Is This It?

Is this all there is?
Hope refurbished with hope
Assurances of ‘better days’
As to its void we grope

Is this all there is?
A fleeting day of youth
Before the cold and solemn kiss
Of consequence’s truth

Is this all there is?
A grasping of thin air
Before hands fold upon our chest
In coffins of despair

Is this all there is?
A kaleidoscope of dirt
Chaotic sequences of bliss
And brokenness and hurt

Is this all there is?
A pithy poem or two
Before our painted emptiness
Is stripped for all to view

Is this all there is?
Without our God to trust
Yes, this is all that there would be
A journey back to dust

This is not all there is
Though bodies will decay
They hold within a living soul
That never fades away

Janet~

For God so loved the world
He gave His only Son

That whosoever believes on Him
will not perish
But have eternal Life. John 3:16

In the Matter of Choices

The world in lurid dissonance
Its paltry offering waves
But it cannot give hope a chance
Or reach beneath cold graves

It smiles with lies and cheating guise
To lure the seeker in
Its sordid prize lost as he dies
Too late to undo sin

The Father waits in patient love
He whispers at our door
He holds the keys to heaven above
And life forevermore

He will not break the holds we make
Nor will He walk away
In love He pleads to fill our needs
Before the Judgment Day

Janet~


Psalms 1

1 Blessed is the one
who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
or sit in the company of mockers,
2 but whose delight is in the law of the LORD,
and who meditates on his law day and night.
3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
whatever they do prospers.
4 Not so the wicked!
They are like chaff
that the wind blows away.
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
6 For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.

His Eternal Love

The threshold of a new day yawns
Before my wondering gaze
As surely as a new day dawns
So too, amazing grace
And as I draw this thought to me
Of love that never dims
I cannot help but thankfully
Live every breath for Him

My visage surely cannot grasp
The wonder of it all
But just to think He loves us first
Compels me then to fall
Before the nail-scarred hands of love
And praise Him humbly then
For He so loved this world enough
To die for fallen men

Each sad attempt to satisfy
The hopeless void within
Each futile search to gratify
The appetite of sin
The stubborn and pathetic quest
To live life on my own
Are washed away by heaven’s Best
As I bow at His throne

The threshold of a new day lies
Un-trodden at our feet
And as we lift our wondering eyes
Up to His mercy seat
May He bestow in gentle love
The courage to go on
Until we touch His hand above
In an eternal dawn

Janet~



1 John 4:10 - This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

Set Apart

Lord, teach me how to purpose
In my heart of hearts
To live in true obedience
As those You’ve set apart
And help me not to lean upon
The things that I can see
But to trust your promises
To be the power in me

My understanding at its best
Is but an earth-dimmed view
I would have no righteousness
If I did not have You
Then teach me how to humbly walk
In precepts of Your word
Make my witness more than talk
As I bow to You, Lord

Your Word; a faithful life-line
Upon this troubled sea
A beacon, holy and divine
To keep and comfort me
I would become so careless, Lord
Without this precious guide
For as I feed upon Your word
I feel You at my side

Janet~

Don’t be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows. Luke 12:7

In these uncertain times His word is certain!

…and what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God. Micah. 6:8


22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. James 1:22

1 Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, 2with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, 3being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all. Ephes. 4: 1-5

Often I Wonder.....

Often I wonder
About a place
They say it’s over yonder
And we’ll see Jesus’ face
No sorrow, no misery
Or heartache there
They say its beauty
Is beyond compare

Out past the stars
And the Milky Way
Jupiter, Mars
We will fly someday
I often wonder
How far it will be
Oh, how far is heaven
From me

It’s hard to imagine
Such a wonderful sight
Heavenly mansions
Where God is the light
I gaze to the heavens
Suddenly I see
It’s not very far
To eternity

There is just one breath
Separating me
Only God knows
When that one breath will be
As I take my last breath
It will open a door
And I won’t have to wonder
Anymore

Janet~

And the city had no need of the sun,
neither of the moon, to shine in it;
for the glory of God did lighten it....Rev. 21:23

Because of Who You Are.....

Because of who You are, oh God
Believers rest secure
Though terror weeps upon the sod
We have a hope that’s sure

Because of who You are, oh God
Though tears of dread may fall
You keep us in each mile we trod
For You are in control

We know who You are, oh God
Though man destroys and kills
You tell us we should fear the One
Who casts lost souls to hell

Because of who You are oh God
The wicked one will fail
You will strike Your holy rod
Evil will not prevail

Because of who You are, oh God
We ought to bend our knee
How short the day of temporal sod
How long eternity

Janet~

And he said, ‘Go thy way, Daniel;
For the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.
Many shall be purified and made white, and tried;
But the wicked shall do wickedly;
And none of the wicked shall understand;
But the wise shall understand. Daniel 12:9-10

One Way......

We pass through this life but once
Lord, help us not to waste it
Soon this little gasp is gone
With all its wares we’ve tasted

Your love rolls like ten ocean-tides
Your grace so full and free
Would deck a-thousand mountain-sides
And all eternity

We pass through this life but once
Oh may it never be
That we would fall before Your throne
Without Your gift so free

Your love flows in endless streams
Your grace and mercy too
How sad to face eternity
And cry, I never knew

Janet~

Thomas said unto Him,
Lord, we know not where You go
And how can we know the way?
Jesus said unto him,
“I am the Way, the Truth and the Life.
No man comes unto the father but by Me.” John 14:5-6

Not a Graceless Void

If tonight the veil was parted
As we looked up to the sky
If we saw ten-thousand angels
Lift their golden trumpets high
If on clouds of brilliant glory
We beheld the Son of Man
Returning to conclude a Story
On the earth where it began
Would we rejoice with all the angels?
Would our hearts be over-joyed?
As we thankfully remember
This is not a graceless void

As we see the Throne of Judgment
And the One who sits thereon
The Alpha and Omega
God’s only begotten Son
As we bow before His presence
And confess His sacred Name
Will we see the face of Jesus?
Or our own folly and shame?
Will we tremble with lost sinners
As all sin will be destroyed?
Or thankfully remember
This is not a graceless void

As the Holiest of Holies
Comes to judge the sons of men
As the Book of Life is opened
What will be our utterance then?
Will we plead before a jealous God?
Without mercy or favor
Or will we recognize His Hands
As we reach to our Savior?
Will we cry ‘holy holy’
As to Heaven we’re employed?
For this Judge is also Savior
This is not a graceless void

Janet~

5 and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.
To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, 6and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.
7 “Look, he is coming with the clouds,”[a]
and “every eye will see him,
even those who pierced him”;
and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him.”[b]
So shall it be! Amen.
8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”
Footnotes:
a. Revelation 1:7 Daniel 7:13
b. Revelation 1:7 Zech. 12:10

I Know We Can't Imagine....(Song Lyric)

The road down here is long, I know
It can be awful hard
The going can be sad and slow
And oh, we get so tired
But there is coming a sweet day
A day when we’ll behold
A land beyond this weary way
Where streets are paved in gold
I know, we can’t imagine
Just how it will be
When we get to Heaven….
And eternity……..someday

The night down here can be so long
When sleep evades our eyes
In its dark we toss and turn
And long for the sun-rise
But there is coming a sweet day
When night will be no more
For they say there is no night
On heaven’s blissful shore
I know we can’t imagine
Just how it will be
When we get to Heaven….
And eternity…….someday

This life is full of sorrow
And burdens we must bear
But in some near tomorrow
We will lay aside each care
For there is coming a sweet day
Where no tear dims the eye
For He will wipe each tear away
In the sweet by and by
I know we can’t imagine
Just how it will
When we get to Heaven…..
And eternity….someday

Eye has never seen it
Ear has never heard
The glory that is waiting
For believers of His word
Tongue can never tell it
But we know it is true
For God Himself has said
‘I have prepared a place for you….’
I know we can’t imagine
Just how it will be
When we get to Heaven….
And eternity….someday

Oh how glorious it will be….someday

Janet~

In My father’s house are many mansions,
If it were not so I would have told you.
I go to prepare a place for you
And if I go to prepare a place for you
I will come again and receive you unto Myself
That where I am, there ye may be also. John 14:2-3

The Light of the World Has Come

Over each hill-top laden with snow
Over the sea where the warm winds blow
Over the palm tree, the fir and the pine
From horizon to horizon line
A wonderful message rings from heaven’s dome
The Light of the world has come

Into the gloom of a sin-laden heart
Into a world that was doomed from the start
Doomed since the Garden and that first sin
Groaning in darkness without and within
Into the spirit, down-cast and numb
The Light of the world has come

Piercing the veil of loss and despair
A Savior has come for each man everywhere
He who formed mountains and the rose so red
Is lying in Bethlehem’s manger-bed
Shout the glad news to each heart and each home
The Light of the world has come

Janet Martin~

That was the true Light which gives light
To every man was coming into the world…..

We have seen His glory,
The glory of the One and Only…..John 1:9-14

For God so loved the world that he gave
His One and Only Son
That whosoever believes on Him should not perish
But have eternal Life.
For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the
World, but to save the world through Him….

….this is the verdict; Light has come into the world. John 3:16-19

Master-piece Morning....

He lifted the sun above the edge of the world
A handful of pink and amber and gold
Flinging its light across the sky
Across the snow-clad fir and pine
Transforming blue fields of an hour ago
With an iridescent, coral glow

Masterpiece morning, a breathless calm
Descends on a landscape robed in last night’s storm
Just as in life each storm will not stay
But in the glad morning will pass away
Masterpiece morning melts across the land
As I see a touch of the Master’s hand……

Janet~


...weeping may endure for a night
but joy comes in the morning. Ps.30:5

In The Soft Eve.......

In the soft eve’s gentle cradle
Lies the murmur of my day
Over head in silent vigil
Beams a star in white array
It is there through all the sunshine
In the darkened shadow too
But I don’t see it until evening
When the toil of day is through

In the soft eve’s gentle cradle
I will place my cares someday
There is One whose loving vigil
Waits to help me ‘cross the way
He is there though I can’t see Him
Someday He will call for me
As He draws me o’er the river
To heaven’s eternity

Janet~

Come unto Me, all you who are weary
and heavy-laden and I will give you rest. Matt. 11:28

Blessed are those who wash their robes,
That they may have the right to
The Tree of Life and may go through the gates
Into the city. Rev.22:14

Another Book......

When all of the chapters are written
When this book is put away
When God takes a look in another Book
Oh tell me, what will it say?

Will He find on those blood-bought pages
Your name written down with care?
Or will He tenderly look through every Book
And not find your name anywhere?

All Rights Reserved
Janet Martin

Another book was opened which is the
Book of life…..Rev.20:12

Jesus Wept.............

I stretched my arms to you
But you turned away
Choosing the darkness
Where cold demons prey
You were so hungry
I brought you some food
Enough for a life time
Wholesome and good
But you chose the filth
And the husks at your feet
Spurning the Bread
You chose crumbs on the street
I brought you water
To quench your thirst
But as you walked by Me
You stumbled and cursed
Ignoring the cup
In my out-stretched Hand
You chose a desert
Of burning sand
I offered you life
Beyond your last breath
But oh, you rejected it
And you chose death

All Rights Reserved
Janet Martin

Oh Jerusalem, Jerusalem
You who kill the prophets and stone those
Sent to you;
How often I have longed to gather your children
As a hen gathers her chicks under her wings,
But you were not willing!
Look, your house is left desolate.
I tell you, you will not see me again until you say
‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the
Lord’.
Luke 13; 34-35

This verse to me is one of the most beautifully poignant
Pictures of His incredible love for us as He came to earth.
Oh, let us celebrate in spirit and truth this Christmas!!!

Gift.......

Wrapped with pretty bows and paper
Laid with love beneath a tree
Delightful shrieks from little children
Lovely gifts for us to see
It’s so nice to give our presents
And it’s nice to get them too
Gifts; the Christmas way of saying
‘You are special, I love you’

Wrapped in love within a baby
A manger welcomed Him to earth
Angel hosts adorn the heavens
As they herald His holy birth
Heaven’s best; the King of glory
Gift of hope, promise come true
Heaven’s tender way of saying,
‘You are special, I love you’

Wrapped in flesh, battered and bleeding
Hung with love upon a tree
Gift of grace; a Savior pleading
‘Father, forgive; they know not me’
The greatest gift that He could offer
Wrapped in victory; ‘it is done’
‘You are special and I love you’
Gift of love wrapped in God’s Son

All Rights Reserved
Janet Martin

I got this BEAUTIFUL poinsettia from a friend today…..
It made me think of another beautiful gift.

Complete.....

The year grows dim
Fall’s gown is rent
The dashing hymn
Of May is spent

I laid a lily
On the tomb
Where once the bud
Of summer bloomed

Swiftly; how
The seasons fly
Faint glimmer now
Within my eye

Soon we leave
For fairer Homes
Than all of these
Low-vaulted domes

The year grows dim
Around our feet
The hope in Him
Makes us complete

Janet~

In My Father's house are many mansions.
If it were not so I would have told you. John 14:2

In Heaven......

We won’t hear words like ‘that’s okay’
Or, ‘tomorrow will be a better day’
No ‘over-drawn’ or ‘over-due’ in Heaven
We won’t hear ‘it’ll be alright’
Why, we won’t even hear ‘good-night’
We’re gonna speak a brand new tongue….. in Heaven

‘I’m sorry’ and ‘don’t worry’ will be obsolete
It’ll be glory, glory when at last we meet
Dancing on a golden street, in Heaven
We won’t ask for Tylenol or any medicine at all
No band-aids, pills or hospital
We’re gonna have brand new bodies…..in Heaven

No foot in my mouth disease
No ‘will you forgive me, please’
At last we’ll be perfect righteousness…..in Heaven
No diets, fads or fashion rules
Hey kids, there won’t be any schools
Cause there aint gonna be no fools…..in Heaven

Are ya’ thinkin’ it’ll be grand
When we get to that sweet land?
Are ya’ thinkin’ you wanna be there too…..in Heaven?
There’s just one way to that fair place
You gotta believe in Amazing Grace
It’s the only way we’ll see God’s face…..in Heaven

All Rights Reserved
Janet Martin


....the former things are passed away. Rev 21:4

Almost Persuaded.........

Almost persuaded, was I to believe
In a God who died for me
Almost I was willing to receive
His gift of love so free
Almost I believed in Him……
A King who left His throne
To become the Perfect Lamb
Our sin-stains to atone

Almost, almost I believed
In the One who died for me
But almost now will never be
Enough in death to set me free

Almost, I bowed my head to weep
Repentant of my sin
Almost, almost this straying sheep
Joined the ninety-nine
But it seems that life distracted me
From that One perfect love
In anguish now I sadly see
Almost is not enough

Almost, almost, I said ‘yes
Yes Lord, I believe
But almost is vain foolishness
No mercy can it give

Whoever believes on Him shall have
Everlasting life
Hope beyond the cold, dark grave
And in this fleeting strife
Whosoever will come to Him
He will not cast away
Almost is a hopeless gleam
If we never say……..

“Yes, oh Lord, yes I believe
Accept my humble plea”
Almost persuaded cannot be enough
Now to deliver me……….

Janet~


God commends His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us [ROM 5:8].
For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world: but that the world through Him might be saved [JOH 3:16, 17].
He is the lover of our souls.
The Son of God, Who loved me, and gave Himself for me [GAL 2:20].
Come unto Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest [MAT 11:28].
This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners [1TI 1:15].
He is the Savior of all who believe in Him.
Christ also once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God [1PE 3:18].
The wages of sin is death: but the GIFT of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord [ROM 6:23].
Be it known to you therefore ... that through this Man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins and by Him all who believe are justified from all things [ACT 13:38, 39].
He is the risen, living Savior Who is able to save ALL who come to Him.
Wherefore He is able also to save them to the uttermost who come unto God by Him seeing He ever lives to make intercession for them [HEB 7:25].
Jesus said I am the resurrection and the life: he who believes on Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live [JOH 11:25].
I am the door: by Me if any man enter in, he shall be saved ... And I give to them eternal life and they shall never perish [JOH 10:9, 28].
He is the One who now invites you to receive Him as your Savior.
If you will confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and will believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved [ROM 10:9].
He who comes to Me I will in no wise cast out ... Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes on Me has everlasting life [JOH 6:37, 47].
He is the One Who will judge in righteousness all those who refuse His salvation.
He who believes on the Son has everlasting life: and he who believes not the Son shall not see life: but the wrath of God abides on him [JOH 3:36].
God ... now commands all men everywhere to repent: because He has appointed a day, in which He will judge the world in righteousness by that Man Whom He has ordained [ACT 17:20, 31].

Candle....

This world can be a weary place
Wrought with pain and woe
Hunger lines the searching face
And darkness numbs the soul
But just as in the days of old
So, in the days to come
There is a candle we can hold
That brings the traveler Home

The lost and blind drift to and fro
As driven by the wind
They are not sure which way to go
No solace can they find
Has no one shown to them the Light?
No storm can ever snuff
Constant in the thickest fight
This candle is enough

The Word of God, faithful and true
Will never pass away
Pure, changeless light for me and you
In this dark, evil day
No matter how violent the gale
No matter where we roam
This candle, it will never fail
And it will lead us Home

All Rights Reserved
Janet Martin

Your Word is a lamp to my feet
and a light to my path. Ps.119:105

Beyond These Hills.....

The hills appear stark in the distance
Looming against the vast skies
As twilight spreads over a landscape
Where life is born and dies
Countless the generations
Dancing across this earth’s grass
Fleeting is mans existence
As to the ‘beyond’ they pass
For just as there is a beginning
An end must also be
But the end is again a beginning……………
…………..Of eternity
A boundless expanse, eternity
Our minds cannot comprehend
The vastness of its infinity
With no beginning or end

All Rights Reserved
Janet Martin

For God so loved the world
That he gave His only begotten Son
That whosoever believes on Him
Should not perish but have
ETERNAL LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!

John 3:16