June Boon

June as always is brimming with nature's boon...

June tosses lures Peony-pure...

like peering into iris-trove...

...like lolling in arboretums

where hollyhock and clematis

and wisteria whisper, oh

like lingering in knee-deep drifts

of silver dandelion-snow...

like letting waves wash Want away...

...like twilight's slow release

June tosses lures Peony-pure

Delight. Backdrops of flawless hue

invite us to earth’s banquet room

of carpet green, and awning blue

to be honored partakers of

nature’s guiltless pleasure-buffet

like peering into iris-trove

like letting waves wash Want away

like sipping the sunny-sweet breeze

like honey-bees, heady with crumbs

of pollen sticking to our knees

like lolling in arboretums

where hollyhock and clematis

and wisteria whisper, oh

like lingering in knee-deep drifts

of silver dandelion-snow

like standing stock-still mesmerized

by ruby-throated hummingbird

like being agelessly surprised

by nature’s rhythms undeterred

like robin as it sings for rain

like midnight’s wildlife rendezvous

as gardeners start to complain

about what naughty rabbits do

where delights are the dearer, for

the verge where always troubles lurk

where June is like a troubadour

and toil can hardly be called ‘work’

where pools of shade, second to none

hail us for high-noon holiday

and the school-year is nearly done

where children shout hip-hip-hooray

and buses breathe sighs of relief

and drivers too; (do I hear ‘yes!’?)

where zephyrs tickle verdant leaf

that tickles hearts with happiness

where a communion-wafer moon

serenades twilight’s slow release

where heaven on earth must be June

and June must be Time’s Masterpiece

© Janet Martin

like standing stock-still mesmerized

by ruby-throated hummingbird...

It's Not Fancy, Love's Commitment

Marriage; that 'till death do us part' commitment

...that 'what God has joined together let no one put asunder' undertaking

...that 'for better or worse' that's bound to try even the starriest eyes 

Marriage; that union no love is ever fully prepared for

Today Jim and I, by the grace of God

 celebrate 35 years of marriage

it's not fancy, love's commitment

keeping kindness on its toes

learning how to be more patient

rather than wield verbal blows

learning to weather together

what could well draw us apart

when differences strain the tether

that has knit us heart to heart 

it's not fancy, love in action

testing more than how one feels

 about the truth of attraction

after first love cools its heels

its a digging in together

so we do not drift apart

in our promise of 'forever'

love; not for the faint of heart

it's not fancy, love's meek glory

tempered by both smile and tear

it's as simple as 'I'm sorry'

**(it's as hard as this, my dear)

it's a bittersweet commitment

bringing out our worst and best

as we stick to the fulfillment

of  vows human natures test

it's not fancy, being faithful

being gentle, being strong

being unselfish and grateful

 helping each other along

following Jesus example

of a sacrificial life

it's not fancy, love's wonder-full

journey as husband and wife 

💖💖💖

Janet Martin

As life writes our love stories,

as years fall behind us so swiftly

faithful love of husband and wife reaps a harvest

so worth the effort.

and it's not fancy,

or glamourous,

(for by now we've both too often stumbled

and been soundly humbled) 

until all that is left to exclaim is

'thank-you God' for your faithfulness

making possible ours!

...and through it all we marvel at how love

doesn't look anything like we once envisioned, but the more beautiful

because of its weathering!

When we get to those seasons in marriage when we're sure it's not going to work,

it is vital we pray to God for His faithfulness to see us through,

to help us remain faithful to the vows we made before Him!

Nobody has a successful marriage because it is easy.

Faithfulness happens day by day...

the other day on Ann Voskamp's blog

this beautiful guest post!!

Day-to-Day Grace for your Marriage

Psalm 25:4

(a good prayer for marriage)

Show me your way, O Lord,

teach me your path.

** and a genuine 'I'm sorry' is not

"I'm sorry that you feel that I should be sorry for something

that I feel I don't need to be sorry for!!"😅

One of my fav love songs!

The Rose

Because Satan is a Charmer (we need God's Armour)

The reason deceit is so cunning/detrimental is because

it comes in a way that seems right to us, 

but leads to death-

Prov.14:12

There is a way that seems right to a man,

but its end is the way of death.

Because, without knowledge of the Truth

we are prone to believe logic's lie...

Matt.22:9

Jesus answered and said unto them, 

Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, 

nor the power of God.

The knowledge of the power of God 

is the true believer's comfort and peace in these troubled times!

Hallelujah! but...

this is not a sit-back-and-do-nothing-warfare,

it's a watching-God-work as 'we do all we can to stand' warfare...

(see Eph. 6:10-20 below)

Because the wars of faith are fought on battlegrounds within

The Armor of the Lord is for the man beneath our skin

To guard the heart and mind against the liar’s insurgence

Whose mission is to blind us to sin’s dire consequence

Therefore we need God’s armor in a land where evil smiles

So that we may be able to withstand the devil’s wiles

Because rulers of darkness, disguised as angels of light

Are both cunning and heartless, we must be equipped to fight

Without the belt of truth and the breastplate of righteousness

We are like open prey to he who breeds ungodliness

Therefore, we need God’s armor to protect thought’s open street

Where Satan is a charmer and a master of deceit

Pity all whose feet are not shod with the gospel of peace

Who have no shield of faith in God to quench bold wickedness

No helmet of salvation to enrich hope undeterred

And no sword of the spirit which is God’s eternal Word

Oh, pity all who live without God’s armor to secure

Defenseless against darts of doubt, or glamour’s lethal lure

Today, before we take another step, oh pray we pause

And do a thorough armor-check with prayerful care because

We wrestle not with flesh and blood, but evil’s ruthless brood

Who are the enemy of God, truthless, devoid of good

But, with the name of Jesus and the power of His might

God’s grace equips and frees us from the fear of death/man, to fight

© Janet Martin

Take the Name of Jesus with You

 

Eph.6:10-20

The Whole Armor of God

10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 

11 Put on the whole armor of God, 

that you may be able to stand against the [b]wiles of the devil. 

12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, 

but against principalities, against powers, 

against the rulers of [c]the darkness of this age, 

against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 

13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, 

that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, 

and having done all, to stand.

14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth,

 having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 

15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

 16 above all, taking the shield of faith 

with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 

17 And take the helmet of salvation, 

and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;

 18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, 

being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints— 

19 and for me, that utterance may be given to me, 

that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, 

20 for which I am an ambassador in chains; 

that in it I may speak boldly, 

as I ought to speak.

All Aboard (on our way to meeting the Lord)

Happy Birthday, Jim!

A glimpse at his view this morning!

(from New Jersey and New York)

I wonder how many miles Jim has traveled in 37 years of truck-driving!

Today Jim has reached the milestone of 59 years of life!

What a blessing, not to be taken for granted!

 

Whether viewed over the hood of a truck or otherwise,

the scenery of our lives is as varied and diverse as the journeys,

Some reject the Conductor, others revere and love Him, but

all will appear before Him when we come to the end of life's journey,

where one of two eternities awaits;

 forever with Him or forever separated.

With Him= forever joy, life and light/Day.

Without Him = forever anguish, death and darkness.

Mark 16:16

Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, 

but whoever does not believe will be condemned.

***

All aboard, cries the Conductor as the new-born baby cries

As the first breath births life’s journey of the Soul that never dies

From He, who our days has written before one has come to be

From God, the Giver and Taker of fleeting mortality

Courses the measure of moments, tick by tock its torrent flows

Forcing the child soon to grapple with the thorns beneath the rose

All aboard, cries the Conductor at the portal of sunrise

Rife with life’s inevitable ups and downs of lows and highs

Subtle carousel of seasons spins, and spills what soon is spent

My, how sacred is our answer to He who life’s lease has lent

Where love is His utter reason, while faith musters flying leaps

No passenger is forgotten in the promises He keeps

All aboard, cries the Conductor. Only He/God can see the whole

How near is the final station/Destination where dust is brushed from the Soul

Thus, we at the faithful mercy of God’s goodness, truth and grace

Ought to ponder oft the moment when we meet Him face to face

Careful in how we maneuver every hill and hairpin curve

For this is how we will prove who we believe and who we serve

All aboard, cries the Conductor, as onto dawn’s car we climb

Where today some will be ushered from This Thoroughfare of Time

Thus, we should regard with honor every opportunity

To be loving to each other, fellow travelers are we

Until one by one each swaying, Soul-hinged pendulum is stilled

As each day of grace, prewritten has been offered and fulfilled

Hark, across Time's landscape tolls the holy call of, 'all aboard!'

On this very sacred passage, on our way to meet the Lord

© Janet Martin

Psalm 139:14-16

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

your works are wonderful,

I know that full well.

15My frame was not hidden from you

when I was made in the secret place,

when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.

16Your eyes saw my unformed body;

all the days ordained for me were written in your book

before one of them came to be.

Sometimes when Jim calls me

he is parked at a railway waiting for the train to pass...

Life Railway to Heaven

over the years there's been a lot of this...

(exchanging empty thermos and lunch-bag for full)

For Every (one-time gift) of Today

Rom.11:36

For of Him 

and through Him 

and to Him 

are all things, 

to whom be glory forever.

 Amen.

For every afternoon not yet framed in fond remembrance

For every day of June still like a pearl in welkin shells

For every wave not yet undone by shoreline’s supine stance

For every grave still waiting for what every breath soft-fells

For every sweet delight and bitter bite from life’s buffet

Not sampled yet; we rise to greet the surprise of Today

For every good and perfect gift from mercy’s treasured trove

For every echo not yet drifting in past’s pastel clime

For every memento first refined by faith, hope and love

For every moment-morsel not yet run through hands of time

From He who gives all that we take, from He who takes away

We trust His grace and thank Him for the blessing of today

For from and to and for Him are all things; to Him all praise

For every lesson not yet taught or learned by young or old

For every green of innocence still unseared by want’s ways

For every earnest shepherd of lambs, eternity-souled

For every hymn unraveled by the willow-limbs that sway

For every sacred beauty-onus-impact of today

For this we touch toes down once more on the tarmac of morn

For every hour still unwed to flickers, farewell-kissed

For every daisy still unchained, for ballads not yet born

For every flower-lyric , orange, yellow, amethyst

For thoughts, pure, honest, noble, true and lovely, Lord, we pray

That we would honor You with each one-time gift of today

© Janet Martin

Finally, brothers and sisters, 

whatever is true,

 whatever is noble, 

whatever is right, 

whatever is pure, 

whatever is lovely, 

whatever is admirable—

if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—

think about such things. 

Phil.4:8

Dear May, a Farewell Love-letter

 Happy last Day of May!

Dear May, somehow you always exceed eager expectation

As you begin to nurture nature’s treed rejuvenation

As gardens start to thrill our gaze with petal-punctuation

And overhead a minstrel plays leaf-lays in celebration

Dear May, you always rouse anew, rekindled planting pleasure

As you run wooing whispers through buds bursting with bloom treasure

As you, beneath young and old feet, unfurl your finest measure

Where beauty and duty compete with lures of toil and leisure

Dear May, the way you always spill with April’s remnant showers

Makes worth the while it takes until you reward faith with flowers

Tulip chalices, bleeding hearts, allium, lilac-bowers

Always, your floral drumroll kickstarts summer’s fleeting hours

Dear May, your dust is sacred, stirred by farmer’s urgent labor

Your prudent lease sublimely blurred by your lime-coloured saber

Waving a welkin wand that welcomes home the long-lost neighbor

As nests are built and filled with featherdown and fledgling caper

Dear May, it always feels as if you leave us way too soon-oh

Medley of march-and-meander through days, dandeli’n-strewn-oh

We could not bear the fare-thee-well of your sweet afternoon-oh

But for the tolling of a bell that always brings us June-oh

© Janet Martin

Perfect Fit...

When the backdrop of day is green

Because the bud has borne its sheen...

And when the crown of it is blue...

And when the dawn of it is new

And when its gown is lilac-starred

And its breeze like soft seas unbarred...

And when its flowers smile and nod

And when its Gardener is God...

Is it not enough just to fit

Into a teeny bit of it...

When the backdrop of day is green

Because the bud has borne its sheen

And when the crown of it is blue

And when the dawn of it is new

And when its gown is lilac-starred

And its breeze like soft seas unbarred

And when its flowers smile and nod

And when its Gardener is God

Is it not enough just to fit

Into a teeny bit of it...

And make the most of it because

Soon it will be the Day That Was

© Janet Martin

1 Chron. 29:11

Yours, O LORD, is the greatness, 

The power and the glory, 

The victory and the majesty; 

For all that is in heaven and in earth is Yours; 

Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, 

And You are exalted as head over all.

A Let-list

(playing in the old bathtub waiting to be hauled away...)

The older I get, the more I cherish moments of laughter...

...welcome relief to the toll love's constant care/prayer can take,

as the wellspring of laughter is not drained,

but sustained by 'the joy still set before us'!

Below, Baby Brother looks longingly as if wishing he could participate

in more than simply being a spectator...

(but that would mean leaving mommy, something he is not fond of😅💖)

Let the music of sweet laughter kindly comfort creature care

In the lessons love must suffer, let not hope yield to despair

Through the thick and thin of learning (something we never outgrow)

Let us never cease from turning to the One who loves us so

No matter what pains and grieves us, as life’s troubles train and fret

God is good; He never leaves us in the rubble of regret

Or to the brutal archrival of He whom deserves all laud

Let us never cease to marvel at the wondrous works of God

Let His unfailing love cheer us as we learn to trust His lead

Oh, what peace to know He hears us when for steadfast faith we plead

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus; His Word our joy sustains

Rather than what never pleases or eases Want’s hunger pains

Let us look with humble fervor to the needs of fellowmen

Let us live to serve our Saviour with all that He grants. Amen

Let us run with firm endurance the race that is set before

Until faith’s blessed assurance turns to sight forevermore

© Janet Martin

Let Us Run...Alex McQueen

Heb.12:1-3

Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses,

 let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us,

 and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,

  2looking unto Jesus, the [a]author and [b]finisher of our faith, 

who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, 

despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

3For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, 

lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.

What a Friend We  Have in Jesus