Conditional Blessing

Heb.11:6

And without faith it is impossible to please God, 

because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists 

and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

There are definitely some 'conditions' when it comes to

reaping a harvest of joy...

Love is no sit-back-and-enjoy-the-benefits sport,,

but rather a life of diligent, servant-heart obedience

not to gain/keep our salvation but to say/prove

I love you, Lord!

If we desire God to bless

Our lives with joy’s true happiness

We have a vital part to play

In His reply; we must obey

If we long for His peace to fill

Our hearts though storms and struggles spill

It will, for He is kind and just

His peace will prevail, if we trust

If we want to find we must seek

And learn to turn the other cheek

Not answer blow with counter-blow

But in humility, bow low

If we want to reap joy so sweet

Then Self must first take a back seat

Before faith’s field can yield non-stop

Fruits-of-the-Spirit bumper-crop

His love does not indulge our greed

But will supply our every need

He will not leave us comfortless

If we believe His promises

So, if we ask for God to bless

Our lives with joy and happiness

We have a vital part to play

In His reply; if we obey

© Janet Martin

Romans 5:1-5

Therefore, having been justified by faith,

  [a]we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

  2through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, 

and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

  3And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, 

knowing that tribulation produces [b]perseverance;

  4and perseverance, [c]character; and character, hope.

  5Now hope does not disappoint, 

because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts 

by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

1 John 2:3

By this we can be sure that we have come to know Him:

 if we keep His commandments.

Trust and Obey-Don Moen

Obey God and Leave the Consequences to Him - Charles Stanley

Shadow Art...

 

The shadows caught my attention

while I was cooking supper, but

its hard to capture their impact from the front porch!

However, I hope you can sense the halcyon aura! 

The art of shadows cast upon a canvas of day nearly done

Captures our gaze where dusk’s tableau seems just like days from long ago

And we feel like an honoured guest in front row seats all facing west

While to the east the shadows lie like blue-paint steeples run awry

Upon a canvas where the day that casts the shadows fades away

© Janet Martin

By the time supper was over and dishes done

the shadows were gone...

Transformation Process Blessing

Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

Romans 12:2

'Although this transformation process is ongoing,

often has more stops and starts than a train ride,

the process helps us understand what God wants for our lives.'

Excerpt from today's Daily Bead Devotion; Joyful Learning

The above excerpt made me kinda laugh and cry inwardly, a bit

cause it sure is a jolting stop-and-go journey isn't it?!!

With lots of  ups-a-daisies after stumbles/falls

 to accomplish the transformation, but...

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering,

for He who promised is faithful.

Heb.10:23

So to/through the God who cracks the morning sun like a fresh egg...

..into a sky-wide frying pan,

to/through He who knows us inside and out,

and loves us all the more because of it

on we go...

Dear Lord,

With love learned patiently

With grace and gratitude

With kindness and humility

May our minds be renewed

With diligence and joy

With peace and faithfulness

With hope, for nothing can destroy

Your Truth and promises

Through You, Creator of

The heavens and the earth

Through you, who taught us how to love

And offers us rebirth

…as we are washed within

By the blood of Your Son

Then You, if we confess our sin

Forgives them, every one

Through You, faithful and just

With joyful gratitude

As You turn doubt and fear to trust

May our minds be renewed

Amen

© Janet Martin

Most of us bear

some sort of Unspoken Broken

but

"We can still rise in the face of hopelessness —

because we are still held in the arms of God."

From When You Want a Different Timeline&

The Story Is Hard

by Ann Voskamp

Beggar's Legacy

I beg for fresh reason and rhyme

As we weather seasons of time...

I beg, but not for milk or bread

Rather, for ink-drops not yet bled

For panoramic views to spill

To the mind’s eye from fluent quill

To feel you near, though miles apart

Through Poem, dear, to cheer the heart

I beg for fresh reason and rhyme

As we weather seasons of time

For font to translate into word

Wonder; when wont to be deterred

By duty; blinded by its rod

While Beauty brims with hymns to God

For eyes to see and ears to hear

The melody borne on time’s tear

Where the veneer of here and now

Is always on the move somehow

I beg to learn to want for less

And then, in turn find happiness

...to recognize the luxury

Of phrases such as 'you and me'

To view nothing as commonplace

In today's God-made gift of grace

I beg for wishes to be awed

By the kind faithfulness of God

I beg for Brushstrokes of fine art

By He who sees my heart of heart

The Tender and the Terrible

He knows both Bard and Beast full well

Then, lest I be a fickle fool

I beg for faith, not fear to rule

I beg for joy when Circumstance

Changes the tempo of the dance

And all the steps that I rehearsed

Dismissed in light of ‘others first’

I beg for love’s ink to run rife

And pen the poetry of life

© Janet Martin

Psalm 16:11

You will show me the path of life; 

In Your presence is fullness of joy;

 At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Psalm 21:4
He asked life of thee, and thou gavest it him, 

even length of days for ever and ever.

Psalm 17:15
As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness:

 I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.

September's Remnant or September Leaves

Here's to the last week of September/summer's embers...

This poem is for we who mourn the loss of sun-warm hours and flowers

Yet eagerly await autumn's ambience and Beauty-brilliant bowers

I had to keep reigning this poem in...

It was eager to become a full-fledged fall poem but not yet!

Let's linger on September's remnant, shall we?

Time enough for autumn to have its way...

I couldn't quite decide what picture to use on this post

so it was just waiting, then I went to get the mail

and in the mailbox was a thoughtful surprise

 dropped off by a friend. 

(I partially blotted the name for privacy's sake)

This bundle reminded me that in a sense

 it is always summer in friendship's world💗😎

September’s remnant slips through cracks of summer season shorn

Where garden plot seems to relax, it’s brunt of bearing borne

Where blue jay’s harsh shriek rends the air where purple asters stream

Where poplar fronds begin to flare and pumpkin lanterns gleam

September’s remnant snares where we cannot undo its thread

Earth’s dusty, musky thoroughfares don glints of gold and red

And while we stare at summer spent, we feel it steal within

Where fingers cannot circumvent the tug of buds worn thin

Thought lingers for a little in past’s precious picture-show

Where time turns lush leaves brittle in its subtle undertow

Each treetop like a candle waiting on earth’s window sill

September’s remnant mantle like a fading canticle

Ah, who can bear to mope where hope pitches its sterling tent

September’s remnant gilds the slope where summer came and went

It dapples orchard limbs and lanes with apples, sweet yet tart

As hunger grapples with the pains that farewell’s pangs impart

The wind is like a busker playing saxophone and flute

Its audiences gather beneath lampposts full of fruit

Longing and satisfaction's sabers flash and clash; crowds roar

Caught on the sparkles of a splash that was and is no more

October loiters in yon brake, eager to be unfurled

And turn summer’s lackluster wake into a colour-world

To gather up September’s remnant in jubilant toll

Turning loss to contentment with beauty out of control

As expectation is fulfilled in autumn’s gorgeous show

As goldenrod turns silver-gilt and woodland-torches glow

With autumn’s awesome tinsel, scarlet, auburn, russet, bronze

Happiness finds fresh footholds as September’s remnant wans

© Janet Martin

Ah, who can bear to mope where hope pitches its sterling tent...

To Frame a Memory...

Today is perfect cup-o'-java-joy-bottomless-refill weather!

Part of the reason I spent this morning's hours outdoors 

was the promise of a rain-song afternoon!

I began painting another poem this morning, 

then got distracted by duty and beauty

While along came this poem to

 interrupt the previous one...

'composed' by the last 24 hours of life!

A peek onto a poet's 'colour-palette' 😊

If I could I would frame it;

that moment when she and I

stood spellbound by an egret

beneath autumn's brooding sky

That cozy fall contentment

with a coffee-pot between

That season of enchantment;

as bronze seeped through summer green

That solace of the woodland

and its shadow-dappled path

Its palace built with remnants

of butterfly aftermath

The orchard that not long ago

was wreathed in white and pink

Lanes decked in perfumed petal snow

Where now red apples wink

Dawn, as it drew ajar

windows of opportunity

Dusk, as it pinned a star

on pages of fresh history

September's cinnamon-kissed sweeps

we tasted with our eyes

The playful puppy as it leapt

through laughter's paradise

Saturday pitter-patter fueled

by rain-symphony 

Where ink and order dueled

(they will never quite agree)

My mother in her kerchief, warm

against fall's chill embrace

Love, evoking a perfect storm

*for joys so un-commonplace

Wonder, in all its rapture

never snared by brush or pen

I wish that I could capture it

to touch and taste again

...and then I smile, and then I say

Thank God for poetry

A poem is the perfect way

To frame a memory

Janet Martin

* a mother's kerchief-framed

most-beloved-of-all-faces

is anything but commonplace 

so I edited that sentence💖

Another un-commonplace joy today

is my parent's 58th wedding anniversary!

A Breath-By-Breath Ballad

Do you ever feel it:

The sweeping surge of season-song?!

The merging of moments like music-notes,

composing a breath-stealing ballad?!

The wind has been a rowdy minstrel this week,

raking a reckless, cold, wet bow across barely-Autumn strings.

Last night a hummingbird straggler took advantage of the

break in the 'music' to drink and drink to its bitty-heart's content!!

I could barely keep up with its hither-thither darting...

...a bit like hummingbird hide and seek😅

...and a main reason for planting these Cana lilies

was because they make perfect hummingbird drinking fountains!

Darkness dissolves like a sun-kissed snowflake

Beneath a beacon no bond can restrain

Seasons revolve as night falls and day breaks

Silence births leaf-song then silence again

Grinning and grieving, doubting, believing

Failing, achieving, earning battle-scars

Learning and teaching, yearning and reaching

Orbit of dreams stirs and settles the stars

Then we grow older and lend our shoulders

Like rungs on ladders for youngsters to climb

Heady with hunger and blind to the boulders

Ready to test what no one defeats; Time

Flying and falling, crying and calling

Finally crawling while learning to walk

Knees bruised and bleeding, brashness conceding

No one can hold back the hands of the clock

Autumn is always around summer’s corner

Tugging at strings tied in forget-me-nots

Heart is part dancer and partly mourner

Torn between wanting and what life allots

Laughing and weeping, waking and sleeping

Planting and reaping; some things never change

Giving and taking where living is making

Moment-mementos that moments estrange

Sometimes the soul feels like a glass-splinter

Snags in the skin of that which has no skin

Or is it a sun-sparkle where winter

Is always on the verge of closing in

Ebbing and surging, melting and merging

Dawn’s birthplace burgeoning with dusk and death

Where Time is dwindling, consuming the kindling

Seasons soft-swindling the hearth, breath by breath

Ah, can't you feel it like river-song rushing

Breath-by-breath ballad while we play our part

 In Life's Orchestra, bashful and blushing

Until the melody captures the heart

Reeling and rolling, pealing and tolling

Stealing the feeling of something amiss 

Clashing and blending, splashing and wending

Bending the minstrel of dust with God's kiss 

 

© Janet Martin

Acknowledgement of Fall's Wild and Wet Debut

The first day of fall flew through floodgates flung wide...

The second day is offering a brief breather before round two...

Fall flew through floodgates flung ajar

It flailed the crinkled countryside

And wailed at every bolstered door

That just the day before stood wide

Fall’s entrance drenched earth’s sanguine bars

September’s summer embers doused

No quixotic, poetic stars

In sighs by blue-eyed skies aroused

Fall roared like an enraged tigress  

Or like a savage beast set free

It tore at nature’s tousled tress

With tireless ferocity

Fall made its entrance, wet and wild

As if somehow a mild debut

Of sun-kisses on summer’s child

Would have been far too Déjà vu

© Janet Martin

Because We Are So Loved...

Though freedom and prosperity seem destined for disaster,

we in North America are still ever-so-richly blessed by both!

Then, why do we bicker so? 

Why do we complain?

Is it because we overlook 

the Love that should sustain

From He who gave His Son to save 

our souls from hell's eternal grave?!

Can I hear a hallelujah?!

Endless Hallelujah Matt Redman

Because we are so loved we ought to dearly love our fellowman

Jesus, our great Example proved and taught love's perfect Master Plan

With humble heart that glows with joy to be the servant of a King

As with the gifts that grace deploys, we honour Him in everything

Because we are so loved in spite of less than faithful gratitude

God, rich in mercy, melts the night; His compassion kindly renewed

Then it behooves us to be kind; not blind to one another’s need

Lest His goodness is undermined as we serve gods of lust and greed

Because we are so loved we do not need to wallow in dread’s fear

The patina that gilds the view is but façade’s shallow veneer

No height nor depth, nor life nor death, nor other power can prevail

To separate us from the love God promises will never fail

Then, because God so loves the world (He gave His Son to pay our debt)

We ought to live with fist uncurled, ready to forgive and forget

To frolic like a well-fed calf, to till the soil of soul and sod

With hope; to work, pray, sing and laugh because we are so loved by God

© Janet Martin

Malachi 4:2 NIV

But for you who revere my name, 

the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays. 

And you will go out and frolic like well-fed calves.

Romans 8:35-39

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? 

Shall trouble or hardship or persecution 

or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 

 As it is written:

“For your sake we face death all day long;

we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”[j]

 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

  For I am convinced that neither death nor life,

 neither angels nor demons,[k] 

neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 

 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, 

will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Small But Mighty

Luke 6:45

A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good;

 and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. 

For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

James 3:9-10

With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father,

and with it we curse human beings,

who have been made in God’s likeness.

Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing.

My brothers and sisters, this should not be.

Chit-chat with friends over tea is one of life's sweetest luxuries...

Words are such powerful little vessels, 

They build up

and tear down

They can be tugboats

or torpedoes 

They can be an arm across a shoulder

or a punch on the nose

They can be sharp as thorns

or like a pretty rose...

Psalm 19:14

Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, 

be acceptable in thy sight, 

O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer.

Words can be exchanged so swiftly

Tender touch or verbal spear

Meet their mark to spark a tempest

Or to pacify and cheer

None the human tongue can bridle

Like a tidal wave, words pour

As out of the heart’s abundance

The mouth spills its treasure-store

Hurting, healing, cursing, blessing

Someday we will give account

For the deluge that comes spewing

From a small but mighty fount

© Janet Martin

But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, 

they will give account of it in the day of judgment.

Matt.12:36

Harvest Homily

Today's harvest has the potential of

turning me beet red! 😄

I planted beets and boy!! did I get beets!

(looks like a few woody ones)

At least it's a literal beet red!

Some harvests have the potential of turning us beet red

but not with beet juice😡😆

We might think we can twist fate’s arm

And trick the hand of recompense

But some things we cannot out-charm

Action will equal consequence

Where what we sow is what we reap

The seed cannot its fruit estrange

Then close and careful vigil keep

We cannot trick what cannot change

The seeds that fill us with regret

If we repent God will forgive

Though consequence will still beset

He helps us through each day we live

We might think we can twist God’s arm

And plant some seeds that will not grow

Consequence is immune to charm

The seed it is, the fruit will show

© Janet Martin

Galatians 6:7 ESV 

Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.

  

Beautiful Renewal

We couldn't see what was on the other side of this bridge!!

Turns out it was a soccer and baseball field😐

We couldn't see what was on the other side of yesterday's election!

Turns out, more of the same!😐

We cannot see what waits on the other side of Time/life!

How that turns out depends on Who we choose to serve/obey here!

Man is NOT our hope! Hallelujah.

We do not need to become bitter or live in fear or defeat!

For what is seen is temporal but what is unseen is eternal!

So once more, the verse I shared the other day;

Therefore we do not lose heart. 

Though outwardly we are wasting away, 

yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.

 17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us

 an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 

18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen,

 since what is seen is temporary, 

but what is unseen is eternal.

2 Cor. 4:16-18

From here to there sight cannot tell

What waits to fill the gap between

But because This is temporal

We fix our eyes on the Unseen

Lord, help us choose to be thankful

For Who we know will never fail

Where what is seen is temporal

And what is not, You will unveil

Therefore, then we do not lose heart

Though outwardly we waste away

The confidence that You impart

Renews our spirits day by day

© Janet Martin

Here we are, diverse cultures fixed, as believers in Christ, on the Solid Rock!

On Christ the Solid Rock I Stand

Whom Shall I Fear-David Wesley

God Will Take Care of You

Wonder-World -Wealthy

Psalm 40:4-8

Blessed is that man who makes the Lord his trust,

And does not respect the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.

5Many, O Lord my God, are Your wonderful works

Which You have done;

And Your thoughts toward us

Cannot be recounted to You in order;

If I would declare and speak of them,

They are more than can be numbered.

6Sacrifice and offering You did not desire;

My ears You have opened.

Burnt offering and sin offering You did not require.

7Then I said, “Behold, I come;

In the scroll of the book it is written of me.

8I delight to do Your will, O my God,

And Your law is within my heart.”

How Great Thou Art-Chris Rice

 (because Awesome Wonder makes life wonder-full)

Wonder rewards its heritor with wealth a-hundred-fold

A well-spring without barriers to joyfully behold

It fills the world with pleasure to enrapture and confound

A vault of hidden treasure overflowing all around

Some wonder we behold with eyes and some with humbled heart

As we begin to recognize its vault of ageless art

Its wealth, not in showcases filled with ‘look but do not touch’

But spilled from friendly faces, wisdom’s fount, seasons and such

Wonder waits to be tasted at each turn, it seems to me

Thus, Time should not be wasted in indulgent vanity

But rather, with each breath exalt the Giver of today

Because at every turn Death also stalks its primal prey

Wonder is worship’s uttermost; nothing can take its place

It strips proprietors of boast in its selfless embrace

And lifts the drooping spirit as it fills us with surprise

And gifts us with the merit of love’s selfless paradise

As high as heavens pathless hills and deep as deepest sea

A world of still impending thrills, unfurled epiphany

A grand buffet that beckons, its fulfilling feast beguiles 

Where The Creator reckons mortal appetites, and smiles

Pride goes before the fall and strangles wonder that would be

It caters to a call of covetous idolatry

And leaves a sense of joy amiss, its bliss a bitter fraud

But Wonder’s perfect happiness reveals a glimpse of God

Wonder wakens awareness, not to pelf of miser’s lure

But to unrivaled rareness of wealth coin cannot procure

Wonder wears threads of duty but, like autumn’s orchard bent

It yields the fruit of beauty in a heart sweetly content

© Janet Martin

As We All Are

The ending of the movie Stranger in Town

contains a speech with relevant reminders to all of us

all these decades later...

Stranger in Town Final Speech

(click on at 1:50 if you are in a hurry😉)

Politics is a topic that can lead to fiery discussion

and differing opinions!

Pray, more than anything we pray for our leaders

at every level for they are far more than representatives

of a political party.

They are living souls

As we all are!

“There are no ordinary people.

You have never talked with a mere mortal.”

C.S. Lewis

Meanwhile, we all are dearly loved

by the One who made us

'whether little girl with little curl'

or Leader for the better or worse

of the country he/she serves.

Prime-minister/president/political party bashing has never served to build

or heal and though today's voter's options seem sadly lacking

it is not a reflection of one man/one party, but rather of

 the nation's moral compass.

A country is not its prime-minister/president.

It is the people; you, me and every other

extra-ordinary human being we meet on a daily basis!

Deuteronomy 4:7
For what nation is great enough to have a god as near to them 

as the LORD our God is to us whenever we call on Him?

On Monday Canada goes to the polls to vote for Prime-minister

either a new one or more of the same,

but it is a dark time for many voters because

When a nation stops calling on

The One True God

We get what we deserve.

Oh God, help the future of the nations...

...for we are more than flesh and blood,

Than hands and feet

and lovely face

We are the handiwork of God

Therefore no one

is commonplace

All precious in the sight or He

Whether private

or super-star

He created mortality

With tender love

as we all are

Then pray, this common Bond of love

Not hate, advises

And controls

Both citizen and head of state

Are chariots of

deathless souls

Therefore, in spite of all we lack

Not one of us 

are very far

From giving up and giving back

To He who loves

As we all are

Then lest, because of mortal bent

We forget, we should

Think again

Our love for God is evident

by how we love

our fellowman

Janet Martin~ 

For here we have no continuing city, 

but we seek the one to come. Heb.13:14

Beautiful Life Because...

Yet Not I, But Christ in Me

 

By the grace of God I am what I am, 

and his grace toward me was not in vain. 

On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, 

though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.

 (1 Corinthians 15:10) ESV

Farther Along-Brad Paisley

Last night I felt weary to the bone and kind of discouraged

When I called Jim he wondered what's up?

When I filled him in on some of life's/love's concerns he said

'so that's why you sound disheartened!

The word stuck. Disheartened.

So much need, needing weary willing workers to say 'yes!'

This morning's Daily Bread Devotion scripture

also spoke to the disheartened!

Disappointment, discouragement 

and grave concern for the future are nothing new!

Our God, the same yesterday, today and forever declares still,

'This people I have formed for Myself;

They shall declare My praise.'

Isa.43:21

Ah, pray above all else, we are part of This/His people.

May we trust him for strength and wisdom

 to be diligent and true!

2 Cor.4:16-18

Therefore we do not lose heart. 

Though outwardly we are wasting away, 

yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 

17 For our light and momentary troubles 

are achieving for us an eternal glory 

that far outweighs them all.

 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, 

but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, 

but what is unseen is eternal.

Because Time is not on our side

But its kind Giver IS,

Because, though trust is often tried

God keeps his promises

Because His mercy is renewed

In spite of mortal ways

We have, with unplumbed gratitude

Cause to declare His praise

 Because His goodness will not fail

In spite of all that does

Because His justice will prevail

Above all other gods

Because He WAS, IS and WILL BE

No matter what some claim

We, with joyful fidelity

Honor and praise His name

Because we know that we are known

By the fruits that we bear

Because God is not mocked, we groan

But not in vain despair

Because He hears the prayers that lace

Word's inefficiency

  His gentle voice replies, My grace

Is sufficient for thee

Because He rewards those who seek

And serve Him, heart and soul

Because He strengthens us when weak

With faith that makes us whole

Because of this Hope will not dim

 As love trusts and obeys

 Because, He knows who follows Him

By who declares His praise

Janet Martin

Good and Gracious King-City Alight

The Doxology by Anthem Lights and Selah