Spreading love, joy, peace, faith & unity

Archive for the ‘Faith’ Category

Dec. 11 Word of the Day

Using the prompts from @sanctifiedart,
I am enjoying the opportunity to share
the “Words for the Beginning”
each day with you during this Advent season.

Today’s word is:
PEACEMAKER

I don’t know who this guy is that AI generated when I put the word in. Do you? He doesn’t look like someone I’d turn to when I was wanting some peace. Does he look like a peacemaker to you?

My idea of a peacemaker is:

… the One who holds the world in His hands
… the One who made the world and sent His Son to save us
… the One who gave His life that I might have eternal life

My Peacemaker lifts me up when I fall
He reaches out to the lost and brings them in
He reaches into our hearts and saves us from our sin
He shows us the Way to live in love and harmony

I hope you know my Peacemaker
He lives in my heart
I hope He lives in your heart, too
I pray His peace permeates our world
We need Him now more than ever!

The peace of Christ be with you.

Spread His Love.
Be a peacemaker, too!

See you tomorrow with another Word of the Day.
Hugs,
JanBeek

Category:

Belief, Bible Lessons, Faith, God, Jesus, Living in Christ's Family, Love, Serving One Another

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Dec.10 Word of the Day

Using the Advent devotional from @SanctifiedArt,
I am posting the Word of the Day between now and Christmas.
These are “Words for the Beginning”
– beginning again
– looking forward to the coming of the Christ Child
– finding daily inspiration

Today’s word is:

That’s the image AI generated
when I gave the word to
Artificial Intelligence.

If I go to my WordPress photos,
here is the one I would select:

When I think of the word “journey,”
I think of this life I am living…
and I realize it is a journey
of major proportions.
One worth savoring.

To savor this life’s journey,
We must slow down.
To get the most of of it,
Wipe away your frown.

Travel each day with a smile,
With positive expectations.
Open your heart and your hands
To all God’s glorious creations.

Journey with your loved ones.
Embrace every endeavor.
Travel with the assurance that
Every step is sure and clever.

Don’t try to go it alone.
We’re all in this together.
Journey with a song in your heart
And dance in every kind of weather.

What images might you imagine for each of these words of the day?
Words of the Day:
Dec. 1- Begin
Dec. 2 – Bless
Dec. 3 – Courage
Dec. 4 – Possibility
Dec. 5 – Remember
Dec. 6 – Marvel
Dec. 7 – Go
Dec. 8 – Together
Dec. 9 – Embrace
Dec. 10 – Journey

woman standing on green grass
“Journey” Photo by Krivec Ales on Pexels.com

No, don’t go it alone!
See ya tomorrow for Dec. 11th Word of the Day.

Love,
JanBeek

(That’s Lorei with me!
She was my first grade student in 1961!!
Stay in touch!!! You’re not alone.)

Category:

Aging Gracefully, blessings, Faith, friendship, God, Living in Harmony, Love, Poetry, relationships, writing

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Words of the Day

“A Sanctified Art” is the Advent program
my friends at church and I
are using this Christmas season.

It was suggested that we take or find a photo inspired by the Word of the Day
and share it daily on social media. I have been remiss.
We’re already nine days into Advent and I have not posted
these words or photos for you to see.

But, I have colored the quilt pattern that contains the words…
and I have contemplated the meaning of each of the words
as they came due. It’s not too late to begin sharing.
Today’s word is: “Embrace.”

You might expect me to post a picture of Bob & me embracing,
but I’m not going to be so predictable!

It’s easy to embrace those we love,
but learning to embrace the storms of life…
that’s a different story!

kid hiding on pillows

Yesterday’s word was “Together.”
That was a much easier word to embrace!
It was our bonus daughter, Elaina’s birthday –
and she was able to be together with her daughter and son-in-law to celebrate.

And a Happy Birthday to you, dear LainaLainaLaina!!

It was a party day for our son, Ty and his wife, Monika,
and they were able to host a large group of leaders from their church.
There is such joy in that kind of togetherness!

52def05a-b43b-415b-a6c3-860f25894daf-1

We returned recently from a three week trip to Switzerland …
and the togetherness with our daughter, DeAna, was magical!

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When you think of the joy of togetherness, what comes to your mind?
And in terms of embracing the storms of life,
what is a storm you are facing?
Tell me about it… and I will certainly
add your resolution to my prayer requests.

See ya tomorrow with the word of the day
for beginning your December 10th.

Love,
JanBeek

Category:

blogging, Christmas, Faith, Family, friendship, God, Life's Challenges, relationships, writing

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Time with Family

Hello, my WP Friends!
How are you this lovely December weekend?
I hope your Thanksgiving was everything you dreamed of…
and your December has started off nicely.
What are you looking forward to?
We just enjoyed a 3 week trip to Switzerland
where we spent quality time with our daughter
and her family… highlighted by meeting our
Number One Swiss Great-Grandchild.
Now we are anticipating our Christmas trip
to California where we will spend quality time with
our son, our daughter-in-law, Monika, and our grandchildren.
Here is our daughter-in-law, Monika,
with our great-grandchild, Mable. Aren’t they a cutie?

You can see how Grandma Monika is enjoying her granddaughter.
We expect to get in on some of that love in just a couple of weeks.
Christmas needs to be “FAMILY TIME”
Don’t you agree?

How about you?
Do you have fun plans for this holiday season?

I hope you have a wonderful Christmas season
filled with all your favorite people, events, and treats.
Be sure to celebrate “The Reason for the Season.”
Go to church. Worship the One who gives us HOPE.
Pray for peace in our war-torn world.
Attend those special events that are happening in your community.
Bob & I went last night to our local “Christmas Stroll”
and enjoyed the “Parade of Lights” in our little town.
What special events do you anticipate in your town/city?

I couldn’t get my video of last night’s little parade
to show up here… so here is one generated by AI.
It’s obviously in a larger venue that our little town.
But, you get the idea, right?
Christmas is a season of celebrations!
I hope you and your family enjoy every opportunity
that your community offers you.
And don’t forget the “Reason for the Season.”

Enjoy family time as you pass along the
REAL Christmas story to the next generation.

Love,
JanBeek

Category:

Christmas, Faith, Family, Jesus, Montana

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Family Time

Thanksgiving is coming here in the USA.
It’s a time to especially thank God for:

Your children and their father,
Your dear husband
who puts up with you every day
(or for you dads out there:
Thank God for the mother of your children
who puts up with you every day)
Are you fortunate to have a spouse and kids?

Thank God for your in-laws:
For your son-in-law
and your daughter-in-law,
And for their parents.
Are you fortunate enough to have
a good relationship with you in-law’s parents?

We are blessed to have this
sweet, nutty, fun-loving daughter
in Switzerland. As we approach
Thanksgiving, we especially are
thankful that we had the strength
and the stamina to visit her this month!

If you have a child who
married someone from another country,
I hope you know the joy of being able
to travel to see him/her.

God is so good to bless us
with the ability to go to Switzerland.
We now are planning our Christmas trip
to spend time with our son, Ty, and
his family in California.
Thank you, dear Lord, for the
resources and the strength and the help
with choosing our flights
and being able to have that
Family Time.

C’mas 2020

That CA family has grown by two more
great-grandchildren since that photo.
It includes Bob & me with our son & his wife,
her parents, 3 of our grandchildren,
and one great-granddaughter, Cosette.
Family Time is so precious!

I pray that your holidays coming up
find you surrounded by loving family
and friends who are like “chosen family.”
God bless you!

Love,
JanBeek

Category:

Bible Lessons, blessings, children, Christmas, Faith, Family, God, Gratitude, Love, relationships, Travel

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Prioritize

Today’s prompt asked me about my #1 priority for tomorrow. Why tomorrow? I need to live today first. Take each day as it comes! Carpe’ Diem!!

Daily writing prompt
What’s your #1 priority tomorrow?
View all responses

Ann Kaplow posted a blog today on the subject of aging.

Day 4288: Age

In her blog she wrote, “Age is a topic that adults of different ages often talk about in my therapy groups. We have so many preconceptions and judgments about age. For example, women aren’t supposed to share their age. Why not? I’m proud that I’ve reached the age of 71.”

She posted many quotes about aging. They got me thinking about that topic and how it relates to today’s prompt. Prioritize tomorrow? What about today? You’re one day older… How do you feel about it?

Do you look in the mirror and count your wrinkles?
Or do you wink at the mirror and thank God for another day?

I commented about aging on Ann’s blog. This is what I wrote:

“Aging is a gift not all humans are given. It’s a privilege to age along side my 85-year-old hubby. I’m only six months behind him. We will celebrate our 63rd anniversary this February (and there were nay-sayers who said it wouldn’t last!). I can honestly say we love one another more now than we did the day we were married. It’s a well worn, comfortable, endearing, respectful love. If you are given the gift of aging, unwrap it, flaunt it, appreciate each day, share your gained wisdom, and thank God for each sunrise-sunset. Life is a gift!”

The Lord promises His continued love and concern for the elderly. “I will be your God throughout your lifetime — until your hair is white with age. I made you, and I will care for you. I will carry you along and save you (Isaiah 46:4)

Thank God for this new day.
What is your number one priority for today?
Carpe’ Diem!

God bless you!
Love,
JanBeek

Category:

Aging Gracefully, Bible Lessons, blessings, blogging, Faith, Family, Gratitude, happiness, Life's Challenges, Love, mental health, optimism, relationships

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Hard Work

In what ways does hard work make you feel fulfilled?

Hah! Hard work? How about YOU do that? I just wanna enjoy my retirement!

Maybe work on some creative project … but not too hard!

Enjoy the way cooling temperatures bring an early autumn, and…

smile with little Oliver because his twin, Noah, is coming home from the hospital today. His mom gave birth a week or so ago to two little angels – each nearly 8 lbs. – now, that’s hard work!!

Here’s Noah. Pray for him. Pray hard. He’s been having seizures. Pray for his complete health and happy future.

That’s Oliver, smiling because you’re hard at work praying for his brother!

God hears us. He cares. He answers prayer. Keep on praying. 🙏🏽

Are you hard at work praying? That makes me feel fulfilled: to encourage others and to help us all keep the faith. Yes! God bless you. Have a fulfilling day!

Noah & I thank you!

Love, JanBeek

Category:

children, Faith, God, Love, optimism, prayer, relationships

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Answered Prayer

Today I thank God
For His faithful answered prayer
We feel very blessed

Imagine waking
To a toilet filled with blood
And a scared husband

A trip to ER
Three hours with competent staff
Myriads of tests

Here are your results
Please come back tomorrow, Bob
Our hospital’s full

Good thing it’s only
Less than five minutes from home
Very convenient

While I sat with Bob
In the emergency room
I texted family

From California
To DeDe in Switzerland
I contacted friends

Everyone sent prayers
Asking God to oversee
And of course He did

We are encouraged
The loss of more blood has ceased
Yes, friends, God is good!

;o)

Psalm 66:19

“But truly God has listened; He has attended to the voice of my prayer.”

Keep on praying, friends
And know God is listening
He hears and answers

Love ya,
JanBeek

Our 59th anniv. in 2021 –
Now happily living our 62nd year together. God bless Bob!

Category:

Bible Lessons, blessings, Faith, Family, God, Gratitude, Haiku, health, Life's Challenges, Love, Poetry, prayer, relationships, Serving One Another

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God’s Love

Contemplate His love
Let it seep in to your soul
Then let it spill out

Have a love-filled day!
Hugs,
JanBeek

Category:

Faith, God, Haiku, happiness, Love, mental health, Poetry

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Words Words Words

How shall we use our tongues?
That was the question posed by
James McGuire in today’s
devotional in “These Days.”

These Days, Daily Devotionals for Living by Faith,
published especially for Cumberland Presbyterian Church.


James 3:10 says,
“From the same mouth comes
a blessing and a curse.
My brothers and sisters,
this ought not to be so.“



Ah, my friends, t’is so true…
we all are a combination
of good and evil!
Capable of great love
and alas, of ugly hate.
Which dog wins?
The one we feed!

James McGuire elaborated on the subject.
“The development of speech was a unique human accomplishment,”
he wrote. “Other creatures communicate by grunts, growls, and touch.
Humans use many languages.”

He went on to ask,
“How shall we use our power of speech?
Shall we bless others, or shall we curse?
What shall we do with our ability to write?”

That last question brought me to my blog.
Here I write with the purposes explained in my heading:
I intend to spread “Love, joy, peace, faith and unity.”
I believe there is too little of each of those in our world.

James McGuire asked,
“What about the ideas that pour forth
through television and videos?”


Here in the USA, this week more than 67 million people
tuned in to the Harris-Trump debate.
Lordy, Lordy, what a fiasco!
What is this world coming to??

James McGuire ended his devotional with this prayer:
“Holy God, forgive us when we misuse our tongues.
Teach us to choose words wisely as we communicate
with each other and the world.”

Like Old Testament proverbs, the Letter of James
offers wise teachings for Christians of every age.
We who write (and speak publicly), teach, and lead
have a particular responsibility for our use of language.
We who read and who listen to public speakers
must be attuned to the Holy Spirit as we read and hear others.

“Moreover,”
James McGuire and James reminded us,
“we must be wise in choosing
what we view on big and little screens.”

Words, words, words!
They are so important!!
A BLESSING OR A CURSE?
Do both come out of your mouth?
“My brothers and sisters, this ought not be so.”

Join me, won’t you?
Let’s try to use our tongues
and our arms
and our lives
to spread
Only Love.

OKAY?

Hugs and Love,
JanBeek

Category:

Bible Lessons, Faith, kindness, Living in Christ's Family, Living in Harmony, Love, peace, relationships, writing

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