At the base of each drying leaf Is a bud full of life and potential Waiting patiently for summer’s heat Or winter’s cold to pass Knowing Spring will …
A Bud of Hope for the New Year
I hope you can open the link to read the blog I am posting. It is such a beautiful poem by Dwight at Roth Poetry. .
Let us celebrate
Every reason and season
Thank God we’re alive!
It’s Bob’s 84th
We’re celebrating big time
With his brother, Bill
Time to visit friends
Time to enjoy each other
Just let your light shine
Our great-granddaughters
Well… two of the three of them
Shine their light on us
Friends from long ago
Ignite the memory’s light
So blessed to see them
At that magic hour
On that very special day
With very dear friend
Bob’s known Monica
Since he was about fourth grade
She’s my high school friend
Time with Bob’s nephew
And wonderful wife, Sarah
So special, indeed!
Adorable pair
People we have loved so long
Welcomed our visit
Then we visited
Bob’s younger brother and Ann
So good to see them
Bob and I are blessed
With so much to celebrate
We hope you are, too
Let your light so shine
That others can feel its glow
Celebrate each day
Today, Bob’s birthday
We are feeling very loved
We hope you are, too
God bless Bill and Marge
They’re fixing us some meatballs
Bob’s birthday dinner
It smells delicious!!!
I’m outta here.. gonna eat
Happy New Year, Friends
Let Us Celebrate!
Love and hugs to you,
JanBeek
We are very blessed
To be with family today
A Merry Christmas
Four generations
With fourteen of us in all
God bless our family
Generation One
With sweet Generation Four
Thank God for babies
Children grow so fast
Remain babies a short time
Enjoy while you can
As a babe Christ came
Helpless and vulnerable
To live as we live
Mary and Joseph
Provided a loving home
Knowing He’s Special
So when did they know
The Truth of His intentions
Did God prepare them?
I can’t imagine
Raising a loving child
For Him to die young
Some friends are hurting
On this day after Christmas
They lost a child, too
Maybe their lost one
Is a sweet four-legged friend
That breaks your heart, too
On this Christmas night,
let’s reflect with my loved one from Zimbabwe
on Christmas Meaning:
God’s Plan by Taking the Human Form
– Birth of Jesus –John 3
16 : For God loved the world so much
that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him
may not die but have eternal life.17 :
For God did not send his Son
into the world to be its judge,
but to be its savior.11 :
“I am the good shepherd,
who is willing to die for the sheep.It’s not about the day
as no one knows for certain when Jesus Christ was born.
It is a celebration of why He was born.Here’s to our Salvation celebration
through the birth of Baby Jesus.
Let us make room for Him in our hearts 💕
Blessed Christmas beloved ones of God.
Shalom 🙏🏽❤️
God Bless You, dear friends.
I pray you had a wonderful, family-filled Merry Christmas!
Love,
JanBeek
It’s not Santa and elves, teddy bears and presents. That’s the fluff!!
It’s the Christ Child, Emmanuel, God With Us! It’s new birth and the Virgin Birth. It’s the promise of Eternal Life!
It’s peace on earth and good will toward all God’s creations.
So, when I say “Merry Christmas” it us not a Merry Xmas! Don’t “X” Christ out of CHRISTmas!!
Love and hugs to you, my friends.
Have a faith-filled weekend!
Love destinations
Especially arriving
Thanks for safety prayers
Stopped to deliver
Thank you gifts to our neighbors
Then we’re on our way
Leaving Montana
The bitter cold Arctic blast
Headed for our son’s
Clear roads were ahead
Beautiful scenery, too
Later came the drifts
Stopped for our breakfast
At Bella’s Coffee Shop, Wells
Enough food for three!
Fascinating skies
Entertained us on our way
Sun tried to peek out
Blue skies in Reno
Promised sunshine up ahead
What a welcomed sight!
O’er Donner Summit
Evidence earlier snow
Roads were passable
Praise God we arrived
All your faith-filled prayers answered
God hears and responds
So good to be here
Blizzard conditions at home
Warmth and love are here
Morning coffee’s hot
Family’s well and welcoming
Merry Christmas Friends!
Hooray for Destinations!
Summers here are great
When more of our family comes
Love those gatherings!
May your holidays
Be filled with love and laughter
May God bless you all
May God bless your life
With love, joy, peace, and laughter
Stay healthy, my friends
May you get to all your destinations safely.
Love and Best Wishes,
JanBeek
Yesterday Bob & I were treated to a wonderful opportunity.
Our friends, Ann & John, drove us in to Bozeman
to enjoy the phenomenal “Christmas Spectacular” by the Bozeman Symphony.
The players were joined by the Symphony choir
and an amazing tenor soloist, Tamar Green.
I broke the rules, held my phone down where no one could see it,
and recorded a bit of Tamar’s extraordinary voice. You just have to hear him!!
His personality is as enchanting as his singing voice.
When he is not here, he is in New York, on Broadway,
playing the part of George Washington in the musical, Hamilton!!
I had to peek between two tall heads to see him –
and lean over between two other heads
to see the amazing conductor, Norman Huynh,
but I managed…
and was mesmerized by the lighting,
the staging,
and the quality of the musicians.
The light show on the walls left, right, above,
and on the stage
was such an enhancement
to the show!
As you can tell by the menorah,
the music was varied
and celebrated many of this season’s traditions.
The concert ended with a rousing singalong.
I wish you coulda been there with us!
Did you sing along? Could you hear it?
Try not to let my scratchy alto voice distract you
from the fun of an auditorium of music lovers singing with gusto!
Silent Night is my favorite carols.
What is yours?
I hope you have a chance to attend a spectacular Christmas concert in your area, this season.
God bless you, dear friends!
Have a Holly, Jolly Christmas!
Love,
JanBeek
The Christmas cards are done
They’re ready to be mailed
But we can’t leave our home
We’d surely be derailed
The winds were 40 mph gusts, and
The drifts have blown like crazy
I’ll have to ZOOM church tomorrow
And it’s not cuz I am lazy
I’d attend if I could get out
And after church I’d go
To the post office to mail the cards
But I can’t get through the snow
So we are at the mercy
Of a kind and helpful neighbor
When he comes with his bobcat blower
We’ll watch him work and thank him later
He’ll blow out the driveway
And clear a path for us
So we can get to church
Without shoveling and lots of fuss
But if you don’t see us
And if our card to you doesn’t come,
You might send out a sled team
To rescue us… we’re frozen and numb!
That’s our driveway that’s the culprit
The wind swirls the snow in piles
Inside between the rabbit brush
It blows in from many miles
That photo was a light snow
This time it’s at least two feet tall
After our neighbor plowed us out
The piles were a five foot wall!
We haven’t seen a winter like this
This storm has been a doozy
It started way too early this year –
The freezing wind makes me woozy
The Christmas cards are done
They’re ready to be mailed
But like I said, I’m stuck in here
Our Christmas travel might be curtailed
Try coming in through the drifts
I’ve some hot chocolate to share
But if you don’t make it here
Mr Snowman will be content floating there
Hope you’re having a happy December so far.
God bless you! Stay in touch.
Love ya,
JanBeek
Take a look at this photo I found!
That’s me – pregnant with our 1st child, Ty.
And that’s my sis and her hubby with my niece, Denise
and my mom and dad…
1964 Christmas …
Sweet memories!
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas!
From my toes to my head … see that hat?
Christmas parties have begun
That’s the luncheon at our Madison Valley Woman’s Club yesterday.
45 ladies showed up from our little Ennis community!
My dear friend, Susan P, came and helped me decorate our house from tree to…
…fireplace mantle and lotsa places around the house.
She did things I could never do by myself.
God bless her!
Those candles on the mantle are battery operated
and can be set to change colors!!
Isn’t that fun?
They can all be one of any choice of 8 colors
or they can rotate.
Good ole CostCo.
They have lotsa fun things
to get you in the holiday spirit!
But nothing depicts the Christmas season
quite as well as this treasure
that I found at our Christmas bazaar last Saturday.
It’s a manger scene made by a darling lady in Nairobi.
She used the bark from banana trees!!
It’s not Christmas unless we
recognize the nativity as
central to the holiday!
Is it beginning to look a lot like Christmas at your house? Tell me about it!
Have fun fixing your home
to reflect this holiday season
in a way that is meaningful for you.
For me and my family, it’s Christmas…
Thanking God for the gift of
Baby Jesus,
sharing time with family & friends,
sending out cards,
decorating with trees, candles, music
and presents…
and the fun has just begun!
Our TazE looks just like this Boston on the right.
She has decided the blanket under the tree is her bed.
She thinks the presents are for her.
Help!
Have fun this Christmas season…
and good luck keeping your dog, cat or kids
out from under the Christmas tree!
Love,
JanBeek
Ooooops! In yesterday’s post on “Waiting” I made a real boo-boo!
I was up in my sanctuairee this morning reflecting on the subject of waiting, anticipating the coming of Christmas – and I realized, Oh Lord, help me my God!! I mixed up Lent and Advent!! I said we had 40 days of waiting for the Christ Child during Advent! No, no, no… Lent is the 40 days of waiting for Easter, Advent is the 4 weeks before Christmas with 4 Sundays to celebrate the coming of the Baby in the manger. It might be the period of time the Wise Men followed the star to find the manger scene and present their gifts to the Savior.
But there is a mystery about the Wise men and their travel to follow the star. The wise men arrived after the birth. If they saw the star at the moment of Jesus’ birth, then it would have taken at least a few months for the wise men to arrive.
Regardless of the time it took the Wise Men to travel, since when did Nov. 27 to Dec. 25 equal 40 days?? Sheesh!!
The season of Advent is celebrated over four Sundays before Christmas
– this year, those Sundays are Nov. 27 and Dec. 4, 11, and 18.
The Advent season ends at sundown on Christmas Eve.
The end of Advent marks the beginning
of the liturgical or church year for Christians.
So, this season of “Waiting” is a time when my Jewish friends wait, too. They celebrate Hanukkah. The word Hanukkah is Hebrew for “dedication,” which refers to the rededication of the temple after the Maccabees’ victory. They need to wait for that season to begin on December 19th. Hanukkah, (Hebrew: “Dedication”) also spelled Ḥanukka, Chanukah, or Chanukkah, also called Feast of Dedication, Festival of Lights, or Feast of the Maccabees, Jewish festival that begins on Kislev 25 (usually in December, according to the Gregorian calendar) and is celebrated for eight days. Hanukkah reaffirms the ideals of Judaism and often involves a festival with lighting of candles each day of the festival. Although not mentioned in the Hebrew Scriptures, Hanukkah came to be widely celebrated and remains one of the most popular Jewish religious observances. Hanukkah is celebrated from Monday, December 19 to Monday, December 26 in 2022.
The menorah is a symbol of Hanukkah. The menorah is meant to spread light to others. It is traditionally placed in a window,on a table or outside your door. Jewish faithfuls are supposed to light the menorah just after dark each night of Hanukkah.
As Christians, we pause and take time to put up our Christmas tree, decorate our home, our church, our community, and purchase the presents we want to give to our loved ones. Santa Claus has usurped the place of Jesus Christ as the central Christmas figure in many homes. It’s not Santa’s birthday we wait for and celebrate, however.
It’s not 40 days til Christmas! It’s coming sooner than you think… sooner than I imagined! We need to approach this season as innocent children… a Child of God … waiting expectantly. Focusing on the real Reason for the Season.
Jesus actually tells us to be like children and to come to Him full of faith and trust. The popular children‘s song “Jesus Loves the Little Children” reminds us that “all are precious in His sight” and no matter your race, gender or nationality, God wants to see all children come to Him.
So, forgive my “Ooops!” from yesterday… and get busy, my friends. Finish up those Thanksgiving leftovers, and get in the spirit! And let’s look – as through the eyes of a child – at what Advent really means:
Thanks for visiting JanBeek and my OOOPS today!
See ya tomorrow.
Hugs to you and your loved ones!
By the way, I am missing the Bell Choir this year.
Our director, Jan Thomas, is moving from Ennis to Bozeman.
Tomorrow the moving van comes.
Keep her and her hubby in prayer, wouldja?
They are going to be sorely missed in our community.
We are WAITING for a new bell choir director to emerge.
Got any recommendations?
Hugs to You !!
Inspire to Love
Let the SonShine!
You inspire me to respond
Learning to Live; Living to Learn; Learning to Love; Living in Love
JanBeek 