Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Today I woke after a good night’s sleep. Feeling a throbbing, I looked over at my hand; It was more swollen than when I went to bed. The pins holding the pinky in place were buried.
Yesterday I visited the occupational therapist. She put compression sleeves on the fingers. They are designed to reduce the swelling. Maybe it would have been worse without them.
Who knows?
It doesn’t do any good to complain, To mope around and feel sad and blue. You gotta keep on the sunny side of life – And a good way to do that is to let go!
Let go of the doubts and relinquish grumbles. Find someone who’ll hold your hand and assure you That everything is gonna be okay – be patient! Give your troubles to God and put on a smile.
Bob and I seem to trade off times for help. There I am holding his scarred up hand! Now it’s his turn to gently hold mine. We are so blessed to have one another!
I pray that you have loved ones beside you Who comfort and assist you when you need it. It’s easier to see the sunny side of life When God gives you family and friends who care.
So relinquish your troubles to those who can Be the hands and feet of God beside you. Don’t be afraid to ask for help – and accept it! Let others share the sunny side of life with you.
Jesus loves the little children All the children of the world. Red and yellow, black and white, They are precious in his sight. Jesus loves the little children of the world.
Jesus came to earth to show us how to live. He gave His life – what more must He give To teach us the lesson He came here to teach? Just love one another! Live that lesson and preach!
Preach to the world the need for compassion. Preach respect, integrity… Make them current fashion. Don’t let fear and ignorance take the reigns And infect our society and poison our brains.
White Replacement Theory? What a bunch of bunk! Don’t let such absurdity enter you. It’s just junk! God created each of us with blessed diversity. He created us equally. Believe that with certainty!
Those who fear other skin or folks from outside the USA Are showing us their ignorance by what they do and say. They don’t understand the message God sent to earth When He brought to this world His Son to give us second birth.
They don’t accept the well-known fact of Oneness, The same blood, same love, same spirit of “Done-ness.” We are were “done” by the Potter’s wheel and skill. We all were created by our God, our Savior’s Will.
No color is more beautiful; No skin is a favored one. No cuisine is more tasty. God differently flavored some. So wrap your mind around the true acts of love… Love others unconditionally – Give all hate a shove!
My heart goes out to the families and friends of the 10 who were senselessly murdered by a sick, crazed, fearful 18-year-old in NY this week. Additionally, worshipers were shot down in church two days ago… and the list goes on. It makes my stomach churn. It makes my head hurt. It puzzles my mind. I just don’t begin to understand. I want to help. I need to do my part.
So, with my left hand in a cast and my little finger throbbing, I hunt and peck with my right hand. I send my love out into the world – and I beg my readers to do what you can, too. Try to drown out hate with loud acts of love. Try to squelch fear with gigantic messages of compassion and understanding. Try to stamp out ignorance with numerous exchanges of God’s messages in His Word and through His Son. Do something. Do what you can.
Dear Heavenly Father, help us to set aside fear, hatred, ignorance, and divisiveness, and start as a nation and as a world to just love one another… Amen
Some people seem to have aged like fine wine. I aged like milk…. I got sour and chunky.
Is 82 old? I’ve spent my life and my blogging career (over a decade now) denying “old” and encouraging vim & vigor!
Now, all of a sudden, as I nurse my bruised and broken left hand, try to type with one hand, and I struggle to cut my pain meds in half so I can welcome normal bowel movements again, I am feeling sour, chunky, and sorry for myself. Ever been there?
I have blogged only once or twice in the weeks since my careless trip over the curb and my broken and dislocated left pinky. I try to make light of it.
But I challenge you: Tie your non-dominant hand to your waist. Make it inoperable/immobile. Then leave it like that for two weeks. Try taking a shower, washing your hair, changing the sheets on your bed, slicing meat for a stir-fry, putting on socks, or pulling up your pants. How’s it working?
Believe me, it’s worse than having a finger in a trap! The whole arm and hand are out of commission! But… true to form, I find comfort in knowing it could be worse!
I drink a toast to the blessings! It coulda been worse! It coulda been the dominant hand or the head or a hip! It coulda been permanent damage. This, too, shall pass!!
So, after all, count your blessings, Jan; you had just gotten a manicure – and you didn’t even break a nail! Now I ask you, how lucky can you be?
Happy Cinco de Mayo came and went! Our granddaughter’s birthday came and went! Mother’s Day came and went! Neighbors and friends came and are still coming to help with meals and household chores. So, I’m smiling and grateful.
I’m aging pretty well! Don’t you think? How about you?
See ya tomorrow, God willing… Have a Terrific Tuesday. I send my love, JanBeek
Guess what? Looking on the bright side and putting on a happy face is NOT the end of your generation!!
God gives us doctors When we cannot heal ourselves. He says, “Lean on them.”
God gives us neighbors When we need acts of kindness. He says, “Bee grateful!”
Our Savior saves us When we cannot save ourselves. He says, “Lean on Me!”
I may have to learn To accept strength from others – Can’t be strong alone!
Single-handedly, I feel slightly “hand”icapped. God says, “Lean on me!”
Have you ever felt Too weak to accomplish all You have on your plate?
Who did you lean on?
Sometimes when we ask God for the strength that we need, He sends us earth angels.
My neighbor, a retired nurse who lives in CA part of the year, just texted. She asked about my hand. When I told her about the upcoming surgery, she wrote, “We will be there to help and if you have any questions, we know stuff :o)”
See … earth angel on her way! And her husband is a brilliant physiologist. He’s part of the “we” she’s talking about! Yup, they “know stuff.” Hah! It will be comforting and helpful to have them back in the “hood.” Just in time! God is good … all the time!
When Our Daily Bread posted on this subject, it wrote:
“We may not be able to touch Jesus physically, but we can entrust the weightiest circumstances of our lives to Him. He said, ‘Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.’ (Matt. 11:28).
How blessed we are to have a Savior whom we can trust to be faithful through every circumstance of our lives!
Are you ‘leaning’ on Him today?”
I am leaning on Jesus, and I am Leaning on Bob, too! He’s an earth angel God sent to me.
Thanks for visiting JanBeek See ya tomorrow (God willing)
published yesterday, April 24, 2022, wrote this poem:
Marriage is a strange equation where You take 1 Person Add another Person You get a Couple So far so good Now you add 0 Expectations to it And you get infinite Love Mind-boggling!
I wrote to Frank saying, “Hmmm… zero expectations? How do you do that?” He responded, “I guess we should try and reduce it little by little. Eventually, it will get to zero.”
What do you think? Do you agree that zero expectations = infinite love?
Bob & me on our 59th
I follow Frank’s blog along with over 22,700 other admirers of his poetry. If you will forgive me, I wish to rewrite his latest. It seems to me that marriage does not have to be a strange equation. It can be:
The Perfect Equation
Marriage can be a perfect equation when You take one person Add another person And get a couple Then you add the Love of Christ Next place the Holy Spirit in the center You add God’s expectations of compassion Mix in the joy of respect and faithfulness And you get unconditional, infinite love Now, that’s Mind-boggling!
Celebrated 60 years in February
True Friendship requires the same equation! Take one person, add another, stir in Christ’s love Center the Holy Spirit between you and Sprinkle generously with compassion and respect Remain faithful to one another, and Keep a confidential, active, listening ear You get unconditional, infinite love. Isn’t that mind-boggling?
If you were asked to create a collage of true friends who epitomize that equation, who would you include? Long-time friends, family, neighbors, church friends, internet friends, friends in heaven, those you haven’t met yet? Think about it! My collages below are by no means complete… but for starters:
Are you a reliable friend? Do you see yourself fitting into the equation? Does your collage of friends include those neighbors who stick “closer than a brother”?
Marriage and Friendship are related! They both carry with them great expectations!
24 One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.
Knowing I was hurting physically because I fell and disclocated/broke my pinky finger, friends sent cards, delivered food, sent texts, called, and dropped by. Did I EXPECT such an outpouring? Not at all! But did it do the trick? You bet! Those friends delivered the cheer and encouragement that we all need when we are feeling blue or tired or sick or (as in my case) a little stupid and careless.
Knowing my granddaughter and I were hurting emotionally because she just learned of and shared with me the news of her miscarriage, friends called, wrote, texted, responded on my blog & on FB, and reached out to Hope as well. Did we expect such an outpouring? No! But was it helpful and appreciated? You bet!
Thank You – It does help!
Does God EXPECT us to do so? Yes!
Hebrews 10:24-25 Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another
The Bible is full of expectations for us. God expects us to lift one another up. He commands us… The greatest of these is LOVE. His last and final commandment: Love one another!
Reach out to a friend today. Reach out in love. Do you do it because you expect something in return? Of course!
My mom always told me, “Whatever you send into the life of others comes back into your own.”
(I’m sure she read that in the Bible somewhere!)
Thanks for visiting JanBeek today See ya tomorrow (God willing)
Love & Marriage – Go together like a horse & carriage!
Who’s in your collage of friends today? Tell ’em about it! (Share my blog with ’em!!)
Just as the bees in a hive look out for one another, our WordPress community reaches out and cares for one another. Thank you all for your words of support and comfort during this time of pain and loss. Your words are sweet as honey!
Your comforting words remind me of this scripture:
6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Not only did I present my request to God, but I told you, my friends, about our troubles: my fall and subsequent dislocated & broken finger, and our granddaughter’s miscarriage. From the goodness of your hearts, you reached out with words of encouragement. Thank you so much!
My hand is bruised and wrinkly – and the fingers are braced to keep the broken pinky immobile, but this will heal… and the good news is that it was my finger and not my head that took the brunt of the fall. I have an appointment next week with an orthopedic hand specialist. Hopefully no further intervention will be needed.
In the case of Hope and Drew (my granddaughter and her hubby), prayers are appreciated for their family as they move forward. Finding that she had lost the fetus, Hope’s comment was, “Maybe it just wasn’t meant to be.” It was early in her pregnancy – and that’s a blessing. I think it is much harder when the baby is more developed, the sex is determined, and the parents are preparing their home and hearts for the new addition. In this case, they had not quite adjusted to the idea of a third child yet. So, we are just thanking God for the blessing of the two they already have… and praying for their well being.
I pray for more time to be with them, too… Children are such a blessing! God is good – especially when He allows us to live long enough to see our children’s children have children. Don’t you agree?
During this week following Holy Week, we still are in awe of the Easter miracle… and our minds are comforted by the resurrection message. We remember that this is the week when Jesus showed Himself to the disciples in the Upper Room. He returned to let Thomas touch His nail scarred hands and his pierced side. (I bet Jesus’ hands hurt more than mine does right now!)
He talked with His followers who were on the Road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35), and was seen by hundreds before His ascension. Jesus’ words are a comfort to us all! Listen to them in song:
Bee Comforted! Let not your heart be troubled.
In yesterday’s Mornings with Jesus Dianne Neal Matthews wrote, “Remember how Christ felt concern for His disciples’ well-being and sought to comfort them… He paid a high price so I can know supernatural peace in all circumstances… His soul was troubled so mine doesn’t have to be, regardless of what I face.”
I am thankful it was:
my left hand, not my dominant one
my finger, not my head that broke
early on in Hope’s pregnancy not the last trimester – and she’s OK
God’s concern for mankind that sent His Son to earth
His sacrifice that assures me of eternal life
your words of encouragement that comforted me
Thank you!!
Oh, and this is the day that my youngest granddaughter, Faith, who lives in CA with her husband and a new little girl, Mable, is celebrating her 26th birthday! Happy Birthday, Faith!! That’s another reason to be thankful, right?
Happy Birthday, Faith!!
Have a blessed weekend, my friends. I send my love. See ya tomorrow (God willing) Thanks for visiting JanBeek
When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.
My prayers go out to Hope & Drew.
I look to the Lord in whom my strength and healing abides and helps me.
Pray with me today, will you? “Dear Heavenly Father, Be with Hope and Drew as they mourn the loss of their unborn baby. Help them understand Your will and know the blessing of the two they have. Be with me (Jan) and the finger that needs to heal… Provide comfort – – and the lesson to be learned. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
Thanks for visiting JanBeek and expressing your love and concern for us.
That was the question we explored at tonight’s Good Friday service: What’s Good About Good Friday?
Yesterday in my post titled, “Last Words,” I promised I’d tell you about our Good Friday service. I told you our pastor, Mary Grace Reynolds, had selected passages from scripture that recorded Jesus’ last words.
I shared a few of Jesus’ last words spoken that last Friday … words that were memorable to me:
Mark 14: 24-25 = Last supper – blood of the covenant poured out for you
Mark 14:27-31 = Prediction of Peter’s denial
Mark 14:35-36 = Take this cup from me…
Mark 14:42-43 = Are you still sleeping? … the betrayer is coming
But those quotes were from Jesus’ last conversations with His disciples before He was arrested… before He was hung on the cross.
Tonight’s “Last Words” were from the cross:
Luke 23: 33-34 = “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.”
Luke 23: 39-43 = “Truly I tell you, you will be with me…”
John 19: 25-27 = “Woman, here is your son…”
Matthew 27: 45-49 = “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
John 28: 28-29 = “I am thirsty”
Luke 23: 44-46 = “Father, into Your hands…”
John 19: 30 = “It is finished.”
The selection that was mine to read was #4. I practiced it a lot and still goofed up when I tried to read it orally because the scripture tells it in the language Jesus spoke: “Eloi! Eloi! Lama sabachthani!” I can say it just fine sitting here at my computer – but in front of the congregation? Put on the spot? I faked it! I hope most didn’t notice. I’m sure Jesus forgives me!
Each of us who read was invited to create and share a reflection and a prayer related to our selection. Here is what I said: “Like Jesus, there are times in our lives when we are in great suffering or turmoil, and we feel God has forsaken us. The Good News is He never has and He never will.”
That’s what’s Good about Good Friday!
Jesus took away our sin. He died for us. Because of His life, death, and resurrection, we can dare to approach God knowing He will never forsake us. Never!
My prayer was this:
“O God, You are our hope and our salvation. Your Son is our gift, our gateway, our guide. We thank You for His sacrifice for our sake that we might be assured of Life Eternal with You in Heaven.
Thank You for never forsaking us when we enter Your presence in faith. We give You our hearts and gratitude. Amen.”
Tomorrow is “Silent Saturday.” I will not blog.
I’ll be busy Easter Sunday with sunrise service and church and guests here for dinner. (Hopefully my granddaughter, Hope, and her hubby and two children, Xander & Sienna, will be among the guests)
I bet you will be busy doing meaningful things this weekend also. Happy Easter!
On this day, Jesus washed the disciples’ feet; He shared the Last Supper with them; He revealed that one of them would betray Him, He told them where He was going:
Mark 14: 24-25
24 “This is my blood of the[a] covenant, which is poured out for many,” he said to them. 25 “Truly I tell you, I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”
Before Jesus and the disciples left the Upper Room, they sang a hymn. I wonder what hymn they sang? This morning in my devotionals, I learned the definition of “Hymn.” According to this morning’s Daily Word, it is not just a song sung ABOUT God, it is a song sung TO God.
I am going to pretend I was there, and I got to pick the hymn to sing with the disciples and Jesus.
What hymn would YOU choose?
Mark 14:26 “When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.”
There on the Mount of Olives, Jesus predicted Peter’s denial.
Mark 14:27-31
27 “You will all fall away,” Jesus told them, “for it is written:
“‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’[a]
28 But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.”
29 Peter declared, “Even if all fall away, I will not.”
30 “Truly I tell you,” Jesus answered, “today—yes, tonight—before the rooster crows twice[b] you yourself will disown me three times.”
31 But Peter insisted emphatically, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you.” And all the others said the same.
Sure enough! Before the rooster crowed twice, Peter had indeed denied knowing Christ.
Would I have been brave enough to admit I was one of His disciples if I were in Peter’s shoes?
When Jesus went off by Himself to pray to His Father because He was “overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” Jesus told three of His disciples, “Stay here and keep watch.”
Mark 14:35-36 35 Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. 36 “Abba,[a] Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”
While He prayed, all three disciples fell asleep!
Would I have been the one disciple who managed to stay awake when Jesus went off alone to pray in the Garden of Gethsemane? Probably not! I would have heard Jesus say:
Mark 14:42-43
“Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is delivered into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”
At tomorrow’s Good Friday service, we will focus on the last words of Jesus. Our pastor has chosen seven scriptural passages to capture that last day with the disciples before His arrest and trial and crucifixion. Some of them are those quoted above. Tune in tomorrow and I’ll let you know which of Jesus’ last words I will have the privilege of reading at the Good Friday service.
Meantime, we’re headed for the Maundy Thursday service. I wonder what Rev. Mary Grace Reynolds will do for this evening’s devotional? It’s another “first” in our fresh-out-of-seminary pastor. Such a blessing!
Thanks for joining me for today’s post. See ya tomorrow (God willing) Love ya, JanBeek
And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”
Our dear neighbor, Scott, came by today. He brought his shovel and gave us his all! All the energy he had stored up he poured out!
Our front porch was buried in snow. Our TazE’s exit from the kitchen door was blocked with over a foot of snow. The sidewalk approaching our house was covered with over 2 feet of snow that the wind had blown as a drift yesterday.
When Scott left, the porch and entry were cleared. The sidewalk is passable, so UPS and FedEx can deliver the package we are expecting today. And TazE was able to go out and do her business. Hooray!
The robins who were hovering under the patio chairs yesterday are dancing in the trees today. The sun is out – melting the snow that had clung to the branches.
Happy Holy Week, my friends. Scott gave us his all! He was exhausted when he finished. God bless him!
Jesus gave His all! How much energy – how many coins – are we willing to give?
I send my love to you, my friends. Have a Wonderful Wednesday! See ya tomorrow … Maundy Thursday… Hugs, JanBeek
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