Memorial Day is an American holiday. This Memorial Day weekend feels very different from years past. Even though we are not having lock-down, stay-at-home orders in Montana, still most of us don’t feel free to have a large gathering with a picnic potluck as we usually do. We need to find new ways of honoring the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. military.
Memorial Day is this Monday, May 25th, a day for us in the USA to honor the men and women who died while serving in the United States Military. It was originally known as Decoration Day after the tradition of decorating soldiers’ graves with flowers. Women in Pennsylvania began this practice as early as 1864 following the end of the Civil War. Soon other states and cities did the same.
Waterloo, New York, held an annual community-wide event beginning in 1866. This led the town to be recognized as the birthplace of Memorial Day by the federal government in 1966. Memorial Day became an official federal holiday in 1971. In 2000, Congress passed a resolution, urging Americans to set aside 3:00 p.m. on Memorial Day “to observe a national moment of remembrance to honor the men and women of the United States military who died in the pursuit of freedom and peace.”
Thank you, Shutterstock, for this image.
Do You?
Do you celebrate Memorial Day? If so, how are my fellow Americans planning on celebrating Memorial Day this year?
I’m curious: How do those of you in other countries remember the people in your nation who have served in your military (or do you)?
Photo by Markus Spiske temporausch.com on Pexels.com
Wonderful Dream
Wouldn’t it be a wonderful dream-come-true to have us all just love one another? No fences, no walls, no borders, no nation against nation… just one world, unified, working in tandem for a better life for everyone?
Wouldn’t it be a dream-come-true if we all felt a sense of freedom without anyone having to die to maintain it?
Wouldn’t it be a wonderful dream if everyone stopped hoarding and just shared generously? Share toilet paper! Share the Good News! Share LOVE!
… a pet, and toilet paper and a lotta LOVE!
Our military generously give their ALL. The least we can do is give them a day of Gratitude for their service… and a dream that one day we will all live as ONE, end all wars, and live in PEACE!
God bless you, my dear Blogging family. I pray that you have a peace-filled weekend. I’ll see you tomorrow.
Hugs, JanBeek
Wait, don’t leave until you comment!! Tell me about how you honor your military or tell me about your dreams for ONE WORLD of LOVE!
“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things.”
This verse in Philippians got me to thinking. What are the things that I would consider in these categories? Think about them… add your thoughts after each word. Where do these words take you? What is:
Lift your thoughts to the highest peak. Let your mind’s radio tune in to the thoughts that are uplifting and worthy of consideration. I tried that this morning. Here is what I came up with. I encourage you to come up with your own. How are your thoughts different from mine?
Think on things that are TRUE: a) The Bible b) The love of my family c) The need for friendship
Think on things that are NOBLE: a) Active, Honest, Capable and Fair government leaders b) Bob Goff’s “Love Does” c) The work of doctors, nurses, caregivers
Think on things that are RIGHT: a) The innocence of little children b) Agape Love (as demonstrated by the unconditional love of my pup, TazE… and my devoted spouse, Bob) c) The obligation to reach out and help the needy
Think on things that are PURE: a) The motives of devoted, loving friends b) The love of Christ for us sinners c) Blessings from heaven
Think on things that are LOVELY: a) Signs of spring = green leaves, daffodils, crocus, tulips b) Kisses from my grandchildren (and great-grandchildren) c) Phone calls, letters, texts from our children
Think on things that are ADMIRABLE: a) The work of classified staff (such as nurse’s assistants and custodians) in nursing homes and hospitals b) The volunteer work of pastors, elders, deacons, and others who give so much time/effort to the church c) The donations of those who give time, food, and resources to help the needy
Think on things that are EXCELLENT or PRAISEWORTHY: a) The efforts of teachers who are committed to continue helping students learn via ZOOM and other technology during this pandemic b) The scientists who are working tirelessly to find a COVID-19 vaccine c) The dedication of people who continue to serve in spite of the virus – – – food service workers, truckers, pharmacists, etc.
Your mind is like a radio – You can tune it to what’s good. Find the Philippians 9:8 channel And think of love. You should!
Change Your Mind’s Channel to Thoughts of Gratitude
Thanks for tuning in to JanBeek. Tell me about your uplifting thoughts based on Phil. 9:8
“Ambitions don’t flow from the quantity of our ideas or our uninterrupted drive; they gush out from our kindness and willingness to take a genuine interest in others.” Bob Goff
Taking a “genuine interest in others” is what Love Does!
Sometimes we wonder what we can do to make the world a better place. We want to help, but we don’t know how. Let me share an idea that works for me:
Bob Goff’s “Love Does” is an organization devoted to making the world a better place through education of people in places where schools did not exist before they came. Bob Goff wrote a “runaway New York Time’s best seller” book titled, Love Does. In it he spelled out his philosophy of DOING LOVE. Since its publication in 2012, I don’t know how many thousands of copies have been sold … but it is a whole lot!! And Bob’s LOVE DOES organization has raised millions to help thousands of children and adults in Uganda, India, Iraq, Iran, and Somalia have a better life.
In his quote this week on his FaceBook page, Bob talks about the courage to step out in faith:
May 7 at 9:35 AM ·
"Sometimes God asks us to step out (or through).
We don’t know what we’ll see
until we go through the deluge.
It’s scary to step into the unknown,
but it’s also where we find Jesus;
and wherever we find Jesus,
we find life.
Fear calls out our doubts;
God calls out our names."
Bob Goff
Helping to educate people from birth on … helping parents learn better parenting skills… helping to provide nourishment for the soul, the body, the spirit… that’s what Love Does! They built “Restore Leadership Academy” and sponsor the education of future leaders in Uganda.
May 10, 2018 · On average in the states, it costs about $20,000 a year for college tuition. In Uganda through Restore Leadership Academy, it costs $700. Our college-aged interns here at Love Does have created a campaign to help fund our Launch students!! Visit lovedoes.org/launch to sponsor a student! Sponsor a student today or make a one-time donation and receive a bag of wildflower seeds and a cool sticker in the mail to help “Plant the Seeds of Education!” #LaunchUganda#LoveDoes#HappyG… See More— in Uganda.
Through Love Does, help moms be better moms – and help children not only survive, but thrive.
There are many ways in your own neighborhood as well as around the world to show your love and compassion and to make the world a better place. We don’t need to sit at home and feel helpless in this COVID-19 world. We can reach out and let our love “gush out from our kindness and willingness to take a genuine interest in others.”
I donate a small amount monthly to this organization. It comes directly out of my retirement check. Not enough that I even notice it! But, if each person who heard about Love Does did the same thing, together our offerings can change lives! Lives of all ages… lives in many parts of the world. Here are a couple of darling children in Somalia who are being helped through Love Does donations.
How adorable are these two little friends in the baby home? We love watching these kiddos grow up here! To learn more about what we’re doing in Somalia, visit lovedoes.org/Somalia
I pray you and I will visibly gush with kindness and willingness to take a genuine interest in others.
BOTTOM LINE: LOVE DOES! Try it!
See ya tomorrow. Have a Beautiful Sunday. {{{Hugs}}} from JanBeek
The best version of yourself Is generous with everything you’ve got. You reach out to feed and help others, Never hoarding what’s in your pot.
When you look deep into your best, You see a person who is humble and kind. And if others don’t seem to see it, Don’t worry, my friend. They must be blind!
The meme at the top of this message tells us that we are not totally at the mercy of helpless anxiety. There are some things we can do to reduce our anxiety:
Go outside
Ask for help
Create something
Drink water
Write about how you feel
Take a deep breath
Listen to soothing songs
Stay present
Find a positive distraction
All those ideas are fine and dandy if all we care about is reducing our own anxiety. But what if what we care about is helping to alleviate others’ suffering? What if we want to play some role in shortening this COVID-19’s life-span?
One of those items on the list hit me as an action that can do more than just alleviate MY anxiety… and it can help others as well. Which one do you think it is?
I have a several friends who are eliminating their feelings of helplessness in the face of this virus by using their creativity – – – they are making masks and sending them to the local hospital, the nursing home, and sending them to places where masks are in short supply.
Also, other creative people are using the internet to draw people together, creating inspirational videos to lift spirits. Check this one out:
There are so many ways people are using their creativity to relieve anxiety, bring hope, and send out messages of love and faith.
We are not helpless.
We are not hopeless.
We don’t need to sit idly at home feeling anxious.
Let’s put our heads together safely, activate our creativity, find an anxiety antidote that uses our talents to help ourselves and others get through this period with love and encouragement. What we do matters!
