and believe for her total miracle!

The Awesome Ben Isaacs!

Becky's son Levi Bowman.

The Isaacs 

Sonya is still picking and grinning and never misses a note! WOW!

The Kippahs "help" Josh and Greg play in Hebrew. 😂

We love Aunt Lily!

It is fun when Gatlyn and Evya join the Isaacs on stage!

I want to sing like Evya when I grow up. 😍

Gatlyn is already multi-talented!

We were thrilled to see Julia and Jordan! 

I often do not see my beautiful cousin, Amanda, so this was a treat.

A selfie with Jordan. He is the life of the party!

Cousin Deb and me.

This is two more cousins, Matt and Jacob Isaacs.

That wraps up my recap of the Isaacs in Blanchester, Ohio. Who knows when or where we will connect with them next time? I can tell you this much: I am already looking forward to it!

Thanks for reading. See you next time.

Odie