Please Help Us Rejoice!

Look at this beautiful new church in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria!

I have great news about the church where we preached in Abeikuta late last year!

They needed a bigger sanctuary and this is what the new one looked like the night we were there in December.

We had a wonderful service that night and my heart was refreshed and encouraged. I left there that night with determination to help them complete the church. 

I was delayed a while with a detour through the ER, hospital and rehab, but in early February I found out what they needed. I eventually sent the amount they said was needed for completion.

I posted these pictures on March 1 of the day they were putting in the concrete floor.

I am happy in my heart to tell you the construction is finished and I received pictures yesterday to prove it! Hallelujah! Most of the finance came from our missions budget but we did receive some direct help toward the expense. Thank you very much!

Wow! This is beautiful!

Bro. Shobanke wants me to travel to Nigeria at my convenience to dedicate the new church building. If I had to go next week, I could not do it due to the hardship of travel for me. But we are fervently praying that I will be strong enough to travel to Nigeria at some point this year. That would be a mighty victory.

Having this building finished so soon is a mighty victory in itself. Praise God! I m so happy to see it!

We are also helping to build a new building at GoodNews School in Abeokuta and they need some miracles concerning that. I will try to bring you up tp date on that project next week.

Thank you for reading today.

Davy

 

Wow! We Are Overwhelmed By Kindness!

Less than two weeks ago we came face-to-face with another example of extreme kindness being shown to our family by people who do not even personally know us. There have been other examples, but this one has been knocking on my heart's door for the last few days.

My word for Wednesday yesterday was entitled Distributing Joy On Purpose/I Want To Be A Brother Like That. The week before was Try A Little kindness. 

They were not recorded on successive weeks, however they ended up being posted one week after the other. I guess it is appropriate that they fall on weeks when we were inundated with examples of kindness and joy being shown to us. 

I will put the links to those two videos at the end of this Mile Marker. If you have not seen them I would love for you to take a few moments to view them.

Now, let me explain this handful of kindness and dose of joy that we were given recently. 

The first Sunday night in April, we preached for Pastor Kenny Morris in Ellisville, Mississippi. We had a wonderful service, great response at the altar and sweet fellowship with our dear friends.

Immediately following service I was sitting on the front pew. A man that I did not recognize approached me and handed me an ink pen. He said this is a pen with the information of my home church. The church is just south of town.

He said we have been praying for you as a church and individually since the moment we heard you had a stroke. He said, we have taken your situation very seriously at our church and when we heard you would be here preaching we purposed to be here to see the work that the Lord was doing.

I do not know if they have been to hear us in revivals at Ellisville before, they may have. We have been going there for many years. 

But the fact that these people are not personally acquainted with us yet have taken us and our situation very seriously, moves our hearts deeply. Friendship Baptist Church in Ellisville Mississippi has purposely prayed for us and we have been blessed abundantly by it.

This situation has been and is right now being repeated over and over and we are touched by the kindness these people have shown to us. Perhaps you are reading this page right now and you fall into this category. 

I am taking a moment today to say thank you from the bottom of my heart. Thank you, thank you, thank you! 

We appreciate you being concerned for us so much that you have prayed for us, encouraged us and sustained us in this difficult season. May God bless you for the blessing you are being to us right now. 

God is using his people all over the country to lift us up when we have not been able to see the end of this situation. I know that God has this in control. You have proven it to me.

Thank you for reading today. These are the links to A Word For Wednesday. 

Davy

10 Years of Vision And Praise

Hey Friends,

This is Odie reporting in from the homefront. I hope you are having a great week.

Today, I am here with extra praise in my heart. This week is a special anniversary in my life. 10 years ago, my life drastically changed for a period of time. Faithful and long time readers can probably recite my testimony for me. I feel the need to praise God one more time.

In April 2014, in Salem, Kentucky, I woke up blind in my left eye.

I described it as a black smudge over my eye. This came on with little warning and with no apparent reason.

9 days, I lived with questions, worry, fear and very few answers. God was faithful to me through it all! The family of God rallied around us. Thousands of prayers were prayed for me and my family! God heard and answered those prayers! 

The Lord taught me a lot about trusting, waiting and faith during my eye issues. Doctors tried to help me with treatments and answers. I am so grateful for the help from my family, friends and medical professionals. It was God who was there, preparing the way and leading each step.

At the end of the 9th day, my vision did not just suddenly come back. But the healing began! I could make out things on the eye chart. It was blurry, but earlier in the day, it was not possible. My heart overflowed with joy that April 2014 day and the vision progressively improved! God deserves all the praise! 

Each day, when I wake up with clear vision in both eyes, there is praise in my heart! 10 years and my praise has not stopped! I know my help came from God in April of 2014. Today, He is still my helper! He is the same yesterday, today and forever!

Is life overran with questions? Does your question seem just out of sight or reach? Friend, I know exactly where you are standing! It is not an easy or fun place to be! 

I encourage you to place everything into God's hands one more time. Please let Him have your troubles, heartaches, fears, questions and doubts! His hands are big enough to hold all of our junk, and His arm can still wrap you and me in His loving embrace. God is waiting for all of us at this very moment.

I will be praying for you! I hope you have the best day in a long time! May God bless you is my prayer!

Odie

Lettuce Move Forward

I have eaten a lot of salad in the last 10+ years. It is not exactly a "health food" salad that some people love and a rabbit would enjoy, but it is salad and it must be better than a cheeseburger or pizza. At least, that is what I tell myself.

I eat so much salad in the course of life, that I get really sick of it and have to back off for two or three weeks. After a short time, I almost crave a good salad with dressing and cheese plus maybe a little ham or bacon bits. 

I ate from the salad bar at Ruby Tuesday’s when we returned from Africa in December and I think that is the last salad that I have had. The swallowing problems from the stroke have caused me to avoid lettuce altogether. 

The therapist has told me that lettuce is often one of the last things that people can consume after having swallowing problems. I have avoided it, knowing it would be a challenge for me.

Each session with the speech therapist Kelly Jo tries to take some kind of food that I have not eaten yet and we try that as part of therapy. Most things have been successful and a few things have been much more difficult. 

The therapist has given me a few foods that I was sure I could not eat from recent experience, but I was able to do it. That gives me more confidence to try new textures and foods that have been difficult to swallow in recent weeks. 

Monday, KJo became extremely adventurous. She drove to the other side of the interstate and picked up a serving of salad from Olive Garden. I love Olive Garden salad, but I thought she was a little touched in the head. 

The therapist thought it would be good to try and so I tried it. Much to our surprise, I was able to eat it without too much problem at all. I needed to be careful, but I am getting used to that. The more dressing, the easier it was to eat and that is OK with me. I love Olive Garden dressing.

That is quite a Mile Marker for me. There are a lot of things I still cannot eat but ultimate on the list is a big Outlaw Ribeye from Longhorn Steakhouse. I think today brings me a little closer.❤️❤️

Thank you for stopping by today. Remember, we will have A Word for Wednesday available tomorrow. The subject will be Trusting Our Lord to Lead, He Maketh  No Mistake.

Davy

19 Years of Praise

Hey Friends,

This is Odie checking in for this first Saturday of March. I hope you are doing well today. I am doing good myself. God has been so faithful to me. I am feeling extra blessed today!

This week, 19 years ago, was one of the roughest weeks of my life. I have been reminiscing and praising God one more time. My parents were my rock, and they nursed and guided me. It was rough on them as well!

Our family and friends from all over prayed and helped us tremendously during this scary time. Pastor Philip Deane and the church family Beams of Light Church, in Cantonment, stood beside us. That is when Bro. Philip became our Dr. Phil. Thank you one more time from the bottom of my heart!

Testimony Time

At the end of February 2005, we found ourselves in a wonderful revival near Pensacola, Florida. I was severely sick. I had been sick off and on for weeks. Late on a Friday night, we rushed to the emergency room. I was at my ropes end. We were looking for answers to the reoccurring sickness. I will never forget the 5 hours of misery as we waited in the waiting room before I was called back.

We were hoping for answers and quick treatments to make me better. There was no way of knowing the extent of what the doctors would find. One report from the surgeon sent me down a road I never expected to walk.

The unknown was frightening! I was 19 years old, and that was the first crisis that I had faced. I truly learned to lean heavily on God during my week in the hospital.

During the hospital stay, it was easy to feel like we were drowning in the unknown. Dad would get in my ear and tell me, Baby, this water is over our head and I do not know where the bottom is. But he kept assuring me that we would touch the bottom. 

No matter the outcome, God was with us and we would eventually find the bottom of this deep spot and walk out onto solid ground. 

On March 1st, I had surgery to remove an ugly tumor and some organs that were affected by the tumor. I was terrified of surgery and what the doctors would find! 

I am thrilled to report that God was faithful to me. Surgery was successful, and no cancer was found! When I received the good news late on surgery day, all I could do was cry and raise my hand in praise. I knew the bottom was within reach. 

I look back on this period of time and see God's faithfulness. He worked a series of miracles and brought me through. God turned my test into a testimony and taught me to trust Him. I praise God with every fiber of my being! He is the reason I can share this testimony today.

19 years later, 2024 already has had its own challenges and unknowns. This time around, I have reminded Dad I do not know where the bottom is now. I do know without a doubt that we will touch the bottom and walk out of this deep water. No matter the outcome, God is right here with us!

Already, God has worked another series of miracles for my family! We can never thank Him enough for His continued faithfulness! Today, I am taking another opportunity to say thank you!

Thanks for joining me for another post. I enjoyed visiting with you and praising God! See you next week.

Odie

No More Dirt In The Church

In early early February I posted about the new construction of the church in Nigeria. This is an existing church that needed a larger sanctuary. It is a branch of Christ Ambassadors Holiness Church.

Before we were there in December they had torn down the old sanctuary and partially built a bigger one. I was blessed to preach in the new church under construction. 

While I was there I determined to try to help them finish the building. I had received the estimate on what it would take to finish and by God’s grace and the help of others, we had the resources to send them the money needed to complete the church. 

Thursday I received an email with videos of the concrete floor being completed. Concrete work is very labor-intensive, but especially in Nigeria where everything is done by hand. I am thrilled to see the floor going in so that they do not have to have church on the dirt floor.

Bro. Shobanke told me they were able to purchase all the supplies for completion of the sanctuary with the money that we sent and that it will be completed as soon as possible. Hallelujah!!!

Bro. Shobanke had mentioned on the phone that  it was his desire for me to travel to Nigeria later this year and dedicate this new sanctuary. He repeated that in the letter I received yesterday by email.

The impossibilities and impracticalities of us going to Nigeria this year loom very large in front of me. There is no way I could go this moment, but I expect to be much better a few months along this journey.

My immediate response is to say I cannot go this year, but if I am honest, there is a little bit of fear speaking right there. We have talked a lot about what would have happened if I would have had a stroke two weeks before I did in Nigeria.

We are definitely going to have to pray that one through and find the Lord‘s will. I do not want to be ruled by fear but I do not want to make a decision based on proving something to myself.

GoodNews Christian School

We still hope to send a good offering toward the construction of the new school building for GoodNews Christian School. We are hoping to send some in early March and then send a matching amount in April, if we are able. 

Can you tell, I am a little bit excited about these projects? Thank you for joining us today.

Davy

35% of Normal, 1000% Better Than My Lowest

I am super glad we made the quick trip to Kentucky on Sunday but I definitely feel the effects of it.

This video has the information from this Mile Marker and Wednesday's too.

I mentioned yesterday that last Friday was an evaluation day in physical therapy and occupational therapy. They need to grade the patients once in a while to justify to the insurance the need to continue therapy or to determine if therapy is no longer needed.

Many of the things that were required, were duplicates or similar to things they tested on the first day of outpatient therapy January 19. They were happy to find that I had improved on every measurable goal. I was pretty happy myself!

Praise God!

Even though I have room for much improvement in my balance, walking, dexterity and speech; all these areas are tremendously better than before. That is a super reason for thankfulness. 🙌🏽🙌🏽

The main areas that need to improve now are the numbness that remains on my entire right side and the strength and quality of my speaking and singing voice.  

Also, even though I am able to swallow and consume enough calories to keep me going. There are many normal foods that I cannot eat yet. I am so thankful to be swallowing but I would love to be completely recovered in that area.

I really appreciate you taking time to pray about those three things especially, in addition to all the other areas. We hear from some of you regularly and we know that you are taking these things seriously in prayer and we appreciate it very much.

I am grateful for the inquiries we receive asking when we might be able to return to our regular schedule on the road. I wish I knew the answer with certainty to that question, but the reality is, there is no way that I can know. There are heaps upon heaps of things I need to do to roll that wagon.

I feel like I am about 35% of what I was when I went to bed on the bus on December 28. Yet I am 1000% better than I was when I transferred into ICU late at night on December 29. 

35% of Normal, 1000% Better Than My Lowest

35% means I am a very long way from being able to do all my duties to keep us traveling, singing and preaching. I have had so much fun the last many years that I have made it look easy, but it does not look easy from where I sit right now.😍🤣

1000% means I am incredibly and amazingly improved from where I was immediately after the stroke. I give the glory to God and the people He used to bring me to this point. Hallelujah! There is no God like our God!🙌🏽🙌🏽

That is an honest assessment of where we are right now. I am here by God’s grace and every forward step I take will be by his grace as well. I know God can pull me through IF I can stand the pulling. 

I have purposed to do my part and I have faith that God will do His part. I am working hard like all the progress depends on me and I am trusting, believing and praying like all the progress depends on God!

I have determined with the wise counsel of mentors and friends, that I am not going to rush this. When I am ready to go there still be work to do.

Thank you for traveling along with us. We need you.

Davy

Strange Side Effects

I have listed several effects of the stroke that I suffered on December 29 here and in other places. But I do not think I have mentioned some of the stranger side effects that we have noticed. 

Overstimulation

The first thing that I noticed that seemed odd was that I could not tolerate two or three conversations in the room at one time, especially if one was a little loud. It was as if, my brain could not stand to be overstimulated. 

That side effect eased off after about 3 to 4 weeks. 

No Dreaming

I noticed early on that I was not dreaming at all. I am a pretty consistent dreamer and I have very vivid and detailed dreams. I was not sleeping much for several weeks, but I still thought I should be dreaming a little. 

Finally, on the morning of January 23, I had a short dream of a conversation that lasted just a few sentences. The next night I had a nightmare. In the dream, a Church sent me a swallow test kit and I choked all night trying to use it.

I have no idea if a swallow test kit exists or what it is, but it was the worst gift I have ever been given. I have been dreaming every night since then, but I went 25 nights without dreaming. 

No Sneezing

After I had been in the hospital for about 13 days, I sneezed a couple times one afternoon. It was only then, that I realized that was the first sneeze I had had since the stroke.

Maybe The Strangest Side Effect-No Yawning

Even though I only slept fitfully for an hour or two most of the 18 days I was in the hospital and continued that for a week or so after I came home, I did not yawn one time. 

There were some days and nights when I was so sleepy that I could not hold my head up, yet I could not go to sleep. But no yawn came at all.  

It has now been seven weeks and five days since I had the stroke on December 29. As of February 21, I still have not yawned at all. that seems strange for a guy who yawned all day long sometimes. 

A Pleasant Side Effect 

I am still looking for pleasant side effects. They may be a long time coming or it may be a long time before I notice them, but I am purposely looking for them. 

This is the reason. It is well known that Covid affected me horribly in 2021. In fact, I still have effects from Covid in 2024. 

One of the neurologists even said that Covid is likely to be responsible for the blood clot that caused the stroke in my brain stem. We may never know the accuracy of that statement, but it makes sense to us.

However, once most of the dust of Covid had settled in my body by the beginning of 2022, I noticed a very good side effect. My close-up vision was and still is better than it was since I turned 40 years old. 

I have no idea how or why that happened, but once Covid receded, my eyes were probably 90% better in close-up vision than before. I have not used reading glasses at all since then. 

I give the glory to God and I fully expect when the effects of this stroke fully recede, God may add in a few new blessings to the recovery.

He’s Got It All In Control and I cannot wait to see what he has in mind for our family. 

Thank you for stopping by today. We appreciate the visit. 

Davy

A Little Dignity Goes A Long Way

Kelly and I did not take many pictures during the 18 days that we were in the hospital and inpatient rehab. Number one, we were not in a picture taking mood and number two, there was not much we wanted to remember enough to take a picture. 

In hindsight, we should have taken pictures of all the great nurses and doctors who helped us along the way. We have taken some pictures of the therapist since then and we will post them at some point in the future. 

I do have three pictures taken the day that we were discharged and happily made our way to Odie‘s home. It was my first time going to the Lazy OD Ranch since the stroke, of course.

Ready To Leave Our Room

I asked Kelly to please bring some dress clothes, dress shoes and a tie for me to wear home. She wondered why I wanted to dress up to go home and you may be wondering the same thing. It is a reasonable question. 

This was my thinking and it certainly made sense to me. I wanted to leave that place with a little dignity. There was not much dignity to be found at a hospital. There is little privacy and not much room for modesty either. 

We tried to preserve any decency and self-respect that we could, but it often proved difficult. I had no intention of wearing a hospital gown for my time there and I politely declined each time it was offered or even insisted upon. 

Plus, Kelly Jo shut the door for me when they needed to work on me and tried to retain any modesty that we could. 

We understand that doctors and nurses do the absolute best they can and we have the fullest respect for them. Human bodies become routine when you work on them every day, but my body is not routine, it is mine. 

We received nothing but kindness and thoughtfulness once we made our wishes known and I appreciate the respect that we received. However, hospitals are not designed to preserve our dignity. so we must work for it for ourselves. 😇

I wanted to go home looking and feeling a whole lot better than when I arrived 18 days before. Even though I could not button my dress shirt over the feeding tube, I wanted to put my suit and tie on while going home to try to reclaim at least a speck or two of dignity.

I have no idea what others thought about it and it’s not really that important to me. At least I felt normal, or as close to normal as I had felt for nearly three weeks. 

It seemed almost normal to feel normal  That helped a lot.

Does that make sense? I tell you often, it makes sense when I say it to myself.

Thank you for reading today.

Davy

Revisited In Pictures Healing Is A Process

It is a little unusual for me to revisit a Mile Marker that is only two weeks old, but I think I need to. Or at least I want to.

On January 26 I posted Healing Is A Process. You can follow the link above and read or re-read that post as you like.

I will not completely rewrite the whole post, but as a recap, I showed you pictures of the inside of my arm. The first picture was taken two weeks into my hospital stay. I received all those bruises and blood beneath my skin the first day in the emergency room.

Pictures after that were in one week increments showing how the arm was healing. The natural process, that God created in us was healing the wound.

I compared that to the swelling and pressure that is in my brain stem from the stroke I suffered on December 29. It is also healing, it is experiencing the healing process that God instituted in humans. I do not know the rate of healing but I know it is healing. 

I cannot take a picture as the brainstem heals but I have taken pictures each week of my arm as it heals. I draw encouragement every week from that picture, because I know my brain is healing too.

As my brain heals, we are seeing small advances in regaining use of my leg, my arm, my swallowing, my vocal cords, my eyesight. and my balance. All of these will likely continue to improve as my brain heals.

Praise God! Praise God! 

I have a long ways to go, but as my inner arm heals I am reminded, even though I cannot see it, my brain stem is healing too.

Look at these and rejoice with me.

Two weeks. 

Three weeks. 

Four weeks. 

Five weeks. 

Six weeks

As I said before, every day I believe God for an instantaneous miracle and I have received some. But also, every day, I am experiencing and trusting God‘s amazing healing process in my body.

Thank you very much for reading today.

Davy

Revival tonight

Boggs Family Ministries Has Work To Do In Nigeria

Even though we are sidelined for the moment, as far as nightly preaching and weekly travel goes, Boggs Family Ministries continues on. We have hopes and dreams that we would like to complete and obligations that we intend to keep.

One of the things that we had intended to do early in January was to find out how much money it would take to complete the church construction that we had helped support earlier in Nigeria.

It has been many years since we first preached there in the front yard of the smaller older building. We were blessed to visit the church again and preach for them one night while we were in Nigeria recently. It was a wonderful night and our hearts were touched. 

When we were there in 2023, they were happily having church in the unfinished building with dirt floors. The Lord moved powerfully that night and I determined then to help them finish their new building.

Also, GoodNews Christian School has begun a new two-story building on their property. We saw the foundation and slab when we visited the school.

I also intended to ask them what it would take to get the new classrooms under roof. They need that building currently and I would love to see it completed as soon as possible.

Obviously, I have been sidetracked the last several weeks with a medical issue and have not had the time or brain power to even think about it. Recently, I was able to send an email to Bro. Shobanke and some of the other men and try to get those figures.

Last week I received an email from Bro.  Shobanke with the numbers that I had asked about.

As you requested, below are the cost of completion for our two building projects in Naira (₦)

1) Church Branch at Mile 2, Ayetoro Ogun State

A) Flooring -             1,005,000

B) Electrical Works-   500,000

C) Ceiling -                 1,767,000

D) Painting-              2,504,827

GROUND TOTAL= ₦5,776,827

Dollar Equivalence: $ 4,126

2) The Goodnews  Christian School Project Completion

A) First Floor -                      7,500,000          

B) Second Floor-                  7,500,000

C) Plastering and Flooring-  900,000

D) Roofing -                           2,800,000

GROUND TOTAL=    ₦18,700,000

Dollar Equivalence =$13,357

The inflation in Nigeria is running away and killing their economy. However, this causes the American dollar to be very high against the Naira. Hopefully, our dollars will buy more during this process.

A dear friend, who is an incredible missionary, had a burden from the Lord to help us build this church and sent a great offering toward it. With his offering and our mission commitment, I will send the money to complete the church today

I have a little bit extra to put toward the school and I would like to send a sizable amount toward the new school building around March 1st IF possible.

We took the first three pictures while we were there and the pictures after demonstrate the current state of construction. I received these pictures with the financial information.

Now

I would love to help them get the school building under roof and be that much closer to the children being able to use the space.

The amount listed above may not complete it. They need to equip a chemistry lab in that building, but it will go a long way. I am excited to even think about it.

As you know, I believe in this school. We have unashamedly invested as much as we can into the school for 14 years and I know the hundreds of children are worth every penny.

Thank you for reading today and thank you for helping us do all that we have done and will continue to do by God’s grace. We are taking a moment to heal and catch our breath but there is much remaining that we can do in the interim.

Davy