Come To Jesus

 Come to Jesus - Chris Rice

One scandal after another after another...

One we are all a part of; Sin

We all need Jesus

for there is no one righteous, no, not one

So when they continued asking him, 

he lifted up himself, and said unto them, 

He that is without sin among you,

let him first cast a stone at her.

John 8:7

Matthew 1:21
She will give birth to a Son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus, 

because He will save His people from their sins."

Acts 4:12

Salvation is found in no one else, 

for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind 

by which we must be saved."

Come to Jesus, 

Full forgiveness 

Waits the sinner to immerse 

Come to Jesus 

He releases 

Condemnation’s 

Woeful curse 

What is man 

But bent and broken 

‘neath a debt of guilt and shame 

Come to Jesus 

Mercy frees us 

There is hope in Jesus’ Name 

Come to Jesus 

Heavy-laden 

Come to love that will not fail 

Lay down dread 

And regret’s burden 

Death and hell will not prevail 

Let the rivers 

Of salvation 

In scarlet redemption flow 

There is no more 

Condemnation 

To sinner’s washed white as snow 

Come to Jesus 

He receives us 

Without prejudice and blame 

Come to Jesus 

Trust His promise 

‘to pardon is why He came’ 

Do not let the 

Lies of evil 

Keep you bound by doubt’s dark hour 

This is but 

The blight of Eden 

Seeking who he may devour 

Come to Jesus 

Rock of ages 

Anchoring the storm-tossed Soul

Come to Jesus 

He will save us 

Only faith can make us whole 

© Janet Martin 

What A Love!

 

Today, for some Christians, Lent begins.

This meditation is a reflection

to remind us we give

because
we have been given!

How does one select only one,

from a vast collection of amazing renditions of this song; 

Amazing Grace

Redemption, what a word 

Released from a debt we incurred 

Forgiveness signed by blood of He 

Who authored sky and sod and sea 

And died upon a cross for us 

Redeemed from sin by Him, Jesus 

Salvation, what a gift 

Divine atonement spans the rift 

That began when Adam and Eve 

Were ripe and ready to deceive 

When doubting God, they ate the fruit 

That He forbade, and sin took root 

Grace, mercy’s uttermost 

Saved, not by works lest any boast 

But for man’s universal Fall 

He sealed our pardon once for all 

And will our every sin forgive 

To all who repent, look, and live 

Hope, what a glorious goal

Awaits faith's death-victorious soul

No one can add or take away

What Christ accomplished on that day

When from death to life He arose

Triumphant over Eden's woes

Jehovah, what a God 

Demons tremble and saints applaud 

He who is coming back again 

But not even angels know when 

We will behold heavens ablaze 

With Son of Man, Ancient of Days 

© Janet Martin 

Whisper-weight

A whisper can move mountains...

I whispered as I watched the darkness begin to break 

beneath the weight of dawn's whisper

(and the next bit was a dash between keyboard and curtain-rise to a new day)😊

A whisper can move mountains When entrusted to the One 

Who woos from outer regions faithful rising of the sun 

Who decorates the heavens with a sumptuous glory-feast 

And feeds hunger for beauty from buffets poised on the east 

Who awes us, humbly human with his flawless majesty 

Who never turns a blind eye or deaf ear to you and me 

Who loves us so he gave the best He had, His only Son 

To pay the debt we never could for each and every one 

Who can call on His name if we but repent and believe 

A whisper can move mountains as His pardon we receive 

As mercy rends the veil of inner darkness with His Light 

Like morning's molten, golden whisper woos away the night 

© Janet Martin 

Matthew 17:20
"Because you have so little faith," He answered. 

"For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, 

you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' 

and it will move. 

Nothing will be impossible for you."

Matthew 21:21
"Truly I tell you," Jesus replied, "if you have faith and do not doubt, 

not only will you do what was done to the fig tree,

 but even if you say to this mountain, 'Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,'

 it will happen.

1 Kings 19:11-12

The LORD Speaks to Elijah at Horeb
…11Then the LORD said,

 “Go out and stand on the mountain before the LORD.

 Behold, the LORD is about to pass by.” 

And a great and mighty wind tore into the mountains 

and shattered the rocks before the LORD,

 but the LORD was not in the wind.

 After the wind there was an earthquake, 

but the LORD was not in the earthquake.

 12After the earthquake there was a fire, 

but the LORD was not in the fire. 

And after the fire came a still, small voice.

Meanwhile westward as best as I could see...

 (pretend the three pics are side by side)

1 Corinthians 13:2
If I have the gift of prophecy 

and can fathom all mysteries 

and all knowledge, 

and if I have absolute faith 

so as to move mountains, 

but have not love, 

I am nothing.

I Love You, Lord

Sons and Heirs (How can it be?)

Glorious truth (for we who believe) to ponder!

Gal.4:4-7

But when the set time had fully come, 

God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law,

  to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship.[b] 

 Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, 

the Spirit who calls out, “Abba,[c] Father.” 

 So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; 

and since you are his child, 

God has made you also an heir.

Tell me the Story of Jesus

Then, when we were still dead in sin 

As lost, as lost can be 

The Son of God came down to man 

To die for you and me 

To die, and thereby conquer death 

Oh, sacred mystery 

To make we, lowly sons of earth 

Part of God’s family 

To do through love what law could not 

To set sin’s captive free 

No longer slaves, but sons of God 

Then heirs of Royalty 

As sons of God, we, sons of men 

Dare not Freedom forsake 

Lest we become enslaved again 

By chains He came to break 

© Janet Martin 

Galatians 5:1

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. 

Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves 

be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

Today's Daily Bread Devotion

Journey to Deeper Love and Gratitude

The older I get the more real and dear this cry of David becomes:

Psalm 130:1-4

Out of the depths I cry to you, Lord;

2 Lord, hear my voice.

Let your ears be attentive

to my cry for mercy.

3 If you, Lord, kept a record of sins,

Lord, who could stand?

4 But with you there is forgiveness,

so that we can, with reverence, serve you.

Give Me Jesus 

Life can be mean when left to means that seem to make first-impulse-sense 

When we react without weighing the impact of the consequence 

We tend to think after the chink in faulty armour is exposed 

Rather than first examine best and worst outcome scenarios 

To test the measure of time’s treasure that slips through us breath by breath 

Is an awak’ning undertaking that could scare us half to death 

Because the laws of cause and effect are not tricked by time or rank 

Where the reaping is in keeping with the kind of seeds we plant 

To think that we can wink at wisdom and somehow not pay the price 

Or that desire is no liar when it ignores sound advice 

Is but to play the fool most truly no matter how cool it seems 

For consequence compensates duly what conscience and choice esteems 

If God kept tally of our folly who could stand and who could pay 

But to repentance he grants pardon and His strength to face the day 

Love incomparable makes bearable the harvest, not subdued 

Obedience, the evidence of love and humble gratitude 

© Janet Martin 

Resounding Praise for Abounding Love

Psalm 103:1

The LORD works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.

The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. 

he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. 

as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

Psalm 130:3-4

If you, Lord, kept a record of sins,

Lord, who could stand?

But with you there is forgiveness,

so that we can, with reverence, serve you.

May our outlook always be an up-look!

The scenery changes with the season...

but never the Reason of hope!

The valley of reflection can feel cold and dark and wet 

It steals the light of laughter if we linger there too long 

The weight of condemnation can crush us with sad regret 

If we forget that God forgives and helps us carry on 

This is the day that He has made to look ahead, not back 

To walk upon the stepping-stones we stumbled on before 

To be aware of what we have in spite of all we lack 

God’s grace always sufficient for whatever lies in store 

Futile to dwell where we can never alter what is done 

Better to focus on the mercy of this present morn 

For He forgives the sinner through the merit of his Son 

As far as east is from the west, man’s transgression is borne 

Then when the deceiver attempts to drag us to a pit 

Of doubt and dark despair remember He who loves us so 

His kindness and compassion do not recount our debt 

But only sees the perfect grace He grants whereby we go 

His love abounds and metes the grounds for peace and happiness 

If we ask he will give and if we seek him we will find 

He is faithful and just and forgives us if we confess 

Then pray we live to love him with heart, soul and strength and mind 

For HE IS, WAS and WILL BE faithful, changeless, GREAT I AM

Ah, what is man that God is mindful of mortal at all

And yet for man He gave His Son to be the slaughtered Lamb

And save all who believe from that which sin conceived; the fall

Therefore no valley of despair is deep or dark enough

To hide us from the One who sees exactly where we are

For nothing can separate us from His abounding love

Ah, look! the hand that holds us bears love's signature, a scar

© Janet Martin

When On Love's Wounds We Meditate...

 ...lest I make a fuss about things not needful!😆

(it's not that bad, really!)

Who knew all these years later the hanky from my gramma

that became church-mice and babies in a  hammock
and many other folded creations,

as I sat for two hours in church every Sunday morning,

would become a mask!!!

I also have a 'real' one, don't worry!

(sometimes when I forget what's really important it's good to

take time to revisit and remember.)

When on love’s wounds we meditate

And contemplate the price

Of He who left heaven’s estate

To be sin’s sacrifice

Then what we suffer here below

Begins to dwarf in scale

For He, whose grace whereby we go

Grants love that will not fail

When we revisit Calvary

And stand among the men

Who nailed his body to the tree

(and we were one of them)

Then we begin to humbly see

How filthy we had been

How utterly unworthy we

That His blood washes clean

Then we with sorrow-mingled joy

Are overcome with awe

God’s grace is free without decoy

His love is Mercy’s law

And should I take my eyes off He

Who suffered in my stead

Lord, lead me back to Calvary

Beneath the blood You shed

© Janet Martin

Hope (No Holds Barred)

Where we tripped over stumbling blocks we laid

And plans we made succeeded to our shame

And choice now bears the price we blindly paid

And we have no one but ourselves to blame

When deeds, meat for repentance, proved The Fall

Our God so rich in mercy forgave/forgives all

When consequence abounds in bitter fruit

(For root of pride can yield no goodly/godly gain)

And if repentance is not absolute

We weep and beg upon our knees in vain)

But if we have surrendered, no holds barred

God reaches down with hands, redemption-scarred

When we groan ‘neath the weight of Wisdom earned

Through what we yearned for, long returned to dust

While Thought by human nature too oft spurned

Kind admonition contrary to lust

When we with contrite spirit make amends

Then God so rich in forgiveness defends

When we battle with demons, dark with doubt

And eyes are drawn from Hands, still grace engraved

Then call on the Him, for no one is cast out

Whoever calls on Jesus will be saved

There is room at the cross for everyone

Where God so rich in mercy gave His Son

When we are tempted to despair, press on

For all we bear for Christ in not in vain

And ought we not to suffer for the One

Who bore our debt so that to die is gain

Now then forget what lies behind, instead

Press on toward the Prize that lies ahead

…for when we trust in He who keeps His Word

Engrossed in more than subjects sight-defined

Then we can live with passion undeterred

Vision no longer blurred with double mind

And when at last we pass through death’s cold gates

God who made Heaven possible there waits

© Janet Martin

 Phil. 3:13-14 (BSB)

Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. 

But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind 

and straining toward what is ahead,

I press on toward the goal to win the prize 

of God’s heavenly calling in Christ Jesus.

Undeserved Forgiveness

If we confess our sins,

he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins

and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

1 John 1:9

 

Undeserved forgiveness

God, how can it be?

For you fully witness

Our depravity

Yet You do not waver

Lord, if we confess

You cleanse us, dear Saviour

From unrighteousness

Lord of loving kindness

You grant in wrath’s place

Undeserved forgiveness

Unmerited grace

© Janet Martin

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

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

not by works, so that no one can boast.

Eph.2:8-9