Loving One Another

Posts tagged ‘kindness’

Treat Each Other Kindly


Donna, who has the WP post, “My Father’s Feet,” posted these scriptures today among others – and among many other important words of encouragement:

Matthew 7:12 NLT
“Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets.”

Galatians 6:10 NLT
“Therefore, whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone–especially to those in the family of faith.”

Check out Donna’s post here:

https://wordpress.com/read/blogs/167421393/posts/853

Smile and brighten the corner where you are!

A Time for New Discoveries

My friend, Elaine, who has avoided poetry most of her life (after a high school experience in an English class (where diagramming sentences and picking poetry apart looking for rhythm and rhyme scheme and very hidden meaning turned her off) is discovering the poet in her soul! She sent me these Haiku. She wrote them this morning:

Our world is amiss
One alone proves capable
Gentle as a kiss

Photo by Natalie on Pexels.com

And here is Elaine’s second one:

Choose to share kindness
Chaos only seems to reign
Care completes circle

Kindness in Chaos?

In this crazy world where people sometimes are behaving irrationally, it is easy to write some people off and say they are off-limits! They are adding to the earth’s problems, rather than trying to solve them. One of my followers wrote this note yesterday:

“I’m all for being positive, Jan,
but some people’s behaviour is sickening …
like some here who are selling paracetamol on eBay
for £10 and Calpol for ,£20!”

What to Do?

What should we do about those “sickening” people? Do we write off the toilet paper hoarders and the ones buying cases of hand sanitizer, and the price gougers? Do we condemn the politicians who sold off hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of stock after a preliminary briefing about the upcoming pandemic? Condemn ’em and throw all the bums out??

27 Jesus said in Luke 6:27-31

“But to you who are listening I say:
Love your enemies,
do good to those who hate you,
28 bless those who curse you,
pray for those who mistreat you.
29 If someone slaps you on one cheek,
turn to them the other also.
If someone takes your coat,
do not withhold your shirt from them.
30 Give to everyone who asks you,
and if anyone takes what belongs to you,
do not demand it back.
31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.”

Kindness Rules!
Kindness completes the circle of life
as we want it to be.

Let your creativity reign.
Give birth to your inner poet .

Be the change you wish to see in this world.

My niece, Jodie (my sister, Sally’s daughter in PA,
just sent me a picture of this bouquet
with a note that said,
“Bill brought sunshine to our home today ❤ “

What kindness can you exhibit today
to add love and sunshine to your home?

Photo by Engin Akyurt on Pexels.com

See ya tomorrow.

Bee well!!
Hugs from JanBeek

Category:

Bible Lessons, blogging, Family, flowers, Giving, God, Haiku, health, Jesus, Life's Challenges, Living in Christ's Family, Living in Harmony, Love, Poetry, relationships, Serving One Another, Sharing, writing

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Smile!


Let’s see a warm smile –
It will warm your heart and mine.
It reflects kindness.

Kindness is in you.
This is SO worth repeating –
Let your kindness out!

Like the morning sun,
Kindness can hide behind clouds.
The Son overcomes!

Look for openings
Where God’s Light can shine through you.
Kindness is SON RISE!

Happy SONday!
SMILE!!
I remembered SPRING UP
and turned my clocks ahead an hour.
Did you?

Time to get ready for church.

See ya later.

Category:

Belief, Faith, God, Haiku, happiness, Living in Harmony, Love, nature, Poetry

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What’s Your Primary Language?


Some out there speak rap –
While others speak jibberish –
Some only mumble.

Some learn multiple
Languages quite easily.
I’m stuck with English.

But then I found out
There’s language universal;
It doesn’t need words.

What’s the primary
Language from your heart?
Kindness: a great start!

Look back on your day –
Did you give random kindness
Expecting nothing?

No need to struggle;
Kindness can be natural.
Make it a habit!

Ask God every day
To help you be more loving
To unlovables!

Expecting nothing
In return for your kindness,
Know God is watching!

His are the only eyes that matter!


Kindness is its own reward.


Lord, help me make Kindness my primary language!
Have a beautiful night.

Thank you for the kindness of your time.
See ya tomorrow.

Category:

God, Haiku, Jesus, life, Love, Poetry, Promises, relationships, Serving One Another

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Increased LOVE, like FAITH, takes EFFORT


Loving Takes Effort

I wrote this post back in February of 2012 as a new blogger. I decided today would be a good day to revive and update it, because it is as pertinent today (maybe even more pertinent) as it was eight years ago!

monk in front of children near brown concrete building
Photo by Suraphat Nuea-on on Pexels.com

Work at Loving!

Like you, I want to be more kind, more loving, more at peace. In giving, we receive. Kindness is reciprocal. Peace of mind is a gift to those who live in the fullness of LOVE. But, in a world full of hate and devisiveness, illnesses like depression and the current Corona Virus, we have to work at loving and finding peace!

Photo by Marius Venter on Pexels.com

Very few of us have the privilege of finding a spot like this one where we can sit quietly at the top of a peaceful place and just breathe the clear air slowly.

Where can we find peace in the midst of our bustling real world?

Work to Find Time to Know Him

I schedule TIME each morning to be with the Holy Spirit. In my quiet meditation time that morning back in 2012, I stumbled upon 2Peter 1:2-7. The question that starts that scripture caught my heart. “Do you want more and more of God’s kindness and peace?”

I was reading the Living Bible, paraphrased – a large print copy that used to belong to my father-in-law. Gratefully, I inherited it when he passed on to his eternal home. This passage was underlined. Grandpa Beekman had double-underlined the next sentence, “Then learn to know Him better and better.”

Meditation and Study Time

My sanctuary time each morning is all aboutgetting to know Him better, and listening for His still small voice. As I study God’s Word, and get to know Him better, there are many benefits. The rest of this passage spells them out – and I easily connected the idea of “increased faith” with the reality of “increased love.” But there is a long pathway that leads to increased love (which equates to more of God’s kindness and peace). It takes plain old good, hard work!

2Peter 1:3
“For as you know Him better,
He will give you, through His great power,
everything you need for living a truly good life:
He even shares His own glory
and His own goodness with us!”

Photo by Wendy van Zyl on Pexels.com

Study to Know His Goodness and His Promises

I have added the capitals to “His.” The Bible doesn’t capitalize it. For me, the word requires a capital case letter when the him/his is not just any old him or his, but the One HIM, our Lord and Savior, God. So, when I share in His glory and goodness, it is special indeed! The scripture doesn’t stop there, though.

2Peter 1, Verse 4-
“And by that same mighty power,
He has given us all the other
rich and wonderful blessings He promised;
for instance, the promise to save us
from the lust and rottenness all around us,
and to give us His own character.”

Wow! What a promise!! How can I attain such blessings? Some would say it is totally by His grace. I don’t have to DO anything. Just because I BELIEVE I am His “chosen,” I will receive all these blessings. Well, not according to 2Peter 1: 5-7. Read on!

Work at Increased Faith

“BUT, to obtain these gifts, you need more than faith; you must also work hard to be good, and even that is not enough. For then you must learn to know God better and discover what He wants you to do.”

(That’s always a trick to discern what He wants me to do!)

Photo by Engin Akyurt on Pexels.com

With Patience, Put Aside Your Own Desires

“Next, learn to put aside your own desires
so that you will become patient and godly,
gladly letting God have His way with you.”

I am reminded of my oldest grandson, Mikey.
He’s now 28, but when he was barely able
to pull himself up by his mother’s apron strings
and stand knee-high next to her,
he would tug on that apron
as she warmed his bottle in hot water on the stove.
Sure he was starving to death,
he would cry,
“Paaaay-shuns! Paaaay-shuns!”

(Ah yes, we long for paaay-shuns
even as we are barely able to verbalize a sentence!)

“Are you ready to go out and play in the snow with me?” Xander asked.

Walk the Path to Grow in the Capacity to Love

“This will make possible the next step,
which is for you to enjoy other people
and to like them,
and finally you will grow
to love them deeply.”

Grow to love.
Grow in faith.
Work at it.

Take the path that has “exercise stops” along the way.

  • Exercise your goodness first – the goodness Christ has given you.
  • Then stop to exercise wisdom – the knowledge we gain as we study God’s Word and practice being more and more like Christ.
  • Next, exercise selflessness and self-control, the fruits that the Holy Spirit has planted in you.
  • Practice patience and gentleness.
  • Your next stop on the exercise trail is labeled “Gratitude.” It is there that you learn to be grateful for the gifts you have been given while you focus on the gifts in others.

Put On Your Jesus Glasses

When you put on your Jesus glasses, you see the goodness, compassion, and faithfulness of others as God sees them. When you put on your Jesus glasses and appreciate all that is unique and wonderful about others, you see them as God’s creations. You have exercised enough now to love them.

Photo by Gratisography on Pexels.com

Love Takes Effort!

Love is a gift worth working for. Thank God, He has freely loved us long before we knew how to love Him back. But now we do! We are getting to know God better and better. Praise the Lord!

The Bottom Line

Yes, the bottom line is the key:

Love One Another.

red love balloon
Photo by rawpixel.com on Pexels.com

What will you do today to demonstrate your love for others?
Tell me about it!

Thanks for visiting JanBeek.
Do tell me about your loving plans.
See ya tomorrow.

Category:

Bible Lessons, children, Faith, friendship, Giving, God, happiness, Life's Challenges, Living in Christ's Family, Living in Harmony, Love, peace, relationships, Serving One Another, Sharing

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Universal Wisdom


I found this “Japanese Wisdom” on Facebook. People had commented about it and clicked their “likes” and “loves” and “sad” … and that one person who was “sad” was probably the one who wrote an irate comment denouncing the title.

Oh my, how sad that someone would see this
and be incensed that the Japanese took ownership!
Hey, I don’t care who thought it up first,
I just love it.
And I think it is more than true:
“If you don’t know, shut up!”

There is no reason to be offended by something as clever and universal as this. Just embrace it!

I am headed to have breakfast and go to church.
I will pray for that caustic person
who was offended to have a peace-filled day.
“If it’s not nice, don’t say or write it!”

Have a blessed Sunday.

Photo by nicollazzi xiong on Pexels.com

See ya later.

Category:

blessings, Life's Challenges, Living in Harmony, Love, mental health, respect, Sharing, writing

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Let’s Be Whole!


We are a divided country.
The words “they” and “them”
are heard more frequently today
than ever before in my 80 years of life.

What is causing this?
And what can we do about it?
Here is one man’s suggestion.
I think it is so true.

Right on!
It’s as true in China (where the Corona virus is rampant,
and citizens are bravely speaking out against
a government that acted slowly
on the knowledge of the virus),
as it is in the USA where
election rhetoric
is hateful and divisive.

So how do we begin to “fight for each other?”

From his prison cell in Rome, Paul wrote to the people of Colosse. He had visited there before his imprisonment. His letter to them in the book of Colossians was written to encourage them, just as we, the people of this divided world, need encouragement today.

Colossians 2: 1-3
“I want you to know how much I am struggling for you… and for all those who have not met me personally. My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart, and united in love, so they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”

Colossians 2:8
“See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of the world rather than on Christ.”

Colossians 3:12-14
“Therefore… clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive what ever grievances you may have against one another… And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

Photo by Wendy van Zyl on Pexels.com

Yes, the Bible has words of wisdom, words of advise for ALL in times of trouble. We need only open its pages to find scripture that directs our paths toward the unity we all seek. In Colossians, Paul tells us to put on:

  • compassion
  • kindness
  • humility
  • gentleness
  • patience
  • LOVE

… and in so doing, we will find the peace of Christ living in our hearts.
We are members of one body.
We are ONE.
We need to know that without a doubt
and act accordingly.

Don’t let hateful rhetoric divide our oneness
into the “they-them” and “we-us” mentality!

We’re all in this together.
Let’s be whole!

Thanks for visiting JanBeek.


Have a Marvelous, Love-filled Monday!

See ya tomorrow.

Category:

Belief, books, Faith, friendship, Giving, God, health, Jesus, life, Life's Challenges, Living in Christ's Family, Living in Harmony, Love, mental health, peace, prayer, respect, Serving One Another, Sharing

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Kind & Helpful People


Reaching out to help others
Is a gift some people cultivate.
No matter what they are going through,
They take time to stop and make a date
With friends who seems to need them.
Because their friends know they care,
They know they will sincerely listen
And pray for them. It helps to talk and share.

They set aside their own struggles
And they focus in on your trouble.
They look into your eyes and see your heart.
They pull you close into their compassionate bubble.
You know they hear with ears of love.
You know they link to God in sincere ways.
They will take your concerns to our Lord and Savior.
He hears their cries … and with them prays.

I want to be that kind of a friend.
I want you to know how much I care.
I want you to open your heart and know
I’m a person with whom you can share
Your problems and your struggles.
I will listen with my very soul.
I will pray to Jesus for God’s help.
Yes, showing love and kindness is my goal.

Some people find it hard to reach out;
They want to solve their troubles on their own.
But sharing is an important part of healing.
Don’t try to do it all alone.
Even if you just go to a friend and sit,
Say nothing… just find peace in being there,
A good friend will hear you with a heart
That reaches yours. You’re a synced pair!

Photo by Valentin Antonucci on Pexels.com

I pray you have such a friend.
I pray you know the joy of caring in that way –
Both as a giver as well as a receiver.


Please add our friend, PETER, to your prayer list.
God knows why.


You are blessed to be a blessing.
May you have a blessed day!

See ya tomorrow.

Category:

Belief, blessings, Faith, friendship, Giving, God, Love, Poetry, prayer, Serving One Another, Sharing

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