Waking Up The Dogs 10/3/2026

 There is a very hot cup of Door County Pumpkin Spice Coffee in my future and it is time to write. 

Last night sleep seemed to escape from me and I am not sure why. I was up late prepping for my Saturday activities. So my mind was working a little overtime so maybe that was the reason for a lack of sleep. 

I used the time awake to read some scripture and pray. I prayed for some sleep, but that never came about. 

The one bad thing about it was the fact that I dropped a plastic water glass in the sink around 2:00 AM . It was empty and made of hard plastic. But once that water glass hit the sink it bounced about and had our two dogs startled and they let loose barking. I am here to say that the ruckus did not wake up my wife. 

My point for today is this. When going without sleep, at least turn the light on so as to not startle humans or the canine cops when they look for what made the unusual noise at 2:AM 

I am however very glad that the dogs sleep lightly and guard the house/ They are not lazy at all. But you still need to do your part. Take good care of your animals and they will care for you. Lock your doors. Leave a light on. Keep pathways clear in your home. Be vigilant.

Isaiah 56:10 NLT For the leaders of my people, the Lord's watchmen, his shepherds are blind and ignorant. They are like silent watchdogs that give no warning when trouble comes.. They love to lie around, sleeping and dreaming.

So we have our home security set. But spiritually, what do we allow to come into the house via the internet, television or book form? Do we sound an alarm when greed takes over our home and attitudes? Do we wander the path of infidelity and not see it as wrong or dangerous? Is this enough to cause the dogs of God to bark?

Turn on the light and walk the correct path of righteousness.

Marty

It Looks Nice/ But It Is A Fake 10/2/2026

 Good Morning,

It is a fine day to be drinking some Door County Wisconsin Harvest Blend Coffee. It is time to write. 

Proverbs 14:5 The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as waste leads to poverty. 

Last Sunday Afternoon, my wife Rene and I  went to purchase a couple pumpkins to decorate our front porch for the fall. We went to a local pumpkin farm where they cater to the public with a great display promoting the fall season. 

To make their little pumpkin fair more attractive and spectacular they have a lot of props, which includes a very large inflatable pumpkin.

One little girl who was with her family to purchase some pumpkins was really impressed with the colossal pumpkin. I heard her tell her dad that the "Big big big one", was the one she wanted. Dad just laughed and asked her "How would we get it home? Her reply. "We will need a big truck/ 

So my point for the day is this. We all are at times mesmerized by the world and what they have to offer to the point that we can't spot a fake product or one that does not live up to it's promises. We as well, want things that just aren't good for us, yet they attract us like a moth to a light in the dark. 

So my friends "Buyer Beware" . Do the research and learn to spot a fake before you spend your money. In other words be patient and buy safely. Don't let your desires rule your thought process. It might look nice but the large pumpkin was just there for entertainment. 

God bless,

Marty 

Just A Word Or A Sound 10/1/2026

 Good Morning,

I raise my mug of Door County Wisconsin Harvest Blend Coffee in a salute to mornings and how every day starts anew. 

Romans 1:9 NKJV For God is my witness,whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of His Son, that without ceasing I make mention of  you always in my prayers. 

We live pretty close to a railroad crossing and we hear the train horn before it reaches the crossing. I actually like the sound of the horn, especially on a below zero night in January when I am outside for a few minutes with our dogs. I believe the Holy Spirit uses that horn to remind me to pray for someone and the name of the person pops into my head and I pray. 

My prayer life is not confined to just evenings. This morning the train went by and I was reminded to pray for a group of people who we trained our dogs together last night. I am praising God this morning for answering the prayers of many for a little one year old boy who has been going through a bone marrow transplant. 

Some of you reading this today were prayed for and you will never know it. Prayer is just a moment in time when you can call upon God for yourself or others and bring Him on to the scene for their good or yours. I find that my prayer will include a time to be thankful as well. 

There is always time for prayer and I find that the sweetest prayer is to answer when the Holy Spirit knocks on the door of your heart and I pray immediately.

What , when, and where doesn't matter if your heart is a house of prayer. You will pray anywhere at anytime. It is the good life!

God bless,

Marty

Marty 

God Made The Apples 9/30/2026

 Good Morning,

My cup of Door County Pumpkin Spice Coffee is almost finished now and it is more than time to write!

Fall is settling in a day at a time and the cool air feels good after a summer with some very extreme heat. I have started drying apples for my hunting trips and for a healthy snack. The food dryer serves three purposes when it is drying fruit. 1. It provides a tasty snack for cold mornings in the duck blind. 2. While drying the fruit, the heat that radiates from the dryer  heats up the house a little. With that heat also comes a sweet aroma which also permeates the house and it also puts a smile on my face. 

Genesis 1:12 KJV And the earth brought forth grass, and herb and yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind.: and God saw that it was good. 

I looked at an apple that I intend to dry out and I can see that when God made the apples He knew just what the apple could be used for. My wife Rene and I chop up bits of apple to put into our pancake batter. Apples are a good when they smother baked pork chops. We make our own juice from the apples now and then. And who doesn't like a hot slice of apple pie?

And last but not least how about a fresh apple with a salt shaker while you sit outside taking a rest from raking leaves? Oh! don't forget applesauce  

Yes indeed when God makes something He does it right, which includes you. You are the apple of his eye and He has so many uses for you and things for you two see. The options are endless. So the next time you polish and apple on your shirt while in the orchard, remember this. God made that apple and knew that one day you would have it in your hand ready to eat. He made that one apple just for you.

Time to stop now and eat my breakfast of apple slices, covered with peanut butter.

God bless,

Marty 

The Black Board Of Your Heart 9/29/2026

 Good Morning,

I am sitting at my desk this morning with a hot cup of Door County Pumpkin Spice Coffee. My eyes are open wide and it is time to write. 

1 Peter 5:7 NKJV Casting all your cares upon Him, for He cares for you.

When I was in grade school the teachers relied heavily on blackboard and chalk to make presentations to the class. I believe the infamous wall to wall board was designed to also embarrass children who struggled with getting up in front of their peers and then solve some stupid math problem. I just dreaded having to go up in front of the class for anything. In high school times changed and all you had to do was sit at your desk and answer a question or two now and then. 

                                                              Photo Credit Stock Cake 

Every day someone needed to clean the blackboards and erasers so they were fresh for the next day. If the teacher left something on the blackboard they would instruct the person doing the cleaning for the day to leave it on the board or erase it. I do recall one day when I totally botched dividing out some fractions and it did not get erased and was still visible the next morning. My mistake lived for another day and totally ruined my day for sure. 

My point for the day is that now and then we all are out on the stage of life and the experience of that day is embarrassing or painful. Or as much as we love another person, they don't love us as much or in the same way. You have the I Love You for them written on the blackboard of your heart. It is hard to erase a memory from that blackboard. 

I have only one solution for the hurts of the heart. And that is to take your heart to the Big Eraser. God is the only one that can really help to mend a heart and erase some bad memories. 

But, you have to want the board to be cleaned. You have to ask for it to be erased, washed and cleaned up. It is never too late to clean the slate. 

Have a great day/ God bless,

Marty

Guard Your Heart And Your Mind. They Make You Vulnerable 9/28/2026

 Good Morning,

My mug did overflow a little bit this morning and some of my Door County Wisconsin Harvest Blend Coffee spilled out. I might have 1 Springer Spaniel with a caffeine high. It is time to write. 

Titus 1:15-16 NKJV 15. To the pure all things are pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure, but even their mind and conscience are defiled.16 They profess to know God but in works they deny Him, being abominable, disobedient, and disqualified for every good work. 

Tough subject for an early Monday morning. But we live in a world that goes to great lengths to discourage believers in Jesus Christ. People will claim to know Him and even call him Lord. But after 15 minutes you can easily tell what they believe. 

They see your acts of service to Christ and His church as folly and not worth all the time you put in. They don't see your efforts as pure faith coming from a pure heart. Sooner than later their mouth will get ahead of their brain and they will poke fun at believers . Anything they don't understand and would not do themselves becomes fodder only fit for late night talk show hosts, making a dollar at the expense of others. 

There is a time when you become fully aware of the attack on your spirit and heart. God is faithful to point you in the right direction and exposes those who want to hide their sinful lives by putting Christianity down. 

So today, pray that you walk with your eyes wide open and guard your hearts from the defiled world.

Food for thought.

Marty

Another Year Babe. 9/27/2026

 Good Morning,

My writing is taking  place in our kitchen this morning instead of our desk. My Door County Wisconsin Harvest Blend Coffee is very hot on this beautiful cool morning. 

Song of Solomon 8:6b-7  Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm for love is strong as death. Many waters cannot quench love. Neither can floods drown it.

Forty years ago I was a single man in the morning and I was married in the afternoon. I believe that my wife is a gift from God for two reasons. I believe God gifted me the wife that I needed. She gets the credit for keeping me grounded and steady. She and I make decisions together after prayer. We have mourned together and have rejoiced together. We have seen dreams come true and dreams that passed us by due to one circumstance or another. 

Rene and I plan on celebrating our anniversary with a meal at one of our preferred restaurants tonight and then get back to our normal routine tomorrow. 

I have no specific point to make except to add all of the readers into our celebration and ask for your prayers as we start this new year of marriage. 

Have a great day. Your spouse might be snoring yet this morning, but he or she is a gift from God. Cherish the time. It goes too fast.

God bless, 

Marty