Sunday, March 31, 2019

Sweet Precious Wow!


 After a bit of a roller-coaster week we are thrilled to announce the birth of our grand-daughter
on Friday! Both mother and baby are doing well!



Not ready yet to fret about the ways that wait to test and try
Enough for now to simply snuggle, cuddle, kiss and rock-a-bye

Earth is a plateau where both highs and lows alloy and drive us wild
Heaven is never nearer than in the joy of a newborn child  

Not ready yet to think about how soon you’ll sit or walk or talk
Enough for now, sweet precious Wow, to simply snuggle, kiss and rock

© Janet Martin

 Makes me re-appreciate this quote!
Image result for babies are such a nice way to start people

Thursday, March 28, 2019

All Part Of The Journey


"It's all part of the journey" I remind my daughter as she tries not to fret the arrival of
Sweet Little One not here yet



Now uphill, now downhill
Now tiptoe, now tumble
From green leaf to bramble
Now amble, now fly
New morning, new drama
Like clicks of a camera
Now daughter, now mama
Now grandma, oh my

Now hello, now so long
Now mellow, now too strong
Now glad song, now sad song
Now trembling, now brave
Now heartache, now honey
Now solemn, now funny
All part of the journey
From cradle to grave

Now pushing and shoving
Now patient and loving
Tell me oh my darling
How could we succeed
Without friends to cheer us
Without loved ones near us
Without God to hear us
And grant what we need

© Janet Martin

And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.
Phil.4:19

Wednesday, March 27, 2019

The Hope Of Man


 Sometimes when discouragement's condemnation threatens to deaden hope,
Sometimes when I say yep when oh, I should have answered 'nope'
Sometimes when I believe the lies of hope's vile enemy
I bow my head and lift my eyes...to Calvary

...to hear once more from days of yore the final declaration
Of "it is finished" as He bore and conquered death's damnation
and nothing and no one can alter Mercy's saving grace
Through Jesus Christ God's only Son whose love/life took our/death's place



The ways of man since Time began
Are not hard to predict
First Eve believed and was deceived
By folly’s rhetoric

Where we in turn must also learn
How disobedience
When we are wise in our own eyes
Yields bitter recompense/consequence

Aha, aha, the Time-tried law
Of lust and pride confirms
How without love our motives prove
We are all filthy worms

And without grace, ah, who could face
Death’s cold and morbid dread
The blood of Christ, love’s sacrifice
For sinner’s ransom shed

 Love’s Master plan, the hope of man
The hope of man assured
Through merit of a Saviour’s love
Upon a cross secured

Love’s uttermost becomes the boast
As Belief rends the tomb
Where ways of man since Time began
Would else lead to hell’s doom

© Janet Martin


A Few Things Learned In Fifty-plus Years


Happy 50th Birthday to my beautiful sister, Lucy
(sharing a few things I've learned in my own 50+)
(photo credit; Brittany Ruppert)

To touch without clutching
To look without wanting
To have without holding
Save deep in the heart
To taste life more slowly
For each breath is holy
Where alone and lonely
Are worlds apart

To be kind and tender
For we share the splendor
And brunt of hope, hunger
And try-try again
Where stumble and fumble
Helps to keep us humble
And laughter full-free is
Life’s best medicine

To bask in the beauty
Of task’s humble duty
For who knows what mis’ry
Its taper may snuff
To try not to borrow
The weight of tomorrow
Today’s joy and sorrow
Are more than enough

To cherish the treasure
Of each moment-measure
Where burden and pleasure
Keep pace, side by side
Where trust tests our self-will
Where faith none can prove til
With fires of trial
Our idyll is tried

To speak with intention
And gentle affection
To earn through correction
The wisdom it brings
To scavenge the coffers
That dawn-to-dusk proffers
For the best this life offers
Is its simple things

To drink coffee often
And where our curves soften
Delight in the cotton
Of baggy night-shirts
To fling flirty answers
Where laundry-line dancers
Are quite the romancers
In flapping denims and skirts

To pray without ceasing
For every season
Has every reason
To call upon God
Where no one is able
To set supper’s table
Save for mercy’s staples
Of seed-sun-rain-sod

To find the word 'grandma'
Fits nicely with 'mama'
Then not mind the drama
Of sprightly white hair
But to start embracing
That old woman facing (well, maybe not you...yet😉😝)
Our puzzled expression
When/if we look in the mirror

To give without ration
For love and compassion
No matter the fashion
Are welcomed by all
To work with devoutness
And honour its commonness
For in the King’s service
No chore is too small

To forgive each other
And love one another
We’re all sister-brother
And creatures of need
Then, to be more gracious
For each life is precious
Whatever our age is
Or country or creed

…and, just to be thankful
For spoon, mouth or handful
For Time is a candle
And life is a gift
Filled with death and yearning
And hearts always learning
The art of returning
To the Giver of it

© Janet Martin

Give thanks to the LORD,
 for he is good; his love endures forever.
Psalm 107:1