Made it through the week!

 

I am amazed I made it through this week.  It's been a long week.  Getting better has helped.  Now I am looking toward September.  I need to see where posting every weekday will lead.  Just trying changes your future.

I have been watching some survival videos.  I end up seeing a lot from foreign countries.  It is strange to think of people in places so far away from us doing these things in their own lives.

Christians are everywhere.  We may all need to know how to do these things in the future.  Knowing how is half the battle.  It allows you to think about what you can do in any situation you find yourself in.  In the forest, in the snow, in cities, and things like that.

I watched a lot of snow survival videos awhile back, from a channel called The Outdoor Boys.  I would never have known how to dig a shelter in the snow to survive.  The Bible warns us to pray our escape will not be in winter.  There's a reason for that.

In survival videos you need to have a certain number of tools with you.  The bug-out bag may be the best thing you have prepped if it has basic tools.  Think about having to dig out the snow with your bare hands, or the ground for any reason.  A hatchet is essential for collecting firewood and building materials.  I am not that prepared... yet.  :-)  I am wondering how I would survive if I'm on my own.  I am old.  I can't do the things these young healthy men (and some women) can do.  

I was hoping to have Working Together communities built already, to deal with the needs of the elderly and the fragile and the alone.  

I don't think there is a simple answer to what is coming.  Each of us has to find a path where we are, and back-ups for if we aren't together when the time comes.  We don't know what will happen first, what we might need.  Prepping for the Antichrist is a serious challenge.

August is over tomorrow.

I have to finish up all my records for August and get my September pages ready.

I will make it through to September without going to the store, but my cupboards are kind of bare.  I guess fresh produce and my favorite foods are what I miss most.  :-)  I end up getting ill when I have them again.  I'm not sure how to change that yet.  

It's going to be an expensive food month.

I saw a video of an Asian man making large amounts of mung sprouts.  He made it different than the jars I use.  I assume they sell it for their income.  We could never produce it the way he did, and sell it.  But it is edible.  I like mung bean sprouts but am not able to grow them as good as this man did.  

Sprouts are like fresh produce in winter.  I am trying to make them and eat them more.  French green lentils are really good as sprouts.  I also like alfalfa sprouts.  I would like to grow more of them all.  I would be able to eat them as my salad food, especially in winter.

Maybe this winter I can find a way to do that.

This is one example of changing my food choices and changing my food budget.  It makes me healthier and will hopefully help me to age better.

I don't know what GOD has planned for my future, how long I still have to live, but I am praying for health enough to keep going every day, every month, every year.

Because my choices are getting more limited, I have been going through my papers/records to downsize even more.  It is the strangest part of aging.  So many dreams have to be let go.  You have to figure out what you might be able to keep doing.  Lots of projects will be let go.  I won't need those supplies anymore.

It's good and it's bad.  I will be able to do more art and clays and resins, but not the bigger projects I hoped to get to.  I may be able to do baby quilts still, maybe some of my recycling projects that I have been waiting to get to.  

I just don't know where this will end up.  I am trying to get to that answer by the end of this year.  It is one of the goals I made in January.  Downsizing what I can't do will make more room for what I can.  It may be the best thing for me.

In the end, we can't take anything with us to heaven.  That helps me to keep it all in perspective.  

GOALS - what are they?

 

I was listening to something on YouTube about business / goals today, and this was one of the points made.  I think it was one of the Brian Tracy videos, about his work but not by him, it was on some kind of channel about Motivation.

It has been the only thing keeping me going since my children were very young and I was struggling to survive on Welfare.  It was all I could do.

It was, however, strange to hear on a video about Brian Tracy (a compilation of some kind).

Years ago, I requested some materials from him.  Somewhere along the way, I received a CD that I believe I still have.  It became one of the treasures of my life.  The title was, Change Your Thinking, Change Your Life.  I listen to it when I feel the need to remind myself of what it shares.

Other books important through my life were:

Acres of Diamonds, by Russell Conwell, I believe.  This is a very short booklet that is so worth your time.  I think you can find copies to print out.  I have given this to many people over my lifetime.  I hope I still have my personal copy.

As A Man Thinketh, by James Allen.  You can find a lot of YouTube videos about this short book.   There are audiobooks on YouTube and in libraries.  I also found an updated version at a Barnes and Noble bookstore, which I sent to one of my sons.  I like the smaller classic edition.

I will have to look for my special collection of these kinds of books.  I have most of my belongings/books in storage boxes because of my downsizing efforts.

I have been slowly collecting notes I have about making goals and the goals I have had over time.  I am going to create a Master List again... or try to.  I have quite a lot of goals, small and large.

In some of the materials I have read or listened to, the idea of deciding on an amount of money has been important.  I have never been able to settle on any kind of amount because of my poverty and knowing there was little I could do without a decent amount of start-up funds.  I am trying to decide on an amount this time.  That will take time.  It will be beyond anything I would ever expect to receive, which is not part of the faith equation.  It could be I handicap my efforts before they begin.  I will have to think about this as I try to decide on a realistic amount to begin developing Working Together.  For my own goals, the amount would be smaller.  :-)

That is the content of my life right now.

I have also considered re-doing a challenge I did many years ago... deciding what I would do with a million dollars (I say tax-free!).  I am wondering what I would say this time.  Would it be enough?  

The government would take a lot of it for taxes and my school loans, so that is why I have to decide if it is really a whole million dollars.  (This is why I only buy lottery tickets when the prizes are very huge... there would be money left over for everything else.)

What would you buy with a million dollars?

I say most regular people will buy a new house, new car, and share with their kids and other loved ones.  After that, it becomes a personal focus... what charities they like, etc.

It's hard to separate money from all the things we want in our lives.

That why GOD tells us the choice is always between GOD and Mammon (money).

Well, that's about it for today.  Talking about the effects money has on us is depressing for me.  It reminds me of all the good things I wanted to do.

Until next time,

Deborah Martin 

At 70, I wonder what my future will be like.

It is really a challenge to make plans as a Senior Citizen, especially a low-income one.

I just finished my post for this week at my Working Together blog, on the pending economic issues we face as a nation and as a world  (Working Together Inc: Can America really survive a big disaster? (working-together-inc.blogspot.com) so my thoughts are not very hopeful for my own life.  I depend on the government for my survival.  I have been homeless too many times already.  I am wondering if I will have to face homelessness again, and what kind of health I will be in if that happens.

I have been working on my goal statements this month.  It is a strange process for me.  I am not to the point of repeating them over and over again throughout the day.  I am currently working on writing them once a day, trying for the first thing in the morning, and noticing what the process does to my actions.

It is interesting.

It is a battle every day.

I am wondering why that is so.

Because of Working Together's mission in this life, I have discovered spiritual warfare.  I don't know how to do battle like great saints, but I have felt and seen the effects of spiritual warfare in my life.  The battles I went through moved me into a space of leaving it all to GOD.  I can't fight, and we are told that GOD does battle for us.

And there is the idea of His Will.

If we push our way through, is it GOD's Will or ours?  

That is quite a technical issue.  Once we know we are in GOD's Will, pushing through may be the only way.  It took me awhile to get to that realization... was it my idea or GOD's... and then do my best to make it through all the struggles.

I'm not young anymore.  I don't have the energy and stamina I had when I was young.  But, I am still willing to do whatever I can.  If GOD provides, I will keep doing whatever I can.

So, in the aging process, my goals have had to change.

I am beginning to wonder what other seniors do.  How do they see their future when death could happen at any moment?  How do they prepare to travel?  How much money do we really need when we are older?

I never planned to be so poor in my life.  My efforts just didn't work out the way I planned.  

I think the pandemic seriously damaged a lot of lives.  I don't know if we will really recover from it.  I hope we do.

In the Christian perspective, the details are very different.  We are watching for the Antichrist, and what the Bible tells us will happen when he gets here.

All these global problems, economic problems, government actions, and more, show us the Antichrist is very near.  

I was listening again to the video speech I love, by Paul Harvey, called FREEDOM TO CHAINS, at the Natalie Sims channel,  https://youtu.be/VPlQ-ANUCuc , and one statement stood out to me again as a description of the Antichrist we expect ::

"Some believe that the need is for a vigorous strong man to arise on the scene to regulate and regiment the affairs of men."

Paul Harvey made this speech in 1965, according to the video.  It's almost 60 years ago and we are on the brink of seeing that kind of person being asked to save the world.

GOD moves slowly because He wants to save as many souls as He can, but the day of His Prophecy will arrive.

I have heard some sources claim that digital currency and other technological "resources" will be in our lives by 2025.  I am wondering if that means the Antichrist.

I guess the only thing I can do is just meet every day with the best I have.  To keep trying.  To reach for the goals I have.  To be content with what the day brings.  (That reminds me of a verse in the Bible... haha)

I still hope to have some fun before I die, but I am not sure that will happen.  I remain one foot from life on the streets again... or death.  

I suppose GOD knows why my life has gone the way it has, and what my future will allow me to do.

As long as I remain faithful to the end, and make it to heaven, I will be happy.

How do you plan your future life?

In Christ,

Deborah Martin

https://work2gather.us

FAITH FRIDAY :: GOD and us - how does it work?

I am starting this post at 11:50 PM on Friday !!!  How could I forget it was Friday?!   :-)

Well, not looking at my daily to-do list might be one reason.  haha

It's been a long week of thinking about GOD and how He fits into our lives.  I wish it was easy.  We tend to think GOD is responsible for everything that happens to us.  I think there is some kind of separation between cause and effect, but I haven't fully decided what it is.

I've been getting up in the very early morning for a couple days... to care for some chickens where I live.  Summers mean early light and late dark.  Hard to dothese days as a senior.  :-)  I need the weekend to recover!  :-)    I also used the time for some yardwork.  The puppies where I live and the heat.  The chickens in the heat.  Sorting my room, my supplies.  And trying to make plans to reach my goals.

Everything takes time.  I find it hard to spend, so I am looking for ways to get the right things done... the 80:20 Rule I shared about.

One time I decided that tithing time meant using 2.4 hours for my time with GOD and spiritual activities.  Maybe Bible time and prayer.  I tried it, but it was a job just to keep track of what I considered GOD time.  It fell by the wayside... but is still part of my thoughts when I am working on my planning activities. 

One time I worked out the average schedule and needs of a person by the day and by the week.  I ended up with what we call our work week.  I was trying to decide how much time I would have to build my business. We have to eat and sleep and do the dishes and take showers and shop and lots of other daily tasks just to live.  I was actually amazed that the only time left was a traditional work week.  When I saw that, I also saw that goals need time that we don't always have, and how do we change our lives to do the things that need to get done...

I am still looking for that answer.

Today I found another idea for saving money.  I was at YouTube and found a video about using envelopes to save about $5K over a year using just 100 envelopes numbered 1 to 100. It's easy to save the small amounts, but the larger ones are a big issue with my budget.  Still, it makes the process different and more achievable.  I think I will try some version of it.  (There was also the 51-week challenge.)

Money has always been a large hurdle for me.  It will change my ability to reach my crafting and ministry goals.  I will be excited if I can save that much money.  Probably in 2022, but sooner if I can.

You might like to watch this video.  I shared it at my Patreon post.  It is about goals.  It helped me to remember the best ideas for reaching my goals.  It is part of my thoughts today, now, and until I can find the right things to list on my daily sheet, and do.

https://youtu.be/cKTtnhC6f0E

Let me know if you think they are good for doing.

In Christ,

Deborah Martin,  work2gather.us   

FAITH :: Working on my posting...

 I listened to a YouTube video the other day... a presentation by James Clear at a ConvertKit event so they could learn about "Atomic Habits."  I think I already shared about my watching several videos about this book.  

There were three Strategies that really got me to thinking...

• The 1% Strategy  --  This is about improving your life and reaching your goals by small steps every day... improving by just 1%.  I am trying to decide what that looks like in my life... how do you value something at 1% - how small would it be?

• The 2 Minutes Strategy  --  This is about getting started.  Instead of focusing on the BIG goal, just focus on the first two minutes... what would that look like... the examples were things like getting your running shoes on and getting out the door.  One woman just focused on getting out the door and into the taxi because if she got that far then the rest would happen when she got to the place she was going.  I remembered another example that has stuck with me over many years about a man that just focused on getting to the bathroom to brush his teeth, that was how he got up and got going in the mornings.  It's like the very first step on the way to your goal.

• The Calendar Strategy  -- This is a visual aid that lets you remember your goal.  You cross off the days you do the thing you want to get done.  If you miss a day, just keep going.  James Clear added a mantra for this one :: never miss twice.  That can be a killer, start an easy way to let something go, make you fail completely.  Starting over is always harder than just missing a day.

TODAY has been a day of changing my environment to work better. That is another Strategy.  I was already doing this, or planning to - I can't recall  :-)  -- so it was a great activity for me.  It is becoming a really good choice for me.

Going through my past records is still an unfinished task.  I needed a way to store the ones I want or need to keep.  I have a new option to try now.  It is going to help.

One of the examples on the video was how he made a commitment to post on Mondays and Thursdays.  Consistently.  And it led to increasing his followers.  Over time.  I imagine the content was also part of the ongoing improvements.  :-)   It helped me to remember the goals I had and past efforts, like my year of looking for a million $5 supporters.  So I will be trying to find a good posting schedule.

Prepare yourself!  :-)

In Christ,

Deborah Martin

work2gather.us

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...

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... 

Making GOALS and Prayer Journals, mostly.

This week I am trying to create some realistic goals for my CHALLENGE and my Christmas selling.  I recently found a CRUSH IT form I had from   LivingWellSpendingLess.com  and decided to use it to help me figure out THREE goals.

NOTE -- I found a link about it.  I don't know if you can find the download I got, but there should be something on this page to help you. 

(https://www.livingwellspendingless.com/how-to-crush-your-goals/)

NOTE II -- I don't follow her at any level. I explored her space awhile back.  I downloaded the form as a sign-up incentive, I think.

Making really good goals that I am able to achieve is such a hard thing for me.  I see all the obstacles, what I DON'T have.  I keep searching for goals I can do, but they aren't the goals I need to do.  SMART goals are similar to the CRUSH IT format... but not exactly.  The biggest issue in making goals is to do them.  How to make a goal you can do is what helps you move into another goal, and another, and another. 

My three CHRISTMAS goals are about  ART,  making JEWELRY, and creating ORNAMENTS for this season.  I am currently trying to decide HOW MANY and by WHEN.  I also have some PRO-LIFE design goals for the January anniversary event.

I've been going through my supplies and my collection of ideas.  Finding space is still a problem, but I'm working on that.

I'm working on the photo problems, too.

PRAY I am able to overcome all the obstacles I face.  Thanks.



Life is strange this year... as the months go by, the situation with the lockdowns gets really difficult.  I keep wondering where this year is leading us. 

I don't think it is a good place.



Election years are big ad spending years.  I see all those millions of dollars mentioned, and I cringe because of all the needs we have in our country.  The world suffers, but our elections are about us... so our needs are what that money could help.

I don't see any solution for this.



My daily Prayer Journals are really a great thing in my life still... I recommend them to anyone I can.  It has changed my forever goal to do some kind of Prayer Journal.  Next  year I will continue this habit.  Writing a name, then a short prayer for their day or their lives, is so easy. The biggest success element for me is limiting it to two pages -- one page for my family, one for others.

Try it for your family and friends.  OTHERS, for me, includes anyone and anything that is beyond my kids and me.



I guess that will do for now. It's getting to be time to sleep.
Let me know how you pray in a journal... I have always wondered how other people do this.  Every now and then someone I listen to, like Charles Stanly, says something about how they pray and record it to see how GOD answers. 

In Christ,
Deborah Martin
work2gather.us
and more...

Thursday Update - 18 JUNE 2020

Wow!  I posted on social media about FATHERS DAY last Sunday, thinking I had missed it... and finally realized it is on the 21st... this next Sunday.  Ooops! 

I posted how I had forgotten it as a special day, noting that I have never really had a father, except GOD... If I can, I will try to find the link.

I tried to find a link address to share... found the post. No copy link option so I copied and pasted the text section... I was surprised by the NAME part !!

This shares the text.
I also added my "Servants" writing for the graphic.

Deborah Martin

@work2gather

·

Jun 14

I missed Father's Day. Must be because I never had a real father. GOD has been the consistency in my life, the Guide through all things hard, the One who showed me the best I could ever be. Those without fathers should find Him in the Bible. It changes everything.


Then I found this...
https://twitter.com/work2gather/status/1272408177305202689

This was the web address at the actual post.  It should be a direct link to the post.  If not, I will keep looking for how to do this.

FATHERS are so important to the growing up process... nothing can really replace them, or mothers.  GOD made the family to be that way... the nature's of the male and the female blend in different ways to make the whole of the family a special unit.

I have often said that the arguments of the gay family being just as "normal" as the nuclear family designed by GOD are not true.  It's impossible.  No matter how great a DNA MALE may look in trying to be a female, he will never possess the genetic and personality traits of a true female... he will remain a biological male with the appearance of a female.

The same is true for lesbians and women who try to "become" male.  It is a masquerade. 

Broken families create their own set of problems... messing up the people inside them.  It is a generational destruction of all that GOD wanted us to be.  It is also prophesied as part of the End Times... part of the demise of our existence.

Nothing is going to save us.  It is just a matter of time. 
What GOD says will happen, always does happen. 

Christians are like everyone in the world that is human... we want to find happiness, meaning, success in work and life, families, friends, and fellowship.  We want to find these things in a different space than the rest of the world.  We are looking for what GOD teaches is the best for the human being.  That is why all the study about GOD in the Bible and in our lives matters to us.


I don't really understand all the hatred of GOD except that it is associated with the battle between Satan and GOD... for our souls, for eternity, for revenge, for that big thing we call personal "success" and goals.  We are the victims in this battle between GOD and Satan.  

==========

I have been working on my budget some more... I need to go shopping for food again.  I keep trying to find a way to spend less and save more, buy the things on my lists, and grow my income.  

I was looking at my CHRISTMAS budget tonight.  I am trying to save $10 each month for Christmas spending.  My list of giving needs $300 minimum.  I need to work on ways to gift without spending cash.  Shipping costs could take up all my savings for the holidays.  Such a pain.  I will also be trying to save more cash, but my minimum goal is the small $10/month.

I didn't get a stimulus payment but I am looking for the ways I can figure out what happened to it and why, and go from there.  I may let you know what I find out in a future blog post.

My CONTENT PLANNING activities are getting figured out.  I haven't found the best way to chart all the details yet, but I am figuring it out as I try to make my draft forms work.  Maybe I will share the final version as an email list freebie.  :-)  Still working on that, too.

My OFFICE 365 problems are partially resolved.  I was able to connect to the website and do the "download" thing, finally.  I haven't worked out the new file issues yet.

In my planning efforts I am moving into the spaces where income might become a reality... art... jewelry... and related products.  They will ship the easiest.  I might be able to send them off from my home mailbox... or get them picked up by the USPS (online registration).  If I can get my label printing figured out, that will all become easier.

What else am I working on?

• More posting at other sites (Patreon tiers and blogs)
• FOOD options for emergency foods.
• Ongoing efforts to improve my recordkeeping.
• Looking for GOD to answer my constant prayers.
• Wondering how long I will live since I am planning so much.  haha
• Freebies to offer email list subscribers.
• Freebies for my PATREON supporters.
• Posting designs for now, the election, marketing...
• Products to sell for income and sharing my messages.
• Surviving.

There is always something to work on, but I also try to rest when I need to... and have started trying to do some yardwork for my blackberry patches.  (My potato is still alive... that is good!)

I hope your life is going well, that GOD is leading you into His Plan for your future, and you will be prepared for any unknown disaster we might face as individuals, families, communities, nations, or as the planet earth.

Until next time,

In Christ,

Deborah Martin

work2gather.us

and more...

16APR - Trusting GOD for the details

It's been a long week since Monday's update at Patreon...  I guess this will be the only PUBLIC update... I may have to change the way I do things with my updates.  The goal is to make Patreon the only place for my Challenge news... but, then how will I find people.  It's a real decision-making process to try to overcome the info connections.  You'll find out when I finally decide.  This may be the APRIL decision.

I ordered a book by Phyllis Schlafly (The Power of the Christian Woman) and received it (finally) yesterday.  When I started reading it, I was amazed at how great she shared the details of being a woman in GOD's Kingdom... wanting to be a "Mom At Home" and happy there.  I suggested to the Eagle Forum they need to share the first chapter, at least.  (If they don't, I might.)

I haven't finished the first chapter yet, but I am working to get the book read.  I seem to be "distracted" by any little thing, and real needs.  I had to take two naps today because my body just wouldn't keep going.  I guess I have an irregular schedule... I end up being up in the middle of the night and sleeping small amounts over the course of each 24-hours.  I do what I can in the up hours, and take short naps.  The "distractions" are the main problem.  I have to find a way to get through them.

So, the book.  I am glad I bought both of the titles I did.  The other book was, "A Choice, Not an Echo" and it is about electing Presidents.  Some of the browsing bits I discovered are from before I thought of elections and what they mean.  As a child, my main memory of politics is a wonderful vinyl recording of President Kennedy's speeches.  I don't recall if I had it before or after he died.  I was very young when that happened.

I have seen videos or photos of her with Reagan.  I don't really know her politics.  I am not sure I will read that book right now.  Moms and the freedom to be at home are my interests.  I tried my whole life to be one... without poverty.

I just checked the copyright for the Christian Woman book and it was published in 1981... what was happening then...  I don't know.  I had two sons by then...  I think I was fighting poverty somewhere... maybe it was Lincoln City (Oregon) then.

My CHALLENGE is focused on PayPal.me right now.  I am wondering if it could work as my one-time $5.00 payment option.  It is a new payment idea for me this week.  I have to find out how I can make it work for my needs.

I was already signed up when I checked, but I hadn't been able to decide how to use it so it went out of my daily thoughts.  I guess you can just provide the link and anyone can make a payment to your account.  If you want to do that, my account link is  ::   https://www.paypal.me/work2gather     :-)

I have tried to contact PAYPAL.com for more information and to make sure my plans are within their general guidelines, and to make sure all my links go to the right accounts... but contacting big sites is like trying to fly from the west to the east without a plane.

I don't see posting it at Patreon will work... because of the fee issues, I suppose.  I still want to make it part of my selling options.  So far, I plan to post it on my social media sites with things to sell.


I had a problem with FACEBOOK MARKETPLACE this week... they decided my digital download for Etsy, SERVANTS, was objectionable and I am having to appeal that decision.  I mentioned that their actions are very unclear... they just tell you "it might go against their policies" and expect you to delete it.  I shared that when people get a ticket they at least know what law they have broken.  They need to decide what specific "Law" at F/B has been transgressed so that the persecuted can appeal the right policy.

I vaguely recall having another problem like this... but I think the same thing happened with ETSY and my writing about the Rapture to Christians.  There's no real appeal process at Etsy.  I have always hoped GOD would bless so I could create a fair and protected selling place for Christians... probably WT Members, but maybe open to the public.  If GOD provides the funds, I'll make those decisions then.

The main cause is the gay community, I think.  If it's not the employees, it's media pressure, which the gay community uses so well.... as they are doing with Phyllis Schlafly these days, and the rainbow, and Christian businesses, and....  No one knows how to deal with them... I call it Bible prophecy coming true.  They are bringing the future into being.  And this is why WT was created.

So, what else has been happening...
It's all a blur.   :-)  
I keep trying to keep my Journal up to date, but it ends up with lots of missed details.  I will work through this year, but may have to go back to my other style of keeping track of things.  :-)

EARTH DAY is next week.  I was looking at my calendar and realized how fast the month has gone by.  I like my tote design.  I keep trying to decide if I should get one for me, or wait until I design more and pick one of them.  I guess Earth Day will be lost in the VIRUS CRISIS as well.


There are only so many things one person can do.  The rest of the battle has to be put into GOD's Hands.  I know that one day GOD will make everything right... how, when, I am not sure... before we die, after we die... I don't know.  It's His decision.  My faith is in GOD.  I trust Him.

I have tried to find one way to explain how this works but so far DAVID is the only story I can think of... We wonder why he chose to sin with Bathsheba, but he did.  When GOD made sure there was no way to hide it, but the pregnancy, he thought there was some way to hide it.  WHY he thought that would happen, no one knows.  We can be sure the staff and lots of other already knew.  He chose to try to hide it.  That choice cost lives and took the Hand of GOD's protections from David and others.

Eventually, GOD sent someone to make sure David knew that GOD wasn't letting it go.  How long that took is not known --  I have never heard a real verified timeline.  What I like to say is that we also don't know if the judgment GOD made for David's sin would have been different if David had made things right with GOD before the prophet was sent to him.

There is always a consequence to sin.  It goes on forever I have decided... like the popular "ripple" effect (Think "'Pocahontas" movie for an example.) --- everything we do affects others... expanding into the future.

Maybe you can see it as the "domino fall" -- when you topple the first domino, the rest follow in quick succession...   Life is a domino fall that never stops... each day is a domino...


I guess I am saying I have to do my best to reach the future by GOD's path, and leave the details of that journey to Him...  It matters what we choose... as individuals and as families and as communities and as nations.  I guess business decisions are in there somewhere.  Money is not the right goal.  What is good is the right goal.  I have only found one place to know what is good -  the Bible.

I hope you read it and discover what I mean.

In Christ,
Deborah Martin
work2gather.us

9APR Update - Continuing the #2020Challenge

Monday seems so far away... the days are full, so many little things.  Today is another busy full day, and I am tired.  :-)

I went shopping again later in the day today... some toilet paper was available, but I decided to wait and look for "my brand."  I got most of the other things I needed... except...   I guess I got enough for the current need.  

I do hope there are no people who are suffering in a serious way.  

I use to have to get food at community meal spaces.  And food boxes from those who offered them.  As time went on, the organizations got together to avoid the "scams" of those days.  I am not sure what goes on these days... and I hope I don't have to find out.  I was young then, and my situation is very different now.  I support food organizations as much as I can because I understand the need.

My 2020Challenge is slowly becoming a better plan.  I didn't know there would be so much to learn.  That is the way things go... we think it's easy, just a simple action, and the best results will be ours.  :-)  That's how life seems to catch us and take us forward... I hope it will be forward!!

The time it takes for everything is really a big learning experience.  The "list" becomes more and more important.  You have to "weed out" the things that really cannot get done.  Each day is a new list and a new priority.

It would be easier with more money, but this is the place I am at, so I have to deal with it.  We can only "start where we are" and keep moving.

I made a chart for the year way back in January... to keep track of the new activity and see how the progress went.  So far, it's a blanket of zeros.  That could be depressing, but I see GOD's Hand in what seems like failure... that is why I keep going.  GOD is doing something, I just don't know what it is... or who is involved.

This next week I am heading into more designs and more listings... the added listings are opportunities for income.  The budget this month is crashed unless I get one of those payments from the government for retired people on Social Security.  Depending on how much that is, I may be able to do more than I currently am able to do.  I don't want to plan any funding, but if I have it in hand I will then work on how to best spend it.  (I have lots of lists to choose from.  :-)

If I can, I also plan to update my Working Together website  (work2gather.us) -- it needs links to all its blogs and social media.  I am also working on how to make PDF links for the information and applications that are associated with each program.  Income is so important for the WT Plan that I am again organizing a list of income options for each program.  Then I will have to decide, again, which one to work on first... and that also depends on finances.

Where to put a link for building an Email List has been part of my decision process for some time.  As I update the WT website I will try to find the best solution for that.

I am currently trying to learn the new process for making ADOBE PDFs to make the links for WT and other projects I'm working on.  If I get a stimulus payment, I may go ahead and use it for the ADOBE subscription and see what I am able to do with it.

I am also thinking I will sign up for the Microsoft Office 365... which is less expensive... with my current budget.   I have been working on the options this past week... finding out where I am in my budget and finances and what I can "squeeze" out of it to pay for the subscription.  :-)   [think :: my piggy bank graphic]

I figure we can only budget the money we have...  I guess that is why I keep waiting for GOD to bless... and wondering why He hasn't.

That reminds me... I discovered a typo in my digital listing for my writing called SERVANTS, so I am doing that over and will relist it, and other things, as I learn the ADOBE PDF process.  I will go ahead and share the text here... because I love it, and because I want you to see it, and because it is a good reminder of where we stand in the process of life with GOD.  When I get it formatted, it will look a lot better and be ready to frame and display on your walls.  I may try to offer pre-framed options for gifting... again, that depends on money.

All these better options were (are) planned for growth activities when I got going.... I am still at the beginning.


Each moment, each day,
the mysteries of God unfold.
They surface in the innocent words
and complex actions
of those who share our lives…

Through our families, our friends,
through strangers and His tender
manipulations of our circumstances,
God speaks to us –
if we are willing to listen.

By the same methods
He uses us to reach out
to a lost, hurting world,
and to fellow saints –
when we are willing to be channels
of His mercy and grace.

In all things it is our choice…
to listen, to obey, to be devoted to,
and used by our Lord.

When we live in constant awareness
of the promptings of the Holy Spirit,
Life becomes an adventure
of enormous proportion,
and we become servants
of the One true God.


SERVANTS
by Deborah Martin
work2gather.us


I hope you like it, too.  I never get tired of reading it... even after all these years.


In Christ,
Deborah Martin
work2gather.us
and more.  :-)