On Finding Faith's Fortune

It's easy to 'be still' in the calm scenes of life

like soft snowfall at daybreak,

But all of life is not A Soft Snowfall

Today's poem is a prayer

because walking by faith never happens by accident. 

Today Lord, make my gladness whole, not with some outward sign

But, with your whispers, quench my soul, lest cursed, I thirst and pine

Help me be still and know that You are God; by faith, not sight

Open the eyes of my heart to Your wonder and delight

Remind me of Your kindness, whose full proof streams undeterred

Redeem me from my blindness to/through the riches of Your Word

Restore my soul to worship as I behold Calvary

Renew love's sacred courtship/rebuke each carnal courtship; create a clean heart in me

Though my spirit is willing, Lord, you know my flesh is weak

(Faith's fortune, though more thrilling than this world's, is hard to seek)

This world's allure is glamour-glossed but is death and hell's prey

My God, without counting the cost, help me choose You today

Lord, faith must all self-will resign; feeling and sight denied

Help me to make your promise mine; and thus, in peace reside

For you will keep in perfect peace the mind that trusts in You

All futile fear and worry cease as Your peace runs faith through

From Nazareth a Good Thing came; a child was born, Your Son

And Jesus is His holy name; Saviour for everyone

Lord, hope and joy need nothing more; surprise me once again

To find Faith's fortune, set/yet before, my chief delight. Amen

 © Janet Martin 

Ps.51:6-12

...Surely You desire truth in the inmost being;

You teach me wisdom in the inmost place.

7Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean;

wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.

8Let me hear joy and gladness;

let the bones You have crushed rejoice.

9Hide Your face from my sins

and blot out all my iniquities.

10Create in me a clean heart, O God,

and renew a right spirit within me.

11Cast me not away from Your presence;

take not Your Holy Spirit from me.

12Restore to me the joy of Your salvation,

and sustain me with a willing spirit...

Read the whole glorious chapter  HERE

For Everyone Forevermore

For better-worse, for rich and poor, for ignorant and wise,

For loud and proud  and shy unsure; for every shape and size

For young and old and in between, no matter where or who

In wilderness or valley green, the Word of God is true

For everyone, forevermore The Lord's precepts abide

While centuries, like billows pour through morn to eventide 

For faith and hope's security, for souls in barks of dust

For both the friend and enemy, the Word of God is just

For robust-strong and sickly-frail, from greatest to the least

For both those who succeed and fail, His word is a like a feast

Come all and freely drink and eat; salvation's stream runs rife

For love accomplished death's defeat; the Word of God is life

Oh, taste and see that He is good; oh, pray for ears to hear 

Lift up your heads, accursed brood, redemption draweth near

Behold, the Saviour of the World, the Light no dark can dim

God's power and glory unfurled; The word of God is Him

 © Janet Martin

Isaiah 55:1
“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters;

 and you without money, come, buy, and eat!

 Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost!

John 4:14
But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. 

Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a fount of water

 springing up to eternal life.”

John 6:35
Jesus answered, “I am the bread of life. 

Whoever comes to Me will never hunger, 

and whoever believes in Me will never thirst.

Isaiah 12:3
With joy you will draw water from the springs of salvation,

John 1:1

In the beginning was the Word, 

and the Word was with God, 

and the Word was God.

When Love's Fresh Waves of Sorrow Roll...

As soon as I shift my gaze from the 'joy still set before', sorrow is too hard to bear.

As soon as I forget the Hope Christ came to earth to restore, Grief would drive me to despair

But as I think upon the goodness and mercy of One who suffered in all ways, as we

Sorrow, hope-stunned becomes the humble partaker of Love's Divine Sympathy 

Seems without trouble, sickness and sorrow

How often would haste the day

Filled with hopes and dreams of tomorrow

With never a thought to (truly, humbly) pray

The other day my friend who also owns this book

Every Moment Holy,  mentioned HERE

drew my attention to these pages...

(I could have highlighted every line!)

So many thoughtful friends send messages of sympathy and prayer,

stunning my broken heart with hope and joy

Thank-you to everyone who has helped introduce my heart

to fresh waves of inexpressible joy...

When love's fresh waves of sorrow roll

With renewed force, through heart and soul

When tug of warring thoughts compete

Between the bitter and the sweet

When worlds of retrospect replay

The words we wish we still could say

When 'missing you' becomes a prayer

Of tears that we can hardly bear

When anguish like a vortex, reels

Through rooms, one cannot see, but feels

When ragged longing dearly yearns

For that which death never returns

When we wonder what we can do

To reconcile love's 'missing you'

God, who is merciful and kind

Bids us to come to Him and find

His comfort for Want, sorrow-torn/worn

His promises bless those who mourn

When love's fresh waves of grief deploy

God's hope alone stuns grief with joy 

He ministers His perfect peace

As humble, fervent prayers increase

As sorrow's searing tempests toll

He counts the teardrops of the soul

And ushers into love's embrace

Hope's hallowed glimpses of His face

Heaven on earth is undeterred

And mountains moved through a kind word

And faith, frayed, wounded is made whole 

When love's fresh waves of sorrow roll 

  © Janet Martin

 

1 Pet.1:3-9 BSB

This first week of advent we meditate on hope...

Re-sharing a treasured passage of scripture

A Living Hope

3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!

By His great mercy He has given us new birthb into a living hope

through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

4and into an inheritance that is imperishable,

undefiled, and unfading, reserved in heaven for you,

5who through faith are shielded by God’s power

for the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.

6In this you greatly rejoice,

though now for a little while you may

 have had to suffer grief in various trials

7so that the proven character of your faith—

more precious than gold,

which perishes even though refined by fire—

may result in praise, glory, and honor

 at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

8Though you have not seen Him, you love Him;

and though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him

and rejoice with an inexpressible and glorious joy,

9now that you are receiving the goal of your faith,

the salvation of your souls.

The Piano Guys - The Sweetest Gift (ft. Craig Aven) (Official Video)

(for my dear, sweet sister Lucy)

'Cradle' Song

Happy December!

The first few lines of this poem were written yesterday morning...

The cradle of accomplishments still waiting to be won

Gleams like a golden ornament ignited by the sun...

...after Sunday's snowfall transformed earth to a winter wonderland! 

..before a friend (bearing flowers💖) came for tea,

...fennel, mint and marigold tea😋

After she left I decided to go out for an afternoon tromp through the snow

Then, this morning another bit was captured

as another new day beamed in unblemished glory...

before heading out

to an oil and tire change appointment (for the car😆)

The original rush of inspiration has rather subsided; 

hopefully the last two stanzas written this afternoon 

 befit morn, noon and night!

Now I'm off to tackling a few chores to add to

today's 'cradle of accomplishments'...

such as cubing butternut squash to roast for supper 

to serve with Shepherd's Pie!

The cradle of accomplishments still waiting to be won

Gleams like a golden ornament ignited by the sun

A shiny spangle dangling from Bygone's chain of events

Unblemished opportunity preceding consequence

Where what we do with what morn grants in retrospect becomes

A subtle step by step sketched testament of moment-sums

An unconscious acknowledgment for God's mercy renewed

A sacred breath-by-breath  extolment of love's gratitude

The prelude to tomorrow's Yet is cloaked in mystery

The testing plots of sorrow set in joy's epiphany

Then, pray the Lord, where dawn is bent with today's fresh pursuit

Its cradle of accomplishment will brim with finest fruit 

So much it seems we'll never know but oh, we know enough

God's vigil is sufficient grace and everlasting love

We know in every circumstance He is greater, then shout 

Hope is our deliverance from chains of dread and doubt   

Praise God from whom all blessings flow, He keeps His promises  

The reason for His yes or no is not for us to guess 

Then, though our prayers are but a groan and faith a mustard seed

His will, though it may vex our own is perfect for the need 

Janet Martin

Psalm 100:2
Serve the LORD with gladness; 

come into His presence with joyful songs.

November-Hushed

Garden-scapes are strangely quiet...

Sheared and shucked and tucked and tilled...

Hushed, the heaven-on-earth riot...

Of frames, fruit and flower-filled

Autumn's auburn awnings dwindled

Golden haloes dimmed and fell...

Autumn's auburn awnings dwindled

Golden haloes dimmed and fell

Earth, a hearth of embers kindled

With November-hushed farewell

Hushed, lush, lofty leaf-song rivers

Nature's funereal repose

Quickens sentimental shivers

From our heads down to our toes

Garden-scapes are strangely quiet

Sheared and shucked and tucked and tilled

Hushed, the heaven-on-earth riot

Of frames, fruit and flower-filled

Hushed, the carefree, barefoot banter

Of life-heady, laughing child

Heedless of Time's fixed decanter

Spilling where farewells run wild 

Like a heart learning love's lessons

Earth endures That Which Must Be

Time's cacophony of seasons

Age-old, still stuns you and me 

Where the bud bursting with treasure

Bears its bloom, withers and falls

Till the whole of nature's pleasure

Decks November's doleful/soulful halls

Hushed beneath a sheath of snowflakes

Hope and joy toll welkin bells

Comforting a world of heartaches

With November-hushed farewells   

  © Janet Martin

 

Hushed, the carefree, barefoot banter

Of life-heady, laughing child...

Internal Exhale...

 "Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Phil.4:4-6

(read the whole glorious chapter HERE)

Rejoice in the Lord always.

Again I will say, rejoice!

5Let your [b]gentleness be known

 to all men.

 The Lord is at hand.

6Be anxious for nothing,

but in everything 

by prayer and supplication, 

with thanksgiving, 

let your requests 

be made known to God;

  7and the peace of God, 

which surpasses all understanding,

 will guard your hearts and minds 

through Christ Jesus.

O, I have ceased the need to rush as if my life depends on it

Content to watch the hush of dawn dissolve the darkness once again...

O, I have ceased to strain on reins that once vexed youth's audacity

Content to bask in the delight of little children, starry-eyed...

To marvel at a world a-thunder with God's creativity...

(I would love if someone could ID this bird! It fluttered/ ran ahead of me,

a bit curious at the intruder 😅)

forgive my blurry zoom lens

Content to learn from weightless wings, unhindered by tomorrow's care

To be taught by Child's innocence is to be astonished by joy...

'o-h--h! I can't wait till three o'clock, snack time!!!' sighed

Miss Sweet as sweet-can-be at two-thirty.

'Oh my! replied I, completely at a loss as how to live up to her anticipation/expectation.

'Do you like popcorn?' I asked, relieved I had one snack staple on hand.

Her pause suggested a 'no'. 

'Actually, what I am really wishing for is fresh bran muffins' 

(NOT what I was expecting at all, but so relieved. lol!)

'Guess what?!" I said. 'This very morning I was wishing for fresh bran muffins!!'

So, fresh bran muffins it was 💖😋

The day before our snack was breakfast cookies (click link)

 and Little Helper's verdict; so YUMMY!

They are the perfect mid-afternoon slump snack

O, I have ceased the need to rush as if my life depends on it

Content to watch the hush of dawn dissolve the darkness once again

To light Time's face with God's kind grace outpoured for our benefit

To tune the countenance of hope with love and joy and peace. Amen

O, I have ceased to strain on reins that once vexed youth's audacity

Content to bask in the delight of little children, starry-eyed

To marvel at a world a-thunder with God's creativity

To linger in November's dusk; brusque blush and blue-bathed countryside

O, I have ceased the futile quest of clinging to what none can claim

Content to let the gauze hemline of seasons slip through unclenched will

To be still and know He who fills boundless firmaments with His Name

Anoints each moment with His brush, as Today's Masterpieces spill 

O, I have ceased to Want for things, whose ownership death will destroy 

Content to learn from weightless wings, unhindered by tomorrow's care

To be taught by Child's innocence is to be astonished by joy

As meeker gratitude enriches happiness beyond compare 

O, I have ceased to be encumbered by Bygones I cannot wrest 

Content to concentrate on faces and favours still within reach 

To let the sorrows of this world be comforted by Heaven's Best

And wonder at the holy pleasure only God, through grief, can teach

O, I have ceased to pursue answers for His higher thoughts and ways

Content to know that He is able to do exceedingly more

Than I can think to think; then, with nothing but humbler, purer praise 

To take up faith's cross like a child, and trust God for what lies before  

O, I have ceased the need to rush as if my life depends on it

Content to watch the brush of dawn undo the darkness once again

And light Time's face with God's kind grace outpoured for our benefit

To tune the countenance of hope with love and joy and peace. Amen

© Janet Martin

While I was wrestling with the second last stanza of this poem 

my daughter, Victoria sent me a message, simply this;

Enjoying this collection of hymns this morning 😊

(and suddenly, as I listened, like a little miracle

the words fell into place!)

Tennessee Ernie Ford Hymns at Home

Thank-you God, for 'faces and favours still within reach' !

Thank-you for my family and friends, 

pouring out/in so many precious ways

to comfort me 🙏

Bless each one today! 

The High Stakes of Steppingstones

Sunday's teaching message at our church

was based on Matt. 6, 

a chapter that leaves no stone unturned when it comes to

how we ought to live/give...

19“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, 

where moths and vermin destroy, 

and where thieves break in and steal.

 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, 

where moths and vermin do not destroy, 

and where thieves do not break in and steal.

 21 For where your treasure is,

 there your heart will be also.

Today; a steppingstone cradled in the hand of God

No matter how we look at it...

...we are in good hands

Dawn breaks; earth’s shadowed tide recedes as flood of daylight fills the sky

And sets beneath a world of feet far more than meets the naked eye

Where each day, like a steppingstone is cradled in the Giver’s Hands

On it, Creature of grin and groan shoulders love’s duties and demands

Often paying minimal heed to He who keeps us in His care

While we, a soul-instilled stampede, resume Transport from Here to There

And because God wills hearts to soften, rather than grow proud and cold

His tutorship of mercy often clashes with our stubborn/selfish hold

Upon the east a Feast of Goodness, promise-anchored, rends the air

But poverty can’t eat a promise; God bids all who 'have', to share

To bear in mind the measure of love’s evidence naught can Disguise

Residence of the treasure-trove will tell where our allegiance lies

Without a word to justify, without excuses to explain

For we are all servants either for this world or for heaven’s gain

There is no in between; nothing to counter living proof of choice

Twixt beckoning and reckoning a world of hands and feet give voice

…to Who we dearly love the most and who is the heart’s true delight

Who rushes our tongues with boast and cheers us onward in the fight/flight

Who fills our hope with happiness and whose name we thrill to repeat

What definition of success commands our hands and march of feet

Who makes it worth the give and take that may seem of small consequence

Before we behold the high stakes as steppingstones yield recompense

Dawn breaks; the stakes of steppingstones may seem a payoff far and dim

But one glimpse of God on His throne and we would all be heirs of Him

© Janet Martin