Spreading love, joy, peace, faith & unity

Posts tagged ‘caring’

The Power of Friendship

“Celebrating the Power of Friendship” is the title of a month-long focus on a friend’s chosen devotional website. On the site today, it said: “Although we are not currently meeting in person, there is no distance between souls and the bond of friendship we share…”

I feel that bond of friendship with you, my WordPress friends, just as I do with family and friends who have reached out to Bob & me during this past week of death and tribulation. Thank you so much!

I can’t count the billions
Of dollars my friends are worth.
They make living worthwhile;
They fill my life with mirth.

When times are sad and troubling,
They reach out with care and love.
Friends are earthly angels
Sent from heaven above.

My friend sent this card to me;
It came right out of the blue,
When I really needed it the most.
Do your friends do that for you?

I hope you have some friends
Who tromp daily on your heart,
Leaving footprints all over it.
I’m here to tromp on yours. Let’s start!

There is power in such friendships.
They turn dark days into bright.
They listen and they love us, and
They help things turn out right.

Thank you for being the sunshine in my darkest days.

Thanks for popping in.
Thanks for being the friends who watch and sit and read with me.
Wish you could walk and eat with me, too.
Enjoy the kids’ song below. It’s a catchy tune.
It’ll have you singing all day long!!

Have a Fabulous Friday.
I love you!
See ya tomorrow.
JanBeek

Category:

blessings, children, Family, friendship, happiness, Living in Harmony, Love, mental health, music, Poetry, relationships, Serving One Another

Tagged with:

Footprints in Your Heart

True Friends - footptints

 

A friend sent this card
with “Your friendship means the world to me”
written on the inside.

 

She wrote,
“I can feel your footprints
in my heart everyday.
Do you mind is I
walk all over your heart, too?”

view of sand dunes

Photo by Luis Quintero on Pexels.com

Those footprints are not just ON my heart,
they are IN my heart.
I feel her love deeply.
It keeps me buoyed on days
when I might otherwise be feeling down.

 

I subscribe to “Someone Cares” cards from Guideposts.  I love these cards because they always include a pertinent scripture reference, an uplifting message, and a pertinent story on the back of each.

This last mailing of Guideposts’ cards had the message
I used in my last post,
“Whenever we’re together,
and even when we’re not,
warm and caring thoughts of you
make me smile a lot.”

Guideposts “Someone Cares” cards are available
at shopguideposts.org/someone-cares-greetings.
I highly recommend them.
They are unique and special.
When I open the package of 12 every 6 weeks or so,
the cards call out the names of friends
for whom I feel that card would be most appropriate.

The back of this particular card
had a wonderful story on it
– written by Lisa Bogart:

“When my best friend came to New York to visit me, I wanted to pack all the sights, food, and fun I could into our four days together.

On the first morning, we took a 10:00 train into Manhattan. We walked crosstown, hopped on the subway, and headed uptown to the Cloisters… then to the Metropolitan Museum of Art… farther downtown to my favorite barbecue place… window-shopped and gawked at the towering buildings. Finally, we took a train home at 10:30 that night.

My friend was pooped and asked if we could stay closer to home the next day. When she came down for breakfast, she had her knitting with her. She suggested we sit on the patio and knit for awhile. I put on a pot of tea, and we spent the morning catching up and renewing our friendship.

We went on a few more adventures before she left, but it was that quiet time together that I remember best. It makes me smile and feel close to her even when we’re miles apart.”

Do you have a special friend who has left footprints in your heart? Why not send a card to them today letting them know you are thinking of them in a special way? Sending snail-mail cards does not have to be a “lost art.” Keep it alive with your footprints today!

Thinking of you

I love you, dear WordPress friends.
You leave your footprints in my heart
each time you visit and leave a note.
God bless you!

Jan sends cheers!

See ya tomorrow.

Category:

friendship, happiness, Love, mental health, Sharing, writing

Tagged with:

Ace the Course

Ace the Course

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Happy Sunday, my friends. Did you get a chance to go to church? Our sermon today at Madison Valley Presbyterian in Ennis, MT was based on the Good Samaritan story in Luke 10:25-37 and the questions, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” and “Who is my neighbor?”

You all know the story of the Good Samaritan, so you may be wondering as I did, “How can there be a new twist on this old scripture lesson?”

Well, these are my poetic notes as I listened and recorded my “Take-aways” from today’s sermon, titled “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?”

ACE THE COURSE

What do I have to do
To ace the course?
Depends on the
Course, of course!

What do I have to do
To get to Heaven?
Ah, that course requires
Forgiveness – more than 70×7.

What do I have to do
To forgive and to love
As was demonstrated
By our Lord above?

I need to love
My neighbors ALL.
Who are my neighbors?
Whom should I call?

Call on the needy.
Call on the one in the ditch.
Call on the leper –
Help him scratch his itch!

Call on the lowly,
The good-for-nothing guys.
Don’t limit your call
To the powerful and wise.

Call on the lazy ones.
Call on the poor of heart.
Call on the merciless –
That’s the place to start.

If you wanna ACE
The course to Eternity,
You gotta reach out
And do good to ALL for FREE.

Don’t reach out for gain.
Don’t expect your reward to start.
You’re in this course to gain
An A+ with your loving heart!

BEE the LOVE

See ya tomorrow.

See ya tomorrow.

Category:

Bible Lessons, God, Love, Montana, Poetry, writing

Tagged with:

They’re All Carrots

They’re All Carrots

orange carrots on table

Photo by mali maeder on Pexels.com

In My Devotional Today

Rick Hamlin likened our act of praising God to the act of munching on a handful of carrots.

Rick said he ate carrots as a kid not because some adult said they were good for his eyes or his health, but simply because he liked them.

“Whoever said the things that are good for us
have to be hard or come as a result of great struggle
or simply taste yucky?” Rick Hamlin asked.
“Think of… the carrot, not the stick,
about how people are motivated by rewards
rather than threats or punishment…
Praise, thankfulness, enthusiasm,
kindness – they are all carrots, not sticks.”

Carrots in the Classroom

When I was in my last two years of teaching, before I retired (from public education, but not from working) in 1999, I had a group of second graders that I had taken on from first grade.

Our classroom “Discipline Plan” was a set of rules with rewards. They were as sweet as honey! Our classroom theme was a garden. Bees (with the students’ names on them) flew above, in, and around the bulletin board garden. In the soil were listed rules such as “Bee Courteous,” –  “Bee Honest” – and  “Bee Helpful.” A favorite one was “Lettuce Carrot for One Another.”

pexels-photo-1340369.jpeg

Photo by Magda Ehlers on Pexels.com

If a student was caught BEEing good, exhibiting one of the characteristics mentioned in the rules of conduct, their bee would “fly” into my apron pocket – the pocket with a heart on it. A heart would be drawn on their bee’s body. At the end of the day, the bee flew back into the paper garden, and the thoughtful child added a paper seed to their garden plot on the bulletin board. At the end of the week, all bees that had hearts on them would have their seeds traded for a plant – a vegetable or fruit or flower to “grow” in their plot. (I wore a different colored apron each day of the week – inspired by Patricia Mckissack‘s book, “Ma Dear’s Aprons.” It’s one of my favorite children’s books.)

Ma Dear's Aprons

Ma Dear’s Aprons

by Patricia C. McKissack and Floyd Cooper

 

Just that little act of recognition – taking the bee down, tucking it into the heart pocket, and saying, “Thank You for BEEing ________,” – encouraged more students to do likewise.

Carrots in Our Daily Walk

If we “carrot” for one another on a daily basis, we will find ourselves munching on praise, thankfulness, enthusiasm, and kindness. Our gardens of compassion will grow, and we’ll bee happier people. Guaranteed!

We need to carry lots of “carrots” – and eliminate the “sticks”  – on our daily walk. Thank and praise God for the acts of kindness and compassion shown to us each day. Bee caught BEEing good!!

 In today’s devotional in Guideposts,
Rick Hamlin went on to say,
“God likes us to praise Him because it’s good for us.
It feels good.
The words are sweet in our mouths,
nourishing, crunchy, and satisfying. Irresistible.
Like munching on a handful of carrots.”

vegetables market basket carrots

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com


Praise God! And thank Him for His wonderful blessings.

Then go out and pay it forward.
Remember you are blessed to be a blessing.
It’s all a bunch of carrots!
Meant to be shared…

Munch on love!

heart of love
See ya tomorrow!

Category:

blessings, books, children, friendship, happiness, Love, Serving One Another

Tagged with:

Finding Understanding

Finding Understanding

speak-hear-understand.jpg

Have you found The One
Who understands your thinking?
You are surely blessed!

Finding understanding
Is a gift beyond compare.
If you’ve such a friendship,
Guard it lovingly with care.

It’s taken half a decade
For my spouse and me to see
Eye to eye and to hear correctly
What the other expresses silently.

I’ve a life-long girlfriend who
Understands my silent sighs.
Ours is a priceless friendship.
No need to hide or disguise.

I hope you’ve had the pleasure
Of a relationship like mine.
Such understanding is a treasure
Greater than gold. It’s so fine!

It takes practice to be a hearer
Who catches the whispers in the air.
But, if you really love someone,
You can do it. Just listen… feel…  care!

heart of love
See you tomorrow

Category:

friendship, Haiku, Life's Challenges, Love, Poetry

Tagged with:

N = Neighbors

Day #14 in my A-Z series of “What Makes Me Happy?”

N = Neighbors

photo of four persons uniting hands

Photo by rawpixel.com on Pexels.com

Who are my neighbors?

When I think of my “hood,”

I think of the nearby folks

Who are friendly and good.

.

They make me happy

With parties and sharing;

They call and come by

To show they are caring.

.

But my circle of friends

Doesn’t end on my road.

Neighbors are the folks

Who share in my load.

.

When I’m sick or downtrodden,

They call or send a card.

They offer food or flowers

Or say they’ll mow my yard.

.

But my neighbors and friends

Aren’t defined by when I’m needy.

To limit neighbors to those

Would certainly be quite greedy.

.

Neighbors are around the world.

Some faces I’ve never seen.

But, we meet in blogs or on Facebook

And we share a common dream.

.

We want to bring light to darkness.

We share a need to live in love.

We want what’s best for one another,

And we take our clues from God above.

.

As neighbors, we are looking

For ways to bring new hope

To others feeling hopeless.

We share ways we’ve learned to cope.

.

So when you’re feeling overwhelmed

By the bleakness that you see,

Turn to caring, compassionate neighbors

And change discouragement to glee.

.

Create a network of compassion

That goes round the globe and back.

Be the neighbor who brings help

And happiness to those who lack.

.

What neighborly act can you do to spread caring and compassion today?

Forge friendships through common work… and be a part of the solution.

We all are neighbors. We all need one another. Thank you for sharing –

– and caring.

 

 

 

 

Category:

friendship, Giving, happiness, Living in Harmony, Love, peace, Serving One Another, Sharing

Tagged with:

God Shares

God cares! I know God cares for you and for me. So, when I read the sermon title this morning, “God’s Problem,” I listened carefully to discern what our reverend thought God’s problem might be. Immediately, my mind went to, “Hmm… maybe it’s me!” Then, I remembered that even though I may be a problem to God because God cares so much for me, ultimately, it’s not all about me. God has much larger cares than me and my problems! I know God hears my prayers and understands my burdens… so, with that mind-set, I took pen in hand and wrote my typical sermon notes – in poetry. The reverend had read Job 1:1 and Job 2:1-10. Her sermon was in that Job context. Through my filter, this is the message I gleaned from today’s sermon:

God Shares

I cast all of my burdens upon God.
I see all of the troubles around –
The suffering, the pain, the sin –
I hear the tragic cry, the sad sound.

I question why there needs to be pain.
I ask God why it has to be this way.
He doesn’t say; I hear no word –
I see too much suffering today.

So, what am I to do with this pain?
How can I alleviate suffering for you?
God doesn’t say that’s mine to do –
He says, “Relax, the suffering’s there. I see it, too.”

I cast all of your cares upon God.
I can’t control what happens to you.
I see your trouble; I feel your pain –
I realize that God feels it, too.

So what can you do with your pain?
How can you stand the suffering? Unfair!
Submit to God. Let God alone
Do what the Almighty does:  SHARE.

He takes all your cares.  Welcome Home!

 

OK, the question remains: What is God’s Problem? I may have changed the sermon title to fit my filter, but the reverend read the Job passages and decided God had a problem. Did God have a problem? DOES God have a problem today? I think God’s problem comes when we don’t know how much God cares and we don’t share our troubles with Him. We don’t cast all our burdens on God. We think He has “much larger cares than me and my problems,” and so we don’t want to burden Him. That becomes a problem for God, don’t you think? How can He share if we don’t? What do you think? Does God have a problem?

 

 

Category:

Sharing

Tagged with:

Tag Cloud

%d