Showing posts with label faithfulness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label faithfulness. Show all posts

Friday, May 30, 2025

Redemption's Groaning Gate Flings Wide...

 My sister Lucy's granddaughter picked these wildflowers for me the other day...
I don't think she noticed the tears I choked back as I was honoured
by her innocent eagerness.
The mug seemed the perfect vase for my utter joy and sorrow!


Below is a collection of verses to treasure as they comfort and cheer the soul
and remind us of what matters most!

The LORD confides in those who fear Him, and reveals His covenant to them.

For the LORD God is a sun and a shield;
 the LORD gives grace and glory;
 He withholds no good thing from those who walk with integrity.

He will bless those who fear the LORD—small and great alike.

For surely You, O LORD, bless the righteous; 
You surround them with the shield of Your favor.

Ps.69:15
But as for me, my prayer is to You,
Lordin the acceptable time;
O God, in the multitude of Your mercy,
Hear me in the truth of Your salvation.

Ps.119:153-160

153 Consider mine affliction, and deliver me:
 for I do not forget thy law.
154 Plead my cause, and deliver me: 
quicken me according to thy word.
155 Salvation is far from the wicked: 
for they seek not thy statutes.
156 Great are thy tender mercies, O Lord:
 quicken me according to thy judgments.
157 Many are my persecutors and mine enemies; 
yet do I not decline from thy testimonies.
158 I beheld the transgressors, and was grieved; 
because they kept not thy word.
159 Consider how I love thy precepts:
 quicken me, O Lord, according to thy lovingkindness.
160 Thy word is true from the beginning: 
and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever.
 
Redemption's groaning gate flings wide and a new day is born...

A multitude of mercies smiles upon a world sin-worn... 

Redemption's groaning gate flings wide and a new day is born
A multitude of mercies smiles upon a world sin-worn 
The Author of Salvation who appoints what none can trace
Once more anoints creation with un-stoppered love and grace

Regret, remorse, repentance spar within the human heart 
God's holiness and man's pride are a humble prayer apart 
Oh Lord, rebuke my erring will, waiting to cause offence 
So the purposes You fulfill/instill may have preeminence 

The truth of your salvation comforts all who fear You, LORD 
Imbue deep dedication to the counsel of Your Word
Lest, for the lack of earnest heed I look away and drift
Forgetting who supplies my need with truths that do not shift 

Delight thrills all who love Your law with thoughts too rare to speak
My spirit thirsts for constant awe, but oh, my flesh is weak
Prone to descend the slippery slope of half-truth to appease
The carnal foe to Living Hope with 'come soul, take thine ease '

Each edict of your Word is true, where faith sees but in part  
Lord, help me learn it through and through and hide it in my heart 
So that I do not grieve you, Saviour, but with yielded will
Reverence the Shield of Your favour as Your mercies spill

Janet Martin  
 





 



Saturday, May 24, 2025

The Other Side of Hug-and-Kiss...



There is only one way to remain grounded in Things Above; in the unseen...
by seeking faithfully to be found faithful!
Remembering the reward for faithfulness is veiled on earth...

Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful.

But the one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom,
 and continues to do so—not being a forgetful hearer, but an effective doer—
he will be blessed in what he does.

His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! 
You have been faithful with a few things;
 I will put you in charge of many things. 
Enter into the joy of your master!’

Faithfulness is like our 'marriage vow' to God,
forsaking all others, as long as we live,
 in the matter of fidelity and allegiance to Him
with love second to none
because we have resolved All For Christ!
Just as in earthly marriage as time goes by 
and human nature rears its unlovely head,
 we don't always 'feel' the passion
and excitement as in the beginning, 
but pray it is replaced with
a deeper, matured awareness that faithfulness
must/will weather the highs and lows that are bound to be,

'Well done, Thou good and faithful servant' 
is no small fete to win.
It requires daily surrender to our Heavenly Father,
our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ,
and to the Holy Spirit who indwells the believer.
Faithfulness forgives and accepts forgiveness.

Faithfulness is a firm and humble obedience,
a penitent repentance when we stumble/sin,
a modest presentation of Self,
so we may give God the glory
for making possible the boast
of our salvation. 

***

Today we are attending the wedding of my niece
and we will witness the vows they make;
'till death do us part'
We will hear them speak before God
the words that bind two into one;

Matthew 19:6
So they are no longer two, but one flesh. 
Therefore what God has joined together, 
let man not separate.”

A wedding day is a day of joy and celebration and grave solemnity
as vows made on earth are sealed in heaven.

It is no laughing matter, This
The other side of hug-and-kiss
Of being true no matter what
When tempted to undo love's knot

Love's vows are not of fickle font
But transcend every wish and want
Because these words, 'till death doth part'
Are etched forever on God's heart

When hug and kiss is interspersed
With human foible's selfish worst
Startled, we start to humbly learn
Faithfulness grants no quick return

...but refines rose-coloured romance
With love, that would not stand a chance
Without steadfast commitment to
He who made us 'no longer two'

'A three-strand cord is hard to break'
'Love bears all things' love's highest stake
With God 'all things' are possible
Without, love is soon miserable

For self times two is not enough
To satisfy the ways of love
How harsh is disillusioned bliss;
The other side of hug-and-kiss

But oh, how lovely in return
Is love that is willing to learn
And learn again, the meaning of
A patient, kind and faithful love

For tis no laughing matter; this
The other/weathered side of hug-and-kiss
But is, when all is done and told
Life's greatest beauty to behold

...as the covenant of 'I do'
Remembers, one cannot be two
When faithfulness seeks no excuse
To sever what no man can loose

© Janet Martin

For those who are seeking truth
and maybe reasons to re-resolve to remain faithful
first and foremost to God, some helpful links below

 Dr. Joseph Webb on the truth about I Do, based on God's Word!















more HERE or HERE 
or more from Dr. Joseph Webb  HERE 

or this;






Thursday, April 10, 2025

Of Painful Joy or Of Boundless Love

 

Ps. 23:4
Yea, though I walk through the valley
 of the shadow of death,
 I will fear no evil: for thou art with me;
 thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

1 Pet.1:6
In this you greatly rejoice, 
though now for a little while, 
if need be, you have been grieved by various trials,..

Whether on faith's mountaintop
or in the dark, lonely valley
the incomprehensible, steadfast love of God abides
to minister to body and soul's need 



This is a poem I am still in the process of learning...
through deep disappointments
and divine epiphanies 🙏

There is no limit to the love of God
Its height and depth thought cannot comprehend
Whether beneath the guerdon of its rod
Or in a garden where soft breezes wend
His love cannot be measured or contained
Nor with ingenious eloquence explained

The love of God is beyond reckoning
He knows the heart of man is vile indeed
The hub of prideful Fancy’s beckoning
Left unbroken, would choke faith’s mustard seed
So, lest we covet what we cannot keep
Faith’s Great Perfecter runs love’s plowshares deep

…with piercing love, He works for our good
Ah, pray for faith to see beyond the part
That is often sadly misunderstood
While He prepares the test-plots of the heart
Until faith’s finely-tilled furrows are sown
With seed that grows for His glory alone

We are the sheep of His pasture. He tends
The welfare of His flock with rod and staff
He rescues, rebukes, comforts and defends
No cost too great to work on our behalf
Because the love of the Good Shepherd knows
The dire danger of wolves in sheep’s clothes

The love of God produces painful joys
For He too faced the Tempter’s crafty charms
A shrewd maneuverer of deadly ploys
To blind us to love’s everlasting arms
To draw us from His word that girds and feeds
Thus, with both rod and staff, love intercedes

Then, for a season, if need be, love grieves
The proving of faith’s shield to quench sin’s darts
Until at last with patience, God achieves
His joy complete, only His love imparts
As the heart yields He overflows its sod
With bounty from the boundless love of God

© Janet Martin



Tuesday, April 8, 2025

As for This Fellow...



...as for this fellow, we know not from whence He is!
John 9:29





Do we listen when He asks us
To trust Him implicitly
Have we been struck blind, to see? 

Have we committed to follow
Or do His precepts ring hollow
Because we still walk by sight 

Satisfy our cup of grief
Does faith's Canaan-land implore us
To guard against unbelief

Has our stubborn will been broken 
As we looked on Calvary
Have we echoed Wonder spoken
'I was blind but now I see'

Has 'this fellow' been revealed;
He whose blood-bought pardon frees us
He, by whose wounds we are healed 

Is 'this fellow' our Saviour?
Has transformation begun?
Turning sight-governed behaviour 
Into faith's 'Thy will be done' 

Has Belief sight's barrier broken
By 'this fellow' humbly/wholly awed
Have our eyes of faith been opened  
To behold the Son of God

Dear, once-blind-but-now-I-see-man
Keep your courage undeterred
You will not fall prey to man's plan
Through the keeping of His Word 


Janet Martin 
 

John 9:25
He answered and said, “Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know. 
One thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see.”







Monday, March 31, 2025

No Suitable Substitute


For the last while on Sunday mornings
our teaching messages have been from 1 John,
and have kindled many a meditation
of both somber evaluation and profound encouragement
leading to many coordinating passages throughout scripture.

Eccles.12:13-14
Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:
Fear God, and keep his commandments:
for this is the whole duty of man.
For God shall bring every work into judgment,
with every secret thing,
whether it be good,
or whether it be evil.

Ps.51:17
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit:
a broken and a contrite heart,
O God, thou wilt not despise.

1 Sa.15:22
So Samuel said:
“Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices,
As in obeying the voice of the LORD?
Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,
And to heed than the fat of rams.

1 John 5:3
This is the love of God,
that we keep His commandments.

Disobedience/sin separated Adam and Eve
from their perfect relationship with God. Gen. 3
Sin made God sorry that He had made man; Gen.6:5-8

Sin kept Moses from the Promised Land. Num. 20:12

...and ultimately sin took God's only Son, Jesus to the cross
to be the eternal Sacrifice for sin;
to purchase our pardon, for all who repent and believe.
Jesus, who pled to God the Father,
if it be possible let this cup pass from me;
nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will... Matt.26:39
And Jesus was obedient to death, even death on a cross. Phil. 2:8

Thus, by the grace of God we can be saved,
not by good works lest we boast,
but for good works God prepared in advance for us to do.
Eph. 2:8-10

The old quote 'actions speak louder than words' rings true!
How hollow are the words 'I love you' without the fruit of deeds to prove it!

Oh Lord as we begin a new week help us anew
to trust in You with all our hearts,
and to fear you and keep Your commandments!


No substitute could suffice to wash away our sin, but Jesus' blood. Heb.10:4-10
No substitute, outside of obedience, can bear witness to the righteousness of God in us. 1 John 2:3


No substitute will do
No pretense will suffice
Nor lenient logic reason through
Faith in God’s proving price

No joy will be complete
No noble cause defend
No clause corrupts the mercy seat
Of God, both Judge and Friend

God, faithful to forgive
Beholds the heart alone
He witnesses the fruit we live
And thus, the tree is known

There is no substitute
No judgement-proof façade
Obedience is the pure fruit
Of love and faith in God

© Janet Martin



Saturday, March 15, 2025

Because The Heart Is Prone To Fear...




The heart is prone to fear
The eye to what it sees
Without God’s Word to commandeer
How gullible are these

The ear is how we hear
With voice we speak and sing
Without God’s Word to enrich cheer
How hollow noises ring

From minds, thought is unfurled
The hand follows, with deed
Without God’s Word, to gain the world
Still cannot sustain need

Bodies are born to die
Dust-to-dust, the Soul’s gown
Without God’s Word, hope is a lie
And knowledge but a clown

The Soul, God-breathed, endures
Beyond mortality
Faith in God and His word secures
Its holy destiny/victory

Headlines spew hateful wrath
And forecasts, dark and grim
God’s Word is a Light to our path
No woe/foe its glow can dim

Better to trust the Lord
In all we do not know
Because the power of His Word
No force can overthrow

The heart is prone to fear
Fear blinds us to the hills
With peace His Word instills

The heart is quick to yield
To fear and dread and doubt
God's Word is both a sword and shield
None can survive without

© Janet Martin

Eph.6:13-17 BSB
13Therefore take up the full armor of God,
 so that when the day of evil comes, 
you will be able to stand your ground, 
and having done everything, to stand.
  14Stand firm then, 
with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, 
with the breastplate of righteousness arrayed, 
15and with your feet fitted 
with the readiness of the gospel of peace.
  16In addition to all this, 
take up the shield of faith, 
with which you can extinguish all
 the flaming arrows of the evil one. 
17And take the helmet of salvation 
and the sword of the Spirit, 
which is the word of God.










Tuesday, February 18, 2025

The Key/Path To True Happiness


Happiness is not listed with the fruits of the Spirit,
however, happiness is promised to those who trust in and obey the Lord.
( we just might need to take a closer look at what we define as happiness
and who our 'happiness' serves) ooh

Happy/blessed are the people whose God is the LORD!
Ps.144:15

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,
And whose hope is the LORD.
Jer.17:7

Happiness is the the phoenix that rises
from the ashes on the altar of sacrifice/obedience

So Samuel said: “Has the LORD as great delight
 in burnt offerings and sacrifices, 
As in obeying the voice of the LORD? 
Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,
 And to heed than the fat of rams.
1 Sa.15:22

But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it,
and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work,
this one will be blessed in what he does.
James 1:25

The law of liberty is not freedom/permission to
do what we prefer, but rather to trust God (who) works all things for good
to those who love Him are called according to His purpose (not ours)
Rom.8:28

If you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.

For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God,
but it is the doers of the law who will be declared righteous.

But He replied, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.”

But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed.
“Do not fear what they fear; do not be shaken.”

Be doers of the word, and not hearers only.
Otherwise, you are deceiving yourselves.

The path to the house has been cleared so we can get to the front door!


The path of righteousness has been cleared too, not by a shovel
but by a Shepherd 🙏 

And acknowledge the selfishness, that hinders true humility
That frustrates full surrender to He who knows and supplies our need

He cannot keep in perfect peace, the mind that is not stayed on Him
Who prefers rather, to appease the ways of want with willful pride
And cater to the nature that justifies stubborn wish and whim
Rather than honour the Creator who is able/faithful to provide

The Way, The Truth, the Life is not a 'pick-your-flavour-of-the-day'
His commands are not optional, but He gives us freedom to choose
He, who authored salvation's plan and paid its price. Or to refuse

With God all things are possible; why are we so deceived by sight?
Making logic more credible than He who rules seas, tempest-tossed
And numbers stars; who through His word grants wisdom to know wrong from right
A Shepherd who is undeterred and leaves the fold to seek the lost

To walk in paths of righteousness we first must trust the Shepherd's lead
And recognize that selfishness approves the wayward ways of sin

So that all may find sweet rest for souls that once were lost, like sheep
So that we need not fear the vales that wind through Unknowns, dark and deep
The Shepherd, whose love never fails leads us till faith is turned to sight

© Janet Martin

Psalm 95:6-7
O come, let us worship and bow down;
let us kneel before the LORD our Maker.
For He is our God,
and we are the people of His pasture,
the sheep under His care.






Tuesday, January 21, 2025

Faith's Sacred Enrollment


Through what lies behind
we are being prepared
for what lies ahead!

***
Regret has but one merit;
to learn from it

***

God cares for each of us beyond our wildest comprehension;
and invites us to cast our cares on Him!
Why do I/we often attempt to shoulder care
as if He didn't care?!!

***


What great fun and frustration, as we cheer on
our favourite teams, for better or worse!

When we put our faith in God
we become part of a 'team'
whose 'Coach' puts us through drills we often don't recognize
unless/until they produce His desire's sacred result;
a more humbly prayerful people.


Oh Lord, we give thee thanks
Whatever comes our way
May circumstance unveil the ranks
That teaches us to pray
...that tutors hope and trust
Though sorrow's throes increase
As we surrender what we must
You fill us with your peace

Lord, nothing is too hard
For You to will and do
Where the deceiver preys, you guard
The heart, humble and true
And should we stumble, still
You do not turn away
But with the shards of broken will
You teach us how to pray

Oh Lord, kindly renew
Our courage through your love
Help us to wholly lean on You
The wellspring of Enough 
For we know no true loss
Whatever comes our way
As long as You command/commend the cross 
That teaches us to pray

To wallow in regret
Is futile; Lord, pray we
Will learn from the mistakes that set
More sorry sights on Thee 
Forgiver of our sin
Help us as You prepare
The sacred drills faith enrolls in; 
Today's lessons in prayer

Our faith ought never be
In throne-rooms of this world
Lord, open eyes of faith to see
Your mighty Hand unfurled
Then, as a soldier/soul-dier true
Whatever comes our way
 Help us to put our trust in You
Who teaches us to pray

Your strength, through weakness gleams
In grief, Your comfort cheers
From the ash-heaps of broken dreams
We cry; Your kindness hears
And bends to bind the ill
That comes through creature care
That tests us with love's best until
We lean on You in prayer
 
 © Janet Martin 

Prov.3:5-6
Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; 
and lean not unto thine own understanding.
 In all thy ways acknowledge him,
 and he shall direct thy paths.















Saturday, January 4, 2025

Till Death Doth Part Is Not Word-art...

Mark 10:7-9
 7‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother
 and be united to his wife,
c 8and the two will become one flesh.’d 
So they are no longer two, but one flesh.
9Therefore what God has joined together, 
let man not separate.”

For all who are married
 or thinking of marriage,
or thinking of ending a marriage,
something to consider/ponder...


What God has joined 💕💗
He will sustain
through ups and downs of love
'as long as both shall live' remain
He will His witness prove...

No, not our anniversary,
no, no wedding today
Just pondering the inescapable,
exhaustless common ground
 of love

Before any marriage fails
a friendship fails first.
May this year be filled with
refreshed and restored friendships!! 
🙏🙏🙏

God will not fail
all who humbly and sincerely
ask Him for help and wisdom.




Till death doth part is not word-art by signatures undone
Love's solemn vow does not somehow recant as time goes by
These words 'I do' are woven through God's hands; two become one
A covenanted knot, God-wrought, only death can untie 

Husband and Wife are thus, for life; marriage, a Mystery
Where what was two with this 'I do' is transformed into one 
And no rebate can separate the sacred filigree
As vows of love are sealed above, only by death undone 

For better-worse is not a curse but a glimpse of God's heart
To have and hold while dreams unfold much to learn and forgive
 And keep the vow no matter how many urge 'one' to part 
Airing 'just cause' as if this was mankind's prerogative 

We are not God; and too oft awed by what is not Enough
Like pride of life, or selfish strife or trusting mortal ken 
God's word is true; He helps us through the thick and thin of love
Till death doth part is not word art, but God with us. Amen 

© Janet Martin

Saturday, December 28, 2024

To Him That Is Able...


A bit of everlasting cheer on a dreary Saturday morning in Ontario! 


Jude 1:24-25
"Now unto Him that is able
 to keep you from falling,
 and to present you faultless
 before the presence of His glory
 with exceeding joy,
 to the only wise God our Savior, 
be glory and majesty, 
dominion and power, 
both now and forever.
 Amen"

2 Timothy 1:12
For this reason, even though I suffer as I do,
 I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed, 
and I am convinced that He is able to guard 
what I have entrusted to Him for that day.


To Him who is able, pray
In Him who is able, trust
Our God who is able, obey
Believing His way is just

For He is able to keep
That which we commit to Him
Though morrow seems dark and deep
And the veiled unknown seems grim 

To Him who is able, call 
In Him who is able, hope
He will not permit us to fall
But faithfully helps us cope 

On Him who is able, gaze
Unfazed by sight's acumen  
For God is able always
Forever and ever, amen 

Janet 🙏

I came across the paragraph below, salvaged some time ago
from a message about the school of faith
by David Jeremiah...

"One of the sobering thoughts about the Christian life
is the truth that God is far more interested in who we become 
and what we are than in what we do. 
He cares a whole lot more about how we live
 than about what we accomplish.
 His purpose is to build Christians, not cathedrals. 
His focus is on people, not programs, 
and for this reason, when God is working in the life of a person,
 he often allows unexplainable events to prepare and perfect those
 that he is getting ready to serve him in a much bigger way in the kingdom. 
The New Testament says this: "Whom the Lord loves He chastens, 
and scourges every son whom He receives". 
Often when difficult things happen in our lives, 
it's not the evidence of something that is wrong, 
but proof that something is right." 
David Jeremiah~



Friday, November 22, 2024

A Life Well Lived or Because of Him

Jim, when he called this morning,
because I attended a funeral yesterday,
wondered if I am writing about death and sorrow...again🙏
'Actually, the total opposite' I replied,
'I'm writing about life and living'
 (hopefully joyfully in spite of sorrow)

Yesterday, at a another funeral service at our church 
for another beloved, ripe-old-aged, faithful saint laid to rest
the relevance of the phrase 'life well-lived' impacted me.
No fancy or exceptional faculty or status required
to earn this accolade.



What first may seem quite commonplace;
Morn's light-replenished sky 
Is fresh evidence of God's grace
Waiting for our reply... 



A life well-lived; a culmination of moments well spent
Of recognition that its gift begets its testament
Aware that by God’s grace who and wherever we may be
He grants to all this universal opportunity
To triumph in what matters most, not for fortune or fame
But, with one sole objective; to bring glory to God’s name
To know it is enough, no matter how common the task
To render service for the King; He helps us if we ask
Transforming what, in the grand scheme of things may seem so small
And commonplace, because of love, into life’s Best of All

A life well-lived does not depend on rare ability
Superior intelligence or physicality
A life well-lived is something we are all able to do
And its account we give to God is up to me and you
With no one else to blame, because in every circumstance
He does not leave us helpless or without His providence
He never turns a blind eye or deaf ear to prayer or need
His Word is truth; We ought to give his word more earnest heed
And recognize Today is of great price, an altar where
We prove through fruit of sacrifice, who we love and revere  

A life well lived; what better witness can we leave behind
Than the track-record of love, generous, patient and kind
With God, then others first in mind, and not begrudgingly
But with a heart that overflows with joy of ‘Christ in me’
His light no dark hour can dim, His grace our want supplies
And as we cast our cares on Him His faithfulness replies
To keep us in His perfect peace though sorrow-storms assail
To know that He is able, His promises never fail
To help us, for His glory to accomplish day by day
A life well-lived, because of Him, when Soul’s shroud slips away

© Janet Martin


And whatever you do, in word or deed, 
do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus,
 giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

Matthew 5:16
In the same way, let your light shine before men, 
that they may see your good deeds 
and glorify your Father in heaven.

1 Peter 4:11
If anyone speaks, 
he should speak as one conveying the words of God.
 If anyone serves, he should serve with the strength God provides,
 so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, 
to whom be the glory and the power forever and ever. 
Amen.

I've had much occasion recently to ponder this song...