Happy 90th Birthday, Grandma!!!!!!!

There’s not much left in the little Nebraska town of Loretta where Lillian was born 90 years ago. Not much but memories.

Memories of an Irish Dad who was the Sunday School Superintendant and County Treasurer. And of a Scottish Mom, the ninth of 10 children, who took over her husband’s job as treasurer when he died at only 42. Of the baby sister who died just three weeks later and of subsequent two months spent living in a school dormitory during the week, and friends over the weekend, while her Mother recovered from pneumonia.

Lillian grew up knowing about the Lord, but it wasn’t until she was 20 that He became her Lord. She was playing piano at church one day and went forward for an altar call.

Her faith was encouraged by a young man she had met sometime earlier. A young basketball player named Ken who always managed to sit in the front middle seat next to her when she volunteered to drive his team to one of their games.

What was her first impression of him?

“Must’ve been good,” she said. Ken had accepted Christ as his savior prior to Lillian, and she said, “He was an influence on me. He was a good guy.”

While World War 2 waged, Ken and Lillian dated. The were engaged on Valentine’s Day, 1944, and married July 3. That was sixty-five-and-a-half years ago.

What is the secret to a lasting marriage?

“You trust each other and depend on the Lord,” Lillian said. “We’re just thankful that we do have the Lord. He has met our need, we knew He was just part of our life.”

Just a few weeks after they were married, Ken left for boot camp.

Two months later, Lillian moved to Mineral Wells, Texas, to be with Ken while he trained. In January, he was deployed to Europe. She didn’t hear from him for a few weeks, but on Valentine’s Day, a year from the day they were engaged, Lillian received a dozen roses.

“I haven’t gotten any since,” she said, “but those lasted awhile.”

So began a difficult time in Lillian’s life. Alone in Texas, and without friends, Lillian’s relationship with the Lord grew. It was a very intimate time in her faith.

And God provided for her.

There was a Lieutenant Colonel’s wife with two daughters and another on the way who needed a babysitter and help with the housekeeping . Lillian moved in with the family and stayed with them while Ken was overseas.

A year later, he returned. They lived in South Carolina three years while Ken attended Bob Jones and then they moved back to Nebraska where they were involved in Bible clubs around the state. Ken, a pilot, would fly around the state, landing at different rural schools and take kids for a plane ride as a reward for memorizing scripture.

Lillian meanwhile, was home with three children. After the fourth, she said, Ken had to give up the plane.

“We needed a better form of transportation,” she said.

While transportation may have been a source of concern, the challenges of motherhood never seemed to overwhelm her.

“I didn’t worry about it I guess, I just took them one at a time.”

She enjoyed all the ages and stages as her five children grew and when issues did arise, she knew where to turn.

“You have to trust in the Lord and keep on keeping on,” Lillian said.

It was during those years of child-rearing that Lillian found what is still a special verse to her today.

Psalm 37:4, “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.” It reminded her that she just needed to keep depending on the Lord.

While their family grew, God led Ken and Lillian from place to place. Ken pastored in Curtis, Nebraska for five years. They lived at Maranatha Bible Camp for a few years as groundskeepers. In Central City, Ken was a boys’ dorm supervisor at Nebraska Christian High School, and yes Lilllian and her five kids, four of which are girls, also lived in the dorm for a time.

After their four oldest graduated from Nebraska Christian, the family moved to Denver. One evening, while downtown, their youngest daughter Rachel met some unusual-looking men, engaged them in conversation and within a few hours consented to join their cult. She disappeared from her family’s life for a year-and-a-half.

“We didn’t know where she was,” Lillian said. “It was the hardest time in my life and we really had to lean on Him.”

After months of searching and distributing fliers, Rachel was found. By the grace of God, some family and friends managed to get her away from the cult for deprogramming and a re-commitment of her life to Christ.

In the following years, the Martins began working their way back east to Nebraska where they operated a Christian bookstore for 10 years in Chadron, before moving to Ord and eventually, Lincoln.

Now ready to celebrate her 90th birthday, Lillian enjoys reading, especially Christian romances. She and Ken keep a book or magazine in the car and whenever they go anywhere, even to the grocery store, she reads aloud to him.

Lillian also likes to travel, especially to see her family, scattered all over the U.S. – Florida, Idaho and Michigan.

She says that God is still teaching her to trust Him and that after 70 years of knowing Him, there’s still more to learn.

“I need more Bible study,” Lillian said. “I’ve enjoyed and needed it. I don’t know everything yet. Some of my kids know more than I do.”

And speaking of those kids, all five are committed believers. And from those five have sprung 18 grandkids and 23 great-grandkids, with two more on the way. “I pray every day for all of them,” Lillian said.

**This was put together by Adeana Friesen (with Grandma's help) and read at our Tuesday morning bible study this week as they helped celebrate her birthday!!