Anguish...

Dear Believer, does your heart too, break for the lost and the cost of unbelief?

Do you weep for those who sleep in the darkness of sin?

Do you mourn for those not yet born again?

Do you pray

And pray

And pray?!

Come To Jesus

  

What script of desolation spills like ink-demonic seas

When naught but human logic fills thought’s godless theories

What darkness over darkness rolls without the light of Truth

How doleful daybreak's bower tolls, how hopeless is youth’s youth

Without the faith that rends the veil

And trusts the love that cannot fail

What fathoms of futility soon lie in wanton waste

What claim to shame’s depravity tunes knowledge, mortal-based

What agonizing anguish rings beyond time’s transient bar

When fullness of rejection flings the gates of hell ajar

When, without faith that makes us whole

Denial faces Deathless Soul

What weight of sorrow sears the prayer that reaches Mercy’s ears

As groan on groan beyond compare beseeches, tears on tears

Because the love and truth of God, by some, is thought a sham

No reverence, no fear, no laud for salvation’s I AM

Where without He who justifies

Hell claims the soul that never dies

What Gethsemane-like appeal should bleed from prayer on prayer

What throes of love should bid us kneel, love’s pleading cross to bear

For what good is the best laid plan unfurled if its sad goal

Is but the wink-span of the world in exchange for the soul

Where nothing, when Last Breath is spent

Can comfort Unbelief’s Lament

© Janet Martin

John 11:25

Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life.

Whoever believes in Me will live, even though he dies.

Prov.14:26-27

He who fears the LORD is secure in confidence,

and his children shall have a place of refuge.

The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life,

turning a man from the snares of death.

The Wonder of Enough (or Monday Morning Mantra)

Love's mandates are timeless

As we cry out in our hearts 'what can we do?!'

as we lift up brokenness after brokenness to God in prayer

His reply is now as it was then;

Love one another...

John 15:12

“This is My commandment, that you love one another, 

just as I have loved you.

John 14:15

“If you love me, keep my commands.

Galatians 5:13

For you were called to freedom, brethren;

only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh,

but through love serve one another.

Magnificent, Marvelous, Matchless Love

 

His love poured through us is Enough

Enough to equip us 

for the fight

Enough to convict, forgive, 

to be kind, to be Light

Enough to fulfill

His will, so we pray 

For His love to instill

until we obey

...and love one another

the way we ought

and love one another

the Way He taught

How Deep The Father's Love For Us

Lord, help love be sincere

And help us take to heart

The wonder of Thy love so dear

While the world falls apart

Because it does not know

The Truth that sets us free

The joy that sets the heart aglow

Amidst calamity

Where grace in rich supply

True repentance redeems

Where, morn to morn, mercy’s reply

With renewed favor/fervor streams

Where hope does not bring shame

But anchors blood-bought souls

In the salvation through Thy name

While time’s progression rolls

Toward eternity

When Time will be no more

Where faith will taste the victory

That now we hunger for

When the glass of the law

Dissolves, when face to face

We gaze, with undistracted awe

On Thee, Author of grace

Unhindered then, by cares

When prayerful pleadings cease

When love its final burden bears

When all is life and peace

When grief its dagger drops

When swords to plowshares beat

When from valleys and mountaintops

Worship’s anthems repeat

When everlasting Day

Earth’s shackles will undo

When former things are passed away

And all will be made new

…until then, Lord, through Thee

Let our love be sincere

Help us, with unfeigned fealty

Thy precepts to revere

And take to humble heart

Thy steadfast truth and love

And let Thy promises impart

The wonder of Enough

© Janet Martin

Love's To-do list...

Romans 12:9-21 

9 Love must be sincere. 

Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 

10 Be devoted to one another in love. 

Honor one another above yourselves. 

11 Never be lacking in zeal, 

but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 

12 Be joyful in hope, 

patient in affliction, 

faithful in prayer. 

13 Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. 

Practice hospitality.

14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 

15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; 

mourn with those who mourn. 

16 Live in harmony with one another. 

Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.

[a] Do not be conceited.

17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil.

Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. 

18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 

19 Do not take revenge, my dear friends, 

but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: 

“It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”[b] says the Lord. 

20 On the contrary:

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;

if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.

In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”[c]

21 Do not be overcome by evil, 

but overcome evil with good.

A Poem Needs Nothing

 Not all poems need paper...

 

Dance shoes need feet to find the ballroom

Peonies need ants to be tickled to bloom

The rain needs a cloud and the sun needs the sky

Love needs God first, and then you and I

Hope needs an anchor, a needle needs thread

A bike needs a rider like a hat needs a head

A book needs a reader before it can speak

We need each other like a kiss needs a cheek

A poem needs nothing but courage to drink

Where laughter and tears spill in heart and soul ink

© Janet Martin

Thoughts About Tots (and their Teachers)

A row of  little shoes, 

Father's Day on Sunday,

...and late last night, tripping over Edison who shouted into the quiet kitchen,

'Hi, I'm Edison, let's sing along with Alphabet Pal!' 

are all part of what inspired this poem.

By the way, thanks to Edison and other alphabet-repeating gizmos

 Tots can belt out the abc's long before they go to school!

Imagine if we drilled them in eternal things the way we do the temporal...

Deut.11:18-21

Remember God’s Words

18Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds;

 tie them as reminders on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.

  19Teach them to your children, speaking about them when you sit at home

 and when you walk along the road, 

when you lie down and when you get up. 

20Write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates, 

21so that as long as the heavens are above the earth, 

your days and those of your children may be multiplied 

in the land that the LORD swore to give your fathers.

Ephesians 6:4

Fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath; 

instead, bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

It takes a village of parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles,

 teachers, neighbors, childcare providers, etc.

to raise a child, but to train up a child in the way they should go (Prov.22:6) 

is mostly up to parents (*and grandparents)!

Deuteronomy 4:9

Only be on your guard and diligently watch yourselves, 

so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen,

 and so that they do not slip from your heart as long as you live. 

*Teach them to your children and grandchildren.

They trust us not to lead them into ways they should not go

They look to us to teach them so much that they want to know

This is no small or simple charge that follows you and I

These tots, so full of innocence and never-ending ‘why’

This is no brief commission we can annul when we choose

Once donned we cannot nonchalantly kick off parent-shoes

Tots are not little long; the stars they are trying to reach

Reflected in their eager eyes, see far more than we teach

The agelessness of truth is a beacon that does not dim

It is no shifting shadow that adapts to wish and whim

The manual for moms and dads is pure and undeterred

The sound and supreme counsel and instruction in God’s Word

To grasp astronomy, ecology, geologic worth/girth

Begins with knowing Who created the heavens and earth

The One who designed galaxies and rolling seas and bugs

Creates each little child we shower with kisses and hugs

The abc’s and one-two-threes are important to learn

But better far than shiny stars these tender triumphs earn

Is the sacred retelling of the One who made us all

No nursery rhyme is He who sees all creatures great and small

Children grow up so fast; Past echoes with the strange replay

Of scenes, that in a child’s childhood, we think, are far away

The feet outgrowing shoes, the boo-boos on elbows and knees

Soon fade into the fond, fine fabric work of memories

Children trust us to lead them; oh, forbid we teach a lie

To tots, so full of innocence and never-ending ‘why’

Who look to us to tell about so much they want to know

Tis no small charge to teach them about God who loves them/us so

© Janet Martin

Teaching children is a moment-ous charge

Small choices can make a big difference!

For instance, what books we choose to read to them.

Yesterday was HOT! 

A great opportunity to enjoy the shade with books

while a child delighted and astounded me with her

intuitive innocence!!

I forgot about photos till we were leaving to tackle other important tasks

on her to-do list; like trike😂💖

Because It's All So Brief...from First Frond-Shimmer to Sheaf

A blend of panic and perfect pleasure

pervades my senses as I stand among

the brief and precious bloom of peonies...

(I just noticed on this photo above, 

the persistent bindweed has already resurfaced between the rocks, g-r-r-r!!

after I thought I tackled it thoroughly two weeks ago!! see this post)

Last night I realized the fading sheen of green in the neighboring grain field!

...evoking a tender tug, aware of the impending inevitable; June's farewell

Happy 2nd half of June!

The ups and downs

and in betweens

of grays and browns

and blues and greens

Unfolds an

ever-wending wow

from molds of

never-ending now

The ebb and flow

that tunes the sky

with dawn’s hello

and noon’s goodbye

Unravels as it

binds to sheaves

what sparkle-whit

unwinds and weaves

Where bidden nuance

woos its art

to hidden viewpoints

of the heart

Where oft we stand

to gaze, agape

at mist-soft land-

scapes taking shape

While hunger plunders

hills and holes

While wonder thunders

in our souls

With ups and downs

and in betweens

of grays and browns

and blues and greens

  

© Janet Martin

Psalm 144:4
Man is like a breath; his days are like a passing shadow.

What Ifs Versus What Is...

He who promised is faithful.

Heb.10:23

A flower isn't a flower until the bud unfolds the bloom!

What Is in bloom now?

Peonies in the flower garden!

And the Flower of What Is, in life...

The ‘what ifs’ of regret cannot undo what has been done

Where What Is sets time’s tables with fresh favors, mercy-spun

What if instead of wishing for what no wish can undo

We make the most of what is within reach of me and you

God’s mercy new each morning and His all-sufficient grace

Forgiveness for repentance, and His Word to gird our faith

What if instead of fretting and forgetting favours wrought

We focus on remembering What Is, with grateful thought

What if we trusted He who will our every need supply

Where What Is always hinges to far more than meets the eye

Far more goodness and mercy than mortal can comprehend

And love that has no boundaries of beginning or end

The ‘what ifs’ of yesterday and tomorrow borrow care

Today is overflowing with what is enough to bear

What if we take what is, in spite of so much that is not

And humbly honor He who gives us everything we've got

His everlasting promises, His love that will not fail

His wind beneath our wings, His anchor in the galling gale

The ‘what ifs’ of regret are futile; this new day set free

Is brimming with what is waiting for us to ‘taste and see’

What if we love God first and our neighbour next because

What is still most important has always been these two laws

Then what if we rely on He who is in full control

And simply love Him with all of our heart and mind and soul

© Janet Martin

Not all 'what ifs' are 'if onlys'

Sometimes What If is the spark that kindles the dream/bud before the flower!

Originally, the second line in this poem was

'Where What Is sets time’s tables with fresh battles to be won'

but the more I pondered (though the battles are real and often grueling)

the battlefield is cradled in His mercy!

His redemption is complete!

His loving kindness faithful!

Psalm 34:8

O taste and see that the Lord is good: 

blessed is the man that trusteth in him.

Psalm 100:5

For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; 

his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Phil.4:8

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.

Let's Live Today In Such A Way (as if we could die of a heart attack)

Jim didn't know his out-of-the-blue-question last night

(after we had ceased chatting for a little while and I was snoozing

 between pages of the book The Gauntlet) 

would spark today's poem.

He suddenly asked 'what if tomorrow is the day when people say

 'did you hear?!! Jim died of a heart attack today!'

Maybe you're laughing a little but...

It's not an impossibility for any one of us 

and perhaps a prudent/valid question to contemplate before

' the dust returns to the ground it came from, 

and the spirit returns to God who gave it.'

Eccles.12:6-7

Remember Him before the silver cord is snapped

and the golden bowl is crushed,

before the pitcher is shattered at the spring

and the wheel is broken at the well,

7before the dust returns to the ground from which it came

and the spirit returns to God who gave it.

Why does it matter so much?!

Because the soul is deathless with only one of two destinations

depending on the preparation we have made!

Salvation-heaven

Rejection-hell

I can't even remember if or what I answered 

but Jim's last words last night set the tone for my first thoughts this morning!

And inspired today's poem🙏💗

Take time to thoroughly appreciate life's simple, temporary joys

but first, address soul-sacred Eternity

(Grandson checking out gramma's birthday espresso)

Second-cousins sharing a swing...

(Photo used with permission💖💖💖)

My sister's grand-daughter pulled a goofy face just as I clicked😂

To live today in such a way, that it could be our last

Transforms our sighs and what we prize where morning hoists its mast

For none can tell how near farewell draws its finality

As we embark toward that mark, we know but cannot see

To live today as if we may not have another, wakes

A sacred sense of recompense in every breath one takes

And stirs us to a humbler view of time’s momentous fount

…moments become the holy sum of which we give account

To live today as if to say ‘thank-you’ to God, who grants

Its gift of grace, each lovely face we kiss, each ‘second chance’

Will help us weave the steps we leave behind into a prayer

For those still in the thick and thin of love and living’s care

To live today in such a way will beckon us to be

More mindful of the thinning glove that cups eternity

How sweet the flask that metes the task for loved ones near and dear

How fleet the feet that rush to greet the mists of yesteryear

Where sorrows surge and morrows merge with splurge of seasons spent

This is the toll that weans the Soul from mortal filament

Pray, let’s be kind and keep in mind what lies beyond yon past

And live today in such way, that it could be our last

And live today as if to say ‘I love you, you, and You’

And live today as if we may meet God when it is through

© Janet Martin

I remember wise words spoken by my dad years ago...

"live in such a way that if God told you today or tomorrow you will die,

you would carry on exactly as you would otherwise have.

Live life always ready to meet God!

Eccles.3:11

He has made everything beautiful in its time.

Also He has put eternity in their hearts,

except that no one can find out the work

that God does from beginning to end.

Heb.9:27-28

Just as man is appointed to die once, and after that to face judgment,

28so also Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many;

and He will appear a second time, not to bear sin,

but to bring salvation to those who eagerly await Him.

Matthew 1:21

She will give birth to a Son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus,

because He will save His people from their sins."

Acts 4:12

Salvation is found in no one else,

for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind

by which we must be saved.”

Acts 16:30-34

Then he brought them out and asked,

“Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

31They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved,

you and your household.”

32Then Paul and Silas spoke the word of the Lord

to him and to everyone in his house.

33At that hour of the night, the jailer took them

and washed their wounds.

And without delay, he and all his household were baptized

. 34Then he brought them into his home and set a meal before them.

So he and all his household rejoiced

that they had come to believe in God.

Dear June (A Love Poem/ Song)

You are altogether beautiful, my darling; there is no flaw in you.

Song of Solomon 4:7

I LOVE every season but I confess

I love winter mostly because of how it sweetens the dream-to-reality of June💖

My new middle-age passion is camp-fire cooking

inspired in large part by these enchanting videos on Country Life Vlog

Wow! We are already over one third through June's joy-opportunities!

June rambles through primed rosebuds with a raindrop song and dance

It ambles along laneways lighting purple wild-phlox lamps...

Green halos garnish arbors...

 and blue heavens crown each hill...

And from a vault of meadowland wildflower-jewels spill...

June dots the countryside with cattle herds...

... and flocks of sheep

June rambles through primed rosebuds with a raindrop song and dance

It ambles along laneways lighting purple wild-phlox lamps

Green halos garnish arbors and blue heavens crown each hill

And from a vault of meadowland wildflower-jewels spill

June rushes like a river made of beauty to behold

Of mesmerizing backdrops as dusk lingers, pink and gold

Of brooks luring bare feet, of dreamers drawn to dredge the deeps

Of darling nooks in curves and crooks of panoramic sweeps

Of temptation to trespass in a field of buttercups

Of peering into posy-bistros while bumble-bee sups

Of loitering in the fine company of flowers, oh

And forgetting just what it was that once we wished for so

June shimmers like a lily full of dew and morning sun

Gazillion diamond-glitters frilling fronds daintily spun

The willow is a minstrel and the chestnut tree a queen

At dusk translucent tinsel shines where dandel’ns had been

June rolls its verdant avenues out to banks, ethereal

The orchard sheds blush tutus for ranks more imperial

Cumulus masterpieces exhibit a grand buffet

Where beauty needs no thesis to prove perfect disarray

Where branches burgeon with gilt notes of noon-day lullabies

Where nature’s inkless lyrics lilt and float in leafy sighs

Where you are altogether beautiful in every way

Dear June, I thank thy Maker for thy loveliness today

June ushers in the season kissed by winter’s darling dreams

Where joy and happiness exist in sync, where gladness streams

Where everywhere one looks, one feels unworthy of it all

Pretty petal percussion peals from belfries one stem tall

June dots the countryside with cattle herds and flocks of sheep

The bard in all of us is stirred by what no one can keep

The die of destiny is cast; past woos new memories

Where June always fades far too fast; daisies bob in the breeze

© Janet Martin

June rolls its verdant avenues out to banks, ethereal

The orchard sheds blush tutus for ranks more imperial

Cumulus masterpieces exhibit a grand buffet

Where beauty needs no thesis to prove perfect disarray

Pretty petal percussion peals from belfries one stem tall...

June rushes like a river made of beauty to behold

Of mesmerizing backdrops as dusk lingers, pink and gold