Not Here or There or That or This

Sometimes I spend a lot of misdirected

though well-intended energy on trying to

find God's purpose for me

when, as today's devotion reminded me,

all He wants is my surrendered willingness.

This was such a comfort to me as I try to decide 

whether to get back into childcare again or not!

I am having such a hard time trying to figure out what is best...

but whether I do or do not, has nothing to do with his purpose for me,

  if the object of my devotion each day is Him!

If my attitude is 

'Behold the handmaid of the Lord;

 be it unto me according to thy word'

Luke 1:38

(Is that verse not a challenge easier said/read than done?!!)

 Not the choice but the motive behind the choice

 reveals the voice I am listening to!

A sobering scale on which to weigh/pray each decision and desire,

because financial security and creature comforts

 are not God's purpose, 

(though, oh, how human nature wishes it would be!!)

but rather treasure of eternal value...unglamorous in the gaining!

John 3:17
For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, 

but to save the world through Him.

John 6:28-29
Then they inquired, "What must we do to perform the works of God?"

Jesus replied, "The work of God is this: to believe in the One He has sent."

2 Pet.3:9

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness.

 Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish,

 but everyone to come to repentance.

***

Not whether we go here or there or work at this or that

The purpose of God’s call will follow where we hang our hat

His focus not the title of the duty or the task

But of a heart surrendered to whatever He will ask

Not in lofty ambition or pursuit of noble quest

But in humble contrition to obey without protest

The medium of labor but the scaffolding whereby

The love for God and neighbor stirs/spurs the tenure of reply

The purpose of God is not there or here or that or this

His purpose always begins where the mark is hard to miss

Right here and now, with you and me, however vague or dim

His purpose is fulfilled as we relinquish all for Him

© Janet Martin

The Rich Young Man- Matt.19:16-28

(Mark 10:17–31; Luke 18:18–30)

16Just then a man came up to Jesus and inquired,

 “Teacher, what good thing must I do to obtain eternal life?”

17“Why do you ask Me about what is good?”e Jesus replied.

 “There is only One who is good. 

If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.”

18“Which ones?” the man asked.

Jesus answered, “ ‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, 

do not steal, do not bear false witness, 

19honor your father and mother, 

and love your neighbor as yourself.’f”

20“All these I have kept,” said the young man. “What do I still lack?”

21Jesus told him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor,

and you will have treasure in heaven. 

Then come, follow Me.”

22When the young man heard this, he went away in sorrow, 

because he had great wealth.

23Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I tell you,

it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.

  24Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle

 than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

25When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, 

“Who then can be saved?”

26Jesus looked at them and said, 

“With man this is impossible, 

but with God all things are possible.”

27“Look,” Peter replied, “we have left everything to follow You. 

What then will there be for us?”

28Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, in the renewal of all things,

g when the Son of Man sits on His glorious throne, 

you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones,

 judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 

29And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife

h or children or fields for the sake of My name 

will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life.

  30But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.

Love Song for God's Word

Ps.119:11

Your word I have hidden in my heart,

That I might not sin against You.

Oh, how I love God’s word

His Presence fills each page

His loving kindness undergirds

Faith’s flight, from age to age

He comforts and assures

He leads us in the Way

His everlasting law endures

Come whatsoever may

His goodness, truth and Light

For all faith cannot see

Equips us with power and might

To face the enemy

To recognize sin’s ploy

To guard against the foe

To reaffirm the hope and joy

Only He can bestow

To keep in perfect peace

The mind transfixed on Him

To generate wisdom’s increase

And bid worldly views dim

To bridge the cosmic gap

That else would gape between

To expose the vile tempter’s trap

Alluring and obscene

To tell me of His love

Of mercy’s staff and rod

To caution, correct and reprove

And instill man with God

To rekindle the flame

His gift of grace began

As I uttered the only name

That saves the soul of man

To remind me to trust

He who supplies each need

And counts my numbered days of dust

Tried by doubt, fear and greed

Oh, how I love God’s word

To wake in you and me

A hymn of worship undeterred

For all eternity

His promises sustain

The faith that fain would fail

Save for the Fount nothing can drain

Of love that will prevail

As we, surrounded by

A cloud of witnesses

Commit each desperate heart-cry

To God's kind faithfulness

Where His Voice breaks the bread

That restoreth the soul

Then, as spirit-hunger is fed

Once more faith is made whole

His Word alone provides

Unworldly fellowship

God ministers as man confides

And releases pride’s grip

His Word perfects the prayer

As we learn to be still

To listen, then life’s weight of care

Surrenders to His will

His Word beyond compare

My words inept to tell

The wonders we discover where

His changeless precepts dwell

Stayed anchor when gales sting

When opposing winds seethe

His Word covers me with His wing

And gathers me beneath

To thrill me with His love

To protect me from sin

Led by the soundless thunder of

His still, small voice within

Oh, how I love God’s word

Rich with mercy and grace

To cheer me on and undergird

 Until faith sees His face

© Janet Martin

Thankful For = Thankful To

Celebrating thankfulness today!

As harvest begins to be gathered in hearts overflow with thankfulness!

Pray we never simply stop at the 'happy' feeling,

but trace our praise to the Giver of every blessing

His loving care bestows

Thank-you, Lord

 

I Just Want to thank You, Lord

Thankfulness without someone to receive said gratitude

Would make its meek awareness but a circumstantial nod

As soon as we are ‘thankful for,’ we become ‘thankful to’

And thankfulness, all said and done, always leads us to God

From God’s goodness and mercy spills each loveliness we know

Each reason to be thankful thunders with His loving ways

Thus, what a debt of worship to His faithfulness we owe

What happiness, as humble thankfulness is turned to praise

Then as we pay attention to all we are ‘thankful for’

May we be awed by who we ought to be most ‘thankful to’

…the God of our salvation! Who can need anything more

Save to make thankful praise the goal of all that we pursue

© Janet Martin

Ps.59:16

But I will sing of Your power;

Yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning;

For You have been my defense

And refuge in the day of my trouble.

Psalm 143:8

Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning;

for in thee do I trust:

cause me to know the way wherein I should walk;

for I lift up my soul unto thee.

Psalm 107:1

Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good!

For His mercy endures forever.

Psalm 106:1

Praise ye the LORD. O give thanks unto the LORD;

for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.

Psalm 118:1

O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good:

because his mercy endureth for ever.

Psalm 136:1

O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good:

for his mercy endureth for ever.

1 Chronicles 16:34

Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good;

His loving devotion endures forever.

Farewell July and Hello August

 Hello all, and Happy August!

After a week away, yesterday was a bit of a blur

trying to decide what to tackle first; laundry-mountain or garden jungle!!

Yesterday was sunny but cool, kindling an intoxicating eagerness for 

back-to-work! such wonderful work, summer is!

My sister texted me while I was shelling peas last night ...

or I might have missed July's farewell moon...

Finches bicker, green leaves flicker where sunbeams and shadows play

Where each hour is a flower that unfolds then fades away

And its petal is the mettle of echo-medleys that waft

A succession of impressions etched on Bygone’s breadth, breath-soft,

July marches through blue arches; boundless awning overhead

Vaulted over corn-wheat-clover fields, like quilts that need no thread

Speechless wonder rolls like thunder through heart and soul, awed, agape

While man gazes God amazes us with summer’s sanguine cape

Garden treasure kindles pleasure unlike any in the world

Spring-time planting now is granting toil and mercy’s fruit unfurled

Earth’s effulgence births indulgence; beauty bids duty to drink

Pause and savor awe’s full flavor-burst of gold, purple and pink

July leaves us; farewell grieves us but August rekindles smiles

It bewitches us where ditches have become wildflower-isles

Milkweed plumage, chamomile, sage, Queen Ann’s Lace and chicory

Cricket-choir catches fire we can hear but cannot see

Hello August, welcome, dew-dust dazzled, frazzled summer-crown

Sultry, sunny, sweet as honey-suckle run wild and wind-blown

Crowded beaches, juice of peaches drips from lip-smacking yes-yes!

Rouses gladness from spent sadness; hello August happiness

© Janet Martin

A little glimpse of last week...

at a lakeside cottage

Welcome August!

Morning Wonder-storm

A bitty dawn-ditty before a little blogging summer-break.

See you, Lord willing, in August🙏💝

Heb.13:5

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have,

because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”

Dawn’s countryside is steeped in mist-kissed hues

The Unknown cradled in a cup of gold

The pressing presence of impending dues

Glitters where dew bedazzled worlds unfold

The gleaming gong upon earth’s eastward edge

Is drawn by a hand that eye cannot see

By He who keeps His unwavering pledge

‘Wherever you go, dear, there I will be’

© Janet Martin

Praise God from Whom all bounty flows...

God's Changeless Promises

This photo is taken from a hill close to my brother and sister-in-law's place

about 10 min. from our house and though I see the view often it NEVER disappoints! 

Psalm 145:13

Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, 

and your dominion endures through all generations. 

The LORD is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does.

When we are troubled what better, than to kneel at the cross.

Kneel at the Cross-Jim and Jesse

 

For all we wish we could return, beneath life’s testing rod

Tis in life’s challenges we learn the faithfulness of God

In the valley where gloom may try our joy to overthrow

His changeless promises reply, hope and peace to bestow

The beauty and goodness of God abounds, for aye. Amen

Each of His attributes confounds the best of mortal ken

Then, though we do not understand the reason of His thought

His changeless promises command our worship, do they not?

How often in my worry I forget to humbly trust

God is not in a hurry as He tames our willful dust

But plies, with love that will not fail, that which draws us to Him

His changeless promises prevail, beyond our wildest whim

How proud would be our prayer, but for the trial and the tear

But for the creature care that binds us to His listening ear

Then in each sorrow we confide, He whispers as we plead

‘My changeless promises abide, ah, what more do you need?’

© Janet Martin

Psalm 31:19

Oh, how great is Your goodness, 

Which You have laid up for those who fear You,

 Which You have prepared for those who trust in You 

In the presence of the sons of men!

Darling Day (With Granddaughter) Memento

First thing this morning I had

a call from my daughter wondering

if I wanted the company of a grumpy little girl today,

and what would a grandma say to such a question but,

'of course! I would love that!'💓

Just like a change of scenery can work cheerful wonders in us oldies at times,

so too in a child. 😅💖

Whether discussing crispy-egg-deliciousness, 

or, rules to learn (about mushrooms)

Whether it is pausing besides a glorious sweep of gold wheat seas

To revel in sweet summer bliss,...

It might be choosing the right cup for outdoor tea party for two...

Or floating on a pretend lake to practice for Real-Lake-Come-True

It might be strolling very slowly down a holy garden path

While footfalls slip into the echoes that waft in its aftermath

It might be picking lavender...

 to add to our lemon tea...

Before we sit beneath the arbor while making a memory

Whether discussing crispy-egg-deliciousness, or rules to learn (about mushrooms)

Or how a robin knows exactly where to find a juicy worm

Whether it is pausing besides a glorious sweep of gold wheat seas

To revel in sweet summer bliss, oh, we are making memories

Whether we give it second thought, or not, life rolls through Time and Place

And it is up to us to make the most and best of moment-grace

Because the afternoon is soon a bubble bobbing on the breeze

Bearing away the Little Day where we were making memories

It might be choosing the right cup for outdoor tea party for two

Or floating on a pretend lake to practice for Real-Lake-Come-True

It might be strolling very slowly down a holy garden path

While footfalls slip into the echoes that waft in its aftermath

It might be picking lavender to add to our lemon tea

Before we sit beneath the arbor while making a memory

It might be disregarding chore-lists just to sing a silly song

For little girls and boys are never very little very long

Life is much more than duty's doleful left-foot-right to growing old

Ah look, within our very grasp is a nugget of moment-gold

Then, because we never know when our final fond farewell may be

Let’s try to spend it on a precious, Best-we-could-make memory

© Janet Martin

Serving up some 'thtrawberry-shortcake oil tea'😂

(after a five-star plastic lunch!!)

Awesome Dividend (of Kindness)

May our lives be rich with the gentle joy

of many a kindness both given and received!

It may not seem like much, all told;

The gentle word, the cheerful smile

The hug, the prayer, plan put on hold

To walk a secret second mile

The helping hand, the listening ear

The cup of tea shared with a friend

It may not seem like much, my dear

Yet, yields an Awesome Dividend 

For oh, we cannot know how far

Ripple effects of kindness flow

Therefore, no matter where we are

Let’s find some small kindness to show

Because big differences start

Not in the limelight of success

But in the love that lifts a heart

Through countless little kindnesses

It may not seem like much, all told;

But love is never commonplace

The small kind deed worth more than gold

As it puts a smile on God's face

© Janet Martin

Eph.4:32

And be ye kind one to another, 

tenderhearted, forgiving one another, 

even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.