Hope's Frame...

Good/Happy gorgeous, Friday May morning to you...

Across the eastward brink of earth, a sea of unplumbed moments tolls

Something about a new day’s birth wakens awareness in our souls

For He who sets before our gaze, Hope’s Frame filled with mercy renewed

To author a glad hymn of praise and unspeakable gratitude

Ahoy! The hours fleetly fly between daybreak and twilight’s knell

Soon their plumbed aftermath will lie like husks strewn where dusk’s shadows fell

Leaving behind the words and deeds we tossed like seeds along the way

A blend of fruit, flowers and weeds that will be threshed on That Great Day

…compelling us to pay close heed to track-records not finished yet

To study and ponder the seed that that we are so prone to forget

To regard with attentive care those who are following behind

And to be solemnly aware of sheaves we leave for them to bind

Across earth’s eastward brink a sea of unplumbed mercies bares God’s heart

His love for all humanity should bid us do our earnest part

To fill the Day that fleetly spans the distance between faith and sight

With love because His mercy fans the flame that fills hope’s frame with Light

© Janet Martin

Morning Has Broken

Eph.1:17-19 

I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, 

may give you the Spirit[f] of wisdom and revelation, 

so that you may know him better. 

18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order 

that you may know the hope to which he has called you, 

the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, 

19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe.

today's poem was inspired in part by the passages above and below;

Does the phrase, 'God, who is rich in mercy'

not offer food for glorious meditation

as we wonder and ponder the riches of His 

great power and glory?!!

Eph.2:1-10

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 

2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world

 and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, 

the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 

3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh[a] 

and following its desires and thoughts. 

Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.

 4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,

5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—

it is by grace you have been saved. 

6 And God raised us up with Christ 

and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 

7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace,

 expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 

8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—

and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 

9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 

10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, 

which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Daybreak Begets...

I can hardly comprehend the haste of moments meting/melting months, 

but here we are, ready or not!!

Happy, happy May!

Before our eyes, beneath our feet, beyond Bygone’s snuffed tolls

Daybreak begets a gleaming street teeming with living souls

Daybreak begets a fallow field, soon strewn with words and deeds

Daybreak begets the sacred yield of yester’s scattered seeds

Daybreak begets the fiery forge where earnest faith is tried

Daybreak begets Mercy restored and hope still on our side

Daybreak begets the helping hand of He who never fails

Daybreak begets the unveiled land as heaven’s darkness pales

Daybreak begets refurbishments of strength and energy

Daybreak begets the evidence of opportunity

Daybreak begets another try from time’s replenished fount

Daybreak begets our reply for which we give account

Before we rush headlong into the fray that soon grows dim

Let’s pray the Lord to lead the way, and we to follow Him

Because daybreak begets far more than naked eye can see

Daybreak begets the Corridor into eternity

© Janet Martin

Ps.23:3

He restores my soul; 

He leads me in the paths of righteousness

 For His name’s sake.

On Sunday mornings before we start the lesson 

my class of grade 4-6 girls and I recount highs and lows of the week.

I am learning so much through this exercise

resulting in humbler thankfulness for

each other and God.

April's lows-

A terrible accident in the community claiming two lives💔

A frightening farm accident next door resulting

in what 2 1/2 old told me was

'a ride in the sky' (a ride she can't remember but was told about)

these two events make the rest of April's lows a little pale in comparison;

like, another carbon tax

 burnt muffins,

undone to-do lists

needing new summer tires

missing my small group get-togethers 

April highs~

~survivors in an accident that could have been so much more tragic...

~watching the eclipse

~Deepened relationships/friendships with neighbors

~Tulips from my daughter Victoria

~Lunch dates with my mother-in-law,

and daughter and youngest grandson

~A precious budding friendship with above-mentioned 

2 1/2 yr. old as she spends evenings at my house while her parents

do dairy farm chores

~Adventures in faith resulting in

being speechlessly awed by God

~Enjoying spring outdoors with grandchildren

Finished painting and assembling spare room, begun a month before

~Discovering a bit of orange rind makes

the ordinary bran muffin extra-ordinary

~nice visit with mechanic and his wife when I picked up the car

dapper in new tires😂

~a new granddaughter for my friends (both grammas are friends of mine)

~first cup of fresh mint tea

~Feeling the prayers of my small group

~seeing my first Northern Flicker

Spring's first splendors, like daffodils and gorgeous greens

Some new song releases!

Below a few 'high' photos 

Northern Flicker (maxed out my zoom lens to get this shot!!)

tulips from Victoria (my youngest daughter)

Daffodils

Budding friendship/s...

below, one cutie cropped from photo to protect privacy💗💛

Spring opulence...

Finished spare bedroom, much to granddaughter's delight😉💖

Dresser from my Aunt and Uncle

Bed frame from my cousin

Quilt from my mother

The patchwork is pretty too, but for spring I chose the backside)

(hoping to add a few more family mementos)

Some new song releases

What Would Jesus Do?-

Cycle of Life

I Turn to Jesus

Beneath a Rush of Rose and Gold

A glorious spring-like morning 

can't help but rouse a humble tip o' the poet's hat

to the Giver

Wishing/praying God's blessing of joy to you today!

(my extra-special joy comes today in the form

of two little girls who used to be in my childcare!)

Earth’s ridges reappear beneath a rush of rose and gold

Birds warble welcome-hymns of cheer where days to years run bold

From the hand of the Giver like a bud bursting with hope

Like a gleam-giddy river as the snow melts from the slope

Light eddies into nooks and crooks like ocean-surge run wild

It overflows the air like brooks, like laughter of a child

And suddenly, like lambs in spring, faith leaps with joy, reborn

Beneath the rush of mercy’s Wing, the night is turned to morn

© Janet Martin

Acts 17:24-31

The God who made the world and everything in it 

is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. 

25 And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything.

 Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. 

26 From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; 

and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands.

 27 God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, 

though he is not far from any one of us. 

28 ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’[b] 

As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’[c]

29 “Therefore since we are God’s offspring, 

we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—

an image made by human design and skill. 

30 In the past God overlooked such ignorance, 

but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. 

31 For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. 

He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead.”

For Today's Roses (still taking shape)

Some days life is a lovely maze of roses and butterflies.

And some days are more like thorn pricks and bee stings.

No matter what kind of day we are having,

only we are responsible for how we reply...

(Yes! This sunny stretch is turning my thoughts gardenward😀💖)

Wishing you a rose-giddy weekend!

Dawn unfolds like a butterfly alighting on earth’s supine pose

Once more courage and faith ally, to try the bud that holds the rose

Where, dust of trust pulses with dreams and wholesome opportunity

Where, though circumstance sets the scene, reply is up to you and me

Where we are always young enough to do the good we ought, to pray

To take and make the most of love before life’s flower falls away

And speak the kind and gentle word and live to give rather than get

And keep our focus undeterred, on Due Season not rendered yet

Then, not grow weary in the good we ought to do, ere reaping starts

And, when love is misunderstood, to answer with forgiving hearts

Then we will never lack for joy, but always find fresh ways to gape

At buds beginning to deploy today’s roses still taking shape

© Janet Martin

Gal.6:9

And let us not grow weary while doing good,

 for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.

Yesterday was pleasant on the southside deck...

Today temps have plummeted to more seasonal settings

Sunrise Symphony

The past few mornings we are being treated

 to being greeted by

much appreciated welkin symphonies

after a long stretch of gloomy daybreaks!

An introduction starts to play from welkin symphonies...

An introduction starts to play from welkin symphonies

It fills the threshold of Today with thrilling harmonies

As melodies of blush and gold unfold the hailing sphere

While we, with rapt’rous gaze behold night’s shadows disappear

We lift our eyes above the stage of trouble’s wage unfurled

To feast upon the music page God hoists above the world

To bow on morning’s grandstand with stutter-uttered ‘oh my’

And join the worship anthems no lyrics can satisfy

Hope celebrates its anchor as pink hallelujahs peal

Joy’s chipped cup runneth over with mercy’s refurbished zeal

Faith transcends fear’s foreboding as welkin symphonies spill

To drown dread’s dismal goading with thunders of ‘peace, be still’

Exaltation’s hymn overflows before our lifted gaze

The introduction crescendos and sets our sights ablaze

Earth and sky’s voices coalesce, they cannot be ignored

In the Beauty of Holiness we worship you, oh LORD

© Janet Martin

Exaltation’s hymn overflows before our lifted gaze

The introduction crescendos and sets our sights/hearts ablaze...

Psalm 96:9

Oh, worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness!

Tremble before Him, all the earth.

I Set My Hope on Jesus

 

 

An Evolving Evaluation (of Evidence)

Today's poem began with a 'blush hush/rush' soon filled with workday noise!

 Happy workday, everyone! 

(and my heart/prayers go out to all who wish they could work and can't)

I hope today's poem grants a splash of joy and good cheer!

This poem kind of evolved with the dissolving of daybreak...

from texts from Young Mother...

...from rumble of industry

 

from not knowing where to begin

to count the ways of Evidence of Him...

all on a backdrop of Mercy's evidence renewed...

Dawn’s blush hush/rush fills with workday noise

Nature’s showcase unveils fresh joys

That none can claim with boastful pride

Where colors of the countryside

Like ever-changing works of art

Amaze the mind and thrill the heart

Evoking a hymn, like a prayer

In praise to One beyond compare

Whose ways we cannot comprehend

Whose faithfulness will never end

Whose Word is trustworthy and true

Whose promises naught can undo

Where, as dawn slips on workday hues/shoes

As industry resumes its dues

And motherhood its sacred charge

As dawn unmoors its teeming barge

How humbly wonderful to know

Whose goodness none can overthrow

Whose hope is sure, whose hand will guide

From break of day to eventide

Where nature’s showcase spills God’s heart

In unparalleled works of art

Where earth and sky declare His name

Inviting/compelling us to do the same

A wealth of wonder waits. Ahoy

Nature’s showcase erupts with joy

We hardly know where to begin

To count the frames, we see God in

Creation’s cradles stream and brim

With countless evidence of Him

Making more pitiful the clod

Who clings to denials of God

Making meeker all who believe

Because of the grace we receive

Making gladder the humbler prayer

To He who knows each creature care

© Janet Martin

Romans 1:20

For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—

his eternal power and divine nature—

have been clearly seen, 

being understood from what has been made, 

so that people are without excuse.

Whose hope is sure, whose hand will guide

From break of day to eventide...

Morning (or Afternoon) Minuet

I needed to head out before I got this morning's post up...

Better late than never😅💗

I 'adopted' a bit of Anne of Green Gables' logic this morning

as I headed outdoors for my morning 'commune' with

my Heavenly Father...

In Ontario we are accustomed to white landscapes in February

making this year's gray-blue-bronze panoramas seem sort of surreal! 

The music of a new day starts to play upon the air

Earth emerges from beneath the soft surge of morning-tide

Where something like a greeting hymn and something like a prayer

Erases slumber’s eulogy from waking countryside

Hope’s precedence persuades us to face forward and look up

Where splendor of mercies renewed compels shadows to dim

And bids us by the grace of God, once more to hoist faith’s cup

And trust Him for whatever spills to overflow its brim

Then sing to Him, whose love anoints/appoints each virgin steppingstone 

And bow before the one whose perfect will, will lead the way

And worship He who shepherds us through valleys of Unknown 

And trust the Hand that orchestrates each moment of each day

The music of a new day crescendos and fills the sky 

A little like a lilting celestial serenade

Or like a welkin minuet that kindles love's reply

With raised voices, to rejoice in this day the Lord has made 

© Janet Martin

Psalm 5:3

My voice You shall hear in the morning, O LORD; 

In the morning I will direct it to You, And I will look up.

Psalm 59:16
But I will sing of Your strength 

and proclaim Your loving devotion in the morning.

 For You are my fortress, 

my refuge in times of trouble.

I Will Wait For You

Lamentations 3:22-23

English Standard Version

22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;[a]

his mercies never come to an end;

23 they are new every morning;

great is your faithfulness.

More than It (December Dawn) Seems...

This morning kicked off its tick-tock shaped sun-kissed socks and shoes

before I was able to complete the poem 

that burst into wanting-to-be shortly after waking...

The beauty of meditation 

and the duty of obligation

 always com/posing stiff competition!

Sometimes a poem culminates best 

not pressed/suppressed by sheer determination

but by releasing its fragments until they return

in whispers begging to be penned.

So it was today...

I began dipping chocolate bars and maybe because my

fingertips were chocolatey and my mind at ease

lines teased and flickered,  begging me to wash my hands

and capture them before they waft irretrievably away 😂🙏

On Saturday's post I forgot to flip over the recipe card 

for homemade Chocolate Bars, to show dipping instructions.

I am sharing the dipping instructions instead,  from Jim's (husbands') aunt.

(who makes perfect chocolate bars every Christmas)

Melt your preferred variety of chocolate (I used semi-sweet blocks)

over LOW heat. 

(put water in a pot and set another pot on top and let  the chocolate melt at 

around 3 or 4 temperature on the burner.)

(add a bit of shortening or Paro-wax for glossier finish.)

Dip and cool!

This morning showcased a most welcome sunrise after a stretch of unsunny dawns!

Dawn seems to wear a prayer-like solemnity where new mercies spill

As heavens pale and lift the veil that yester-dusk lowered until

We couldn’t see December’s close-cropped lea, the dark and leafless copse

Etched in stark magnificence against brilliant, westerly backdrops

That dimmed and disappeared; earth’s tiered sweeps shrouded by a sea

That drew away Today laden with ample opportunity

Dawn seems to sing! Every morning the old is reborn and made new

As mercy grants rekindled chance to learn to love as we ought to

Humbly aware of He who cares and helps us bear our shares of Must

Before we pass through that last door of Soul-to-God and dust to dust

And thus, because life is precious and Time a Very Fleeting Flow’r

Dawn seems to wake an urgent ache to make the most of every hour

….each moment rife with unlived life becoming lived; the untouched, touched

And often we forget what we beget as dawn is crudely crushed

By hands and feet; demands compete and how we meet them will become

Without disguise, the ink that dries in a Book tabling each day’s sum

While ticking clocks keep kicking off the shoes and socks at dawn reborn

And sometimes we are prone to see nothing at all but 'morn-to-morn'

…and often dawn seems here and gone without a second thought or prayer

A gift from God we barely nod at as it drifts, not to thin air

But to a page, where age to age is recording daily reply

Its telling proof spelling the truth that will be futile to deny

Then, pray that want may be subdued by gratitude as mercy streams

Renewed; where dawn is like a glimpse of Heaven bursting at its seams

© Janet Martin

And, let we forget!!!

As true now as in the days of Jeremiah's lament...

Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed,
Because His compassions fail not.
They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness.
 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
“Therefore I hope in Him!”

Lam.3:22-24

O Morning Star

Love and Learning's Celebration

Joy to the world, the Lord is come!

Today is like an invitation to 

so much joy still left to taste

because joy is unlike most delights we seize 

and devour and then,

 they disappear!

One of my most dearly loved chapters was part of today's bible-in-a-year reading!

1 Pet.1:8

Though you have not seen him, you love him; 

and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him 

and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy,...

1 Pet. 1:21

Through him you believe in God, 

who raised him from the dead and glorified him,

 and so your faith and hope are in God.

In this life of love and learning

Rife with delight and dismay

May the Maker of each morning

Kindle gladness for today

May the Harbinger of Heaven

Fill our days with holy worth

For to know we are forgiven

Is the greatest joy on earth

Today unfolds like a flower

Hour-petals fade and fall

Unlike delights we devour

Joy transcends the tangible

Unlike moments softly drifting

Like snowflakes that melt away

God instills dawn’s daily gifting

With joy hinged to Endless Day

We know there is no returning

To estrangement’s yester-place

Today is for love, and learning

Fresh arrangements of God’s grace

Dawn is like an invitation

To what we ought never waste

Love and learning’s celebration

Of so much joy still to taste

© Janet Martin

1 Pet. 1:3-7

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! 

In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope

 through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. 

This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded

 by God’s power until the coming of the salvation 

that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 

6 In all this you greatly rejoice, 

though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 

7 These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—

of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—

may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

I love old books by or about pastors that share wisdom and humor

forged from fellowship and challenges of family and flock!

such as the book I am reading right now...

saying no to a 'money-career' offer, after devastating loss of a hurricane

to a disillusioned doctor who was trying to wash/swim

 his troubles away in the ocean every morning...

to a young girl going down a bad way...