FAITH FRIDAY :: 19NOV2021 - Suffering and GOD

Hello, again...  how has your week been?  I hope you are well and happy and keeping your eyes on GOD instead of the world.

Living is a bit precarious for me, always.  I am almost 70 and I still fear having to live on the streets, maybe die there.  I wonder why GOD has not provided the finances I need, so I don't feel secure about my existence.  The valley I am living through is still a valley that filled with battles against the enemies of Faith.

When GOD is not doing what we want Him to, we have to search for the why.  I look for clues in the Bible, and other Christian testimonies, and history, and any place I can find it.  I want my life to be safe and peaceful and busy with good things.  That isn't what history tells me happens to Christians.

In times of persecution, men who only know power and hate and violence seem to thrive on the attacking the innocent, the weak, those who cannot defend themselves, women and children, the elderly, etc.  It allows them to see themselves as powerful, in control, the "boss" of everyone and everything.  Are they just "lost" or are they used by the Enemy of GOD or do they make the conscious choice to do what they do?  It is hard to decide about evil and what causes it to hurt us.

In the 80"s I made a statement for a card design I was working on...  The enemy is not Man, it is Satan living inside Man.  That's the best I can remember of it.  I lost those cards along the way of life.  In those days I was able to separate the actions of people from the damage they did. We fight the same Enemy every day.  I am not sure I can separate the source anymore.  The statement is still true, but the pain caused by those who lift up evil is also more real to me now.

It's hard to see the reality of suffering in Christian films... we don't even want to think about it.  The Hiding Place is one film we think of, how concentration camps were operated.  Maybe Schindler's List and how we become in the midst of a battle for life in wartime.  I can't think of a lot of Christian films right now... mainstream films... things that make it to the larger Christian community.  Maybe Fiddler on the Roof would be in that group - a picture of how the Jews suddenly have to leave everything because of a change in politics.  I watch these films every so often to remind me of how the world gets about Faith... just because it is Faith.

They show us parts of suffering for our faith... but to live through it is another thing, especially in our America.  The Enemy uses hidden tactics in our time.  Lawsuits.  Pies in the face of those who have opposed them - in public spaces to hurt the opposition even more.  There are collusions.  Lies?  Financial ruin so there is less ability to fight back.  Luring our loved ones into places they wouldn't go otherwise.  Attacking people for no real reason, including children.  We call it many things, but behind it all is the Enemy of GOD.

I don't know what else will come up in the future, but technology is already being used to hurt anyone who disagrees with the politically correct views of a lot of topics. Maybe with algorithms or suspensions or thefts or internet access or medical connections or business or education or ???  Technology is growing into that weapon that will destroy us.

In my own life I have endured a lot.  I remembered that the Bible tells us to endure to the end.  It doesn't make it easy.  It just helps me to see that there is pain in Faith, there is suffering in Faith, there is a choice every day about whether we will stand with GOD or fall away to avoid pain and suffering because we believe Christ died to save us.

I can't control what the Enemy does, I have to keep my eyes on GOD and trust that He is still at work in the world, my world, when it seems like the Enemy is winning.  Prayer is my weapon, sometimes my only weapon against the forces of evil in my life.  

I do my best to keep going and stay faithful to GOD.  

I think that is all anyone can do.

In Christ,  Deb  <3

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 :: 1 OCT 2021 - When GOD is 24-hours

I have a hard time separating life from GOD... compartments of life that some think GOD is not involved in.  Every day, 24-hours-a-day, that's the real GOD.

So, where is He when people are hurting?  When I am hurting.  I still think about that, more when I am in the middle of a hard season.  The answers are never clear.  We want Him to do everything for our suffering, but that is not GOD.

As I search for my answers, different parts of the Bible come to mind.

This week I remembered Paul's sufferings.  They didn't go away, they weren't prevented, he didn't see his ministry as separated from his sufferings.  

This week I thought of the martyrs under the throne.  I think of them a lot.  Some are linked to the sufferings of the Tribulation.  All have died for their faith.  As I have often thought about them, and their place in the 1000 years of being with the Lord as priests, I decided that suffering is what leads to our place in heaven.  These martyrs will not experience the second death, those of us who just die in salvation will have to go through that event.

I wonder if I am strong enough to die because I am faithful.

The Bible tells us our family might become our enemies because they choose not to believe.  That has been a hard one for me.  Watching this world take over their faith, lead them astray.  

I understand Brittany Spears was raised Christian.  It must be very hard for her parents.  

I have heard that Marilyn Manson was raised Christian.  

Now I hear that the children and grandchildren of Anita Bryant have fallen away from their godly heritage.  

How hard it is to think of our loved ones in the suffering of hell and the Lake of Fire forever.  The daily hurts we have to endure.

The world wants the eternities of those we care about.  That is when I think of Samson and his parents.

My children know the difference between right and wrong, have been baptized, and battle the problems of surviving and addictions and choosing GOD over the temptations of this world.  It is their choice, and sometimes their pain.

I had to choose.  You have to choose.  Each of us can only save ourselves.

With the internet I suffer with the things I see done to women and children because men are the "leaders" in their cultures.  I thought we need to find a way to share how GOD sees a man's place in a family, in a community.  

How can we live in this world that keeps growing more evil?

I really don't know.

I keep seeking GOD for the answers -- for myself and for all Christians.

I think about these global problems in case GOD allows me to do something about them, through Working Together, as myself, in the final years of my life.  What would you do to solve some of these problems if GOD provided you with the ability to do something?

It all takes money.

What is the priority of our ministries when our own are suffering?

With the pandemic we have seen a huge change in what it means to live, work, spend.  We have lost faith, freedoms, and our future.  What will we become now?  

The Antichrist is near.  Maybe not in our lifetimes (Boomers), but soon.  All these changes with the government in the pandemic seem to be orchestrated to get us to be willing to let the government be our absolute ruler and authority, without GOD.

Prophecy is true.  It will happen.  It is happening.  How can we prepare for it?

How can we become the ONE Body of Christ in this world?

Deb  <3

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 FRIDAY :: Suffering and its causes.

I got lost in a bunch of YouTube videos and nearly forgot it was Friday and I need to post!!!  Who knows what GOD will bring to mind... I think about spiritual issues all the time, but putting them into words is hard.

I just watched a video about a young person who has made his life about living in a van.  I am always looking at housing-related videos and have had to live in a van before, so watching the details he was sharing about how he converted his van for homeless living was something that interested me.

There were only four videos on his channel, dating to six months ago, but the channel was created a little bit before that, maybe six months if I recall right.  I didn't take notes.  So he is still a question mark in truth-sharing.  

His van was very interesting.

I thought about how young he was, and how hard homeless living is... and how dangerous it can be.  I didn't have any choices in the matter... I think he did.  I told him I hope he stays safe.  And I told him he could help others with his life experience.  I hope he does both.

How do we know where our lives will lead us?  We don't.  The Bible say we make our plans but GOD is the true author of where we actually go... He leads us to our future in so many ways.

I also wrote a comment on one of the SEE LIFE 2021 videos Focus on the Family is currently sharing.  It was about unplanned pregnancies.  In my own thinking about how GOD works in our lives I believe there is some kind of connection between our freedom to choose the path of our lives, each day, and GOD's promise that He will make good out of the bad things that happen to us.  In my comment I shared how the Bible tells us GOD can control the womb, that we get pregnant because of His Plans sometimes... that every life has a purpose.  We may sin, but GOD can turn the damage that sin does in our lives into something that is good in our lives or the lives of others.

I have created little proverbs for myself as life took me into places I never planned to be... one of them was about the things we can control vs the things we can't.  Sometimes we have to deal with the results of others' choices.  There isn't anything we can do to change it.  

I often think of the Israelites being imprisoned by their enemies as a judgment for their sins... 400 years I believe it was one time.  I remember they neglected the Sabbath and eventually had to pay for it by a judgment.  It may have been the 400 years, but I can't recall right now.  It's a silly thought, but I also think about how they wouldn't have been honoring the Sabbath as prisoners of their enemies.  :-)

It is my interest in prison reform that brings these issues into my thoughts.

It is my own suffering that also makes me try to understand what comes from GOD and what comes from Man, or myself.

This all leads to the question :: What is my responsibility in the painful parts of my life?

I suppose I have seen a book about suffering by almost every pastor I have followed.  It is one of the hardest questions in Faith.  Everyone wants to blame GOD for every bad thing that exists.  I don't think it is GOD, but I also know that somethings have been beyond my own ability to control.  Somewhere in the middle of all the ideas we have about GOD and Man and sin and suffering is a principle, a Truth, but is it the same answer for each of us?  I don't think so.

We all are different.  We make our choices based on our particular lives.  GOD is involved in our lives in unique ways because our purposes, our reason for living, our place in the Body of Christ is different.  

All poor people may have things in common, but that doesn't mean GOD is orchestrating the pains of poverty the same in each poor person's life.

I think the sermons we hear are often messages that sound good, what we want to believe, but the reality of suffering and other grey areas of theology is that we don't really know what GOD is up to.

I think of Moses a lot... how his parents kept him alive, how they had to trust GOD to save him, how the Pharaoh's daughter was childless, how she found the child, how an older girl just happened to be there, how Moses was sent back to his mother until he was weaned, how Moses' family were able to watch their child grow without being able to be his family -- all to keep him alive.  GOD protected Moses in the only way He could at that time in history, preparing Moses for the plan GOD had for his life.

How GOD works in our lives is that big "mystery" -- we have to keep our eyes on GOD and trust that He will accomplish His Will through it all.

I keep reminding myself that "GOD is able..." and that He isn't my servant, I am his servant.  He is the Boss.  I am the "employee."  When life doesn't work out the way I want it to, I bring GOD into focus as the One in charge.

It helps, but still hurts.

I would hate for anything bad to happen to that young man in the van.  I hope he doesn't have to learn a lesson that hurts, one that can change his life forever, or take it away.  There are bad people on the streets.  Not everyone, but enough to hurt or kill innocent and trusting people.  I wish all the time there was some way to keep everyone from the pains of evil, but I don't have that power.

I have to trust that GOD will help those who truly need His help, who trust in Him, who put their faith in Him, and who cannot survive without Him.

In Christ,

Deborah Martin

work2gather.us

31 August 2017

The last day of August is here... soon it will be September, Labor Day, school for everyone, fall weather will get here, and Christmas will be even nearer than it is!!!  :-) 

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I discovered that the Carleton Sheets VHS tape I was hoping had chapters 1-10 on it actually has chapters in the format!!  Yes!  I rewound the six hour tape at chapter 4, when I put it in the player.  After the intro, he started with chapter 1.  I am hopeful all the missing parts may be on this tape.

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I started my viewing with the Career Track tape I got on interviewing.  I discovered it is volume 1 of 3, I think.  This one has some interesting viewpoints on it, for me especially, since I have never done any interviews for hiring... yet!  :-)  At the end the presenter shares some of the problems with resume claims.  I am warned.

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This morning I made the first batch of salt dough to try out in some of my molds.  It will take some days to air dry.  I don't know if it will come out of the molds yet...  I tried a small bit of some clay colored air dry medium from the stores, to see what it does.  Tomorrow I may be able to mix up a batch of the cornstarch recipe I have and see how it works.  And I need to bake some of the FIMO shapes I am working on.

I have worked with salt dough in the distant past, but now it is more important.  I want to eventually get one of the smaller kilns and do real clay!   It's been on my list ever since I discovered they exist... for only about $400 or so.  The issue for me is not just purchasing the small kiln, I need a space to use it and money for the electricity.  Plus I will need all the supplies for real clay work.

I will discover these other forms of clay while I wait to get there.

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I haven't seen any news today so I don't know what is happening with the hurricane aftermath.  I can't take too much suffering, so I wouldn't want to watch it continually.  It helps me to see small parts of the disaster process to know the possible problems it causes, and what people need after a disaster.  I once wanted to train in disaster relief, after Hurricane Katrina I think.  I couldn't afford to get there, but would have gone if I could have.  It has always been a desire of mine to fund people like me when God provides the finances for Working Together.  The ones who can go, who have the time and heart for it, don't always have the money.  It is a good thing to figure out... and came from my plans for other Christian approaches to things.

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My thoughts on the things of GOD today were moved by my current life... not something I am ready to share yet.

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Today I received my official Medicare packet from the government, telling me the forced participation is currently at $134 in 2017.  I hope I qualify for the "subsidy" for people with incomes too low to make that kind of payment...  I have to find out.  I was shocked when I read the booklet that comes with the notification that I am automatically signed up and the costs will automatically be deducted from my retirement payment and that I will forever pay a fine if I don't sign up.  Is that a monopoly?  Is that from Obamacare, or has it always been that way?  I really don't know... I am just discovering the world of Medicare.

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In the senior newspaper I read an article about end of life desires.  No info on how to do it, or where to register it so my desires are actually recorded, but now I know the name of the thing, the form required, so I can search for it on the internet and see what to do.  The article said someone wanted to have a tatoo put on his 92-year-old chest saying "Do not resusitate" and the doctor who was writing said it wouldn't do any good... emergency responders have to make the effort to save you, the hospital can let you die.

In my own thoughts about the matter, long before today's article, I considered a medical alert bracelet that had the message on it.  I guess they would not be legal either.

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I think I will go and watch one of the shorter videos about buying my own house...  then I could rent out a room and be able to pay my Medicare bill.

In Christ,
Deborah Martin

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May God and all His angels watch over those in need, the weak, the fragile, the struggling, the abused, the homeless, the lost, the elderly... anyone who needs His help to make it to another day.  May our hearts be kind and filled with love for those who are around us, for our neighbors and strangers, for people in church and people in our house, for those with no one and those who are in big families that are too busy to notice them...   There are needs all around us.  May GOD help us to see them, and be a part of changing the way we live as a society.  Amen.

29 August 2017

Seen some of the news on Hurricane Harvey aftermath... cried a lot.  I don't do well seeing people suffering like that... so many of my own memories come back.  I know how hard it can be to lose everything you own, no matter how much or little that might be.

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I started some of my crafting projects and have a list of supplies I need to get when I reach a store.  It feels so great to finally have a space to work in... and supplies to get some of it done.  I need to work out project storage for things that take longer than one sitting to complete... with painting stages, drying stages, selling stages.  It's getting there.

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It's hard to write about nothing important when I just finished watching the news.  The twelfth anniversary of Katrina is today, and the area where people suffered then is in danger again.  I don't think anyone can understand the depth of pain it causes just to be in danger of a repeat performance, the thought of recovering again, the need to replace so many things you own... except those who have been through it. 

One day at a time... it is the only way to get through it, hanging on until you can see a new future.

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I guess that is what Faith is... hanging on until you can see a new future, knowing that GOD is on the other side of your pain, making the reasons clear or the sorrow meaningful for someone else you haven't met yet.

In our loss, in repeated loss, we discover what matters. 

It isn't easy to lose your special treasures, your memorabilia, your photos, but we survive.  We remember what is most important, and maybe we can replace some of the reminders we kept the first time around.

I keep trying to think of some connection with the Bible right now, but I can't.  Christians take verses about pain and hope they will comfort the suffering, remind them of God's bigger truths... but they always seem so meaningless in the middle of a disaster.  If you need food, only food matters.  If you need to be warm, finding a safe shelter is all that matters.  Later, when the adrenelin isn't what keeps you going, you can think better.

I tend to see all these things when I see others suffer... and hurt for them... wishing I could do more, maybe take away their pain, make it better.  We grow through our suffering, so it isn't always the answer to take it away.  Finding that special balance is the hardest part of wisdom, of faith, of mercy, of charity... trusting GOD when we can't do anything is how we have to live.  Doing better in the future is how we go forward... like my food pantry efforts... trying to get away from crisis mode every month, having just a little ahead, enough to get through a hard place, and enough to share if it is needed.

I had a real big moment when I discovered, when I realized, that the suffering in our world keeps all of us human.  I say that it keeps mercy and compassion alive in our world.  We would be a tough place to live without our hearts being tender toward those who are around us... close to us more than far away from us.  The homeless on the street corners need to survive as much as the victim of a hurricane or tornado.  But we see them every day, they are always there, and they never get over their need... so giving to a big crisis is easier, more fulfilling, more gratifying... we just assume our help will make everything better even if we never see it.

No one can do everything for everybody, so measuring our hearts by how many suffering people are nearby won't solve anything either.  The Bible does say that the poor will always be with us... poverty, and all its related issues, will never be "eradicated."  If we all do as much as we can, the world will be better off, and we will be better people.

In Christ,
Deborah Martin

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May the GOD that I love shower mercy on those who discover a life-changing need in this disaster.  May He find a way to protect the vulnerable and struggling, to replace the things we all need to make us feel whole and secure... shelter, food, our loved ones... transportation, work, safety, medication, money, time, comfort, hope.  May our country find a way to prepare for the events we call "acts of God" so that they will always have a way to help those in need... every year, every season, every day.  May the love that sometimes seems to be gone from our national heart find a way to grow again, to accept our humanity, our sameness, our uniqueness, our dreams, our special benefits to the greater nation.  May we see the ability to change, in all of us.  Amen.

Finding the way to GOD's Peace

Friday, 1 July 2016
faith-and-prayer.blogspot.com
Deborah Martin, work2gather.us



It is hard to be Christian in the face of evil.

 

 

Today starts another month !!  As each month passes, I am reminded of how quickly time passes by, and how little I have left.  I would like to use my remaining time to do as much as I can toward the goals GOD has put in my heart to work toward, especially Working Together.

This understanding of GOD's Will in my small life is a challenge I face each day.  I wonder why the past happened and what the future will be.  How much of our pain is a consequence of previous bad choices we have made, how much comes from the sin of others, and how much is a message from GOD to direct our course?  The inability to change some of the parts of our lives makes us dependent on GOD for the details we have to live with (against our chosen will).  My quest is to know what I need to do -- today, and tomorrow, and the days after that.  With a focus on the End Times, I want to prepare myself for the unknown challenges that lie ahead.

For me, it is hard to imagine living in a country that was once free, good, and powerful and have to watch as it disintegrates morally, financially, and spiritually.  The Bible tells us the End Times will be like the days of Noah.  (verses 37-38)  The story of Noah (Genesis 6) tells us that he was the only righteous man of his time.  What would our world be like with just one righteous man?  As I was reading these Bible sections to write this post, I was reminded that all those people who filled the earth in Noah's time were unsaved.  The Bible tells us they were corrupt, violent, wicked, evil continually.  It is beyond my comprehension what it would be like to live in a place like that, but we are on our way there.  I hope I am long gone before it gets to that point.

We hate the crime and violence we already have to deal with... and GOD's good people are still plentiful.  How will Christians continue to exist in the middle of this increasing violence and persecution?  We seem to think that creating a law will make the struggle go away.  It won't.  The Bible warns us the changing of laws (verse 25) will be part of the End Time process.

I don't do very well in suffering.  I have had to endure a lot of terrible things in my life, but that doesn't mean they were easy for me, or that I suffered them well.  I did what I could, what I had to do to survive them at the time.  After I committed my life to the path of GOD, I endured suffering with prayer and a daily act of trust in where GOD was taking me through them.  I don't want to suffer any more than I already have.

I need to find my sense of peace again...

 about GOD

 and LIFE

 and SUFFERING

I have been watching Facebook posts from the Corrie ten Boom page go by on my timeline.  They make me think about how terrible it was to endure the actions of the Nazis against the Jews.  It is the only effort at global genocide I know of.  With the advances we are experiencing in technology, the reach and persecutions of the Antichrist (and his followers) will be far worse.  I'm not sure how well any of us will do when this "war" begins to live in America.  The path of least resistance will lead to the possibility of comfort today, but the path of faith leads to eternal comfort.

I want to remind myself of the things I know from the Bible. 
I want to keep my focus on GOD.
I want to keep my faith in His Word.
I want to keep my life on the narrow path to heaven.
I want to make sure I am making the right choices. 
I want to be ready for the future. 

 I know there is a large group in the Body of Christ who believe the pre-Tribulation rapture will keep them from this suffering.  I haven't found any guarantees that interpretation of the Bible is the correct one.  We may all have to pass through the days of the Antichrist and his Mark of the Beast, dying because of our faith in GOD, in Jesus, in the Holy Spirit. 

I hope I am able to die with some level of spiritual dignity.  Preparing my heart and life for it helps me to think I will.