Faith Friday on Saturday - again! :: What is happening this December!?! :-)

 I am trying to decide what is happening this month to miss two posts on Fridays....  I had a heavy day of shopping and then just seemed to forget to make my Friday post.  So sorry.  Not much to say, but I am working on continuity.

Today, I watched the whole STAR WARS TRILOGY on VHS tapes.  So fun to see it again.

I have sorted my movies and watched most of them again.  One tape that I thought was OK the last time I viewed it was WHERE THE RED FERN GROWS.  This time it had a lot of static, but I still want to keep it.  The values of way back when are so very different from today... it is also a statement about rural and urban values.  

I also watched my copy of THE YEARLING.  It had Gregory Peck and Jane Wyman as the main adult characters.  It was a reminder of values (rural, survival) in the Appalachian Mountains when it was being settled.  I kind of thought about the role of men in the different views it shared.  This one had a serious connection with surviving over the years, needing to grow your own food to live, and a look at how hard it was through the death of one's children.  The main family lost three from stillbirth to less than 3 years - b the grave marker information.

And more.

Someone started talking to me during my shopping activities, about the difference in our own lives and social values.  About the downward slide in values, safety, crime, etc.  The Bible tells us it will get worse because we are heading into the Antichrist.  Living through these changes is hard for every generation.

Electricity changed life when it came into our lives.  Water resources changed life when they were developed.  Machinery changed farming, then food resources, and distribution.  We change over time.  In some ways these changes are really great, in other ways they bring with them other kinds of problems.  How do we judge what is good "progress" when the effects are mixed?  I am not sure.

I try to think of how things affect Christians and prophecies.  That is a bit different than just how something changes our lives.  It seems we don't notice the rise of evil until it affects our personal lives.  I wonder if our times are like the days when Hitler was gaining power... and what we can do to change that path.

I suppose I would like to go to a safer location... avoid conflict... work on my own survival issues.  That won't help the world, but it does seem like a good solution.  I don't have the power to change things.  On my own.  So, finding a safe place seems like a plan.

I guess, in the end, it is GOD's call.  If He doesn't provide, we can't do anything... it is our place in His Plan.

Trust and Obey... that is what we do.

In Christ,  Deb  <3

FAITH FRIDAY :: 10DEC2021 - Getting Better

 Here I am again.

Sorry about last week.  It was Saturday before I realized I missed last week's post.  My life isn't that exciting, but I am working on my process, schedule, consistency...  I will try to do better.

I am busy with planning for 2022 these days.  Looking for ONE resolution to focus on for the year.

Still reorganizing as I downsize, getting better, but it is a slow process.

The Working Together Membership Drive is on this month.  I decided to go with just the Trial Membership, a quarterly e-newsletter format for $10USD.  There's a link to the membership payment page (PayPal link that processes credit cards as well). I put a separate link to the program information page... to share the ongoing vision for WT, where I see it going -- in part.  Lots of details not there yet.  Trial Membership fees will just start the financial process of growing.

Working on Christmas, personal gifting.  Got my Christmas cards done and ready to mail.  Have to get to the post office to get them into the mail.  Next week, God willing.

Then on to finish the rest of the list for this year.

Listening to Christmas music online this year.  The Presidential Prayer Team (.org) has a link to a 24-hour loop that I am accessing as I can.  It's mellow music so it is very relaxing as you do the things you have to do.  There's a link on the page - they call it IPrayRadio.org but I think there are two music options. Here's the link I listen on ::

I Pray Radio | The Presidential Prayer Team

Hope you like it.  

I've been talking to GOD about a lot of things... but none to share right now.

May we all find His blessings in our lives as we have need, and look for ways to share our extra with others.

In Christ,  Deb  <3

I have not always liked the verse that says all thing are connected to God's Will for us... I would like to have only good things in my life, lots of great blessings.  But, I have found the bad time somehow find a way to the good future.

If you are suffering, keep your trust in God's Plan for your life.  We don't understand all the hidden details.  He does. 

FAITH FRIDAY :: 26nov2021 - Another week

 Been watching old movies, well... an old Gary Cooper movie with some faces that would rise later.  It's hard to remember star names, but I think I saw a young Buddy Ebsen and an early Hawaii Five-O guy.  I recognized some faces, but I don't know all the Hollywood names.

The westerns have some really bad guys.  It makes me think of criminals and how terrible they can be.  This one included Gary Cooper as a reformed outlaw meeting his old gang again... all the problems that brings up.  It is one of the biggest problems in every age... finding a new life, getting out of the old circles, becoming a different person.  

I have been making progress with my workspace challenges.  By emptying boxes I find more space.  I am almost done with emptying two more boxes.  I sorted through tons of seeds I have collected for a long time.  I am trying to keep the organic seeds from store products and the seeds from things I bought at farmer's markets.  I want to grow trees of all kinds so I have a bunch of those seeds to go through still.  I am not sure how many will end up as my final savings, but one box of seeds will be enough to start my efforts if I ever get the larger space I want.

I have always liked the idea of saving little trees that are already growing and want to live.  I want to try growing trees and other things from seeds also.

Arbor Day is the holiday focused on planting trees to help the earth save itself.

I wish my income had been different all my life.  I wanted to do so many things.  I just never made it to a high enough amount to get to those things.

GOD is able, but He chose not to.  I have to trust He had reasons.  

Well............I guess I will go for now.  It's hard to write an update when you are still in the middle of the same project... sorting and reorganizing.  :-)  The process is slow, but it is really helping the long goals.

In Christ, Deborah Martin

Working Together - http://work2gather.us 

FAITH FRIDAY :: 29 OCT 2021 - What matters most?

 I am trying to post a little bit earlier this week.  I think about what to share as i go about my activities all day.  Faith is a BIG topic, and I like to add personal details of my life along the way... like a Journal.  I am working to improve my content (posts) so all things may change over time... 2022 is on my planning list these days... for here, for Patreon, for my selling sites and hopes for more income.

My Patron post has become DEBS JOURNAL.  This is working out great.  You have to be one of my supporters to read this post at my Patreon page, but you can always access the Public posts, now called WHATS HAPPENING.  

It has been a great week with the new posting schedule.  I really had a great week.  I think this might work out great.  When I have topic specific details to share with my Patron tiers, I can post just to them.  After I get this schedule going I want to start adding posts to my other blog sites (WT & Crafts).

I went through all my planned Shoebox gifts today -- to see what I had and what I want to try to add to them.  This year has mostly been a Dollar Tree sourcing project because of their pricing and because I always buy some things for gifting there.  I am going to see what else I can get there first, then I will look for the other items at other stores.  COLLECTION WEEK starts the 15th I think... it's always right before Thanksgiving... Monday to Monday.  (samaritanspurse.org)

Working Together is my Christian Ministry effort.  (1987 to present)  Been praying about it again, for this year's Membership Drive in December.  Because I am just one person with no money, I have to be careful about what I do on the Internet.  Any efforts have to pay for themselves.

I wanted to share a quote I want to make into a post graphic soon... I am not a political fan of the Democrats, or Jimmy Carter, but I received a fundraising mailing from him (don't know shy!!!).  One part of the letter stayed with me so I cut it out and saved it to share.  

By the coding I have on the paper, it may have been from an August 2021 mailing.  I don't really remember.  I just saved the quote. 

• Our dreams are big -- 
• our hopes high -- 
• our goals long-term -- 
• and the path is difficult.  
• But the only failure is not to try.    
• Jimmy Carter

Sorry, had to format it that way... on this site.

I love the whole statement, which is a generic call in many spaces, but I kept it for the failure link.  I do love the statement.  :-)  It is something to share on social media, like I do a lot of my graphics.

So, the only real failure is to stop trying.

I saw a short video clip about Elon Musk this week where he was being interviewed by a news person about one of the failures of his spaceships.  I was impressed with his statement that he never quits.  :-)  Then the video went on to show the succession of his efforts to create a spaceship that would carry people into space.  Very impressive.

I think, in reality, if we quit there will always be someone who comes behind us to take up the task and keep trying... until success is found.  I think Science has this process when the goal is very big, like fighting diseases.

Every year I review my efforts for Working Together and try to find a better way forward.  I have tried a lot of different things along the way.  I would try even more if I had a decent budget to work with.  I finally gave it to GOD to provide for what is needed.  I just keep trying, waiting for GOD to act on my behalf.

This year I am trying to decide how to structure the fees for Membership.  Whatever happens, they have to cover the whole year's expenses.  What benefits to offer for the fee that is charges is the other part of the offer.  I am hoping to re-do my webpage before December first this year.

I wanted to share another statement in this post, one about faith and choosing eternity.  I don't know the official source, and I don't know if my version is the exact statement, but it is about the results of our choices and our experiences in this world and eternity.

• This life is the only sorrow a saved person will ever know.
• This life is the only joy a lost person will every know.

When I first heard this, I thought about all the pain that comes with a life that is struggling through this world without GOD, Christ, the Holy Spirit, salvation, peace, love, and more.  This is their "joy."  It isn't real joy, but it is all that they know.

My personal experience with what the lost find as fun and meaning is their addictions, money values, crimes and prisons, families that are filled with suffering, friends that betray them, etc.  

A lot of these things exist in saved lives as well.  They are sufferings.  GOD changes the way they exist in a life that is saved.

There is a part of the lost world where people are decent and good and caring and loving, but they are not saved.  I guess this group exists in both the lost and the appear-to-be-saved worlds.  For myself, I was thinking about people who don't want to know about GOD or Jesus, and think they are good enough.

We hear about this in pastors who discover they really don't know the Lord personally.  It's a scary thought.  Good people who do lots of good things, but they aren't truly saved.  This life would be the only joy they know.

I was really impacted by studying Revelations and seeing the people under the altar were martyrs, souls who suffered so much more than I have (and hope not to have to suffer!).  They become the priests of GOD.  They are separated from all the other believers because they became martyrs.  It means something.  I don't think we have given this passage the deeper meaning it has.

This life, what we suffer because we are believers, is painful, sorrowful, hurtful, and more.  We hear about the JOY of the Lord in our spiritual places, we see smiles on the popular leaders and teachers faces and want to have that in our lives, and we wonder why our lives are not what we hear they are suppose to be as Christians.  I don't know what exists in the hearts and lives of others, I only know the struggles I have to work through.  I keep seeking GOD to understand what happens in my life so I can understand how GOD works in our world.

We have reached a place in time where there are people who don't have any idea there is a Bible or Jesus or salvation... we think everyone knows about our spiritual foundations, but they don't.  The world is getting darker and darker and darker, now the battles are getting more open.  What is my place in the evolving world of spiritual choices?  I don't know.  I am trying to figure that out.

I hope to have more answers by the time WT's 2021 Membership Drive gets here.  (http://work2gather.us)

CHRISTMAS is near.  I am still working on how to sell online and make more income for me and my goals.

I discovered the EBAY app and how to research prices on EBAY for your listings.  I hope to sell a lot of my downsizing items there.  (ebay.com/usr/work2gather)

Working on my crafting for ETSY listings.  (etsy.com/shop/work2gather)

Let me know your thoughts about Bible issues I bring up... 

In Christ,  Deborah Martin

FAITH FRIDAY :: 15 OCT 2021 - Believing what the Bible says

 Just finished watching a tear jerker called FAITH UNDER FIRE. It makes me think about GOD in our daily lives, in our greatest pain, and as we come out of all that suffering.  

Movies are always about the big things... like cancer, like losing those we love, like not knowing about GOD or blaming Him for everything.  

I guess we all have to face our burdens.  We have to find answers.  I don't know if we ever can, but we try.  The characters in movies don't know what the Bible says, so the movie can tell them (and the audience).  We all have to put our trust in what the Bible says.  That is Faith.

I don't remember when I wrote this, but it wasn't too long ago.  I didn't always have a deep faith in GOD.  I went through some very hard times and watched GOD work in the middle of them.  I learned to trust Him.  I learned what kind of GOD He is.

It is what every single person has to do.  No one else can do this for you.  It's all part of our final judgment... we don't get punished for the sins of others, only our own life choices.

This is really important to understand.

I think it helped me to separate myself from people who wanted me to do things I knew were wrong.  It helped me to say "No!"

It took a long time to reach that place.

We don't stand alone very well.  Friends, family, groups we belong to, our church, any place we are with a lot of other people who may not believe the way we do.

It is so much easier to follow.  Saying no is always a battle.  People we know don't want us to say there is something wrong with what they say, do, believe.  We are the same way about what we believe.

In passages about the End Times and others about Faith and some about standing firm for GOD/Christ, we see the losses we might encounter.  I think about them more as the world becomes so divided.  We may even lose our life.  

I had a different life planned than the one I got.  

If GOD is the One who creates the winding paths we all follow, then I believe there is a reason for them.  I will keep trusting Him for "the end of the story."  

FAITH FRIDAY :: 17 sept 2021 - Finding GOD in the struggle.

Hello to all -  Friday is here.  

I often wonder what to share here.  My weeks are full of thoughts about GOD and us and where prophecy is leading us.  I tend to be serious about these topics, and they are the meaning of my life. 

Life is filled with so much good and so much bad... the bad seems to scream louder because it is painful to deal with.  It is why we call out to GOD for help.  When GOD doesn't take away the hurt, we think He doesn't care.  It's been a search of mine to figure out what GOD does in our lives... how he acts, moves, deals with sin, and accomplishes prophecy without compromising His Words.

We trust GOD because He doesn't lie.

What does that mean in real life... throughout history... in our times and the days that lie ahead.  I spent many many years searching for answers.  I haven't been able to do that in recent history, but I still remember the things I discovered.  

I fairly recently purchased this little journal at a Dollar Tree... so I could put it in a place where I would be reminded that nothing can change the past... to try to find a better future.  It does help.  I have it next to my computer space.

Those of us with less than acceptable pasts have a hard time getting over the shadow they cast on every future step we take.

Faith is the only thing that helps me keep going.

This is a mug I designed a long while ago.  I like this half of the design, but decided to make a new mug without the other side on this one... I'm working on what to replace the statement with... the statement on the other side... or maybe just duplicate this design on both sides so it can be seen by people with both left- and right-handed grasps.

The mug that really matters is my mug about the Body of Christ... with two designs and both of them essential to the message... and bot part of my effort called  Working Together  (work2gather.us) - which is all about getting us together and protected for the hard days of prophecy before the Antichrist comes to kill us.

You can see this at my ETSY shop or my EBAY shop.  The other side has my 5-line expression of what salvation is all about, and how it makes us ONE Body of Christ...

One God

One Bible

One Christ

One Salvation

One Body

This mug is what I want every Christian to have in their lives... and share with others.  It is brief and it shares the main elements of our place in this life.  I hope you will consider purchasing some for everyone you know that claims the salvation of Christ.

Since creating it, I am the only one who has purchased it.

I hope that changes soon.

Selling products is the way I hoped to support myself and build Working Together, because my life, my past, doesn't allow traditional methods.  That is still my goal.

I keep this news page with me because of the title and the space it shows... it is suppose to be a photo of a property that was 40 acres large.  I need more than that for WT, but as a local option, it was inspiring.  I had wanted another property in Oregon that was also 40 acres of farmland.  It would allow a lot of growth, either as farmland or as development in an urban location.  Forty acres seems large until you start building.

As time passed and I couldn't find a way to raise funds, I had to search for GOD's meaning in the lack of provision.  I find the Enemy has violated my life and efforts in ways I never thought possible.  We have entered a new world.  Technology has changed a lot.  We can't avoid the actions of non-believers, so I keep looking for GOD's path forward.

Whatever happens, we need to remain faithful to what GOD has taught us and our salvation.  I heard a sermon sometime recently, maybe this week, and it talked about the ten days we will be thrown in prison and only those who remain faithful will keep the crown of righteousness and heaven.  It makes me think of the Jews in the prison camps... and great suffering that I cannot even imagine.

Our times may get hard, but if we gather together to help each other, it will be a strength for everyone.

My focus is food, shelter, and protection... with everything else becoming part of the work as GOD provides for it.  So... I keep looking for land that will provide what we need when the time comes.

Join me in my efforts.

Deborah Martin,

Founder and Owner

Working Together Inc

1987 to present

http://work2gather.us

FAITH FRIDAY :: 10 SEPT 2021 - Thinking about America and 9/11

 It is always a hard time for me when 9/11 gets here.  This year it is 20 years since it happened.  I feel it was a turning point for our nation because we have strayed from our spiritual foundations.  To me, it was a sign that GOD's Hand of Protection has left us.

In the flow of prophecies about the End Times, morality and spiritual commitments are going to go away.  Living in these times is hard.  I don't want my country to lose the blessings that are part of being dedicated to GOD, saved by Jesus, trusting ourselves to the Will of GOD.  There is nothing in the Bible that says GOD has to keep protecting us when we fail to keep Him first in our lives.  Even Israel fell away and was forced to endure judgments for their sins and faithlessness.

Last year I discovered a YouTube video about how people with boats rushed to help after the Twin Towers were hit and later collapsed. It was a short video, but was very inspiring.  I hoped it would become a good memory for this major Anniversary of the event.  I wanted a hard copy to keep forever.

I just searched for it... here is the link ::  https://youtu.be/18lsxFcDrjo

BOATLIFT - An Untold Tale of 9/11 Resilience (HD Version)

That's the best I can do with the copy and paste option for info from the video page.  :-)  Tom Hanks is the narrator.  It was the ten year anniversary production.

We are not a godly nation anymore.

It is good to see something like this.

So, I am still praying for a lot of the same things in my life.  Thinking about how GOD provides, and what causes the things you pray for to not get to you.  

We can find different views of prayer and provision in the Bible.  I think I must not have the faith that makes it possible -- you know, the faith that will move a mountain, the faith where Jesus says that whatever we ask will be done -- and then there's the part that says we don't get because we ask amiss, to fulfill our lusts for things.  Then there's the knocking on the door passage... knock, seek, find.  :-)   

Which one applies?  (to my prayers.)

Faith is not a simple thing, unless you are that child the Bible talks about.  haha

I am still kind of stuck on the concept of "Free Will" and how it affects us as a person, a nation, a world... even the fulfillment of prophecy.  I don't know if you read about what happened (this year, I think) when I was writing a statement about Herod killing all the innocent babies because he wanted to kill the baby Jesus.  Herod was fulfilling a prophecy.  Could anything change that?  I don't know... I don't think so.  What GOD did was to warn Joseph and send him to a safer place until Herod was dead... and that became the fulfillment of another prophecy.

It's a huge example of how GOD works in our world.

We want GOD to end our suffering, to bring us the things we need (or want) so we don't have to deal with the pain of not having them.  He can't do that.  What would it look like if every single prayer by every single person was answered?  It's an impossible event.

So what does that mean to our lives?

I have shared these things before, somewhere in my writings, but I finally came up with a statement to clarify the whole matter of sin and suffering and free will, at least in my mind. I want to make it into something that can be shared, something that will be read more than once, maybe something that will fit into a Bible.

We suffer because others choose to sin, 

others suffer because we choose to sin.

Think about it. We are responsible for the condition of our world because of our choices... all of us... everyone.  It isn't GOD that has made all the suffering in our lives... but it is easy to blame Him, to expect Him to fix the consequences of every sin.

9/11 is an example of this ripple effect I talk about.  Innocent people died because someone hated America.  That's what we think caused it.  Why did they hate us?  What did they hope to accomplish by doing these actions?

I want to see GOD's people protected... somehow... as the End Times get worse and become what prophecy tells us they will become.

How can we do that? 

Well, let me know your ideas.  

I say to become One Body of Christ, in each community... so we can make sure everyone that is Christian or Jew or in need of care/protection is safe.  We can be the answer to each other's prayers.

FAITH :: 2021 Planning

A new year is here.

It's been a challenge to make decisions about what to do for this new year... how to try to reach my RESOLUTION goal for 2021, which is to increase my income so I can start working on my Bucket List... and other things.  :-)

Then I started thinking about PATREON.  I want that to be my main income effort, so I have been working on my page and remembering my stated goal for 2021 at Patreon...

MY  2021  GOAL !!!

Right now, I want to fill my two crafting tiers.

That's 20 for ART  &  10 for JEWELRY.

That's the foundation.

FOR  EVERYONE  is the gravy.

As many as possible for that tier.

Now I am busy with planning how to make these things work.

The planned "flow" for my income is PATREON to ETSY to other selling, including social media and email outreach links.  

So my 30 Patron goal is the first step.

How to find these special 30 people... that is what I am trying to work out this month.  A PLAN.

Faith is the issue because of my current situation.

Depending on GOD.  Trying to find His path.  Looking for ways to overcome the particular problems I face.

I found an email from Thinkr  (free email inspiration... )  recently, with a great title ::

Key insights from

The Obstacle Is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph

By Ryan Holiday

I have now printed one page from that writing and placed it at the front of my monthly notebook section where I deal with my goals.

This is the PDF page I decided to print... the beginning of the review... it is powerful.

**************************

1. Most people crumble in the face of adversity because they’ve never been given a blueprint for overcoming.

What if the obstacle in front of you isn’t as scary or insurmountable as you think? What if, somewhere in that obstacle was something that could enrich your life? Would you get after it with renewed vigor? If you are like most people, you probably wouldn’t do a thing.

If we’re honest with ourselves, we admit that we become paralyzed atthe mere thought of encountering obstacles. Some of our blocks are societal: soaring inflation rates, unemployment, institutions that don’t work the way they used to, a rapidly evolving technological landscape that leaves us in a constant state of flux and bewilderment. Then there are individual blocks: too small, too poor, too busy, not enough support, not enough confidence, not enough years left. We are experts at listing the things that keep us from moving forward.

Somewhere within ourselves we know this is true, and that there is apart of us that feels much more comfortable with those excuses keeping us where we are. But then there’s another part of us that is tired of the feelings of depression, anger, fear, and frustration that arise whenever we capitulate to our obstacles at the office, at school, and at home.

At the same time, we see people who not only approach obstacles with confident, deliberate strides, but seem to gain from each challenge. The very things that have us mired in life’s marshes seem to launch them to the moon. Moreover, earlier generations faced and overcame far more formidable obstacles—which is part of the reason why posterity has fewer obstacles—but somehow we still feel pushed back into a corner and are afraid to leave it.

We need a concrete strategy and field-tested worldview to help us get where we would like to go by transforming setbacks into setups for success. Maybe no one has ever taught you this, but it is never too late to begin learning.

********************

And this is just one page. Putting it in my notebook keeps me reminded of what it says.

Then I got an email from Luke Fatooros with a line that hit me about where we put our focus most of the time... on the path to success and not on the things that keep us from our goals.  The idea was to make a plan to overcome the things that stand in your way.  That seemed like a new idea to me.  I tend to look for ways to reach the goals I want to reach.  I don't pay a lot of attention on the mountains that stand in my way.

I am thinking about how to apply all this information to my life.

Thirty people doesn't sound like a lot of people to find, especially after trying to find a million.  The issues seem to be the same, the number is just not as big.

If you have any ideas, I would love to hear them!  Add them to the comments section.  I will share what I come up with in a future post.

May we all be blessed for our desires to honor GOD in our lives, and be protected from those who hate GOD and only wish to do us harm.  Amen.

In Christ,

Deborah Martin

My Patreon page graphic... new for 2021... I love it!  :-)

FAITH :: Still working on 2021, finding great old papers I saved, and sharing a wonderful quote I found...

 I have been going through so many of my saved papers and finding things that really are great to review again.  I will be busy with that this weekend -- reading and then deciding what to do with them.

I found a really nice QUOTE on one of the pages and wanted to share it here... I don't have the full article, or a date when I found it, just the page it was on.  

This quote is attributed to PAUL TRIPP ::

"Every day we lay little bricks on the foundation of what our life will be.... The bricks of words said, the bricks of actions taken, the bricks of little decisions, the bricks of little thoughts, and the bricks of small-moment desires."

I think I would like to add the small paragraph that follows it, and ends the goal-related article.

"Over time, as we add layer upon layer of these so-called little things, we reach our goals.  It's the little things, done with intention, that create a form of ourselves often unrecognizable as the person we used to be."

Isn't that an amazing pair of thoughts...  it's bricks make us think of building a house, a place to live, a design we create.

This is what Christ does for us when we accept the gift of salvation and let Him lead us to a place where all our sins, the harm they have done, are changed into good results.  This doesn't change the harm, but it does find a way to redeem our bad choices.  We build a new future and become a new person..."unrecognizable as the person we used to be."

Praise GOD for the opportunity to become that new person.

On my planning activities for 2021... still working on them.  Finding good ideas in all the pages I keep finding... looking for a plan that will work for me... praying for GOD's help.

I don't know what the final goals will be, but I have a direction to move in... PATREON, then selling options like ETSY and EBAY, then Social Media selling, and whatever comes after that.  I am working on my budget restrictions, on what I can afford to add to my tools and supplies, and other connected details to sell online.  It is a long process with restricted budgets, but I keep going in the directions I know I need to go and hope for GOD's help. 

It keeps me busy in my "old age."  :-)   That is a real blessing.  I hope I can continue until the day GOD calls me home.

I may start posting here more, like I did in the past, as my connection to all things about GOD, Faith, and what they mean to us.  I have to have some PUBLIC posting spaces, and then I will work on linking my readers to the selling spaces I am building.  I don't want to do a lot of PUBLIC posts at PATREON... it seems like it will defeat the purpose of joining.  That is one of my searching issues for 2021... HOW to organize my online sites.  What a huge job!

Until next time,

Deborah Martin

https://etsy.com/shop/work2gather

https://patreon.com/DebsRetirementPlan

I will be needing a new post like this for 2021, too.   :-)

FAITH :: Thinking more about the future, making plans for 2021

It's Friday... I'm running late and justifying my post for the start of Sabbath time.  I really haven't quite decided ALL of the boundaries of a Sabbath, so I write letters, write posts, and do things I am wondering about.  No one can just sit and do nothing.  And this is my circumstance right now.  Someday I hope to get better at doing Sabbaths GOD's way... whatever that is.

I finally made my Thanksgiving egg rolls - out of pulsed veggies and thick bean soup I made this week.  I also made bean "dip" out of the other beans I had on hand, for the extra "chips" I made using the last of the wontons.  The egg rolls turned out pretty good.  I fried them as raw bits of veggie, including some rutabaga, and they actually cooked enough.  Add BRAGGS soy sauce and it was a great idea.  I have some frozen now, for later.  :-)

I decided to not go food shopping, so that means using up what I have.  I made soup with a bunch of the frozen veggies I had from earlier shopping... a way to keep it longer and have it available later in the month.  I am trying to see what options I have with my own frozen veggies.  When I buy them in the market, I figure they will last as long as needed.  I don't prep like a commercial business, so I am learning what I can do.

It's time to make the shopping list/s for December.  I have been noticing what went down in quantity and needs to be restocked.  I have been trying to decide how much I need of everything.  I'm hoping to get my back-up pantry to a reasonable place in January, for the 2021 year.  I can't do a whole year yet, but I am trying to get as much ahead as I can.

With CHRISTMAS part of the December to-do, I hope to get as much as I can done the first week of the month.  Mailing, ordering, Christmas cards, decisions about what to give.  I gather all kinds of things and then see what my mailing budget is... sometimes there isn't enough to send what I would like to send, so the choices have to be changed.

I don't get replies from anything these days... online, emails, USPS, etc.  It is a prayer issue for me.  I trust GOD "for the end of this story," so I just do my part and wait to see what happens.  It's a learning experience for my perspectives about GOD... and people. It shows me the problems of internet control. And unsaved people who want to rule the world.  

We assume everything is honest, legitimate, trustworthy, real, private... but, it isn't always the case.  We see how people with no morals put cameras in rentals. The black market grows without our knowledge or permission.  I don't know what that will mean to our future, but we know it isn't going to be good.  Think: It's a Wonderful Life without the good.

America is becoming one of those dark places.

BUT...

This weekend is the end of the month and so many things need to be done yet.  I am still praying about WT and what to do.  I made some decisions about cancelling emails that aren't essential, but I also am going to try a suggestion I found somewhere that says to have a separate email address for all these sign-up options.  That seems pretty wise, and will keep the spam out of the necessary emails.

Monday will have to be the day of decision for me and WT.  :-)  One person can only do so much, especially without the funds to make changes.  I always say that we can only do our best... the rest is in GOD's Hands.

I may see you again on Saturday, Sunday, Monday, or...   I need to find a public, Christian, space and this seems to be the best option for me.  It's one of the decisions I am working on.

Patreon.

Etsy.

Twitter.

Faith blog.

That seems to be the focus so far.

WT is meant to hand off to GOD's choice for it.  I just wanted to have more done before that happened.  We can't change the past, only the future.

In Christ,

Deborah Martin

http://work2gather.us

and more...

FAITH :: Changing....

Here I am again... on Saturday.

I was so focused on the Presidential debate and other things on Thursday, I forgot my Faith post.  Then I was inspired to change the day to something more meaningful... my Saturday Sabbath.  Now, officially, the real Sabbath is over at sundown, so next time I might do this in the morning.  

It seems like a good idea to make it a Sabbath activity because I am always searching for things to do that are spiritual instead of "work"... and we all know I like to ramble on about things.  After thinking about it, I decided making a post for Faith topics on my Saturdays might be a great idea... and leave the weekdays for other things.

I got out of my routine.  I was really surprised at the difference that makes.  So, I'm working on getting back into a reminder process... maybe a better wall calendar so I can always see my schedule.  I will have to see how this works out.

The election is our constant prayer project right now.  It's hard to watch the disintegration of all that is holy in my lifetime.  No one is a perfect candidate for any party, but this election is like the choice between freedom and faith and government control of our lives... which is my definition of socialism, communism, or whatever you call the government taking over every part of our lives using taxes and healthcare and regulations and police force and other parts of our civilization that we normally respect and honor.  I'm not talking about upheaval and revolt, just the idea that we become criminals just for not wearing masks, not staying home, wanting to go to church, and other recent actions taken by our governments.  

I really hate to think about our nation under the leadership of Biden and Harris. I am praying GOD will protect us for a longer time, as long as He can, until the requirements of Prophecy mean we these changes have to take place.

Not much time left until the 3rd of November.

It's late where I live.  I just wanted to make sure I posted today.  This is a fluid effort, so who knows what will happen to my postings online... at this and other blogs.  I am realizing I need a public option for free access to the things I write about.  My Patreon page is not really about public posts.  I am thinking about that this month and through the end of the year.  I like to make changes at the changing of each year, so I think about those issues for several months heading into a NEW year.

Patreon is meant to be my main fundraising effort and activity space, it is also meant to have lots of Patrons.  This year didn't happen the way I hoped it would.  Now I am working on ways to connect with the world in PUBLIC and PRIVATE ways... exclusive access seems important to my goals for the rest of my life.  I am still looking for the best path forward.

Until next time,

In Christ,

Deborah Martin

work2gather.us

and more...