Keeper.....

There’s no need to worry if the sun should fade away
And the rose in all its glory lies on beds of solemn gray
If the curtains in the eastern sky should part at brink of dawn
Revealing teardrops in my eye, I know I’ll carry on
For as the endless ages roll
There is a Keeper of the soul

Life may take a tender heart and pierce it with its sorrow
Sin may take its bitter dart and blur hope in tomorrow
Disappointment has its day and victory does too
Jesus is the only way and He will see us through
Only He can make us whole
He is the Keeper of the soul

Laughter is a moments sun and tears the rains of life
Soon this journey will be done, its victories and strife
And all the treasures of this earth we won’t need anymore
For nothing on this sinful berth will pass through Heaven’s door
Then let the ceaseless ages roll
With the Keeper of the soul

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Janet Martin

There shall be no more death nor sorrow nor crying...
There shall be no more pain, for all the former things
have passed away. Rev.21:4

Mercy....

We marvel at the blazing dawn
Brushing the night away
The glowing of the ruddy sun
As evening turns to gray
We gaze upon the fabric of
A glorious universe
And with our lips sing songs of love
To God of heaven and earth

We praise Him for His wondrous love
And try to understand
How He could leave His throne above
To dwell with foolish man
And in the end we realize
There’s nothing we can do
To gain favor in His eyes
When our wee life is through

Oh what a wondrous sacrifice
He paid so we may live
Once for all, eternal price
In mercy he forgives
In humble gratitude we bow
And lift our hearts to Him
As His mercy He bestows
To wash away our sin

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Janet Martin

Therefore I urge you, brothers,
In light of God’s mercy
To offer your bodies
As living sacrifices
Holy and pleasing to God

Rom.12:1

My Prayer this Morning....

Open up my eyes dear Lord
To blessings at my door
That I may see with thankful heart
Your tender mercies pour
The red geranium in a pot
Enhanced by gold sunshine
The music of sun-tanned bare feet
The finch perched on the vine

The carpet where my children laugh
And grow sweet memories
Their echo dances ‘cross the grass
And in the sighing trees
The mellow peach upon my tongue
Handprints on window panes
A song recalled when I was young
Sung word for word again

The cricket’s ceaseless melody
The robust cobs of corn
A warm dust-scented memory
As I hear combines drone
Open up my eyes dear Lord
Beyond duty’s demand
Lest I should miss the rich reward
You place at my right hand

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Janet Martin

Reminded.....

Seems I need to be reminded
That fourth grade angels with golden hair
Still need hugs and teddy bears….
…and that neither Rome nor a man is built in a day
And it’s always been that way

Seems I need to be reminded
That into each life a little rain must fall
For without it there could be no garden at all….
…..joy and grief must have their day
And it’s always been that way

Seems I need to be reminded
While I covet the neighbors rose
I’m blind to the larkspur blooming at my toes…..
……. God supplies our needs each day
And it’s always been that way

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Janet Martin

You're Beautiful to Me

The rainbow arcs in cobalt blue
Above the wind-tossed sea
The morning dawns in tears of dew
And hope’s sweet melody
The rolling fields of green and gold
Gleam in the sacred calm
As heaven’s shadow we behold
In nature’s glorious palm

The tumbling river sings his praise
The humble heart does too
As sunset melts in coral blaze
On distant hills of blue
The midnight whispers in the hem
Of elm and willow tree
God, of earth’s fair diadem
You’re beautiful to me

Within the rain the tiny thrush
Lifts joyful songs to Him
And in the solemn evening hush
As daylight’s hour grows dim
The small child prays in simple faith
Upon a bended knee
Wondrous God of heaven and earth
You’re beautiful to me…….

……..the crimson tear stains heavens cheek
The blood pours from His side
The Hands which healed the sick and weak
Now hold man’s sin and pride
And as He cries out “It is done”
His death sets sinners free
God, Redeemer, Father, Son
You’re beautiful to me

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Janet Martin




O THE DEPTHS OF THE RICHES BOTH OF

THE WISDOM AND KNOWLEDGE OF GOD!

HOW UNSEARCHABLE ARE HIS JUDGMENTS,

AND HIS WAYS ARE PAST FINDING OUT!

FOR WHO HATH KNOWN THE MIND OF THE

LORD? OR WHO HATH BEEN HIS COUNSELOR?

OR WHO HATH FIRST GIVEN TO HIM, AND IT

SHALL BE RECOMPENSED UNTO HIM AGAIN?

FOR OF HIM, AND THROUGH HIM, AND TO HIM,

ARE ALL THINGS; TO WHOM BE GLORY FOR EVER.

AMEN. (Rom. 11:33-36)

What if?

What if we had met years ago?
What if instead your name was….Joe?
What if I’d be rich, or….very poor?
What if I you didn’t love me any more?
What if God said ‘no’ instead of ‘yes’?
Would my cup of joy hold more or less?
What if I had turned left instead of right?
What if I’d surrender instead of fight?
What if tomorrow I lie sick in bed?
Or what if tomorrow I am dead?
What if I had never met you?
What if your eyes were brown, not blue?
What if, when the door opens today
I turn and walk the other way?
God, the road of ‘what if’s’ never ends
Let me simply trust You in life’s hills and bends
Let me not dwell in the what if’s that are gone
But trust Your will until this life is done

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Janet Martin


Do you ever find yourself asking 'What if???"....
that long, pointless, endless highway?

Grandma Martin

If only I could see you again
Then I would tell you I’m sorry
For not really truly listening
As you would tell a story
I would pay a tidy sum
If I could hear them now
You were such a dear grand-mum
I didn’t see it somehow

But still I can hear your jolly laugh
Sometimes until tears filled your eyes
And sometimes at night when I can’t sleep
I can hear your lullabies
You were love exemplified
In every step you took
Oft you spoke of a Friend at your side
And oft you would read His Book

I’d tell you I didn’t mean to peek
Into your bureau drawer
To see if there were any treats
Perhaps for us, in store
And maybe I’ll even have grown to love
The tick of the old chime clock
Reminding me that I’m still awake
And it’s already two-o’ clock

I’d hoard all your one line sermons
I often recall a few
‘Waste not, want not’…’if you want to eat
Then you must work a little too’
‘If you do not value a penny
You do not deserve a dollar’
‘Eat your crust, for the starving are many’
‘We are forever ‘a scholar’

‘Life is far too short to waste’
‘Prepare to meet your God’
‘Repent at leisure if you sow in haste’
‘To spoil a child, spare the rod’
‘Can’t will never accomplish a thing’
‘There’s some good in everyone’
‘Tomorrow it will all look better’
And ‘the early-bird catches the worm’



If only I could see you again
To fully appreciate you
Your wisdom would not be in vain
And your memories I’d cherish too
I hope I’ll recognize you
Someday on a celestial hill
I’ll look for the lady with sewing on her lap
And hands that are never still

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Janet Martin

Yes, Grandma…
There is so much I’ve forgotten
But so much I remember too
And in the most unexpected moment
Suddenly I think of you

Take Heart.....

Victory is not in each step you take
But each step will win the race
Hope doesn’t die in your mistake
But is born because of grace
Wings do not come to captives of fear
But to those who trust and fly
Fruit could never grow on a tree
If the heavens would never cry

Night is the beginning of a brand new day
Not the dismal end
Love grows in trials along the way
As light and shadows blend
Trust is not proven until it is tried
Whether it will bend or break
Victory waits on the other side
With every step you take

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Janet Martin


Since we live by the Spirit
let us keep in step with the Spirit. Gal.5:25

August...

Blameless, the sliver quarter moon
Suspended in the blue
Faultless, the wind that moans a tune
Where fields are wet with dew
Guiltless too, the froth of stars
That grace earth’s pinnacle
But somehow this pure summer heart
Must bend to autumn’s will

Rampant, the purple wild flower reigns
Merged with golden rod
Collaborating in brilliant strains
A garden sown by God
As all along the fence and hill
They boldly flaunt their smile
No timid face will greet the chill
Of autumn’s flaming mile

For just as winter turns to spring
And spring to summer’s bliss
So too summer must yield again
To autumns lingering kiss
For all of nature must resign
And all of man must too
Beneath the Hand of great design
When life’s summer is through

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Janet Martin

Drive....

The sailor travels the moody crest
Of cobalt and turquoise sea
The soldier obeys the commander’s request
As he battles the enemy
The farmer plows and plants the field
The astronaut studies the stars
The preacher seeks a heavenly yield
The mechanic fixes cars
The secretary types and files
The officer serves and protects
The dentist polishes fading smiles
The janitor cleans the mess
The trucker hauls whatever we need
The doctor works for our health
The banker protects the fruits of greed
Of need and phantom wealth
The fireman douses the ruthless flame
The teacher educates
The sports-man gets paid to play a game
The inventor creates
The carpenter works with hammer and wood
The factory-worker with steel
The waiter hopes the food is good
The cook prepares the meal
The nurse provides soft, tender care
The gardener tills and prunes
The barber trims and styles our hair
The singer strums his tunes
No matter the means by which we live
No matter wherever we roam
There is a universal drive
For love and home sweet home


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Janet Martin

Jesus Loves Me..

You know the name of every baby
Plucked from the womb before they saw the light
You know the name of every lady
Most people simply call the girls of night
You see the homeless drunkard and poor beggar
Each member of each tribe in every race
For no one strays beyond your loving mercy
Nor sinks beneath Your sweet amazing grace

Jesus loves me this I know, the sweetest words of all
In gentle tones compassion flows as helpless teardrops fall
Jesus loves me there can be no dearer words I find
For He is Love and He is Hope and Grace for all mankind

You see the rocks on which we stumble
You see the winds that toss our sail
You send the trial to keep us humble
And leaning on the Love that will not fail
You touch the vilest unclean sinner
For every man is vile without Your blood
But you transform the loser to a winner
As he is cleansed within your holy flood

Jesus loves me this I know His mercy fills the earth
He takes this empty shell of mine and fills it with His worth
Jesus loves me, may His love shine through me to all men
Until He reaches from above and draws me home to Him

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Janet Martin

Morning Song of Praise......

As You draw away the midnight’s purple awning
As the slumbering flower opens up her eyes
As song birds herald the cool and tranquil dawning
A miracle before mans wondering eyes
As the dormant breeze awakes in gentle sighing
And passes through the trembling walnut trees
Oh, my awesome God there’s no denying
None but you bestows moments like these

The tumbling waterfall declares your power
You bring a tree to sprout from hills of stone
You deck this evil world with sweet wild flower
And in the darkest night I’m not alone
The mighty oak resides within an acorn
The warrior is a seed within the womb
And in Your love You wore a lowly mans form
To place Your hope within the darkened tomb

The raindrops laugh upon the emerald pillow
Where grass and leaf, where fern and tree reside
The sunlight filters through the swaying willow
And croons a lovely song in morning’s tide
Your love flows in torrents from the heavens
Your love flowed in rivers from a cross
Your love tells me that I am forgiven
And all I give for you will not be loss

My tongue cannot declare your holy wonder
My quill can never pen the perfect word
The God within the hurricane and thunder
Can see the fall of one small helpless bird
The God who knows that man is dark and sinful
Will dwell within the soft heart of belief
He gives us power o’er this worlds luring evil
And draws us from the road of sin’s vast grief

The heavens declare the beauty of Your glory
The earth bursts with the goodness of Your hand
While I repeat in awe love’s old, old story
And in my hour of doubt it’s new again
You pour Your endless mercy like a shower
As I drink from the well that never dries
You whisper to me in this sacred hour
And paint Your mercy ‘cross the morning skies

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Janet Martin

Daddy.....?

Daddy, what makes the stars stay in the sky?
And Daddy, who made the butterfly?
Daddy, who made the day and night?
And why is there two ways; wrong and right?
Daddy, who makes the trees and flowers grow?
Daddy…..who will tell them if you don’t know

Daddy, where do people go when they die?
Daddy, what is up past the sky?
When I am naughty, why are you sad?
Daddy, why is there good and bad?
Oh Daddy, you know I love you so
Where does love come from, Daddy do you know?

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Janet Martin

Inspired by the priests questions to Levin
In Anna Karenina….

After asking Levin why he cannot believe
The priest concludes with these questions…
“What will you tell him if you yourself know nothing?
How will you answer him?
Will you abandon him to the allurements of this world
and the devil?

My Own Small Sorrows

My own small sorrows can never begin
To compare with the sorrow You bore
My own small sorrows are the out-come of sin
The sin for which Your blood did pour

My own small sorrows are merely a cross
Which someday I will gladly lay down
Exchanging my own small sorrows and loss
For the reward of heaven’s crown

My own small sorrows put a tear on my cheek
Yours put a spear in Your side
Thorns on Your brow yet Your Spirit was meek
As for my small sorrows You died

My own small sorrows help me to recall
The gift You have given freely
Yes, my sorrows are incredibly small
In the light of Your love for me

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Janet Martin

Who....?

Who adorns celestial vaults?
With silver-studded showers
Who decks the carpet of the hills?
With myriad of flowers
Who forms the babe within the womb?
Who fills the deep blue sea?
Who rose in triumph from the tomb?
To save a wretch like me

Who breathes life to every soul?
Who takes it away?
Who can the wind and waves control?
That even they obey
Who whispers in the silent dawn?
Or in the rolling thunder
Who can take a heart of stone?
And fill it with His wonder

Who holds us in His gracious hand?
With endless loving kindness
Who asks us not to understand?
But trust in spite of blindness
Who will help us to believe?
When unbelief entices
Or should the friend of lies deceive
Who guards us from his vices?

Who cares for His little ones?
Like fathers for their children
Who calls us his cherished sons?
And heirs to his great Kingdom
Who creates grand beauty rare?
That man destroys with pleasure
Then reaches down with tender care
And loves us without measure

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Janet Martin

How great is the love the
Father has lavished on us;
That we should be called the
Children of God.
And that is what we are!
The reason the world does not know us
Is that it did not know Him. 1 John 3:1

From His Hand to Ours

From His hands to ours
Graciously He brings forth
A rainbow of flowers
And fruits of the earth
A plethora of wealth
Bursting from the land
Beauty and health
Pouring from His hand

But what if we turned
Our backs on this yield
And what if we spurned
The fruit of this field
And what if we carelessly
Trod under-foot
The vine with its gloriously
Rich-laden fruit?

From this earth to His Kingdom
The harvest is white
Is there anyone willing
To work here tonight?
From His hand to ours
But someday again
He will gather the flowers
That have not bloomed in vain

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Janet Martin

Greater Is He

Over the tides of circumstance
Or anger’s raging sea
Over the fretful winds of chance
And human misery
I see the banner of His love
In gentle tones unfurled
Greater is He that is in me
Than he that is in the world

Over this turmoil’s darkened plain
Where man is doomed to live
Over the hurt and bitter pain
When I cannot forgive
He whispers to me soft and low
His mercy there unfurled
Greater is He that is in me
Than he that is in the world

Over this wretched form of dust
Where death is my release
Over this world of shame and lust
Where there would be no peace
I hear again His tender Voice
In perfect love unfurled
Greater is He that is in me
Than he that is in the world

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Janet Martin

Greater is He that is in you
Than he that is in the world. 1 John 4:4

Hand of God

You steal across a slumbering charcoal land
With a warm translucent hand
You brush away the silent darkened hue
With a breath of softest baby blue
The waving fields of slate-toned grain
Become a sea of gold again
The tear that plagues the lonely soul
Finds hope within dawns coral glow
Ah love, ah, the hope of opportunity
Once more you reach your hand to me
As I, a stumbling slave of sod
Reach out to touch the hand of God

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Janet Martin

His compassions never fail;
They are new every morning. Lam.3:22-23