Thursday, January 7, 2021

Ode to Goodness


"Thank Goodness for the unfailing things."
commented a friend on the previous post...
Amen!
Here is an Ode to Goodness

Where not so long ago I lost my heart
on a snow-canvas of blue shadow-art




one mysterious little critter left a trail of
heart-shaped tracks in the snow, as far as the eye could go...



I used the advantages of ink to 
open this poem with a buttercup meadow😊
Doesn't just saying the word 'buttercup' make the day feel brighter?!


Buttercups spilling like sparkles of sun 
Over a meadow of flora, fresh-spun 
Where not so long ago I lost my heart 
On a snow-canvas of blue-shadow art 

Creation cannot deny He who spills 
Four season splendour to hollows and hills 
Jack-frosted window-pane, plush, blushing morn 
Dreams running rampant in gardens reborn 

Time is a flutter, a gilt butterfly 
Winter-spring-summer-and-autumn, oh my 
Over and over, earth’s flower is wrought 
By what the Father of nature has taught 

Light shatters darkness at break of Today 
Nothing can keep what God promised, at bay 
We gape as if we have never beheld 
Amethyst mist with molten oceans meld 

Goodness and Mercy will never betray 
Hearts that have humbled their will to His way 
The surface showcases blush-blue-gold-green 
While faith embraces The Sacred Unseen 

Larks lift their lyrics without second-guess 
Hark! Can you hear it? Perfect happiness 
Winter's hearth flickers with quickening cheer 
Of warmth and welcome to all who draw near 

Leave to the atheist, spec, blind and rude 
Futile debates of love misunderstood 
Better to marvel where beauty confirms 
Goodness to we, little better than worms 

Snow-flowers shower the bower with stars 
Gazillion sequins bedeck brumal bars 
Where Old Man Winter will yield to the charm 
Of a fair, golden-haired lass on his arm 

Rivers will gurgle and giggle, set free 
Out through the wide-open veldt to the sea 
Farmers will whistle and mothers will sing 
Throwing back shutters to welcome in spring 

Robins will warble and buds will unfold 
Pink-petal miracles, green, purple, gold 
Woodlands will brandish fresh notes from each limb 
As nature heralds the Bard of the hymn 

Seeds will astonish as we watch them grow 
Specks small and brownish God’s power will show 
Unfathomed increase, our hunger to feed 
Divine Providence contained in a seed 

No one can thwart what the Lord sets in place 
Evil will never be greater than grace 
Seasons will never be left to ‘perhaps’ 
*Hear how the hill sings and how the tree claps 

Lilies will never forget how to bloom 
Consider He who arranges the loom 
That weaves the fabric that so clothes the field 
That breathes the wonder whereby hearts are healed 

That woos the worship from we, always caught 
Between what has been and what yet is not 
That keeps us, still in the thick of the fight 
Cradled in colours of mercy and light 

Where soon the afternoon climbs the last knoll 
Like tilted steeples the blue shadows toll 
Where freeways twinkle with dot-to-dot cars 
Where dusk is waiting to draw down the stars 

Where we are never forsaken by He 
Who trails but fringes of His Majesty, 
Who lowered glory through sky after sky 
Of unplumbed galaxies to you and I 

Praise to the Giver of wonder and mirth 
Praise to the Maker of heaven and earth 
Praise to the riches no miser can hoard 
From God’s abundance of goodness outpoured 

Praise to the Artist of supreme design 
Praise to the way awe and joy intertwine 
Praise to the Author of beauty unflawed 
Praise to the goodness and mercy of God 

© Janet Martin 

Isa.55:12
*You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; 
the mountains and hills will burst into song before you,
 and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.

Something to Sing and Shout About!


Gold breaks the brooding mold
No dark can bar the Light!
No threat of man can overthrow
God's mercy or His might 



Dark dread mingles with undying hope these days, doesn't it!
Remind us, oh, Lord
1 John 4:4
Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: 
because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.





Arise, arise, arise
Seize hold of Mercy's prize
Nothing can sway
Hope's anchored Stay
Though oft the tempest tries

Again, again, again 
Ever since time began 
The wellspring of 
Eternal love 
Renews mercy to man 

From day to day to day 
It does not fade away 
But with each morn 
It is reborn 
To comfort mortal clay  

Beware, beware, beware 
Of doubt and pride's despair 
Lest the good fruit 
That would take root 
Is smothered by its tare 

Then pray and pray and pray 
Love’s perfect law obey 
Lest we forget 
The promised Yet 
That draws nearer each day 

Amen, amen, amen 
No mortal scheme can ban 
The wellspring of 
Eternal love 
That flows from God to man 

Then cheer and cheer and cheer
Stand guard with holy fear
As prophecy
Fulfills 'hear ye'
Redemption draweth near

Then shout and shout and shout
Something to sing about
Mercy renewed
Let gratitude
Extinguish seeds of doubt

© Janet Martin

Something to sing about forever and ever.
Truth is an anchor no tempest can sever!
Hallelujah!

To all (in Rome) who are loved by God and called to be his holy people:
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Romans 1:7

Wednesday, January 6, 2021

God Knows...

 

Isa.46:10
I make known the end from the beginning, 
from ancient times, what is still to come. 
I say, 'My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.'

So much trouble to cause anxiety, all over the world.
So  much noise!
So many lies!!
Here's a song to fill our hearts with hope and peace!

(one of my favourite parts,)

You are strong, You are sure,
You are life, You endure,
You are good, always true,
You are Light breaking through
You are more than enough
You are here, You are love





God knows the heart; no tricking He who sees beyond façade 
Who hears beneath the poetry and what our hands applaud 
Sometimes we could become quite glum when faced with The Unknown 

God knows the Truth; no matter what we claim to be, He parts 
The curtain of exteriors to view our heart of hearts 

But we should stand up straight and tall and lift our heads up high 

God knows not all who say ‘Lord, Lord’ are followers of Him 
But those who seek His word to light the Way that would grow dim 
Upon the Solid Rock they stand as prophecies fulfill 

God sees the heart; He knows the truth; then tremble and rejoice 
His thoughts and ways, past finding out, are higher than our ways 
His righteous Judgement will prevail; then lift your heart in praise 

© Janet Martin 


Psalm 7:11 NLT
God is an honest judge.
 He is angry with the wicked every day.

Psalm 11:7
For the LORD is righteous; He loves justice. 
The upright will see His face.


Tea... Anyone?

 




Tea for two 
Who have been through 
some highs and lows 
we’d rather not 
Who are still in 
The thick and thin 
Of love lessons 
not fully taught 

© Janet Martin 

(this itty-bitty ditty 
I dare say applies to 
Anyone who 
Might care 
To share 
A cup of tea 
With me)

of course, this is a virtual-tea-party
due to the ongoing social restrictions😞

Rush Hour's Waiting Room

 

Time flies in spite of all we are waiting for!
Some prayers get answered quickly, 
others are a kind of whisper-woven waiting-room!

Only One knows what all will unfold in the sun's gold trek from east to west,
what prayers will have answers we recognize 
and which ones are veiled in what feels like waiting.


Psalm 130:5
I wait for the LORD; my soul does wait, and in His word I put my hope.

What waits to be no one can see save He who keep us in His care 
What waits to teach our wanting reach is something each must trust to prayer 
What waits to turn lessons we learn to wisdom earned as years increase 
Waits to compose with ebbs and flows of highs and lows, a Masterpiece 

What waits to blend daybreak and end where whispers wend and groan and grin 
What waits to stir perfect wonder to thunder beneath speechless skin 
What waits to seal the rush and reel of silk and steel behind closed doors 
Waits to create a brand-new gate through which the weight of waiting pours 

What waits to make, with give and take the awe and ache of letting go
What waits to tune the afternoon with what will soon festoon thought's show
What waits to spill, to thrill, to fill this uphill drill twixt sky and sod 
Waits to become the soldered sum of mercies from the hand of God 

© Janet Martin 



 

 

Love IS

 

Love is a flower garden in a bower full of snow...


Love is God's beaming banner of daybreak and grace unfurled



Love is a hand that finds a hand when it’s too dark to see 
Love is a candle in the window of the ageless soul 
Love is a shared umbrella, picture-book or cup of tea 
Love is a kind reminder of God, who is in control 

Love is a flower garden in a bower full of snow 
Love is the jewel in the common crown of day-to-day 
Love is the tender duel between hold and letting go 
Love is humble surrender to trust God, come what yet may 

Love is a second-mile on feet that have seen better years 
Love is a hearty handshake, hug, blooms on a windowsill 
Love is a mother’s faithful prayer, the wellspring of her tears 
Love is a Father watching over children of free will 

Love is anything given without thought of recompense 
Love is the smallest kindness in a big, crude, clumsy world 
Love is a leap of faith that disregards fear’s phantom fence 
Love is God’s beaming banner of daybreak and grace unfurled 

Love in an invitation to be willing to be wrong 
Love is a celebration of small words like ‘us’ and ‘we’ 
Love is the recognition of bigger words like ‘belong’ 
Love is a purposed vision because God loves you and me 

Love is the time it takes to make a fellow-fellow hope 
Love is the eyes to prize each day God lends to our touch 
Love is the age-old gold that melts the gray from heart or slope 
Love IS; the proof of God in a world that needs Him so much 

© Janet Martin 

Love is the age-old gold that melts the gray from heart and slope...



1 Peter 4:8
Above all, love one another deeply, 
because love covers over a multitude of sins.



Tuesday, January 5, 2021

A Word of Caution and Encouragement

 There Is Rest By and By



"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! 
You give a tenth of your spices--mint, dill and cumin. 
But you have neglected the more important matters of the law--
justice, mercy and faithfulness. 
You should have practiced the latter, 
without neglecting the former.
Matt.23:23

The effects of Covid-19 to the body of Christ 
has been a sobering eye-opener😢💔
Oh, let's not get caught in neglecting
the more important matters of the Law!

Our young pastor on Sunday morning (min.5-7) ;click Sunday Service Jan.3,2021,
cautioned us with a kind reminder; 
that at the heart of all our differing and varying opinions
 (obvious by all the denominations of Christian faith)
 at the heart of the true believer in each individual
 is an honest desire to follow Jesus.

Then, at this time of deep conflicting opinion this is SO vital to remember.
Let's be peace-keepers!
Let's fold pointing fingers into humble, earnest prayer for love and wisdom.

(these woes below came about as I looked in the mirror... of His Word. Ouch)

Woe to we, who will dare to stab a brother in the back 
And prove without a doubt that it is true love that we lack 

Woe to we called to be bearers of one another’s care 
But publicize opinion rather than resort to prayer 

Woe to we who speak ‘piece of minds’ without all facts in place 
Proving once more that everybody’s greatest need is grace 

Woe to we, human-nature bent, where verbal push and shove 
Will justify excuses with the opposite of love 

Woe to we who are quick to speculative prejudice 
Thus, making a mockery of said-robes of righteousness 

But God bless we who strive to be with kind humility 
Examples of the greatest love for all the world to see 

So, when love’s perfect work is wrought, a few will yet remain 
To prove the message that Christ taught was not offered/authored in vain 

© Janet Martin 


John 4:23
Yet a time is coming and has now come 
when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, 
for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.

Gal.6:2
Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

Today's Daily Bread Devotion contains a kind reminder
of the sweetening work of  Time/Experience in the
life of a believer and fruits of the Spirit.


Seasoned Scene Sonnet

(click link to read the whole powerful chapter)

I am the Lord, and there is no other;
apart from me there is no God.
I will strengthen you,
though you have not acknowledged me,
so that from the rising of the sun
to the place of its setting
people may know there is none besides me.
I am the Lord, and there is no other...

It is I who made the earth
and created mankind on it.
My own hands stretched out the heavens;
I marshaled their starry hosts.


The morning melts the dark, the heavens spawn 
Dawn’s ever-ebbing shadows from the air 
Unrolling, like a bolt of blush chiffon 
Gilt gossamer that tumbles through our stare 
Unveiling labour, love and longing’s stage 
Where scenes change with each season’s ordered rite 
While overhead the heavens never age 
But mark the night and day with dark and light 
To leave its imprint not in stars, but hearts 
A script composed of constant no return
As ways and means of circumstance imparts 
An ever-startling scope of more-to-learn 
Hope, like a bud that still withholds the rose 
Keeps us caught between knees and tippy-toes 

© Janet Martin