To Put Our Trust In Thee, Oh God...

Deut.29:29

“The secret things belong to the LORD our God, 

but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, 

that we may do all the words of this law.

So much in life we will never understand!

Our church family is mourning the loss of our pastor

who passed away suddenly yesterday afternoon!

Please keep his family and our church family in your prayers 💔🙏

Our hearts are broken, so broken...

Phil.4:19

But my God shall supply all your need 

according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

A timely devotion from Springs in the Valley...

Psalm 78

The first stanza of the poem below poured through me

as I was (reluctantly) waking up this morning...

Thank-you God!

To put our trust in Thee, oh God

Is to release the ‘why’

For human acumen cannot

Thy thoughts and ways descry

To put our hope in Thee, oh Lord

Is never in sad vain

Because the beacon of Thy Word

Will never shift or wane

To put our faith in Thee alone

No matter what life brings

Is to entrust each gale and groan

To mercy’s hidden things

To trust and hope, by faith in Thee

Oh God, is to release

All we can never know or see

Into Thy perfect peace

Until the glad and glorious day

When Soul sheds dust-to-dust

And time like mist shall melt away

In Thee we put our trust

Janet Martin

Psalm 143:8
Let me hear Your loving devotion in the morning, 

for I have put my trust in You. 

Teach me the way I should walk, for to You I lift up my soul.

Psalm 62:8
Trust in Him at all times, O people; 

pour out your hearts before Him. 

God is our refuge. 

Selah

Psalm 130:5
I wait for the LORD; my soul does wait, 

and in His word I put my hope.

Lord From Sorrows Deep I Call (Psalm 42) 

With Lyrics By Matt Boswell and Matt Papa

Ps.42 Hope in God

My Anchor Holds

The Time We Had/Have (Dear Lucy)

Whenever we reach the 17th of a month my heart does a little jolt!

This day Jan. 17, 2026, marks 16 mos, since we lost dear Lucy💔.

The longevity of this reality is beginning to sink in!

This winter I am meandering through John Greenleaf Whittier's 

Snow Bound

A Winter Idyll

These stanzas struck a specially tender chord as round the fireside they recall

stories and memories from departed loved ones...

Some things will never change

We cannot turn back Time

Or reach its walls to rearrange

The pictures in its clime

Time cannot give back days

Or one moment when spent

The clock will never change its ways

Through laughter or lament 

To trust the Giver of 

Time's lease, as it unfolds

Helps us to make the most of love 

No matter what it holds

For love is worth the price

The heart is bound to pay

Grief is the sacred/solemn sacrifice

Love cannot hold at bay

Each tear a testament

And tender tribute to

The Time We Had to Paint Its Tent

Of air with 'I love you' 

For love, when life is through

Does not fade like a flow'r

The grave, though it must claim its due

Is Time's dust-and-ash bow'r

And though the heart may tear

And though the eye may brim

God, rich in mercy helps us bear

Love's grief for her or him

...until each loss we brave

Will deck departure's sod 

Time's inheritance is the grave

Love's inheritance, God 

The Time We Have To Spend

Is precious, but a glove/knife

The Giver of its lease, my friend

Is Everlasting Love/Life 

The clang of 'my' and 'me' 

Soon flies like worthless chaff

Only true love transcends Time's spree

God seals its autograph 

The Tree that spawns the limbs

Where leaf sojourn is brief/runs rife 

Offers comfort that never dims

As long as there is grief/life

Janet Martin

1 Cor.13:12

For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face:

Do you know the One who purchased, holds and anchors

the hope of Heaven/God?

Rev.21:4

He will wipe every tear from their eyes. 

There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, 

for the old order of things has passed away.”

Faith Dare/Prayer

It's another snowy, blowy day in Ontario!

At 5:30 a.m. we had to call my brother

to blow some mammoth snow drifts before Jim could leave.

By the time he was gone I was wide awake,

granting a cozy morning (for me😅) opportunity

to read, pray and meditate deeply on eternity-impacting truths.

This poem was written with utter joy and utter sorrow;

utter joy for all who by faith live an authentic,

humble testimony of love and obedience to God

(our topic at small group last night)

(and remembering we are all broken and all fall 

and there is forgiveness for all true repentance)

...and also utter sorrow for all who have 

not by faith received the gift of Salvation that

 God is waiting/willing to give to all who call on Him in truth.

We can do nothing other than by faith believe

in the finished work of the cross,

to receive God's gift of grace;

A gift, that when received,

will change everything we do!

Without faith it is impossible to please God. Heb.11:6

and faith without works is dead. James 2:17

We are saved by grace, not works Eph.2:8-9

for good works He prepared in advance for us to do. Eph.2:10

***

 

The gift of God no works can earn; by His grace we are saved

Through faith, (so none can boast) but turn from sin to Christ alone

He paid salvation's gruesome price upon the cross He braved

And by sin's final sacrifice laid faith's Chief Cornerstone  

By faith, we repent and receive salvation's gift of love

By faith we accept and believe the power of the cross

By faith we press toward a Goal this world knows nothing of

And by this faith that makes us whole we count all things but loss 

Faith, the substance of things hoped for, no eloquence can tell

As, by God's grace Forevermore holds unrivaled appeal

Because of His redeeming love that saves the soul from hell

 Faith's joy transcends the fickle glove of what we think-see-feel

Faith is the shield able to quench the darts of evil foes

Faith fits us for the fight; it's benchmark 'I surrender all'

Faith is full confidence in He whose Word/Will none overthrows

Faith, the fruit of humility picks us up when we fall 

The Author and Perfecter of our faith, endured the worst

To prove the extent of His love, He paid sin's penalty

Now faith and love are possible because He loved us first

And gave Himself to free mortal from death's captivity

 

Someday mortal will don the robe of Immortality

The righteous will shine as the sun as faith is turned to sight

All who deny God's gift of grace purchased at Calvary

Will waken on that day to face rejection's wailing plight 

Once we were all doomed to God's wrath through Adam and Eve's Fall 

Before we chose the holy path that only faith can claim  

Through that which only God can give; His blood-bought acquittal 

Then, by faith's diligence to live to glorify His Name

Rejection's recompense, oh, who is bold enough to dare

To wait until it is too late to call, then vainly grieve 

Oh! hearken to His Voice, his love and grace beyond compare

And by faith, make the sacred choice to repent and believe 

 Janet Martin

John 3:14-17

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, 

even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 

 that whoever believes in Him should [c]not perish but have eternal life. 

 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 did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, 

but that the world through Him might be saved.

Rescue the Perishing

Lead Me In Paths of Righteousness (For Thy Name's Sake)

What, for you, kindles the cry of the first verse in the chapter below?

The good times or the hard times?

The answered prayers or the unanswered prayers?

Worship or want or need?

Or all the above?

If life's trials and seemingly unanswered prayers

 serve no other purpose than to bid us call upon the Lord,

they have served purpose enough!

Ps. 141:1-4

I call upon You, O LORD; come quickly to me.

Hear my voice when I call to You.

2May my prayer be set before You like incense;

my uplifted hands, like the evening offering.

3Set a guard, O LORD, over my mouth;

keep watch at the door of my lips.

4Do not let my heart be drawn to any evil thing

or take part in works of wickedness

with men who do iniquity;

let me not feast on their delicacies...

Read the rest of David's prayer HERE BSB

or HERE NKJV...

Ps.23:3

He restores my soul; 

He leads me in the paths of righteousness 

For His name’s sake.

This prayer began this morning (until Grandsonny arrived)  and ended

while dinner is cooking/baking....

 and darkness is falling, a bit early

because of the falling snow...

Dear Heavenly Father,

Sometimes the snares that seek to veer me from Thy paths of righteousness

Seem not to be as they appear; disguised as 'harmless happiness'

Then, help me give more earnest heed to hide Thy word within my heart

To equip me with Thy sound creed to thwart Deception's subtle dart 

Sometimes life's disappointments stir a hunger nothing satisfies 

Lord, let not sight my walk deter, but keep me fixed upon faith's prize 

And guard me from doubt's shifting sea/plea in a world where skeptics increase  

Lord, help me stay my mind on Thee; thus, keeping me in perfect peace

This world is not my home, oh Lord; keep me from falling prey to goals

Dull to Thy Word's double-edged sword that cuts to the quick of man's souls 

Lead me in paths of righteousness; no matter what the cost may be

For Thy name's sake, direct my step lest I wander away from Thee 

Sometimes what seems unanswered prayers bids me to examine my heart 

To test the spirit of my cares, to study the important part

To see if there is any wicked way in me still unconfessed

That you are searching out to see if it is Thee that I love best 

In Jesus' Name I pray,

Amen

Janet Martin

A Place of Pure Enchantment Gleams...

A photo colour-feast on today's post because

Today is a rather colorless day in southern Ontario,

one of those days when the sky and landscape are monochromatic...

Morning...

Afternoon...

So here's a little reminder at the almost halfway point of January

(and didn't we just get here in a blink?!!)

of what is waiting beyond a few more month-blinks!

A place where zephyrs tug and tease

Tendrils from buds and smiles from lips

And garden-rooms as winter slips

Into a vault of memories

A place of pure enchantment gleams

Beyond landscapes tucked beneath snows

Where winter’s boisterous brood bestows

A frosty air to balmy dreams

A place where apple blossoms blush

And fragrant lilac plumes unfold

And earth is drenched in heaven’s gold

And lively with spring’s planting rush

And heaven is a pasture, blue

Dotted with clouds, like flocks of sheep

And earth’s green pastures run knee-deep

With nature’s verdant, freshest hue

A green-gold-blue-blush-purple mirth

Emerges to grace every home

Rather than earth-sky monochrome

Of snow-laden heavens and earth

Where brooks like shiny sashes swirl

Through wood nooks, meadowlands, and sing

A rippling canticle of spring

As winter’s loosened grip unfurls

A place where zephyrs tug and tease

Tendrils from buds and smiles from lips

And garden-rooms as winter slips

Into a vault of memories

Janet Martin

I get a little colour-hungry this time of year

so to satisfy my craving I read 'colorful' 

books like those that travel through places like Italy...

This travel inspired last night's supper!

Below, dried oregano, fresh-chopped garlic salt and pepper and bread crumbs.

Rub between hands till thoroughly mixed and sprinkle on olive-oil spritzed tomatoes.

Bake at 350 till bubbly.

Both the dish above and below can be topped with 

fresh grated black pepper and parmesan before serving. 

Want extra-yummy extra topping? 

Fresh-made bacon bits!

Modern-day Miracle

It doesn’t all get fixed and made right until the very end.

 Until then? It is hard, and He is with us.

Dorcas Smucker~ Presence and Presents~

Author of Notes From The Sparrow's Nest

Below Devotion from Pathways to His Presence 

by Charles Stanley

SO many people I love are being tried by hard circumstances, 

common to this broken, sin-cursed world,

but difficult as ever!

The Miracle-worker of old is the Miracle-worker of today!!

Oh pray that we call on Him until we hear Him say

'Son/daughter, Thy faith has made thee whole.

Go in peace...' Mark 5:34

It is not often up to us

To pick and choose the hues of life

The path of day-to-day runs thus;

Through golds and grays of joy and strife

The unpredictability

Of what we can see, but in part

Invites us universally 

To trust in God with all our heart

For circumstances rise and fall

Poverty and prosperity

Both contend with the beck and call

Of love's accountability 

We pick and choose hues of reply;

Whether we will acknowledge He

In all our ways, who knows the 'why'

That He withholds from you and me 

Today's Altar of Sacrifice

Invites us to believe in God

Who paid pardon's ultimate price

And sheds His saving love abroad

...where, though it is not up to us

To choose the ups and downs that spill

The path of joy and peace is thus;

To hope in God and trust His will

Because until we shed the part

That cradles the immortal soul

To trust the Lord with all our heart

Will prove the faith that makes us whole 

What age-old joy, to go in peace

Because 'Thy faith has made thee whole'

What modern-day miracle, this;

To rest in God's perfect control

Lord, bid obedience begin

With godly fear, humble and true

The miracle You work within

Starts with my/our faith and trust in You

Janet Martin

For each of life's let-downs there is  a 'look up'!

Rom.5:1-5

Therefore being justified by faith, 

we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

 2By whom also we have access by faith

 into this grace wherein we stand, 

and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

 3And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: 

knowing that tribulation worketh patience;

 4And patience, experience; and experience, hope:

 5And hope maketh not ashamed; 

because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts 

by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

Jeremiah 17:7-8
But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, 

whose confidence is in Him. 

 He is like a tree planted by the waters 

that sends out its roots toward the stream. 

It does not fear when the heat comes, 

and its leaves are always green. 

It does not worry in a year of drought,

 nor does it cease to produce fruit.

Prov.3:5-10

Trust in the Lord with all your heart,

And lean not on your own understanding;

6In all your ways acknowledge Him,

And He shall [b]direct your paths.

7Do not be wise in your own eyes;

Fear the Lord and depart from evil.

8It will be health to your [c]flesh,

And strength[d] to your bones.

9Honor the Lord with your possessions,

And with the firstfruits of all your increase;

10So your barns will be filled with plenty,

And your vats will overflow with new wine.

I know I've shared this hymn many times,

partly because it is a fav. 

I love the picture the words paint,

resting in the cleft of the Rock!

Sweetly Resting (In the Rifted Rock)

A Little 'Let's' Lyric

Let's be generous and sharing

Cheering someone on their way

By a simple act of caring

Make a fellow-trav'ler's day...

This afternoon, (thanks to my sister and brother-in-law's generosity)

I enjoyed a most delightful treat

because they shared their dessert-auction purchase 

and raffle-ticket prize Sat. night's stag and doe!

Egg cheese and coffee from freshly ground locally-sourced coffee beans!

Thank--you BIL Mike for the egg cheese. It was SCRUMPTIOUS

and thank-you sister Marlene for the bag of 

Boundary Roasting Co. coffee beans! SO good.

Let's not grumble but be grateful

Let's be glad for God is good

Let's be loving and not hateful

When we are misunderstood

Let's be generous and sharing

Cheering someone on their way

By a simple act of caring

Make a fellow-trav'ler's day 

When our hearts are weighed with anguish

Let's get down on our knees

God's compassion does not languish

As He tends to our pleas

Let's cast every care upon Him

As He beckons us to do

As He teaches us to trust Him

In each valley we pass through

Let's be patient, kind and humble

Let's be careful in our thought 

Let's be sorry when we stumble

Accidentally or not 

Let's get along and not bicker

Let's be honest but not rude

Let's become a whole lot quicker

To breathe prayers of gratitude 

Let's make a positive diff'rence

And not yield to vengeful taunts 

Let's make the most of life's moments

For we pass this way but once

Janet Martin

Romans 13:12 b - 

LET US cast off the works of darkness 

and LET US put on the armor of light.

Romans 13:13 -

 LET US walk honestly, as in the day;

 not in rioting and drunkenness, 

not in chambering and wantonness,

 not in strife and envying.

Romans 14:13 - 

LET US not therefore judge one another any more; 

but judge this rather, that no man put a stumbling block 

or an occasion to fall in his brother's way.

Romans 14:19 -

 LET US therefore follow after the things which make for peace, 

and things wherewith one may edify another.

2 Corinthians 7:1 b - 

Let US cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit,

 perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

Galatians 5:25 - 

If we live in the Spirit, 

LET US also walk in the Spirit.

Galatians 5:26 -

 LET US not be desirous of vain glory,

 provoking one another, 

envying one another.

Galatians 6:9 - 

LET US not be weary in well doing:

 for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

Galatians 6:10 - 

LET US do good unto all men, 

especially unto them of the household of faith.

Hebrews 12:1-2 - 

Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, 

LET US lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, 

and LET US run with patience the race that is set before us,

 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; 

who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, 

despising the shame, and is set down

 at the right hand of the throne of God.

1 John 4:7 - 

Beloved, LET US love one another: for love is of God; 

and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.

Love's Impending Recompense...

The older we grow the more we come to know

loss is not something to be feared, 

but something to be expected and respected;

our respect proven by how we live and love today!

I lost my sister Lucy suddenly in an accident on Sept.17, 2024.

Right now we are losing dear dad slowly to dementia,

(heartbreaking!!!) 💔💔🙏

and we, his family treasure like never before, the cognizance still there

such as still knowing his children and his expressed appreciation

when we visit, shake his hand, etc. 

Such as his reverence for holy things and his love for God and His Word!

Both sudden and drawn out losses are filled

with love's grief and profound lessons and reminders!

Loss leaves behind a kind of ache

Like an indelible keepsake

Of days and years that once looked much

Like Today’s fleeting taste and touch

Loss leaves behind a kind of sense

Of love’s impending recompense

Like a wave that is bound to break

Across the grave of give and take

Loss leaves behind a kind of Door

We do not haste through as before

But having been reminded through

Loss, we pause to take in the view

…and with mindful approach to Now

Loss coaches us to humbly bow

Before the Giver of today

And trust Him for each come-what-may

…where/for loss is bound to leave behind

In hope and heartache intertwined

A kinder, keener kindred sense

Of love’s impending recompense

…of scenes that wane, soon strewn to waft

In the wake of what far too oft

We overlook until we find

Hearts filled with what loss leaves/left behind

Janet Martin

Rom.5:15-18

15Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep.

  16Live in harmony with one another. 

Do not be proud, but associate with the lowly. 

Do not be conceited.

17Do not repay anyone evil for evil.

 Carefully consider what is right in the eyes of everybody. 

18If it is possible on your part, 

live at peace with everyone.