Spreading love, joy, peace, faith & unity

Posts tagged ‘relationships’

Be Unoffendable!

I took my sermon notes as a series of Haiku
today in church.
Let me share those notes with you.
It was a wonderful message
delivered by our interim pastor,
Brian Conklin.

Live in unity
Choose love over labeling
Walk in the spirit

Be a peacemaker
Listen to one another
Hear others’ stories

Share humanity
See Christ’s imprint in others
Exhibit goodness

Show agape love
It’s the highest form of love
Unity and grace

Two hundred forty
Plus nine years ago there was
Freedom declared here

Our nation declared
One land – indivisible
But, we divided

We let politics
Rule over our heart, soul and
Our identity

We need freedom TO
Exercise our highest good
Not just freedom FROM

We need open hearts
Hearts that seek to heal others
Not drive them apart

Stop all the fighting
Show love, not hated discord
Celebrate freedom

Hear one another
Just lift one another up
Be calming healers

Unoffendable
Means listening openly
Try understanding

Openly share faith
Faith in each others’ goodness
Hope for our future

Live in hope and peace
Just be unoffendable
Wear love on your sleeve!

Amen?

Love,
JanBeek

Romans 12:18 

If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.

Category:

Belief, Bible Lessons, blessings, Faith, Haiku, kindness, Living in Harmony, Love, peace, Poetry, respect, Sharing

Tagged with:

World Peace

Our world is so screwed up
There are wars without end
Only God can really see
If peace is right around the bend

Since Adam & Eve took that bite
And sin entered this world of ours
It has seemed to us mortal beings
That world peace is beyond our powers

Negotiations call for cease fires
Men promise they will abide
But then they turn around and
Drop bombs on the other side

Why can’t we live in love
Why can’t we all get along
Why do men with earthly power
Like to sing the Battle Song?

Like Rachel Platten’s fight song
They don’t care if you believe
They don’t care if lives are lost
They have egos that deceive

Deceive us with false promises
Live to satisfy your own desires
Sacrifice our sons and daughters
Drop those bombs and start those fires

How can World Peace be achieved
If we can’t live in brotherly love
Pray with me, my friends, please
Ask for peace from God above

Only God can change the hearts
Of selfish men with all the powers
Take their conscience – make them care
Care to save this world of ours.

Amen?

John 14:27 

“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.”

Love,
JanBeek

Category:

Bible Lessons, Faith, God, Life's Challenges, Living in Harmony, Love, music, peace, Poetry, prayer

Tagged with:

Can’t Live Without

What’s the one luxury you can’t live without?

Air: an essential… treat each breath as a luxury. Never waste a minute of the breath you receive. It’s the gift of life. Every day is a luxury. Cherish it!

Here are some ways I live and share the luxuries inherent in every day:

Big Sky country – headed from Ennis to Bozeman, MT
Taking time to smell the lilacs!
Enjoying and relaxing in the gift of sunshine with Kenny
Celebrating music with the Bozeman Symphony
Vicariously traveling to Europe with Adrian & Laura

Can’t live without the contacts with loved ones … so grateful for the luxury of their shared experiences!

God bless those loved ones in our lives who share their experiences with us, huh? Such sharing definitely is a luxury for us as receivers. Thank you for sharing yours, too🥰👌🏽!

Love,

JanBeek

Category:

blessings, Family, Gratitude, Love, Montana, Sharing

Tagged with:

Let Love In

Family sends love out and…
… we hug love in. We follow along for a lifetime!

See that cute little boy up there with his loving mom & dad? Well, look at him now!

That’s Liam, our grand-nephew, who just graduated from high school.
We are overjoyed that we were able to travel to Pittsburgh, PA to help Liam celebrate.
While there, we got to attend a couple of Liam’s hockey matches.

My niece, Jodie (Liam’s mom) and her hubby, Bill, have a gorgeous 1790’s BarN. They held a graduation party for Liam there. About 200 attended!!

Uncle Bob & I are mighty proud of this successful young man!

While in PA we also got to visit the National Aviary. What a beautiful, elegant collection of birds!

Wow!

Meantime back at home, our pup, Kenny, enjoyed playmates and our son, Ty in CA, counted down days til retirement.

Kenny’s happy we’re home!
Ty’s ready for the next chapter in his life.
I pray that Ty & his wife, Monika, can find a way to go visit his sister in Switzerland. DeAna would love it!
Hey, Bro, come visit us! Put it on your 2026 calendar!

Let Love In!!!

Hugs await you wherever you go!

I hope your June started out as beautifully as ours!

Enjoy!

Let Love In!

Hugs,

JanBeek

Thank you, Jodie & Bill, for your love and generosity.

Category:

blessings, Family, friendship, Gratitude, happiness, Love, relationships, Travel

Tagged with:

Love Our Poet Laureate

Montana Poet Laureate Chris La Tray at the Elling House Arts and Humanities Center in Virginia City tonight, Saturday, April 27th at 7:00 PM. I will not be able to attend, but I will be with him in spirit. He is a gifted man. I love his poetry.

La Tray, the Montana Poet Laureate since 2023, is a Métis storyteller and a member of the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians. He’s the author of ‘One-Sentence Journal: Short Poems and Essays from the World at Large’ and‘Becoming Little Shell’. Why don’t you Google those books… or find ’em on Amazon. You’ll love ’em just as I do!

Chris sees poetry like the spiritual life of an Anishinaabe person: if you live an Anishinaabe life, focusing on the seven guiding principles of the Seven Grandfather teachings – Humility, Courage, Honesty, Wisdom, Truth, Respect, and Love – then every step you take becomes a prayer.

If you approach poetry in a similar way, seeing that everything that happens can be seen as a poem, and that every moment in life is an experience worth paying close attention to, then every step you take becomes a poem. Whether you write it down or share it with others, poetry becomes another way to tell and share stories. La Tray’s programs remind people that their stories matter, that they’re the only ones who can tell them right, and that poetry, no matter how you define it, is a beautiful way to do so.

Chris La Tray encourages us to focus on
Humility,
Courage,
Honesty,
Wisdom,
Truth,
Respect,
and Love.

Let’s do!

Humility sits in humble silence
While courage asks us to stand
And honesty demands
We approach life with wisdom

Truth is hard to find
In a world that lacks respect
The only way to discover it
Is with love, I suspect.

Reach out in love
Tell others how you feel
We know the world needs
More love. Make it real!

It was true in 1966 when Dionne sang this song…
And it’s even more true today.
Sing along with Dionne…
… and then go out and spread some love.

We all need it!

Hugs,
JanBeek

Category:

Living in Harmony, Love, music, Poetry, relationships, writing

Tagged with:

Sharing “The Best of March”

Category:

Animals, blessings, food, friendship, Love, Memories, pets, relationships

Tagged with:

Happy Monday

Ah yes, April showers bring May flowers.

How about March showers
and hail and snow and rain
bring April’s flowers?

April is one of my favorite months.
Our family has so many April birthdays!
What was going on 9 months ago?

This month of March was filled with challenges.
March madness included our granddaughter, Faith,
who fell ill while vacationing in Switzerland.
“I’m a million times better” she says…
“today compared to yesterday.”
Yay! Answered prayers 👌🏽❤️🙏🏽

That’s my dear granddaughter in a hospital in Switzerland.
Please pray for Faithy…
She’s moving out of ICU and into a regular hospital room today.
Looking forward to continuing her vacation
with hubby, Kyle, 3-yr-old Mable, and Kyle’s mother.
They hope to visit our daughter, Faith’s Aunt DeDe, this week.
They currently are about 4 1/2 hours away.
God is so good!
This is an answer to more than I dared hope for!
I just was asking God to heal her enough
so she could safely fly home to California.
Auntie De will be so happy to see them
and meet Mable for the first time.

God is amazing, isn’t He?
He hears our prayers
and answers with even more than we dare ask!

Here’s my daughter, DeDe, in Switzerland.

I’ve always believed Mark 11:24

In it, we are reassured that God answers our prayers:
24 “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer,
believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”

But I didn’t ask God for Faith and family
to be able to resume their vacation.
I thought that would be asking too much.
I just wanted her to get well and be able to travel home safely.
Instead, Faith told us today that she expects
to be able to resume her Swiss travels.
Amazing!!

2 Corinthians 9:8 ESV

“And God is able to make all grace abound to you,
so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times,
you may abound in every good work.”

What have you asked God for recently?
Has He answered your prayer?

Have you ever asked for something
and been given more than you requested?
Tell me about it!

And have a Happy Monday
and a Blessed April!

Love,
JanBeek

Category:

Bible Lessons, blessings, Faith, Family, flowers, Giving, God, Gratitude, Living in Christ's Family, Love, prayer, relationships

Tagged with:

Pray for Others

Prayer is Powerful

In the midst of the storm
Of life’s uncertainties
There is a comforter
Always available

Any time is the right time

When your heart is tuned
To the One who always hears,
You never need to feel alone
Or helpless or powerless

Have faith!

I pray in the morning
I pray at noon
I pray all day long
The answers come soon

Can you feel them?
Pause with me.
Pray. 🙏🏽

Ah, I feel ‘em!
Love across the miles.
Love back atcha.
Embeace the comfort.

Hugs,
JanBeek

Category:

Belief, Faith, God, Living in Christ's Family, Love, Poetry, prayer, relationships

Tagged with:

Our Friends: Canadians

My prayer:
Both countries: strong and free!

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

Love,
JanBeek

Category:

God, Life's Challenges, Living in Harmony, Love, music, prayer, relationships

Tagged with:

Trustworthy Support

Have you ever felt this frustrated?

“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!!

img_9944

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!

img_9949

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…”

img_9947

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!

Now, my friends, that is
Trustworthy Support!

Love ya,
JanBeek

Category:

Animals, Bible Lessons, books, God, learning, Life's Challenges, Love, pets, prayer

Tagged with: