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Archive for April, 2022

The Urge to Purge

It’s the urge to purge
That attacked my head today
Will it go away?

Unexpectedly
As I entered my office
It attacked my brain

Looking at the mess
The urge to purge arrived
I’ve avoided it

It’s easy to see
Why the urge is in my head
Will it reach my hands?

Jesus had the urge
He quickly cleared the temple
The Bible tells us:

Going into the temple
He began to throw out everyone
who had set up shop,
selling everything and anything.
He said, “It’s written in scripture,
My house is a house of prayer;
You have turned it into a religious bazaar.”

Luke 19:45-46

In today’s Mornings With Jesus, Jeanette Levellie was reminded of all the stuff she took home from her grandma’s house when she was there helping her mom with the clutter (er – a – treasures!). She wrote,
“Whenever I’m tempted to want more than I need, I remember that ugly feeling of greed I experienced while cleaning Grandma’s house. I remind myself that God’s house – my heart – is meant for fellowship with Him.”

My office doesn’t look quite as bad as that picture above, but it certainly is full of stuff that represents “more than I need.” My spare bedroom has in it a lot of the stuff that we stored there while we were having our floors redone a couple of months ago. If I haven’t needed it by now, don’t you think it’s time to purge? Likewise, my office would feel a lot more inviting if I got rid of the stuff that clutters the countertops in there, too. Right?

Is this a topic I have shared before? I think so… And I avoided the urge then, just like I am trying t squelch it today!! It’s not just my heart that needs cleaning of any type of greed, it’s my brain that needs to be told that overload of stuff is squelching my creativity! And it will be a major headache for Bob & my kids if I should keel over tomorrow!

Do yourself a favor, Jan:

If the urge to purge
Seemed to attack you today
Let it convince you

Envision the space
With room for meaningful work
That feels lots better!

Thanks, Jesus, for the inspiration.
I need to let your example inspire me!

Do you have an urge to purge today?
Let’s work on that together!
OK?

See ya tomorrow (God willing)
I’ll give you a report!
Hugs,
JanBeek

Category:

Bible Lessons, Haiku, Jesus, Life's Challenges, Living in Harmony, Love, mental health, peace, Poetry, relationships, Serving One Another

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Donkey Sunday

I met this donkey in England
while visiting Jackie & Derrick Knight!

Sermon Notes

Our message at church today was an interesting one.
Rev. Mary Grace Reynolds shared a story about a
clerical friend of hers who renamed Palm Sunday
“Donkey Sunday” because the palm leaves show up
in only some of the Gospels, but the donkey is in all four!

Power in Love

Royalty who rode donkeys
were considered a disgrace.
But the throng didn’t mind
How Jesus entered the place.

Power is a social contract.
It’s a constructed idea for us.
However it is not a given –
Except in the case of Jesus.

Christ Power is a given.
In the beginning was Light,
And the Light was God who
Came from darkness into sight.

Jesus Christ came from Light.
Through God all things were created.
Jesus was not just made…
He always was. And I’m elated!

Because He came, I know
That He will come again.
He has the power to save us all.
His power can save us from our sin.

Think about the presence
Of power in our lives.
When do you exercise it?
Control it, friends, ’til Christ arrives!

He entered Jerusalem on a donkey

The donkey is a symbol of humility.
The King of Kings came not to reign
Over the rulers of this earthly kingdom.
He came in love to display His own domain.

His kingdom is not on earth.
Instead, it is in eternity…
The place He has reserved
For believers like you and me.

Today might be called “Donkey Sunday.”
It is the day Christ rode to town
On the back of this lowly animal.
Praise God, His Son came down!


Power was His –
But He exchanged it
For humility and love
And expressed it with compassion.

Happy Donkey Week, my friends.
May the Power of the Holy Spirit
Be expressed in you
Through Love and Humility.

Our pastor,
Mary Grace Reynolds,
with me.

Thanks for your message, Rev. Reynolds.
I pray my sermon notes did it justice.

Have blessed Holy Week, my friends.
Love,
JanBeek

See ya tomorrow (God willing)

Category:

Belief, Bible Lessons, Faith, God, Living in Christ's Family, Living in Harmony, Love, music, Poetry, sermon notes

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Share Encouragement

Today we received a thank you letter from Intermountain.
We get a personalized letter from them every month.
The letter provides a great source of encouragement.
It motivates us to continue to give gladly because
we know it is received and used meaningfully.

Intermountain Development

Our gift to Intermountain is a small donation.
I have it taken out automatically from my monthly
retirement income. I don’t even miss it… but I know
it is pooled with other small gifts and together, they matter.
Intermountain helps hundreds of children increase their mental health.

The thank you letter we receive each month
lets us know our gift was received, and it tells us,
“Your support, combined with the tireless efforts of
our direct care staff, provides transformative outcomes
in the lives of the children we serve.” Thanks! We believe it!

The academic and counseling programs at Intermountain,
the recreational opportunities and clinical integrity are superb.
We are encouraged to continue to support their efforts and to
spread the word so others are encouraged to donate to them also.
They are an excellent Montana-based 501(c) organization
Check out their school, cottages, counseling,
and community outreach programs
at intermountain.org

How do you choose to share encouragement?

Donations are one way – but there are so many others:
cards, letters, phone calls, texts,
e-mails, home visits, hugs,
volunteering time,
you name it …

We all need encouragement, you know.

Choose ways to be an encourager!

Thanks for visiting JanBeek
See ya tomorrow (God willing)

Bye for now.

Category:

children, Giving, Life's Challenges, Love, mental health, Montana, Serving One Another, Sharing

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WordPress as Spam

When does a WordPress blog become spam?
When I get 13 notifications in one day…
and then 13 more the next day…
and more the next day … on & on…
all from the same blogger,
filling my notifications
with posts that have
no way to respond.
What do I do?
How do I
STOP IT??

Cristian Mihai
and his
The Art of Blogging
has become a pest!

I believe in his help –
and have used it in the past.
I have donated monthly to his cause.
But now I want it to stop.
It has become a nuisance.

Help!

Category:

blogging, writing

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101st Birthday

(Updated from yesterday with the link I promised)

My friend in our local senior living center is in his 101st year on earth. Next week he’ll celebrate another birthday. We want to have a special party … a wheelchair parade … with balloons and horns and a lot of hoopla. But he’ll have none of that. No siree! Just celebrate it with all the other April birthdays … don’t make no big deal about it.

But it IS a big deal! Don’t you agree?

Do you know how many sunrises and sunsets that is? More than I care to count! However, God bless him, my friend can count them all. His mind is still sharp as a rack. How does he do that?

I need to go ask my friend, Anita. She’s about ready to celebrate her 100th, and she’s sharp as a tack, too! Stay tuned. I’ll get the secrets from both of them … and I’ll share it here. I wanna get to be 100 and still have all my marbles in place, too.

I already know one of Anita’s secrets. Keep busy doin’ for others! She was a member of our Montana’s Senior Companion Program well into her 90s! Always out there “helping the old folks” by taking them to their doctor appointments, helping them get their groceries, shoveling their walks, you name it! What an inspiration!

Another senior friend of mine, Carol Orr, was in her 90s when this picture of her and me was taken. Like Anita, she kept her marbles polished and in place.

I asked Carol a few years after this photo
to share with me some of her life lessons –
and I posted a blog about that about a decade ago.
I’ll find it and give you a link tomorrow.

As promised, here is that link to Carol’s Life Lessons.
Hah! Time flies… it wasn’t a decade.
This link says it was only 3 years ago
– on Carol’s 95th birthday:
https://janbeek.blog/2019/07/28/95-years-of-life-lessons/

Meantime, I want you to ponder that 101 birthday coming up. S’pose he should have a parade just for him? Maybe not, if he doesn’t want it. But, shouldn’t we do SOMEthing special?

Paul Soren made a suggestion below. I like his idea. Don’t you?

Have a Happy Day, my friends.
It’s a beautiful, blue sky springtime day here in Ennis, MT.
Time to go plant some iris
in honor of our new great-granddaughter,
Mable Iris McSparron.

What are you planning to do today?

See ya later – alligator!!

Love, JanBeek

Category:

Aging Gracefully, blessings, children, Family, friendship, Life and Death, Life's Challenges, Love, music, relationships, Serving One Another

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No Grumbling!

Grumble
Mumble
Life ain’t fair

Grumble
Mumble
Unaware

Grumble
Mumble
I can’t see

Grumble
Mumble
In front of me

Grumble
Mumble
Looking back

Grumble
Mumble
Seeing lack

Grumble
Mumble
Stop complaining

Grumble
Mumble
What’s remaining?

If I grumble
I will find
Echoed words
In my mind

Are they happy
Do they express love
Show self acceptance
Give grumbling a shove

Mumble sweetness
Grumble no more
Shove regrets
Out the door

No more grumbling
Pray for peace
Pray that hatred
Will forever cease

Amen?

Mumble peace
Mumble greetings
Shout for love to
Stop the beatings

Work for a better tomorrow!!

What are we doing to create a better tomorrow?
Tell me!

Hugs from JanBeek
See ya tomorrow (God willing)

Category:

contentment, Faith, Heartache, Life's Challenges, Living in Harmony, Love, mental health, music, optimism, peace, Poetry, prayer, Serving One Another

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Staying Young

Staying young while growing older begins with a mind-set.

Peace and partying
Satisfaction and smiles
in all circumstances
at all ages

Notice I did not say, “Growing OLD.”
Growing OLDER is not the same as growing old.
I’m not OLD; at 82, I am simply
in my advanced years –
growing in wisdom and grace –
with God’s blessings!

In the Natural Living newsletter,
Dr. Z and Mama Z write the following:

“God will carry us through,
even into our advanced years.
Our Creator has had a plan for us
since before we were born.
He had our days numbered
since the beginning of time
and it is up to us to make wise decisions
to help our bodies
live a more vibrant and full life
and to impart our wisdom
to those placed in our lives.”

“Those who are older should speak, for wisdom comes with age.”

~ Job 32:7

Photo by Ivan Bertolazzi on Pexels.com

I DO think about things differently… especially THINGS.
Yes, I have my “treasures,” – those things I am reluctant to part with –
but as time goes by, I realize the wisdom of knowing
“I can’t take it with me.”
And God don’t allow no U-Hauls in Heaven!!

Skip that store on your way outta town!

In my daily devotions today,
Charles Stanley wrote in his In Touch entry,
“Our culture is obsessed with youth…
But… Unless death intervenes, growing old is inevitable.”

See that’s where I differ with him.
But it is only a matter of semantics, I’m sure.
He must have meant “growing older.”
Because he went on to say,
“We can be young in soul and spirit,
regardless of our chronological age.”

Magnificence comes with age…
Yes, the root word is “magnify”
and that’s what age does for us.
It magnifies our failures (if we let it) –
It magnifies our faults (if we let it) –
It requires magnification to see clearly!

Photo by Wallace Chuck on Pexels.com

The question we need to ask ourselves is,
“What am I magnifying as I age?”

Charles Stanley’s devotional today reminded us,
“Never stop listening to the Father
and learning from His Word.
Allow godly thinking to shape your attitude.
Be thankful, never stop laughing,
and rejoice in the Lord.
Above all, keep believing
and loving Him with all your heart.”

Making the most of the dash
means we have to stop dashing!
We’re not created to be honeybees,
dashing from one bit of pollen to another!

“Gray hair is a crown of glory;
it is obtained by following a righteous path.”
~ Proverbs 16:31


We are created in the image of God,
designed to glorify Him each day
by following the righteous path…
stopping along the way
and taking time
to pour out the honey of forgiveness,
dish out the power of experience,
and spray the gladness of grace
on all we meet.

Ps. 119:103

The way Eugene Peterson
paraphrased that verse in his study Bible,
The Message, is this:

“Your words are so choice, so tasty;
I prefer them to the best home cooking.”

Photo by mentatdgt on Pexels.com

So, let’s return to the original premise here:
“Staying young while growing older begins with a mind-set.”

Recognize those two?
A younger Bob & Jan?
60 years later…
Still young at heart!

What is your mind-set today?

Are you young at heart?
Are you pouring out the honey of forgiveness?
Are you dishing out the power of experience?
Are you spraying the gladness of grace?

Here’s a spray bottle
to help you out!

Thanks for visiting JanBeek today.
See ya tomorrow (God willing)

Category:

Aging Gracefully, Belief, Bible Lessons, blessings, children, Faith, Family, friendship, God, Gratitude, happiness, humor, kindness, life, Life's Challenges, Living in Christ's Family, Living in Harmony, Love, mental health, optimism, self-acceptance, self-esteem, Serving One Another

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She’s Here!

Yes, my new little great-granddaughter is here!
Faith & Kyle named her Mable Iris.
Don’t you love old-fashioned names?

I tried to get them to name her Janet
(that’s JanBeek’s God-given name),
but I lost out to one they chose
simply because they both “like it.”

Oh well, I tried!

Choosing names for our children
is such an important part of parenting.

The last “child” I named is this little moose who sits on my bed every day. He is named “Faithful” because he was a gift to me about 15 years ago from my granddaughter, Faith. She bought it at the Yellowstone National Park gift shop. We had just seen the geyser “Old Faithful” erupt. Then we went into the gift shop and gave her and her three siblings each some money to buy a souvenir for their visit. She bought this moose and then gave it to me as a “Thank you for taking us to Yellowstone” gift.

What a thoughtful little pre-teen she was! Each day when I make my bed, I put “Faithful the Yellowstone Moose” back on my bed with a prayer. I say:

“Dear God,
Please tuck them together in love
and watch over Faith & Kyle today.
Amen”

When we named our son Ty (I have told you this story before), it was because I had a student named Ty in my kindergarten class in 1963. He was such an adorable little boy – and I loved him as well as his name. In 1965 when our son was born, Bob agreed to use Ty’s name for our little baby.

Today when Kyle let us know that he & Faith had named their little girl Mable, I asked, “Is there a history of that name in your family? Or is it just a name you both liked?”

Kyle texted back and said they just liked the name – no family history for it.

So, I told Kyle that I have a history with that name. The only other Mable Bob & I have know is Mable Cronan. She was the dear, sweet, compassionate, loving grandmother of Ty Stiles (that kindergarten student of mine). Mable attended our church in California with Ty’s aunt, Marilyn Sena. So now – come full circle: our Ty has a granddaughter named Mable – just like Ty Stiles had a grandmother Mable. I love it when things seem to be so synchronistic, don’t you?

Ty & Roxanne Stiles
with me & Bob

When I looked up the meaning of the name Mable,
Wikipedia said,

“Lovable, dear:
Mabel is an English female given name
derived from the Latin amabilis, “lovable, dear“.

I told Faith and Kyle that Mable Cronan (Ty Stiles’ grandma) was definitely lovable and dear. I am so glad they chose that name. It will be fun to live long enough to see this great-granddaughter’s personality and values develop, and to watch God bring out the “lovable and dear” qualities that were born in her.

I saw a picture of my new great-granddaughter, Mable, today. I won’t post it here – out of respect for the privacy of her and her parents – but here is her mom, Faith, when she was a baby:

Mable has a cute little pug nose like Faith’s
( I lay claim to that feature – and told them so).

Mable has parents who love her –
and an extended family who can hardly wait
to meet her in person
and give her and her parents great big hugs!

Yes, my friends, she’s here!
It’s been a beautiful April 1st.
I pray yours was a memorable day, too.
Thank you for your prayers and positive thoughts
as we waited for this baby to arrive.

Here’s Mable’s mom & dad,
Faith & Kyle.
Aren’t they adorable?

For some reason, I am hoping this lovable new baby, Mable, will learn to play a musical instrument someday – maybe the soprano sax like Kenny G. I dedicate this album to her and hope she grows up to enjoy music someday as much as her Great-Grama (GG) Jan does!


This baby was the highlight of my day, obviously!
Tell me about a highlight of your April 1st.

Thanks for visiting JanBeek tonight.
See ya tomorrow (God willing)

Category:

blessings, children, Faith, Family, God, Gratitude, happiness, life, Living in Christ's Family, Living in Harmony, Love, music, relationships

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