Bob’s surgery (the insertion of a cochlear implant) is done. Lots of prayers for him… and they are really appreciated. Thank you, my WordPress friends. Now, the request is for successful healing and a safe drive home tomorrow (it’s 400 miles) and there’s a possibility of snow.
Bob – after surgeryMe… now… just sitting the sit!
And praying for all this to be worth it. Ultimately- better hearing. Please!
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”
Why did my Bible study this morning suggest it’s not just OK, but advisable that sometimes we feel uncomfortable?
I thought of my son-in-law, Andre’, when I thought of discomfort!
But then I realized, No, not that kind of discomfort!
The scripture that prompted the remark about being uncomfortable is this one:
“The Samaritan woman said to [Jesus], ‘You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?’ (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans).”
John 4:9 (NIV)
Obviously, the woman was uncomfortable talking to Jesus. But Jesus intentionally engaged in conversation with the woman. According to Ericka Loynes, who wrote the commentary for the devotional in Guideposts “Mornings With Jesus,” His intent seemed to be to “change the landscape of the current culture.”
“Embracing change can be difficult,” Loynes went on to write. She acknowledged, “The more often I get out of my comfort zone, the easier it will be to adjust to the changes around me.”
Stepping out may seem scary, but as this meme reminds us, it is imperative if we want to become stronger and grow. So, Loynes ends her commentary by asking the reader to take a faith step: “Ask Jesus to help you get comfortable with being uncomfortable.”
It’s worth thinking about, don’t you think? Like Jesus, who can you step out and talk to today who is not among those you generally hold in conversation?
Try it! Try stepping out of your comfort zone.
There are plenty of folks out there who could use your brand of positivity! Do you see folks who look like they could use some encouragement? Follow Jesus’ example!
You may find some comfort in being uncomfortable. I’m gonna try it. You with me?
This is “Tenacity Personified”. Watching it is “Patience Personified”. Mama Bear is “Confident Parenting” personified.
Would I have been that confident?
Would I have had the tenacity to hang in there long enough to let my child succeed on his/her own?
Nope, probably not!
I’d no doubt have rushed down to rescue.
How about you?
Have a Marvelous Monday!
Love, JanBeek
This picture of us was taken yesterday on Mother’s Day by our friend Ted. He is a 95-year-old retired photographer who is temporarily at the Manor Nursing Home recovering from a broken back. It’s good of Bob, don’t you think? Usually when I get a picture of him smiling, his eyes are closed! Thank you, Ted!
But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.
And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.
I’m never giving up I want to be proud Of who I’m becoming With God’s help I’m reaching for the sky I’m gonna get up Dress up Show up and Never give up
You, too?
I pray you have wonderful neighbors/friends who come, help, encourage and inspire you in your Daily Walk, like we do!
Yes, count your blessings!
I made green eggs and ham yesterday for St. Patrick’s Day and then we shared corned beef and cabbage with those dear neighbors who inspire us to get up, dress up, show up, and never give up.
What have you done recently to thank those who inspire you to show up everyday and never give up?
I send my love and encouragement to you. Thanks for showing up at JanBeek and encouraging me to keep on keepin’ on!
Isaiah 43:4-5a. “Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give men to exchange for your life. Do not be afraid for I am with you…”
I knew where we were going… HOME! And I knew God was with us, guarding and guiding us. I learned as we were at the “41 miles to go” mark that a woman about my age had died in a tragic accident the day before on this very stretch of road. Her demise was a jack-knifed semi. She hit black ice and slid into it when she was trying to turn and avoid it. It was a clear day – at 4: o’clock in the afternoon. We were traveling home on that two-lane road in the dark. A host of family and friends were praying for our safe travel. We TRUSTED God’s guidance as we crept along, blinded by the bright headlights of on-coming semis.
At about the “20 miles to go” mark, if I had my window down, I could have reached out and touched the big doe that was preparing to cross the road in front of us. We didn’t see the deer until we were almost on top of it… or it on top of us! You can imagine how we prayed prayers of gratitude all the rest of the way home!!
This morning, in my wonderful upstairs space that I call my “sanctuairee,” I was reading a commentary by Rev. Dr. David Jeremiah. It was for me!!
“Praising God for Miracles”
“Among the stories connected to the memory of Francis of Assisi is this one: One day Francis gathered his friends at a remote monastery in central Italy. When he asked them about their journeys, each brother had an exciting tale to report. One had been riding his mule across a narrow bridge that spanned a deep gorge. When the mule bolted, the man was nearly thrown into the ravine. He praised God he hadn’t been killed.
Another brother had nearly drowned fording a river, but he said, ‘God in His grace provided a tree that had fallen across the water. I was able to grasp a branch and pull myself to safety.’ Other brothers expressed similar stories of God’s protection.
Then someone asked Francis about his trip. ‘I experienced the greatest miracle of all,’ said the famous friar. ‘I had a smooth, pleasant, and uneventful journey.’
We should always remember to praise God for His miracles in whatever form they come. He blesses, heals, rescues, delivers, helps, and uplifts more times every day than we can count. We should always be saying, ‘Thank You, Lord!’
Psalm 121:2 My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth”
Thank you, David Jeremiah, for your timely message this day. It’s a perfect one!
So, on this journey called life, I choose to trust God. I may not know where He is taking me tomorrow, but I know if I trust in Him, and ask for His guidance, and look for His direction, He will not fail me.
Choose to TRUST
Looking again at the scripture Dr. Jeremiah chose for today’s devotional, I am reminded of Martin Luther King Day yesterday… and the way he gave his life for his principles of Freedom, Equality for all, and Non-violence.
Yes, God said, “I will give men to exchange for your life.”
I pray we all will remember the men and women who gave their lives so that we might enjoy the peace we have today. It is still going on in those war-torn places around the world. God bless our faithful warriors who fight to keep us free and those servants of God world-wide who choose to TRUST in God’s protection as they fight to maintain their county’s freedom. Amen
Thank You, God, for the way You bless, heal, rescue, deliver, help, and uplift us more times every day than we can count.
Help us follow Your example of love and spread Your Good News with Trust and Assurance every day. Amen
He coined “Boldacious” And I immediately Claimed it as my own
Dwight: Roth Poetry Recognized the “Me” in it It’s a perfect word
Colorfully Boldacious!
Recklessly Boldacious!
Carelessly Boldacious!
Repeatedly Boldacious
Lovingly Boldacious
Spiritually Boldacious
“The righteous are bold because they know that God is for them and what they have to say is important.”
(Hebrews 13:6)
Cautiously Boldacious
Consistently Boldacious
What does the Bible say about boldness? Being bold is having courage and speaking out against what’s wrong no matter what others think or say. It’s doing God’s will and continuing on the path that He put you on regardless of the hardship you face. When you’re bold you know God is always on your side so there’s never a reason to fear.
Are you Boldacious? You have every reason to be! You are unique! Use your uniqueness to the max!! You gotta be you!
1 Peter 4:10-11
God has given each of you a gift from His great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. Do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God Himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God. All glory and power to Him forever and ever! Amen.
Step out BOLDACIOUSLY You gotta be all God made you to be TO THE MAX!
Have a boldacious day. Love from BoldaciousJanBeek
Life is a wonderful journey Of ups and overs and downs It’s filled with joy and sorrow With more smiles (I pray) than frowns!
As I travel this road of life, I weather the storms and bumps I look for roses and buttercups And try to jump over the humps
I look for butterflies and bees And appreciate the beauty I see I share the joy and the peace That God daily gives to me.
Our WordPress friends share their joy with us everyday. For example: Roth Poetry.com posted about butterflies today. He wrote:
“I just could not help myself today, when I saw these beautiful butterflies on my Zinnias. I kept shooting and shooting. and they stayed around flitting from flower to flower, poetry in motion! With my 200mm zoom, I was able to focus all the way in on them. These are some of the most beautiful butterflies I have seen!
Beauty flits lightly from yellow to red buffet Basking in sunshine
Life is a journey of beauty Take time to allow it to sink in Don’t let the ugliness and discord Make your vision a stink-in!
There’s plenty of garbage out there It’s not what God asks us to see God says to focus on the beauty There’s plenty of it in you and me!
Don’t let anyone tell you You’re not up for this journey!
You might have to take a few pit stops, you might get a flat tire here and there, you might go through a few thunderstorms, but through all your experiences, fruit is being built. You are becoming stronger, and your faith and reliance on God is growing.
I hope when you click on this link, you can hear this wonderful song by Jake Owen.
Laugh a lot and keep it light Let sorrow just roll off your back Turn a blind eye to the ugly sites And give the love that others lack
“And no matter what dreams you’re chasing, Never get above your raising. May the simple things be amazing On the journey of your life.”
Treasure the journey!
“The only impossible journey is the one you never begin.”
Proverbs 3:5–6
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding. Acknowledge him in all your ways, and he will make your paths straight.”
Years ago I wrote a poem that was published in the International Library of Poetry annual publication. The title of the book in 2002 was “Chasing Revelation.” My poem was titled, “Have Faith and Step Out.” You can find it here: https://janbeek.blog/2020/01/02/have-faith-and-step-out/ It is as poignant in my life today as it was 20 years ago… maybe more so. How about you? Does it apply? Are you up for the next step of your journey?
I went to occupational therapy today. A compression glove should help reduce the swelling on this hand now that the pins are out and the hand can move again. But just wearing a glove isn’t going to get my fingers back to being functional again. I gotta work at it!
Darci, the therapist gave me a glob of silly putty. Do you remember playing with that when you were a kid? Rolling and squeezing the putty is the order of the day. It feels like I am rolling a bale of hay and trying to squeeze it! Ouch! The little finger (the one that was broken) and the ring finger next to it (the one that was taped to the broken pinky to give it stability) both are hyper-sensitive and stiff. Suck it up, Jan! You can do this! No pain, no gain, remember?
Have you tried putting on a sweater with just one functional hand? Or better yet, pulling your pants up single-handed? No fun! Can’t play my accordion. Have trouble cutting a piece of meat. Try folding the laundry with only one hand. Oh, brother, suck it up, Jan! There are a whole lot of people in this world worse off than I am. Think positively!!! Grab that silly putty and get to work!
I can do this! Grin and bear it!!
“Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always.”
“Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong.”
“The Sovereign Lord is my strength; He makes my feet like the feet of a deer, He enables me to tread on the heights.”
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.”
What kind of struggle do you face these days? Are you needing to just “Suck it up” and do it? Have you prayed to the Lord for help? I’ll pray for your strength and tenacity… You pray for mine, OK? Thanks!
Have a great weekend. See ya tomorrow (God willing). Love, JanBeek
Life is full of challenges. Often we’re asked to step out, Leaving our comfort zone Is sometimes what it’s about.
When our help is needed, We can’t always ask for sun; Sometimes we step into shadows To do what needs to be done.
It’s reassuring to know If we faithfully ask for the Son, We’ll have the strength and courage To step out with help from The One.
He’ll give us the tools we need To respond to the “Step Out” command. So ask for God’s help and you’ll find A prescription for a new Comfort Brand!
You’ll find a broader, available comfort zone, And you’ll have the courage and words you need To step out in ways you never dreamed of … New, expanded comfort zones – guaranteed!
Have a Marvelous Monday! Strength for today, and bright hope for tomorrow…
