Thursday update - Today's Battles : How they affect our future

Life has been a mixed event lately... I will try scheduling this post so I can make sure you are updated.  Not that my life is the thing to know about, but I am on a path to the future and still learning how to build this thing we call an "online presence."   :-)

I am in the middle of several project paths so I feel kind of out of sorts.  It's still moving forward, but slowly.  This week I have been trying to get my plan into an organized and printed list.  

I have been thinking a lot about GOD, and what He means to our daily lives... not the invisible parts, more about the things we can see, the way He moves in our individual lives, how we can say He is real and he still loves us even when we don't get the things we want from Him.  I often try to see what GOD looks like to the people who don't know them.  Our current problems and battles and wars are part of that thinking as well.

It makes everything else kind of "foggy" so I tend to operate on autopilot when things get really "deep" in my thinking time.  We are facing so many serious problems these days, with even greater issues ahead of us.  I get consumed by the place GOD and Christians hold in the history that is to come... especially when I include what GOD has already told us about in Bible Prophecy.

In the practical spaces of my life, I made it to the grocery store finally.  I was trying to live on what I already had for as long as I could, but it got really tough when I ran out of coffee, tea, and other options besides water to drink.  :-)  Wouldn't you know it, the one thing I forgot at the store was coffee.  It seems to be a pattern these days.  Still, we know that GOD works through the attacks of our enemies, and is always the main power.  So we need to ask ourselves, "Why?"   I think it is to show us what the world is becoming... and a part of what He is doing in the people who are our enemies.

• I've been working on my notebook system, been waiting on crafting supplies I ordered, been thinking about Christmas for me and Christmas selling online, and a lot more.  
• I got behind in my prayer journaling so I am still catching up with that.  
• I was so happy to find yeast at the store!!  I now wonder how they make it because it took so long to replace with the shopping restrictions we have had.  
• I was also so excited to see eggnog available... I grabbed it up!

I spent almost all of my financial resources this month... I'm not use to being able to buy anything, so I always feel like I have been going crazy with my purchases.  Mostly all things I have wanted for some time, and there's a lot more to buy!  :-)   

• I am also getting my workspaces figured out for now.

Thinking about GOD and Life and our way of doing things in America, I have discovered some strange realities.  I don't know why they matter, but we often just assume many things so we don't really look into them more deeply.  I haven't finished this quest with GOD so I don't want to share everything yet.

I have also become a prayer advocate for some of our public personalities.  I think it may be a bigger issue than I would like it to be because I am in the senior citizen group and spend too much time online and don't have a good way to get around for other activities.  

Online is my "work" now, so I can't avoid all the contacts with posts and photos and times to wonder how these people I am seeking GOD for get into their life choices.  We all become the product of our choices, so the problems are different but we all have our battles.  I wonder why they do the things they do... and if they really understand the difference GOD makes in our lives when we are truly committed to Him.

Another thing that happened this week was at YouTube.  I somehow discovered songs I hadn't heard for years and added them to my MUSIC folder.  In the process of trying to find more that day, I listened to songs from the past... they reminded me why I only listen to Christian stations now... sermons and Klove... well, and now CDs as I build up a collection.

The themes of the Enemy's music are all about "love" - mostly sexual love. They are beautiful songs, but they don't lead you into what GOD's best is.  They lead to easy sex for men, desperate sex for women, and the consequences of sex outside of GOD's Plan... which is part of the reason ABORTION is such a battlefield.  There are so many consequences to sins we think are "harmless" but become lifetime effects.  Following GOD's way of life leads us to real and lasting happiness, sin will not.  We all want to find LOVE in our lives... and compromise our faith in moments of weakness.  People without faith don't even see the battle, they just pass through the attacks on their lives without the benefit of moral guidance.

So, I put them in my folder for now, but I am not sure that is a great idea.  I am seeking GOD about it and thinking about the damage they can cause... about the step that can become a crash in faith.  This is actually a very real test of faith, a choice that is typical of Satan's forces. When we repeatedly hear, see, think about anything, it becomes a part of our daily thought life.  Like choosing a friend.  These "friends" can ruin our lives.

I need to get going.

Think about the small choices you make every day... they lead you into your future, good and bad.

In Christ,

Deborah Martin

work2gather.us

and more... 

18 SEP - Late again... what was I doing?

It was the early hours of today that I realized it was Friday and I missed my Thursday update here... oops!  I tried to think of why I did that, and all I can say is I was in bed most of the day, up to eat something, then back to bed.  Somewhere along that way I didn't think about posting a blog.  :-)

I received my Vistaprint order, finally.  This was the order with my first window cling and my magnets with my CHOICES statement on them...  my favorite so far.

This is the updated version, with my name under the statement and a contact point.  I guess I need to find out how to attribute the image... which I found at Canva (.com) I think.  Once I get my art going, I will design my own images and text... or do whatever is needed when you use someone else's image.  

I got 25 images in the minimum order, two had production issues, but that will be dealt with later.  I'm saving at least 20 for Christmas I think, but not sure.  I'm going to order more with the contact info. 

The window cling is a new thing for me.  I have been trying to find a way to put my designs on some window clings.  This looks nice.  I got a free squeegee with the order and it has a soft tip... really interesting.  I will keep it in my art supplies and see when I can use it.

Now that I have something produced with it, I am seeing the missing space after "goals" - I thought I had a period there, but it isn't there now... only the space.

Getting sample orders is a good thing.  It helps to find the problems before you try to sell to the public.  My big goal with one of my Patreon tiers... the one called Design Tools... for now.  Once I build up my finances, it will become a part of the creation process for each product.

I have warned people on my Patreon site that I am still in CHANGE mode with my page... thinking about 2021 and how to organize everything.  My New Projects tier MIGHT go away, or maybe focus on different things.

I also received my research package of sourdough starter on spoons!  They look simple enough.  I need to wait to do the starting process.  I will save the one from Alaska starter and use the one from his hometown.  FYI - check out the main site I know of for the wilderness man...  Richard Proenneke  I have his first documentary DVD on its way, and a book that is suppose to be about his Alaska experience.  There is a second documentary also, but I am waiting on that one.  There is a site that has some clips of his documentaries and it is worth looking at... if I remember right, you have to search his name at the blog.  (NOTE: I can't find it right now... there seems to be a WordPress issue... but the main site is  theoffgridcabin.com -- they have lots of small housing designs to look at, too.)

I will try to remember to share my sourdough starter adventures when I get to them.  :-)

I have started some painting projects for possible Christmas selling.  One thing leads to another.  Finding the space to let things sit between the parts of creating them has risen to the top of the list again. I am working on that.  I am beginning to see cardboard as a wonder product.  :-)

I guess I will go for now.  I need to rest again.

I do hope and pray that everyone is well and safe and finding their way through this year. 

In Christ,

Deborah Martin

work2gather.us

and more...

Been THINKING a lot this week...

 It's been a tough week.

My thoughts have been captured by the people on the news feed I end up with every time I check my emails... they are a reflection of what people either want us to care about or what people really do care about... and none of it is godly.

I am so deeply saddened by the values they represent... 

Women, especially, are seen in their need to expose as much of their breasts as possible, as much of their legs and hips as possible, as much of their butts as possible.  The goal seems to be who can appear the most naked so they can get a photo in the media.

In my eyes they are demeaning themselves, and then I think about the difference betwee true Christian values and the values of the world and the values of Satan.

I lived in Hollywood for a short-ish time, but when I was a teen driver I use to travel those streets all the time.  I don't see much difference between their version of "selling" themselves and the prostitutes that line certain streets in the area.  

It pains my heart because I have been praying for some of these visibly public "stars" we look up to and emulate... well, some emulate them.

I guess this is high in my attention right now because I just finished my emails and browsed the long feed that shows up.  

I have been seeking GOD for how to deal with these issues... and my prayers.  We become emotionally involved with people that we pray for... like our mates, our kids, our families and our friends.  We so want the best in life, in GOD's blessings, for them.  Salvation changes all of us, a true salvation.  Wanting that best for others means we suffer when they stay in sin and increase the consequences that come of those sins.

I also have become so aware of those who don't really know the BIBLE, or what GOD really says in it.  It is just hated because it does not approve of those things that hurt us.  And, as a result, the things that cannot be seen with the eyes get focused on those who love GOD and all that He represents.  We become the targets of all that emotional bitterness and pain.

The headlines seem to point the world to this kind of hatred.

How do we, here in America, reach people in the headlines with what is true?  I think we assume they must already know everything in the Bible.  The conversations about ending the existence of GOD in our nation don't really include what matters most about our history.  Being a Christian doesn't make people perfect, so there's a lot of failure to discuss about us, but the inside difference that a real relationship with GOD and Christ creates is the true blessing our nation receives.  We are losing that blessing.

Tomorrow is the anniversary of the TWIN TOWERS attack.  I have been filled with thoughts about that event, too.  PragerU had an email by a young adult about the lack of history his generation had about that attack.  I never thought about that before.  I just assumed they knew what happened and how it changed our world. 

I see that day as a turning point for our nation.  To me it is the evidence of GOD taking away His Hand of Protection for us.  We no longer love and serve Him so He has no responsibility to be our national protector, as promised to those who love and honor Him.  

Maybe it was a warning, like the battle that was lost when the Israelites didn't do what was required by GOD.  Even though most didn't know anyone had stolen the offering that was GODs, the entire nation was chastised.  ONE man's actions cause the loss of GOD's protection.  Eventually that one man was pointed out, and his whole family was destroyed because of it.  That was the "rule" in those days... like when the enemies of Daniel (think Lions Den) were all destroyed, including their whole families.

We don't really understand a lot of things in the Bible as GOD sees them, but we try to.  In the early days, it was a purging of sin... trying to keep sin from infecting the whole nation.  We understand the principle in the fact that children learn their morals and many of their views by the daily lives they live with their parents.  Now, GOD has changed the punishment to an individual accounting.  Whole families are not punished for one member's sins.  We are dealt with because of our own choices.  The influence of our choices still affect those around us, but we are held accountable for our own choices.

The people that Hollywood lifts up pay for their choices as well.  Their values are seen and felt by their families, but they also affect us.  Our media affects us.  The movies they make affect us.  The conversations that become "viral" affect us.  What we lift up is a statement about what we value... including the motivations behind it.

I don't have the desire or the power to "make" people choose what is right in GOD's eyes, but I can pray for them, hope they will find the blessings that are found in choosing GOD and salvation through Christ, and believe that at lease some of my prayers will help.

I might see the evidence of change in my children, possibly some changes in the public people I pray for, but only GOD knows the depths of each heart... what they want, need, hope for, and are struggling with.  We won't know until we get to heaven if anyone will be there... anyone we know and love.  Parents know that our children can pretend to be good.  GOD knows if they really are.

On another topic...

This is a design I had printed up to go with my MOUNTAINS writing.  It is nice to see my writing as a product, but I think I need to fine tune it for selling.  So, I am working on that.  I also has my CHOICES design printed up, and my TODAY statement (like the wallpaper I sell at ETSY).  My goal is to have it all on my selling sites by NOVEMBER... keep watching for these new listings.  (etsy.com/shop/work2gather) 

Where I live there are fires raging and imminent evacuation threats.  PRAY that GOD will help me to not lose everything again.  It has taken so many years to recover to this point.  I am hoping GOD will be kind and prevent this kind of loss... please add your prayers to mine.  Thank you.

In Christ,

Deborah Martin

work2gather.us

and more...

3 SEP - GIVING in a time of economic hardship...

Another week is gone... it gets busy, and time flies by, and I forget all the things that I have done... what to share... I think the biggest thing is the CD I decided to purchase :: RESCUE STORY by Zach Williams.  I have had it on repeat all for hours, went to bed with it playing, woke up to different songs at different times... and it is only 10pm+ (that is my life right now, irregular hours).

I bought the CD because I love the song There Was Jesus.  Now I have listened to the whole thing and I have discovered several songs that are deeply impacting but I would never hear them on KLOVE, the music station I play when I am not listening to a sermon station or the internet options I can access.

I guess I'm becoming an advertisement for him here, but he's a good singer that I hope doesn't become lost in fame.  The first song is about how hard it is to fight temptation -- so filled wit the battle... it reminds me of the struggle every time I hear it.  There's another one Stand Up that gets me going, and also one called Less Like Me.   :-)

I'm looking at the titles now and I can't find one I don't really like, that isn't filled with the deeper meanings of our walk in this world, the battles against Satan and sin, the world that wants us to fail, the greatness of GOD and Jesus and faith.

I bought the CD so I could put it on repeat... I am so glad I did.

In other places this week, I have been working on all my needs, and goals, and things I have to get done.  Making decisions, trying to cover my budget, and praying about all the things I have no control over.  I keep wondering when I will die.  I wish I could do more than GOD has allowed me to do.

Today I made sure I donated to my causes for September.  This is my month for ANGEL TREE, which is part of my Christmas giving.  My monthly giving project is on its second year, I think... maybe three, but I would have to look it up... and this month  Hillsdale College / IMPRIMIS are on the list.  It was hard to start this monthly project, but it has become a good thing in my battle with money.  

I started with the commitment to give $10 to one ministry each month.  Remember, my income is only about $400 a month.  It became part of my tithe money.  Some months it was hard to do because the costs of funding WORKING TOGETHER were high, but now I am trying to make bigger monthly donations when I can.

Our giving is critical to the WORD getting shared, to people in need being helped, and to our faith in GOD to provide for us in other ways.  This Christmas will be a hard one for many.  I always pray that the churches and ministries will be the ones to help those who turn to them.  Many time, they don't.  It becomes a choice between their programs and growth and the many, many, many people who will seek them out if there is even a small hope they can find help.  PLUS, there are always those who want to have something to complain about later if they don't get all they want.  Sometimes churches send people to the government, thinking they are saving money.  What they are doing is missing the opportunity to find a new soul.

It's a hard place for everyone.  My prayers about this seek change in how we handle these problems with money and need.  I started Action Prayer as my solution.

I was determined to create a new t-shirt design as my September discount item, and this is what I created ::

I finally made individual listings with this, too!  Seven color options, and all the listed sizes with each color.  We'll have to see how this works with PRINTFUL, my partner in dropshipping efforts, one of my goals for selling online.  If you decide to check them out, please use the link below... it is my FIRST affiliate link.  I am waiting to see how it works out.

PRINTFUL  ::   https://printful.com/a/work2gather 

There is some kind of commission involved in affiliate links.  I am still learning about how it works. 

I have more designs to make for NOVEMBER, which is my idea of when I need all my pro-life items to be ready to buy for the JANUARY pro-life events attached to the anniversary of ROE vs WADE, like the March for Life in Washington DC.  Every state has events as well.  I think the National Right to Life would have information on those.  (http://nrlc.org)

So, I am working on my beanie designs for the cold winter weather, long-sleeved t-shirts, and I think I want to do some HOODIES because of the extra protection they give against the wind.  I love the one or two I have.  I am not sure what else I might get created.  :-)   For now, ETSY is the main location for these things, but I am trying to list some of my items at my EBAY shop, too.

ETSY ::  https://etsy.com/shop/work2gather

EBAY ::  https://ebay.com/usr/work2gather 

Keep checking back as the holiday season gets going.  I have a monthly discount on something now, but I don't decide until the month gets here.  You will need to check on that at the beginning of each month.

Another big decision I made this week is a MARKETING PLAN.  I will be focusing on marketing my PATREON page during Septembers, do HOLIDAY SALES marketing in October and November, and then work on marketing for the ANNUAL Membership Drive I hold for Working Together in December.  This is a good thing.  I have been struggling with how to afford all the outreach needs I have for all the separate projects I am working on.  I think this will really help me.  If I get a lot of income someday, I can change the monthly limitations.  For now, it is a good thing.

I suppose that is enough for today... I could keep going, BUT I don't think that would be good for my readers.  :-)

Try to find Zach Williams music somewhere online and listen to the RESCUE STORY ... albumn?  I don't know what they call online productions like my CD version.  I hope you like it as much as I do.

In Christ,

Deborah Martin

work2gather.us

and more...

I hope we make it to become ONE BODY in CHRIST...