Prayer for Canada or From Shore to Shore

Happy 150th, Canada!

Take time today to reflect on why you are a thankful Canadian! 

 The above articles are printed in a Special Edition from The Wellington Advertiser to celebrate Canada's 150th Birthday!

From verdant sweep and fresh sea deep

And Rocky mountain grandeur

From rolling plain of rippling grain

To babbling brook meander

Lord, keep this land within Thy hand

And we, who troll its river

From shore to shore, let us adore

Oh Canada, Thy Giver

From solitude of winter’s wood

To spring’s green welcome wending

To summer’s flower bowers filled

And autumn-orchards bending

Lord, keep this land within Thy hand

And we who till its acre

Let us adore from shore to shore

Oh Canada, Thy Maker

This bit of loam that we call home

Of wild-life, still-life forest

Of maple tree and liberty

City and country glorious

Lord, hear our prayer and lend Thy care

To we, of sundry weather

From shore to shore and door to door

Bless Canada forever

Lord, let us guard with loyal heart

And love, one for another

This true north strong and free, that we

May all be sister-brother

Lord, bless and keep us kind and true

And in your Mercy grounded

And not forsake the faith whereon

*This Canada was founded

© Janet Martin

* Cartier resolved to take formal possession of the country, and to indicate, in a conspicuous manner, that he did so in the name of the King, his master, and in the interests of religion. With these objects in view, on Friday, July 24th, a huge wooden cross, thirty feet in height, was constructed, and was raised with much ceremony, in sight of many of the Indians, close to the entrance of the harbor; three fleurs-de-lys being carved under the cross, and an inscription, "Vive le Roy de France." (Long live the King of France)The French formed a circle on their knees around it, and made signs to attract the attention of the savages, pointing up to the heavens, "as if to show that by the cross came their redemption." 

JACQUES CARTIER. By Thomas D’Arcy McGee
I.
In the sea-port of Saint Malo ’twas a smiling morn in May When the Commodore Jacques Cartier to the westward sailed             away; In the crowded old Cathedral all the town were on their knees For the safe return of kinsmen from the undiscover’d seas; And every autumn blast that swept o’er pinnacle and pier
Filled manly hearts with sorrow and gentle hearts with fear.
II.
A year passed o’er Saint Malo—again came round the day When the Commodore Jacques Cartier to the westward sailed             away; But no tidings from the absent had come the way they went, And tearful were the vigils that many a maiden spent;
And manly hearts were filled with gloom and gentle hearts with fear When no tidings came from Cartier at the closing of the year.
III.
But the Earth is as the Future, it hath its hidden side, And the Captain of Saint Malo was rejoicing in his pride In the forests of the north—while his townsmen mourned his loss
He was rearing on Mount-Royal the fleur-de-lis and cross; And when two months were over and added to the year, Saint Malo hailed him home again, cheer answering to cheer.
IV.
He told them of a region, hard, iron-bound and cold, Nor seas of pearl abounded, nor mines of shining gold,
Where the wind from Thulé freezes the word upon the lip, And the ice in spring comes sailing athwart the early ship; He told them of the frozen scene until they thrill’d with fear, And piled fresh fuel on the hearth to make him better cheer.
V.
But when he chang’d the strain—he told how soon is cast
In early Spring the fetters that hold the waters fast; How the Winter causeway broken is drifted out to sea, And the rills and rivers sing with pride the anthem of the free; How the magic wand of Summer clad the landscape to his eyes, Like the dry bones of the just, when they wake in Paradise.
VI.
He told them of the Algonquin braves—the hunters of the wild, Of how the Indian mother in the forest rocks her child; Of how, poor souls, they fancy in every living thing A spirit good or evil, that claims their worshipping; Of how they brought their sick and maim’d for him to breathe
upon,
And of the wonders wrought for them thro’ the Gospel of St.             John.
VII.
He told them of the river whose might current gave Its freshness for a hundred leagues to ocean’s briny wave; He told them of the glorious scene presented to his sight, What time he reared the cross and crown on Hochelaga’s height,
And of the fortress cliff that keeps of Canada the key, And they welcomed back Jacques Cartier from his perils over sea.

  

Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. 

Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord.  

And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, 

or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. 

But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

 Joshua 24:15-16 

Heaven's Glow Here Below...

Last night a little 'burst' of something created havoc in our little village for a few minutes;

 before you could blink neighbours were out helping neighbours, 

the sound of chain-saws and voices filling the misty, evening air.

My favorite orchard's last plum tree is uprooted plus many laden, broken fruit trees.

My friend lost a huge tree in her yard.
Thankfully, there are no reports of injuries anywhere, only lost trees.

People rally in the valley

When ill weather ruins ‘plan’

Then we gather, sister, brother

Help each other where we can

Listen honey, when it’s sunny

We are apt to soon forget

…take for granted what is planted

‘Neath the footpath that we tread

God in Heaven knows we’re given

Spirits strong and undeterred

If this Dust can learn to trust Him

Troubled waters prove mere word

People rally in the valley

Here the Balm in Gilead grows

Hope beseeches, Mercy reaches

To dark trenches; heaven glows

© Janet Martin

 Here is last night's update from Dave's wife...

Hello everyone! 

Thankful to report he had another good day! Thank-you SO much for all the prayers etc. He sat on the side of the bed for 1 HR and took a few steps! A lot easier today; not so much pain when they helped him out. His appetite was better today as well

 ( it being roast beef for supper maybe helped ) 

Resting nicely right now. 

Prayers are being answered!

 I love the Lord, for he heard my voice;

he heard my cry for mercy.

Because he turned his ear to me,

I will call on him as long as I live.

Psalm 116:1-2

Mercy-flood (and last night's update about Dave)

But he said to me,
 "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."
Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, 

so that Christ's power may rest on me.

2 Cor.12:9

 The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.

Ps.145:8

Sometimes we don’t know what or how to pray; The Great Unknown

Rolls like a sea before us. Past behind us set in stone

Life’s ups and downs, its ebb and flow of joys and sorrows splay

But ever in the Mercy-flood we simply call Today

Sometimes Today brings bonny breeze, its seas are flecked with gold

And it is not too hard to sing; kings, glad with what we hold

But oh, sometimes we groan like beggars looking up to God

With hand outstretched pleading for mercy ‘neath love’s temp’ring rod

How small the scope we peer through, trusting, hoping as we pray

‘Thy will be done’ the bravest words that we will ever say

While God so rich in mercy, as we sense His loving care

Sustains us with His Presence; Peace and Strength beyond compare

Sometimes Today is gray; grace does not waver in the gale

And what we do not know is Known by One who will not fail

Then Lord, as we look up to you as dawn breaks through yon deep

Grant us the faith to trust in promises you always keep

© Janet Martin

Dear Lord, help us surrender our want to Your will.
Amen.

Last night Karen called to see if I could write and post the day's update so she could go home and straight to bed...

 Tonight's better-day update from Karen. 

Hi all! Tonight I am writing the update for Karen so she can go straight to bed when she gets home. First and foremost, a HUGE thank-you to all who prayed, messaged etc. What a better day than yesterday they had! Dave's pain was more manageable and he was able to sit up for between 20-30 min. this morning. He was determined to try again this afternoon but was unable to, simply because there was never enough available nurses to help. Karen is so encouraged today after a visit from their pastor, an elder and some friends who gave her much appreciated hugs! She was able to chuckle when a nurse called Dave stubborn and he immediately disagreed( some of the old fire returning, such a good sign) They truly believe the prayers are what made a huge difference today and plead with you all to please pray...good days and bad alike! Dave asked Karen this afternoon, after noticing her exhaustion, if she is okay. Others had encouraged her to be open with her side of things so she told him about her emotional melt-down and he is so concerned that she takes care of herself too! this always touches her so much! So referring back to the roller-coaster Karen compared it to a few days ago, today was more up than down and Dave reminded her that this is likely how it will be for the next while...up and down. 

That is why they covet our prayers each and every day and thank-you in advance!

 Praying God grants you a restful night without nightmares or cramps! hugs~

Tears and Hugs

Been showered with 'tears and hugs' through messages both for us and for Dave, Karen and family...thank-you!
(every 'like' heart and sad face on FB like a cyber-hug)

When words are bent and broken

Soft-tumbled into prayer

Then tears and hugs are all we have

To show how much we care

Lord, thank-you for words broken

For humble, stumbled prayer

And thank-you for love’s tears and hugs

To show how much we care

© Janet Martin

Sacred...and Today's Emotional Update from Dave's Wife

As we sat down to supper I remarked to Victoria how this seems almost sacred because right now Dave and Karen would wish for not much more than this...to sit together and have supper.

Today's scripture I pray upon Dave and his family...

 The LORD bless you, and keep you;

      The LORD make His face shine on you,
            And be gracious to you;

      The LORD lift up His countenance on you,
            And give you peace.’

Num.6:24-26

For the simple sacredness of every day task

For a sweet night’s rest

And God’s faithfulness; not for what we ask

But for what He deems Best

For shoulders to cry on

God’s love to rely on

In trouble and sorrow’s strife

For bread to break

And hearts that ache

With the wonder of love and life

© Janet Martin

Thank-you so much for all your prayers so far. More needed! 

Pray that he may heal and come back to his home! 

(the link is to an old post that includes Dave's thoughts of home.

Today's update from Karen is an emotional glimpse into their journey!

I know I should be sleeping but just can’t. Couple of reasons. Yesterday was such an emotional day for me, both physical and mentally. Physical my body is tired and emotionally had a meltdown. Watching Dave in all that pain, trying to roll over to sit at the side of the bed in order to sit up, but yelling in so much pain and telling them to stop! They did, but the physiotherapist just kept after him . I know that Dave wanted to get up but he just could not work thru the pain. I remember that so much.
Second I woke myself up with bad dreams. I was dreaming about my accident. Hopefully these done last long
Lastly my leg gave me a cramps again and woke me up and had a long time to get that away and then when I tried to go to sleep I just l laid there so I thought I might as well get up and read my email and write my update.
So the morning started off with the nurse saying he had a good night when I phoned in before I came down, but when I first walked in I thought his color was off, and he wasn’t very talkative ( now Dave is always been a quiet man ), he just kept saying ‘his ribs hurt, his ribs hurt’. Dr. came in later in the morning and said Oh Dave you don't look so well today are you still in a lot of pain? Dave said yes my ribs just hurt, just really hurt. The Dr. said he can’t up his meds because that will sedate him and we can't have that; he has to be awake in order to get him up and sitting so we can keep his lungs healthy.
Later in the morning the physiotherapist came in to get him sitting at the side of the bed. They tried for a long time but he couldn’t. Dave was waiting for the pain to let down a bit and then he would try, but it just wouldn’t stop. My tears would not stop; so hard to watch him try and do this but can't. He is so strong thru all this so far, and he just couldn’t. The pain was just too much. Watching this made me go into a meltdown. I have tried to be so strong for him so far but today just broke me. They finally said Ok they will not sit him up now and maybe try later, well later never happened. He was just not strong enough to do it
Shortly after they left he had his coughing spells and they are so hard on him. It’s good he is getting all the stuff out of the lungs, but he has to work so hard
After lunch his parents came to sit with him and I went and sat in the other room to take a break and breathe. Did a lot of emailing with Marlene and she help me thru. Then my brother, and my mom and dad came out. I needed them. Giving my mom and dad big hugs and just crying on their shoulders helped so much. My brother took me to the lab to get my blood work done (just my normal monthly INR )to make sure my blood level is fine so I don’t get a blood clot. He and his wife helped me with some Work stuff and that was a relief off my back.
Got back from the lab and Dave's color in his face was much better; his pain had let back.
He fed himself half his supper and then he let me finish feeding him. With his right arm still not working well it is so hard for him to eat by himself, but Dave with figure it out somehow. He keeps trying to do it more and more which is great, so I wait until he says ‘Ok help’.
Dave asked Josh to bring him down a crokinole stick. He uses that to help him get his bed up and down. He can’t reach back to get the button to make the bed do up and down - this works. He is also using it to move his pillows, push down his gown and pull his tray in.
He asked for TV so we got him one, but it is so hard for him. He can't reach to change the channels, so we put the baseball game on before we left
By the time we were ready to leave he was looking a lot better so it easier for me to go.
Came home and my kids are so WONDERFUL- they are looking after everything. Jessica is taking care of the house, Joshua, the business and man stuff around the house and Krista she is doing my flower beds. She made me three vases of flowers to brighten my spirit and the house-- and they all do so much more. I just can’t write everything. I came home and wanted to talk with them but Joshua just said ‘mom go to bed’. So I did. I miss my time in the morning and evening with Jessica- we just haven't had the time. Krista picks me up at 7 to take me to Dave and then I am home between 9:30 or 10:00 and need to go to bed. Jessica is so good about it, but I know she is missing it to,
So when I got up this morning I called down to the hospital to see how Dave is, Not the news I wanted to hear, he had a rough night. He just can't get into a comfortable spot. They tried to keep moving him to get a spot that feels better. I sure hoping he is not starting to get bed sores. She said she gave him his meds just now again so hopefully he can sleep a bit now. Not sure what he will look like when I come down if he didn’t sleep well.
So please send up some extra prayers for us today. Pray that we can get Dave comfortable so he can rest and get sitting by his bed. Pray to give me the strength to be strong for him and for my kids because they are dealing with so much. They all say they are OK but can use the prayers. Thanks for all the prayers already and I know that they will be lots more going out
.***

Personal Note from me:

This morning I've cried with my sister Lucy and with my daughter Emily. 

We wish there was more we could do but Emily said something that really resonated in my heart;

"Prayer is not 'Nothing'

It's 'Everything' "