Being Thankful For The Little Things 4/8/2026

 Good Morning,

My day started with prayer and a hot cup of Door County Blueberry Cobbler Coffee. 

Psalm 34:8 ESV Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!

I just came inside from being outside with our two dogs Leo and Gibbs. You could call the weather a "wintry mix." A few snowflakes painted my face as well as a few rain drops. I had in my hand while out there an insulated mug of coffee. That mug is filled with memories. I was not really ready to face the day just yet. I was out there in a hooded sweatshirt that is like a comfort blanket to me. The hood was up. I had on a heavy duty pair of sweatpants that have also been a morning companion for quite aa few years.  The house was warm inside and my two furry alarm clocks had me out of bed right n time. 

My point is this. In just a few minutes, I experienced several things to be thankful for. I believe setting the tone for the day, being thankful for even the little things like a hooded sweatshirt can be a good way to warm the heart and produce that first morning smile. And coffee always tastes better while smiling. 

Have a great day! God Bless. 

Marty

A Goal For Today 4/7/2026

Good Morning,

My day began quite early with a hot cup of Door County Blueberry Cobbler Coffee and prayer. 

I am working today at one of the voter polling stations for our city's spring election. Most of the time people are polite and grateful for those working the polls. 90% of people will greet you nicely and then cooperate without complaining. 

But then there is the other 10% who can barely get out a good morning or good afternoon. It is their right to be quiet, shy and crabby or all three.

My goal is simple for today. My job is to be accurate in all that I do. I also will practice the golden rule. 

Matthew 7:12 NKJV Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you. do also to them.

A persons demeanor might be a reflection on the rough time they are going through. You never know what drives the train of not being friendly. Their circumstances might be dictating their emotions. 

So folks, before you blow the horn on your car with impatience, think twice.

Marty

Trip To The Moon 4/6/2026

 Good Morning,

I just poured a hot cup of Door County Highlander Grog Coffee for myself nd it is time for me to write. 

Job:26:7 NKJV He stretches out the North over empty space.; He hangs the earth on nothing. 

Currently the United States Of America has a space capsule traveling around the moon with 4 astronauts inside. I have watched a few minutes of the space travel on television and I can't get over how small the earth looks from the moon. 

I am fully amazed at the beauty of the world we live in and just how small it is compared to the vastness of outer space. 

The views shown to us on the evening news show the beauty and not the violence, wars, and the walls man has built to keep others from entering their land. It doesn't show the hatred of mankind toward each other. I like to think that the view is more like God intended when He created the heavens and the earth. 

Just a short point for today. From where you sit, what is your view of the world and are your eyes clouded with hatred and scorn? What would God see if He was looking at the world through your heart and your eyes?

Food for thought. 

Marty

Celebrating Our Lord 4/5/2026

 Good Morning, 

My cup is filled with very hot Door County Highlander Grog Coffee and it is time to write.

I am sitting at my desk surrounded by memories and grateful for each and every one of them. My desk and den are like museums of my life. A lot of deep thoughts and prayers are spawned at this old antique of a desk. 

John 20:6-8 Then Simon Peter Came, following him, and went onto the tomb, and he saw the linen cloths lying there. 7. and the handkerchief that had been around His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded together i a place by itself. 8. Then the other disciple who cam to the tomb first, went in also and he saw and believed.  

This morning finds me at peace with my world and in prayer for other parts of the world. I spend more of my time with God here at this desk than anywhere else. Today I am celebrating  the life, death, burial, and resurrection  of my Lord Jesus Christ. I bowed my head in prayer and then lifted my cup to salute  the wonderful gift of the forgiveness of my sins by the sacrifice Jesus gave us by dying on the cross for my sins. 

I praise God the Father for raising Him from the dead on Easter Morning and defeating the sting of death. Yes we will eat some ham today with some mashed potatoes and a few other fixings, but it wouldn't be anything more than just another good dinner without remembering the power God demonstrated for us by rolling the stone away from the tomb of His Son. This power defeated the sting of death once and for all for those who believe in the Son of God and claim Him as Lord and Savior. 

So have a chocolate bunny for dessert today, but remember why and what you are celebrating.

Happy Easter. God Bless.

Marty 

Waiting On God 4/4/2026

 Good Morning,

I am attached at the lips to a hot cup of Door County Highlander Grog Coffee, it is time to write. 

Malachi 3:6 For I The Lord do not change.. 

At times we have to wait on God for directions in life. I had a friend who asked God to give him directions on options in his life. He asked me what I thought. There had been no clear answer as to what path to follow. My thought is this,  Just keep doing what God told you to do the last time He directed you to do something in ministry. 

God is not the author of confusion and He certainly isn't wishy washy. He doesn't make you guess. 

Food For thought.

Marty

Those Yellow Roses 4/3/2026

 Good Morning. 

My day began with a hot cup of Door County Cinnamon Hazelnut Coffee and prayer.

Where I grew up on the South side of Milwaukee my parents had wild yellow roses in their back yard. These roses would spread along the fence and to say the least the roses were sturdy. They would bloom early, sometimes while there was still cold weather and a touch of snow on the ground. My mother especially looked forward to the wall of yellow opening up in the spring. 

Habakkuk 2:3 ESV For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end, it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it , It will surely come, it will not delay. 

One particular year the roses were late to bloom. My mom had just lost a brother to cancer and she was depressed over the loss of our uncle. I recall her saying something about how she wished that the roses were in bloom. I was far from religious at that age. The best I could do was to say a small prayer asking God to wake up the roses, because my mother needed to see them. 

I was up early on Easter Sunday and it was a warm morning. I was outside enjoying the warmth when I looked in the back yard and every one of those rose buds had blossomed out. Like I said it was a wall of yellow.  I will never forget the look on my mother's face when she saw the two small roses I clipped and brought inside for her. 

My point for the day is this. Sometimes you don't have to go much further than your own back yard to see a miracle The boy in the story prayed a simple prayer with the right heart  and God came through and the timing was perfect. His timing is always perfect.

Have a great day. God Bless,

Marty

Finding The Blessing In The Midst Of Calamity 4/2/2026

 Good Morning, 

My hot cup of Door County Salted Caramel Whiskey Coffee is working overtime to cut through the coldness and dampness this morning. We are winning the battle!

In life we all experience calamity and chaos now and then. We pray and nothing seems different after our prayers. We eventually get through the situation and we wonder why we went through it. What good could come from this plight? 

Philippians 3:8 NKJV Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ. 

For me, I went through a personal terrible time in the early 1980's. It hit me hard.  But later I saw the impact this crisis had on me as good. I was as low as you can go and it was because of the rough times, I found my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It was a total life changing experience. If it wasn't for that rough spot in life, who knows where I would be right now? A loss of a job that I liked sent me to work in health care. My cries of loneliness were answered when I met my wife at the hospital where I worked. A cancellation of that job which I also liked brought a change that set my course up the corporate ladder. So what I saw as losses were all blessings. God's hand was in everything that happened to me and it took some time to see that He was working in my life and the losses were actually good for me. 

If you are in the midst of  crisis, and you asked God to intervene on your behalf, wait patiently to see how it works out. God might be leading you in His direction not yours. Painful now? It might be the pain sending you in a direction never thought of by you.

Food for thought.

Marty