Prelude To Perfect Harmony

Morning rends time’s seamless quiver

Like a Hallelujah Hymn...

Turning to these dear familiar verses this morning...

in Lam.3:22-24&32

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!”

Though He causes grief,

Yet He will show compassion

According to the multitude of His mercies.

From the unplumbed heights of heaven

As moon and stars are subdued

Ensembles of night are riven

With mercy’s anthem renewed

Morning rends time’s seamless quiver

Like a Hallelujah Hymn

To partaker from the Giver

Hails hope’s haloed seraphim

Ever faithful through the ages

Man’s Maestro of numbered days

Tunes the timbre of time’s pages

We cannot reckon His ways

But, because of sins forgiven

And the purchase-price He paid

We praise the God of Salvation

For this new day He has made

Our Father, who art in Heaven

Thou who lovest one and all

Keen us to the composition

Where moments like eighth notes fall

In steadfast determination

Weening that which will become

The sacred manifestation

Of worship’s recorded sum

Help us follow the instruction

Of love's baton in Thy Name

Till pray, death is the induction

Into Heaven’s Hall of (Thy) Fame

Where our songs will never falter

Nor our music be off key

As Beholding melts faith’s altar

Into perfect harmony

© Janet Martin

 

O, God Our Help in Ages Past

 

Till The Storm Passes By

 

Arise, Arise (and let the sacrifice of praise begin)

 

Without His resurrection there could be no 

hope of resurrection/Heaven for us 

on the glorious Day when He returns!

Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Is this not then the most precious verse in the whole gospel!

Matthew 28:6

He is not here: for he is risen, as he said.

Because He Lives

Lest ignorance or apathy becomes our greatest sin

Arise, arise, and let the sacrifice of praise begin

The tomb that held His body and the stone that sealed the door

Could not contain the hope of man that lives forevermore

Then do not let the stones cry out but sing with all our might

Salvation’s plan has been fulfilled; darkness has turned to light

What seemed to be the end was but the part that man could see

The sorrow and the suffering before the victory

Take heart, the part that we behold is not fulfillment yet

Then praise He who did not withhold forgiveness of sin’s debt

But gave his life to offer man, life more abundantly

By becoming a bloody, broken body on a tree

At Calvary they could not see death and hell overthrown

Or fulness of the gospel as it poured from skin and bone

Or how He was set down, enthroned at the right hand of God

For they had seen the heavy stone, the guards, the lifeless bod

But then He rose and grief turned into joy beyond compare

Hope lives; then let redemption’s hymn become a living prayer

He loved beneath the hateful smite and sting of nails and swords

Oh, praise the name of Jesus, King of kings and Lord of lords

For He will not forsake us; His love is faithful and true

Victory’s shining hour waits when life’s travail is through

Receive the gift He came to give; the One we crucified

And crowned with thorns has borne The Rose; let Christ be glorified

© Janet Martin

I Will Come To You...

I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.

John 14:18

Let us never dare to think when we see God

we will hold Him accountable to us for something

we are called to suffer!!

On the brink of His betrayal, torture, and crucifixion

to purchase man's redemption 

He gave His Disciples (all who will believe in Him)

a most precious promise!

Have you claimed it/Him?

And I will pray the Father,

and he shall give you another Comforter,

that he may abide with you for ever;

John 14: 16

But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, 

whom the Father will send in my name, 

he shall teach you all things,

 and bring all things to your remembrance, 

whatsoever I have said unto you.

 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you:

 not as the world giveth, give I unto you. 

Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

John 14:26-27

The above verses were part of a comforting funeral message

 for the family and fellow-mourners

at the loss of Cody Troy

my nephew's son/brother's grandson.

We mourn, but with hope of seeing him again!

 Father Along was sung at the first part of the service

 which aunts and uncles attended

 (second stanza esp. fitting)

Near The Cross

Oh, God, the sense of loss we feel

When loved one’s ways are parted

Can spark longing’s utmost appeal

And leave us broken-hearted

But You, whose ways we cannot know

Though we may seek to fathom

Are always faithful to bestow

Your uttermost compassion

When on the brink of agony

To purchase man’s salvation

You poured Your sacred sympathy

In words of consolation

‘I will not leave you comfortless’

Oh, what a tender token

This most precious of promises

On the eve of Your death spoken

For all who believe will receive

Your Holy Spirit’s kindness

A Truth the world cannot perceive

Because of grievous blindness

But you provide a Comforter

In sorrow’s darkest hour

While we behold the sufferer

You behold grace and power

The bud, before the bloom unfolds

Does not reveal its glory

So too mortal visage beholds

But a glimpse of the story

Then help us not to hate or doubt

Love beyond comprehension

But pray instead for those without

Thy Spirit’s intervention

You will not leave us comfortless

Though trial's troubles test us

We have your precious promises

To sustain and to bless us

Oh God, you know grief's anguish too

You suffered our pardon

Then help us wholly lean on you

Lest our hearts should harden

© Janet Martin

Yet Hope Lives

 

(my brother's grandson)

In Memory of Cody Troy

August 27, 2019-March 28,2021

Yet Hope Lives

When God reaches down from Heaven

For a child, so sweet and fair

Hearts with sorrow’s pangs are riven

We are tempted to despair

When death claims a life so tender

Grief is raw and tender too

Yet Hope lives as we remember

Where this little angel flew

Safe within the arms of Jesus

Is the little child He lent

For a little while to please us

And make homes and hearts content

Gifting gladness with their laughter

Weaving through grief’s agonies

Fond echoes that linger after

Touch has turned to memories

God ordains our days of passage

Before one has come to be

Some He spares from life’s cruel heartaches

Some must suffer patiently

So, by grace that we are given

We will hope and not despair

When God reaches down from Heaven

For a child so sweet and fair

© Janet Martin

Good Friday Meditation

My Faith Looks Up To Thee

 

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus,

 the author and perfecter of our faith, 

who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, 

scorning its shame, 

and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God

Heb12:2.

So much to woo and distract us

In a world of fear and dread

Oh Lord, let the truth attract us

Fix our hope on You instead

Draw our gaze from what depraves us

Time is but a transient spree

Let us look to love that saves us

Fix our eyes on Calvary

Let us look to love that frees us

Authoring salvation’s hymn

Let us see the love of Jesus

Fix our faith wholly on Him

So much to trouble and test us

So much enmity and strife

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus

He is the Way, Truth and Life

Let us turn our attention

From wants of this wicked world

Look to Calvary’s redemption

And Hope’s Blood-banner unfurled

Let us find faith’s satisfaction

In love’s gift, so bitter-sweet

Through Christ’s death and resurrection

Our pardon is complete

Then, when woes and sorrows torment

When through tears, the way grows dim

Let us look beyond the moment

Let us fix our eyes on Him

© Janet Martin

Introduction Poem

PAD Challenge Day one;

Write an introduction poem

I am an ardent admirer of nature...

I am the shorelines that cradle the ocean

I am the ocean that dashes the shore

I am a drifter on hazy horizons

I am a hunter of ‘much wanting more’

I am a creature of rhyming-habit

I am a grandmother, mother and child

I am a beggar of crumbs, ink anointed

I am the wind as it wanders the wild

I am a painter of wonder and wishes

I am a trawler of seas, starry-sighed

I am a weaver of whispers so precious

I plant the page with a gardener’s pride

I am a loner and I am a lover

Caught in a tango-of-thought-stealing ‘oh’

I am the rambler that tramples the clover

A dancer torn between hold and let go

I am an ardent admirer of nature

I am a surfer of word ebb and surge

I am a woman of heart and soul stature

I am a poet when thought and ink merge

© Janet Martin

Those Tears We Pray...

No eloquent words shape this week's prayers,

only tears.

SO many hurts and needs of

sickness and sorrow, broken relationships

in this old world

but God, so much More You!

Oh, God, 

Hear our tears.

Be with those who have lost loved ones.

Be with those who stand by (outside hospital doors!!!)

while their suffering loved ones are admitted!

Oh, God, minister to the suffering

in ways known only to You!

Turning to this old Hymn today...

God Moves in a Mysterious Way-William Cowper

Those tears we pray,

They wing their way

From sorrow’s clay to God

When words won’t shape

The want and ache

That rends the speechless clod

He hears the heart

The sting and smart

Of sorrow’s sob and plea

And bears us up

…cradles the cup

That mirrors Calvary

© Janet Martin

Psalm 53:8

You number my wanderings; 

Put my tears into Your bottle;

 Are they not in Your book?

Psalm 39:12
Hear my prayer, O LORD, and give ear to my cry for help; 

do not be deaf to my weeping. 

For I am a foreigner dwelling with You, 

a stranger like all my fathers.

Because Of His Mercy...

Titus 3:5-7: 

"He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.

 He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit,

 whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, 

so that, having been justified by his grace, 

we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life."

You are invited to join us as we worship on Good Friday

and Easter Sunday!

Harmonica players have a special place in my heart

so I chose this version of a favorite hymn for this post

Nothing But the Blood of Jesus- Buddy Greene

 

Does mercy not make worth the while of ‘smile and try again’

For mercy meets us in each mile it metes, of joy and pain

Life’s flight of forward measured mien would be a fear-filled Must

Without love’s merciful Unseen to anchor hope and trust

Oh Lord, increase faith’s sacred claim, as we press to the Prize

Let Your Name be the only name our worship magnifies

Let the sword of the Spirit (which is your Word) be our might

For by your mercy, we are brought/bought from darkness into Light

May the mercy that you have shown fill us and overflow

From vessels made of skin and bone, so everyone may know

That You loved us so much you sent Your Son to pay the price

So that no one may perish but all have eternal life

Because of your mercy oh Lord our faith is not in vain

By Your mercy grace has restored mankind to You again

The deceiver, the enemy of God is overthrown

Once and for all you shed Your blood sin’s verdict to atone

Your sacrifice has washed away the need for bull and ram

For blood of beast could never pay, only a perfect Lamb

So by the mercy of the One who beheld Calvary

I AM became the scapegoat for the likes of you and me

Oh, let the wonder of such love give weary souls a lift

God loves each one of us so much He still holds out His Gift

Of ‘all who believe will not perish but will be forgiv’n

And receive everlasting life; not death and hell, but Heav’n

Mercy holds wide the door; the Ark of Safety is not sealed

Look up, do not ignore the stripes whereby mankind is healed

Whereby Hope is an anchor though life's storms may surge and toss

Mercy secures faith’s armour in the power of the cross

© Janet Martin

Isa.53:4-6

Surely He took on our infirmities and carried our sorrows; 

yet we considered Him stricken by God, struck down and afflicted.

 5But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities;

 the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.

 6We all like sheep have gone astray, each one has turned to his own way; 

and the LORD has laid upon Him the iniquity of us all.…

Heb.9:22

...without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.

Heb.10:19-25

Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place

 by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us

 through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 

 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings,

 having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience 

and having our bodies washed with pure water. 

 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 

 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 

 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, 

but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.