Today’s Prompt was: What positive emotion do you feel most often?
My Response: Gratitude
I’m grateful for the neighbors who came immediately last night when I called them. I was frantic! Kenny, our pup, was crying. We could hear his barks and his whining, but we couldn’t find him. It sounded like it was coming from under the house. Maybe he went under the deck and got stuck on something. Maybe a rattlesnake bit him (years ago we had that happen to our Boston named Angela). We searched high and low for Kenny. No luck!
We were frantic! So we called our friends. They came. Four of them! We all searched. Still no luck.
So, we went into the house (we’d already searched there thoroughly).
When we walked in through the back door, there was a black and white nose sticking out from under Bob’s chair!! Kenny had squeezed under to fetch a toy – and he got stuck!! Whew!!!😥 We lifted the chair to release him. Gratitude? Ah yes!! 👏🏽
Thank You, Jesus!
Thank You, God, Thank You, Jesus! Thank You for neighbors, for answered prayers, for the safety of our pup! Whew!!
Remember that first picture up there of Kenny lying on a quilt? I’m grateful for it, too. Do you have a memory quilt?
I love mine! And no, Kenny doesn’t usually get to lie on it! It was a retirement gift from my teaching colleagues when I retired back in 1999. The sentiments on it and the remembrances are so precious!
Marta Garcia did the stitching and each of my colleagues at school added a piece with their name and sometimes a sentiment. “Stitched with dreams of traveling forever,” Marta wrote.
If you live in Ennis, Montana with the Madison River running through it and the spectacular Rocky Mountains as your backdrop, and people from all over the world coming here to fish and to just relax and enjoy the peace, the open spaces, the wild animals, and the proximity to Yellowstone, then you live daily with an attitude of gratitude, and guess what? Traveling forever is not a daily prayer. We are grateful that you come to us! Keep doing it!
A friend forwarded this to me. She said it was too good not to pass on. I agree👍🏽 So, I’m passing it on, too. It’s from Butler Bass from The Cottage<dianabutlerbass@substack.com>
It’s long and it’s political. I don’t usually post political viewpoints on my blog. But, I’m feeling the pain of what’s happening in the USA right now. And I feel like I need to do something. At least speak out. So here it is:
Everything is worse than expected. Hearts are breaking; many are confused and afraid. A late night reflection.
I hope you didn’t watch the news today.
Because today is one of those sorts of Trumpy Fridays — tariff insanity, stock market decline, a dismal jobs report, firing the director of the bureau who produced honest unemployment numbers, moving a convicted human trafficker to a cushy prison (most likely to pardon her), continuing crisis around the Epstein scandal, threatening Russia with nuclear submarines, $10 a pound ground beef, the dismantling of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, altering history, extortion of universities, and innocent people arrested and detained for no reason at all (except that they speak Spanish).
Welcome to America.
Here in the United States, we’ve just passed through the first six months of the second Trump term. If you are a reader who lives in a different nation, it is probably difficult to understand how difficult it has become here.
In May and June, I spent nearly a month in Europe. It was lovely being in places where people were laughing in the streets, who enjoyed being together and were not consumed with politics. Speech wasn’t guarded; no one cast furtive glances to see if ICE might suddenly appear.
When I returned home, it felt as if I’d been dropped off in a toxic waste dump. The air itself seemed poisoned in comparison to the month I’d just experienced. I couldn’t sleep. I was shaking. It was hard being here.
Shortly after my return, I was out to lunch with a friend. With her eyes downcast, she told me that she was having terrible nightmares, felt overwhelmed with sadness, and struggling with intense grief. “I can’t stand it anymore,” she confided. “Every story about immigrants being snatched by ICE, the cruelty of it all….” Her voice trailed off. “Am I going crazy?”
“I don’t know about that,” I replied. “Not sleeping, crying over the suffering of others? That seems pretty normal in these abnormal circumstances. You’ve got a soul.”
She lifted her gaze. “I’m serious,” I said, “if you weren’t sleepless and depressed, I’d think something was really wrong with you. All you’ve described only proves you are a moral human being.”
“But I can’t live this way,” she protested. I nodded, “I know. I feel the same way.” Then she asked, “What should I do? I can’t do anything. I don’t know what to do.” She seemed a bit lost, maybe somewhat guilty or perhaps even shamed by not knowing.
Although I didn’t say this to her, I remembered that before Trump was elected, one of the authors of Project 2025 bragged about how, if Trump won, their initial goal was to put Americans into trauma. He gleefully talked about wanting to traumatize federal workers and their families. But, even then, it seemed obvious that there were even more human targets for purposeful trauma. Millions of traumatized Americans, unable to function or respond in any meaningful way, would give them a clear pathway to execute their plans.
There are many ways to traumatize others — violence, abuse, witnessing or participating in harm to others, psychological manipulation. We’ve seen them all in these six months. These days, I’m less focused on those enacting all this evil than I am on the rest of us.
The victims of such behavior often suffer moral injury, a real condition, often associated with PTSD. The Veteran’s Affairs department defines moral injury: “In traumatic or unusually stressful circumstances, people may perpetrate, fail to prevent, or witness events that contradict deeply held moral beliefs and expectations.”
Moral injury is just that — trauma that violates one’s core ethical beliefs.
And that’s what we’ve been suffering for the last half year. A government that is purposefully, cruelly, and maliciously creating trauma to make millions of us transgress or shift our own moral boundaries — to inure us to their destruction of democracy and the harm being done to our neighbors.
If you feel bad, it means you haven’t yet been broken. It means you still have a soul. Your moral core has not been breached.
Six months of Trumpism and you have a beating heart. It is, however, probably suffering from moral injury. But you are still the beautiful, compassionate, empathetic human being you have been.
I didn’t say all of that to my friend. I may recognize the outlines of this mass trauma event and the impact it is having on all of us. But I’m not a therapist — and I certainly can’t help others process this moral heartbreak in any kind of professional way.
Instead, I shared a simple practice that is helping me right now.
“Do you know the Serenity Prayer?” I asked her.
“The AA prayer? That’s your suggestion?”
“Yes,” I replied, laughing a little, “I’m not in AA! But it is a really good prayer: ‘God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.’”
She looked at me quizzically. I explained, “I think I’m a bit ‘addicted’ to fixing things. But it is too much, too fast, too overwhelming. I can’t fix it. I can’t fix anything. These are powerful people and they are purposefully destroying things — including our hope. The first part reminds me that I can’t fix the economy, starvation in Gaza, all the lying and chaos, the blatant racism and misogyny…the list is long. I can’t send Trump or Stephen Miller or Russell Vought or Hegseth to therapy — or jail. I can’t remove any of them from office. I can’t change these things.”
I took a breath. “Accepting the things I cannot change doesn’t mean being passive or complicit. It means recognizing that I’m not God, I’m not that powerful, I’m just one limited human being.”
“I get that,” she said.
“But,” I continued, “there are things I can change. Those things that I am called to do, relationships in my part of the world. I can give, volunteer, write, be generous and kind, stay informed, tend to my soul and my own fears and griefs. I can even take some risks. I can still vote. I can speak out. I can do my work well. I can love. I can do good, even when it seems too little. I can’t change everything. I can change some things. And that’s where wisdom comes in.”
She said, “I hadn’t thought about that prayer as a guide for now. Yeah, I can’t do everything. But I can do those things right in front of me.”
I like the Serenity Prayer. But I also think it should be called the Serenity-Courage-Wisdom Prayer, because it doesn’t ask for one thing. It asks for three! The trio of dispositions work in concert to shift our own perspectives and attitudes. It isn’t about fixing anything. Instead, it opens a path of resilience and appropriate action that we may be transformed.
The prayer is attributed to Reinhold Niebuhr, the great twentieth century American theologian. Niebuhr’s theology, richly imbued with irony and humility, emphasized the tensions and contradictions of human sinfulness and the necessity of social justice, communal ethics, and the practice of love. You sense that in this prayer — the recognition of our limits and the summons to genuine courage. But the paradox of serenity and courage must work tandem with wisdom, the ability to both accept and act in difficult and emotionally trying circumstances.
Niebuhr’s daughter thought that her father’s 1943 version of the prayer was his best — and is closest to his intention. It is notable that this version is a communal invocation, not an individual petition:
God, give us grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed, courage to change the things that should be changed, and the wisdom to distinguish the one from the other.
And that’s what I’m wondering. Of course, the prayer is a good guide for these hard days. It helps me. I think it is helping my friend.
But what of us? Can we pray the prayer together? In community, sharing our restless fear and relentless sorrow?
Give us grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed. Like there’s no real going back. We can’t live in some nostalgic America. We’re going to have technology and AI. We’re going to be living with the consequences of climate change. We can’t change the past mistakes and sins of our ancestors. We need an honest assessment of reality. We will shed many more tears over what cannot be changed.
What must we learn to accept?
Give us courage to change the things that should be changed. Not what we can change. But what should be changed. We might feel we can’t do big things. But there is so much that should be changed — for future generations to thrive, for the planet to flourish, for humanity to live justly and in peace. What should be changed? Do we even have the courage to ask the question?
What should be changed?
Give us wisdom to distinguish what cannot be changed from what should be changed. Only in that tension, the deep irony of the human condition, between the realism of what is and the dream of what should be, will our nightmares cease and our love increase. Wisdom, oh wisdom, we need you.
How would knowing the difference shift our lives and communities?
If enough of us embrace serenity, courage, and wisdom, things will change. But not because a some Golden Age is dawning or a political savior will save us. There’s only the long, hard work of being human — of striving toward love and justice, accompanied by the tender compassion of grace.
Nothing that is worth doing can be achieved in our lifetime; therefore we must be saved by hope.
Nothing which is true or beautiful or good makes complete sense in any immediate context of history; therefore we must be saved by faith.
Nothing we do, however virtuous, can be accomplished alone; therefore we must be saved by love.
No virtuous act is quite as virtuous from the standpoint of our friend or foe as it is from our standpoint. Therefore we must be saved by the final form of love which is forgiveness.
― Reinhold Niebuhr, The Irony of American History
INSPIRATION
If you are one who has practice meeting the pain of the world, we need you. Right now we need you to teach us it is possible to swallow what is weighty and still be able to rise. We need you to remind us we can be furious and scared and near feral over injustice and still thrill at the taste of a strawberry, ripe and sweet, can still meet a stranger and shake their hand, believing in their humanness. We need you to show us how we, too, can fall into the darkest, unplumbed pit and learn there a courage and beauty we could never learn from the light. If you have drowned in sorrow and still have somehow found a way to breathe, please, lead us. You are the one with the crumbs we need, the ones we will use to find our way back to the home of our hearts. — Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer, “Please”
The topic of the sermon at church this morning was Mary & Martha… Luke 10:38-42
At the Home of Martha and Mary
38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. 40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”
41 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one.[a] Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”
Join me with the sermon notes I took in church this morning.
Our church has a new paint color
Here’s the old paint color
That’s our Madison Valley Presbyterian Church in Ennis, MT. I love the new paint color. What do you think? I like to think of it as “Green and Growing.”
The mint green is soothing, don’t you think?
Today’s sermon examined Mary & Martha’s story. Mary’s soothing choice compared to Martha’s busyness. Which choice do you relate to?
Our interim pastor, Brian Conklin, shed interesting light on the age-old story. Here are my sermon notes from this lovely Sunday morning.
Martha is active and faithful She’s committed and frustrated We’ve been in her shoes Sometimes we’re annoyed, too
Jesus, in gentleness, corrected Martha, telling her that Mary Is doing what is right for her But He doesn’t rebuke Martha
Martha’s resentment is clear And it’s easy to understand She’s worried and distracted We are like her all too often
In our culture we celebrate Productivity, and forget to be Present to the importance of today Our stress pulls us apart
Our presence is what’s needed Be present for each other Be fully present in God’s presence Listen to Jesus. Sit at His feet
The posture of your heart: sitting, listening, being attentive Is worship… Stillness reduces stress Christ tells us to pause. Peace! Be still!
Sit in His presence Luke 12:25 reminds us “Don’t worry!” TRUST God is with you. God bless you
Turn your anxiety into prayer Find rest for your soul Anchor your heart at Jesus’ feet Be present with Christ.
Amen?
My peace I give to you.
But Jesus didn’t scold Martha or tell her what she was doing is wrong. Someone has to prepare if you’re going to share a meal, right?
Who do you relate to? Mary or Martha? Why?
My birthday’s this Thursday. No one mentioned it in church this morning. No one sang to me. I want to be Mary, sitting with Jesus. He would sing to me! It’s my week.
Jesus would say, “…few things are needed—or indeed only one…”
And He would probably scold me. “Get your mind off of yourself. Reach out to others. Did you remember to wish Debbie & Steve a Happy Anniversary? It’s their week, too!”
Ah, my friends, Life is Good! Count your blessings… and remember, “…Mary has chosen what is better…” Be still… and listen!
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
Today our 9 1/2 month old pup, Kenny, received a new toy in the mail from our bonus daughter, Laina. She seems to find just the right things for us and for Kenny, and manages to send them just when we need them most. Cookies and a book for Bob. A special message and gift for me… her timing and choices are perfect! Kenny really is enjoying his new toy:
Kenny is so playful! He heard this video and it really set him off!
I hope you are having a lovely, playful start to summer, too. Kenny wears himself out and then goes to sleep. Cheers, my friends!
Happy 2nd day of Summer. I hope you’re having beautiful weather. Our rainbow tonight as beautiful as they come!!
God bless you and give you peace. We need peace in this world. Let’s create it in the corner where we are!
God bless you all… and pray with me for peace in this troubled world.
T is for Trouble! KT is for Kenny Trouble!! How long do you think it took Kenny to remove these 8 tassels?
Where did they come from?
Oh, my poor pillow!! Four tassels gone from each end!!!
I was up in my sanctuary having my peaceful time in prayer, Bible study, and devotionals. And Kenny?
He was barking at Bob to come play with him!
Bob didn’t see him sitting by the door asking to go out. A dump in the floor was the consequence. Oh my!!!
Kenny sure can get into trouble when we don’t pay attention to him.
We need to keep our noses alert to Kenny trouble!
How about you? Do you spell trouble with a capital T when you’re ignored?
Yup, me, too!
Facing Trials
In the journey of faith, we encounter various trials that test our strength, resilience and patience. The Bible reminds us that facing troubles is part of life, and rather than shunning them, we can embrace them as opportunities for growth. These challenges, while tough at the moment, can refine our character and deepen our reliance on God. By reflecting on Bible verses about troubles, we can find encouragement and hope, realizing that God walks with us every step of the way. Our “Oh My!” can change to “Oh Thanks!” as we turn in prayer with those trials. God, will You play with Kenny?
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” – James 1:2-3
“And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” – 1 Peter 5:10
Ah yes… God will make us strong and steadfast. But God, will You restore my pillow? And what about this rambunctious Kenny? Oh my, will You send over a playmate for him? Oh, and while You are at it, will you send over a buyer for our kayak? It’s too heavy for Bob to manage it these days. We took it down from its hooks on the garage ceiling… and it’s sitting outside waiting for the right person to come and buy it … and enjoy many years of kayaking fun (just as we have).
Kenny would love to go out on Ennis Lake with it. Wouldn’t you? Oh my! I need to do my French lesson and this pup wants to play. Come play with him!!
Sending playful fun your way. Hugs, too… from JanBeek
It breaks my heart that the song below was created … and the divisiveness that prompted the song. I pray for our return to camaraderie and mutual support. Meantime, maybe you will find some humor in the lyrics… a friend of mine did. What do you think?
God is in charge. I have to believe that. God is in control. I have to believe some good will come of this. God is in control. But He does give humans free will. Lord, help us!
Pray with me. “Lord, please give our world leaders wisdom and diplomacy and intelligence.” Amen
“We cannot escape the frustrations of this life. It is wise to lean on the Lord for help and guidance…”
Message from When God Thinks of You, He Smiles, a book of 365 devotions from Broadstreet Publishing. I received this as a gift last week from my “dear bonus daughter,” Elaina. Each page has a scripture, a commentary, and ends with a prayer. Boy Howdy, I needed this one today!
“Don’t worry, because I am with you. Don’t be afraid, because I am your God. I will make you strong and will help you. I will support you with my right hand that saves you.”
Isaiah 41:10 (NCV)
Ah yes, reach your hand out. Touch me. Assure me. Encourage me! I am frustrated and need to remember no one is promised a seamless life. But the strange thing is: I invited this frustration into my life!!
What was I thinking? The dead of a Montana winter is not the time… not the time to get a new puppy who has not been crate-trained, let alone house-trained!
Oh, I can be all smiles when he’s in my lap and feeling lovable and wanting to be cuddled! But, believe me, Kenny is a 6 1/2 month old 12 pound ball of energy who has decided his crate is his bathroom and our floor is his toilet – – Help!
My devotional today said, “Prayer gives us strength when trials… come our way.” Believe me, I have prayed at length about this pup! The devotional said, “When you struggle, it doesn’t mean your faith is lacking. Even when you faithfully follow God… life can still be rocky.”
I need to put this pup struggle in perspective! It’s not life or death. We will survive. Count your blessings, Jan, because he is smart and will learn… and you are smarter and can teach! Be patient!
I may have told you earlier that my friend, Terry, sent me this book: “How Dogs Think.” The cover photo looks just like Kenny must have looked at 2 or 3 months… and the subtitle of the book is: “Inside the Canine Mind.” It’s a TIME special edition. Surely this will have some good advice to add to all the things my friends are saying… and Isaiah said it, too: “I will make you strong and help you…”
The prayer at the bottom of the devotional today was: “Gracious One, thank you for the faithfulness of your love… I don’t want to spend my life worrying or full of fear. Empower me and encourage me when I struggle.” Amen!
It is three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables.
Here is my news in a Sijo:
Our six-month Boston puppy, Kenny, arrived on Saturday He is not house trained, nor crate trained, so don’t turn your back But he’s so cute, cuddly and loveable that we’ll keep him!
Only once have we seen his ears straight up!
No, this is not him. He’d never tolerate a hat! But ain’t she cute? We love Boston Terriers!!
He loves that chew toy… and stretches out full length to get it! That’s a long body for a six-month old! He already weighs nearly 12 pounds. Gonna be a big boy!
Oh, he’s squirming… Time to take him out. But it’s snowing and ccccold! Oh Kenny, I don’t want to go out either! But we better. See ya later.
Al Rocker, the Today Show weatherman and co-host was featured this month on the cover of one of the magazines I read each month, “Guideposts.” On turning 70, he shared with readers how he is approaching life differently after a 2022 health scare.
He wrote:
“It may sound strange, considering I make my living on television and have been the weatherman and co-host of the Today show for 29 years, but in my personal life, I shy away from the spotlight. I’d musch rather celebrate someone else, make a big deal out of their birthday instead of my own. Which is why I tried my best to dissuade my wife, Deborah Roberts, from throwing a party for my birthday last August. But I knew I couldn’t stop her. It was a milestone birthday, after all – my seventieth. The truth was, I was feeling a little melancholy about turning seventy. My dad never made it to this age. He passed away at 69. Dad was my role model and inspiration for being a good husband and father. I was theoldest of six kids, and three of my siblings were adopeted, Mom and Dad brought foster children into our home, too. Sometimes people would ask why they’d taken on raising so maky children, and Dad would always say simply, “There is no limit to how much you can love.”
After describing his near-death experience, he concluded:
“My health scare reminded me that life is an ephemeral gift that we’ve been given by God, and we need to appreciate and honor it. So I spent a lot of time talking to people… telling them how I feel about them. The people I care about, the people I love, I want to make sure they know. I’ve been more intentional about that, evn after I made a full recovery and returned to the Today show.”
I challenge each of us to commit to this same message. Let your feelings out! Let the people you love, the people you care about, KNOW! Be intentional!!
Love, JanBeek
P.S. I love you for visiting my blog. I’ll love you even more if you leave a comment below so I can hear from you and respond.
