An Encouraging Word- Poppies at the Plywood House (May 3, 2026)

An Encouraging Word- Poppies at the Plywood House
May 3, 2026


    This winter my father asked me to come look through an abandoned house that was on a piece of property he owned. The house had sat unoccupied for a few years but still had contents inside. We looked through antiques, old books and records, and pulled out a few treasures.  I nicknamed the house “The Plywood House”. It was just made of plywood. There was no insulation, no electricity, no running water, no heat source.  It was a pretty rough looking structure. The yard was a mess, filled with odds and ends of rusting metal, tires, broken appliances, odds and ends of items. 

    Last week my dad sent me some pictures from The Plywood House.  The grass had grown up this spring all around it and the most beautiful California Poppies covered the yard. In the midst of all that property that looked like a total loss and disaster were beautiful glimpses of stunning beauty.  That image has stayed in my mind all week. As I have thought of those beautiful pictures, I have been reminded of how God sends glimmers of hope and beauty into our own lives, even during hard and trying times. All may seem lost, the outcome may seem impossible, the brokenness may fill our lives and seem insurmountable. BUT GOD steps in, breaks the chains, sets the captive free, brings salvation, makes a way where there seems to be no way.  God has a way of filling all the broken places in our lives with His renewing power and strength. He works in the rubble and ashes, in the places that seem desolate, and brings beauty from what was thought lost or destroyed. I pray you can allow Him to come into your life and heal you , to make you new, to restore you, to bring beauty where there once was nothing but brokenness.  


Scriptures to Hide In Your Heart:
Isaiah 49:16 (King James Version)
“ Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands, thy walls are continually before me…”

Matthew 28:20 (King James Version)
“ (And Jesus said), Lo , I am with you always even unto the end of the age….”.

Zephaniah 3:17 (King James Version)
“The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing”. 

Psalm 139:7-10 (King James Version)
“ Whither shall I go from thy spirit?  Or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven , thou are there, if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, Even  there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me”.

Isaiah 63:1-4 (New International Version)
“The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance for our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion- to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.  They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor.  They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations”. 


Songs to Encourage You:
If I Was A Bird (Mission House)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDqZbXXkcw8&list=RDYDqZbXXkcw8&start_radio=1

Peaceful Worship Medley (Is He Worthy, How He Loves Us, As the Deer, Jesus We Love You) (Samuel Jackson-Reed)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qm3BiUKYe6Q&list=RDqm3BiUKYe6Q&start_radio=1


You Are Loved Beyond Measure!

Melissa Boggs
Christian Life Academy Superintendent

(photos are from The Plywood House”

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