Category Archives: Uncategorized

Bouncing Along the Twists and Curves of the Christian Life

Janis Van Keuren

Are you usually looking for the straight path to your destination? Even in your walk with the Lord, are you expecting the road to be pretty direct and straight? I’m not sure about your perspective (please leave your thoughts below) but I’ve expected the pathway that I walked with God to be pretty direct. Of course I realized that it wasn’t always smooth or trouble free, but I thought it would be straight. Last Sunday, my eyes were opened to a new concept while listening to our Pastor’s Sunday teaching. He began with a phrase that stuck with me all week and presented a new revelation about that path. He said, “The Christian life isn’t a straight line

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A Steadfast Faithful Love

Janis Van Keuren

This weekend we celebrated our Forty-Forth Anniversary in an unusual way. Take-out food adorned Wedgewood Stoneware amidst a table set with wine glasses and candlelight for a romantic evening. Due to pandemic precautions, we had decided to eat at a favorite restaurant that featured outdoor seating but the fire raging in our beautiful mountains precluded that arrangement. While one of the most informal anniversary celebrations ever for us, the evening was still romantic as we toasted to the years God has given us.

When Sunday morning rolled around, we settled in for our online church service. Our youth pastor delivered a tender message

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Refreshment, Freedom, and Love

Janis Van Keuren

Who knew a simple trip to get my hair cut and a stop at the grocery store for hamburger buns could bring so much joy and refreshment. I felt the weight of the past few months’ fear drop from my shoulders . Yes, I wore a mask and donned my fashionably plastic gloves for my errands, desperately dodging people in the aisles to keep some semblance of a six-foot distance. But I felt the weight of

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Uncharted Waters

Janis Van Keuren

A few years ago, my friend Mary Geisen wrote a devotional called “Brave Faith: A 31 Day Devotional Journey.” She said, “God has so much more for us than we can imagine.” And then I won her giveaway of the devotional and the cup in this picture.

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A Fresh New Journey

Janis Van Keuren

Ocean waves crashing to the sky speak of freshness, a cleansing of jagged rocks, the beginning of a new rhythm as the wave is pulled back into the sea and refreshed to begin a new process again. Here today, I am beginning again, too. Refreshed and renewed, I am stretching into a fresh new site with my first blog post.

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A Time for Rejoicing

Janis Van Keuren

Yesterday, I was baking cookies for an evening Christmas Sing-Along at our church while trying to create the mood for a heavenly time of rejoicing. Even if I didn’t have the energy. Morning worship had whetted my appetite as we sang some traditional Christmas carols. But when I started baking, the tension to perform began choking my meager enthusiasm. You would think that after making some of these Christmas delights year after year, I could whip them out in my … Continue reading →

“The Wilderness Will Lead You”

Janis Van Keuren

I long for this time of year where once again I steal into our backyard to inhale the aroma of springtime. The orange tree decorated with its pristine white blossoms beckons me to breathe deeply of the hope wafting through the air on the season’s scent. While I linger close enough to be covered in its aroma, I remain a safe distance from the busy, hard-working bees. While hope dances in the promise of these blossoms, hope is also found … Continue reading →

Giving Thanks

Janis Van Keuren

 “Give thanks with a grateful heart, Give thanks to the Holy One Give thanks because He’s given Jesus Christ, His Son And now let the weak say, “I am strong,” Let the poor say, “I am rich Because of what the Lord has done for us.” Lyrics by Don Moen (c) 1986 Hearing the words wash peace and trust over me. I see myself standing shoulder to shoulder with our first Christian community of brothers and sisters. Hands raised in … Continue reading →

Look Who’s Cooking Again~Meatball Stroganoff

Janis Van Keuren

     Cooler weather and more energy have propelled me to the kitchen to whip up some fresh recipes for my family. I have my homemade cookbook. An orange notebook–a throwback to the 70s. Within its cover are aged recipes glued to black construction paper which is slipped into plastic page protectors. Some recipes tried and true. Most, never used. But all looked appetizing when I cut them out hundreds of years ago.     Looking for something different one night, I remembered … Continue reading →

This Should Encourage Mothers’ of Boys

Janis Van Keuren

     During the week, I saw a link on Facebook to a blogpost by Kim. She was giving a warning to these daring young ladies who were invading her sons’ internet sites with their suggestive thoughts and poses. I applauded her for her courage and I admired her for having a relationship with her sons that was so strong and full of Christian values that they didn’t balk.     You have to read: http://givenbreath.com/2013/09/03/fyi-if-youre-a-teenage-girl/     Let me know what you think.      … Continue reading →