I went to check my emails and was reminded that the Samaritan's Purse Operation Christmas Child Shoeboxes are going to be collected starting next week. . . the 17th through the 24th. They usually collect them right before Thanksgiving each year. You can find out all the information you need at:
http://www.samaritanspurse.org/OCC
There are labels to download, links to find collection spots near you, ideas about what to put in, videos to watch, pictures to go through, online shoebox choices, donation options, and more.
I went to see the most recent video... without the volume on the first time through. It was a group of kids having a planning meeting, I think...
I really love to see the delivery videos...try to find them, if you can. It is so precious to see them delivered to places we can never reach.
Children are so happy to receive these boxes. It is a big event. No one knows what is in their box. I wonder if the people in charge make sure that the right kids get the right boxes, especially if someone actually puts a pair of shoes in it. :-) Everyone gets different gifts when the boxes come from different sources. They can compare their gifts...probably trade when they want to... and hopefully help each other figure out the ones they have never seen before.
When you watch one of the delivery videos, you become aware of the language issues. How would we know what to do if we received something that had instructions in a foreign language. Without photos, it is really hard. Sometimes the photos don't help.
This is my favorite charity. It can run into the $20-$30 range, depending on the toys you choose, where you get them, and what the delivery donation is. This is a lot of money for me... sometimes I am only able to donate the $7 per box delivery donation. Lately, I can't even do that. When GOD allows, I will begin to make boxes and donate them again. Maybe you can donate one for me.
Other charities have copied this format for their own programs. One church I know of collects shoeboxes for Mission residents. As a former Mission resident, it is always good to receive anything, and people think your are ungrateful if you don't like what they give you, but I think it would be better to provide homeless people with gift card sets from fast-food places like McDonald's, Taco Bell, Burger King, Wendy's, Arby's, Jack in the Box, and local gathering places. Many have to wander when they are forced out of missions... they can't prepare food... they need shelter from the weather and rest from the burdens of surviving homelessness. If they are job hunting, the need is even more critical.
Phone cards given directly to the resident are sometimes very important, but with cell phones that has changed. Know your resident, pick one out to care for, see what they need, and make sure it is OK with the Mission program. Some things that are received end up in the trash, given away, sold, or possible confiscated by the Mission staff.
The point I am trying to make is that a gift is for the person, not the agency. It needs to be special, for them, something they need, something that will be used by them.
I once gave something precious to me to a friend because I didn't know she already had it. I learned in that experience that we have to give with the right heart, to not give things that matter to us a lot. Once given, our offering belongs to them, they can do what they want with it. I think it is better to give wisely and then leave it to GOD. He is the one that does the accounting in our finances.
I hope you will go to the Shoebox website and check it out. I really love the opportunities it give me and the child that will eventually receive the things I choose.
12 NOV 2014 :: Keeping up... don't want to forget... again! :-)
I have been spending a lot of time trying to work out the details of my etsy shop so I didn't want to get distracted and forget to post again.
In their forum sections I am trying to see what sellers do this Christmas so I can better plan for 2015, which I hope to sell well in, God willing.
I am trying to find the other Christian sellers on Etsy so I have been joining the Christian teams for sellers. I hope to separate the Christian sellers from the general populations so I can support them if I am able to buy something and they offer what I want. Figuring out how to organize your goals within the Etsy system takes some time, you have to explore, and search, and try, and keep reading all the different resources. I expect to have it all better organized in a few months and begin working out my strategy for the 2015 holiday selling season.
I am learning the social media links, too. Etsy provides button options for Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest as far as I know. I am learning to post my new listings as I make them, and trying to make the effort easier. Facebook went to two pages and I still need to find out what happens if you have three pages associated with your Facebook account...and how to link different selling sites or activities to the right page/s.
I am trying to create a collage photo soon. I see them more and more, and I think the website I use for my photo editing (BeFunky.com) has a collage option so I will try it when I get more photos to combine.
I need to sell things to have the income to go on, and have to find a way to reach online customers. I haven't been able to do that in all these years of effort... but I am learning more now, and hope to find the path to income soon... especially for Working Together. There are a lot of issues I am not able to deal with or control, so GOD has to intervene with them. I am doing what I can.
Selling online is a great option for me, for my senior years, for the future... It can continue as long as I live, am healthy, or have someone to help me.
I wrote in a Facebook post that I should have been a billionaire by now...actually, a long time ago. I hope GOD provides the large incomes that Working Together needs so I can be an employee and not have to struggle so much...just to make it through each day.
Please continue to pray for those things for me. Thanks.
In their forum sections I am trying to see what sellers do this Christmas so I can better plan for 2015, which I hope to sell well in, God willing.
I am trying to find the other Christian sellers on Etsy so I have been joining the Christian teams for sellers. I hope to separate the Christian sellers from the general populations so I can support them if I am able to buy something and they offer what I want. Figuring out how to organize your goals within the Etsy system takes some time, you have to explore, and search, and try, and keep reading all the different resources. I expect to have it all better organized in a few months and begin working out my strategy for the 2015 holiday selling season.
I am learning the social media links, too. Etsy provides button options for Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest as far as I know. I am learning to post my new listings as I make them, and trying to make the effort easier. Facebook went to two pages and I still need to find out what happens if you have three pages associated with your Facebook account...and how to link different selling sites or activities to the right page/s.
I am trying to create a collage photo soon. I see them more and more, and I think the website I use for my photo editing (BeFunky.com) has a collage option so I will try it when I get more photos to combine.
I need to sell things to have the income to go on, and have to find a way to reach online customers. I haven't been able to do that in all these years of effort... but I am learning more now, and hope to find the path to income soon... especially for Working Together. There are a lot of issues I am not able to deal with or control, so GOD has to intervene with them. I am doing what I can.
Selling online is a great option for me, for my senior years, for the future... It can continue as long as I live, am healthy, or have someone to help me.
I wrote in a Facebook post that I should have been a billionaire by now...actually, a long time ago. I hope GOD provides the large incomes that Working Together needs so I can be an employee and not have to struggle so much...just to make it through each day.
Please continue to pray for those things for me. Thanks.
11 NOV 2014 PM :: The official post for today!
My big news for now? I pinned my first personal product from Etsy to Pinterest today! :-)
I have been trying to do that since I signed up for Pinterest but didn't get it figured out. Etsy has a pin on the product listings (now) so I went ahead and figured it out. Will do more later. This is going to be fun when I really get going.
The other thing I wanted to share was an INC Magazine post at Facebook or in one of my emails. It said our attention spans have gone down to 8 seconds, and a goldfish has a span of 9 seconds. What does that say!!!! The article also said that, if you are marketing, only plan on the first 5 seconds to get your viewer's attention. It's going to be a fast and furious Christmas season on TV! Maybe on other media, too.
I was reading about international selling and delivery issues at Etsy this morning. It seems like a real mine field. I hope I do OK when it finally gets to that point. Some sellers said that packages can be stuck in customs for a very long time, not get delivered, get sent back, etc. Trying to adjust for all those shipping problems causes money problems... refunds, complaints, appeals, etc. I hope I can keep some money in my accounts until each sale is finalized. I think that will take some kind of recordkeeping for international sales. I need to learn the limits for each site I use: Etsy, PayPal, eBay, fiverr, banks, and whatever ones come up.
I consider Etsy a home business, a way to create online income and build a presence for the future. I am not sure how to prepare for my death. I have been looking through some materials on getting things ready for that day. I am trying to make a list of all my website affiliations and their passwords for the ones who take care of all that after I am gone. It is a long list. There are legal issues I haven't learned yet. What happens at a place like Etsy? I haven't read about that yet.
Still desperately need GOD to intervene on my behalf in a number of issues. Please continue to pray for me. Money is a tool, or it is a weapon. I hope to use it as a tool for GOD's work and His people.
I have been trying to do that since I signed up for Pinterest but didn't get it figured out. Etsy has a pin on the product listings (now) so I went ahead and figured it out. Will do more later. This is going to be fun when I really get going.
The other thing I wanted to share was an INC Magazine post at Facebook or in one of my emails. It said our attention spans have gone down to 8 seconds, and a goldfish has a span of 9 seconds. What does that say!!!! The article also said that, if you are marketing, only plan on the first 5 seconds to get your viewer's attention. It's going to be a fast and furious Christmas season on TV! Maybe on other media, too.
I was reading about international selling and delivery issues at Etsy this morning. It seems like a real mine field. I hope I do OK when it finally gets to that point. Some sellers said that packages can be stuck in customs for a very long time, not get delivered, get sent back, etc. Trying to adjust for all those shipping problems causes money problems... refunds, complaints, appeals, etc. I hope I can keep some money in my accounts until each sale is finalized. I think that will take some kind of recordkeeping for international sales. I need to learn the limits for each site I use: Etsy, PayPal, eBay, fiverr, banks, and whatever ones come up.
I consider Etsy a home business, a way to create online income and build a presence for the future. I am not sure how to prepare for my death. I have been looking through some materials on getting things ready for that day. I am trying to make a list of all my website affiliations and their passwords for the ones who take care of all that after I am gone. It is a long list. There are legal issues I haven't learned yet. What happens at a place like Etsy? I haven't read about that yet.
Still desperately need GOD to intervene on my behalf in a number of issues. Please continue to pray for me. Money is a tool, or it is a weapon. I hope to use it as a tool for GOD's work and His people.
11 NOV 2014 AM :: Looks like I missed Monday's entry :-(
I was doing my morning tasks and realized I missed my blog post yesterday. I don't like to write them in the morning, so I let it go, and then I got busy with Etsy and Facebook and email and lots of reading and exploring. I didn't even go to bed until midnight, but totally forgot the blog post. I can't imagine how that happened! :-) Sorry about that. I will do two today to make up for the missed one.
The weekend was filled with lots of busy-ness, trying to sort out the things that need to get done. I worked a long time on my latest Etsy listing, a revision of a previous one... making my writings into postcards that can be mailed or sent in an envelope. I only have one listed so far, but will be getting a separate listing up when I can.
I am having income issues, and other problems to deal with that are beyond my ability to control, so I am taking this part of my life one day at a time. I consider it a sign of the future we will all have to deal with. :-( Not a good thing. ------ We believe that GOD controls all things, and He does. I have to trust that He has a purpose for this time in my life. My sons are involved and I am praying through.
There seems to be a lot of crime shows on the channels I get. Why criminals do what they do is always a part of the story...but how can healthy people even begin to understand the causes of criminal behavior? We can't understand drug addiction, abuse, illiteracy that is taken advantage of, unending emotional pain...etc. I don't think all these portrayals of brutal crimes can be good for anyone who watches them... I think unstable people will want to emulate them. It isn't a good thing? Why is it happening? And when there is a decent program it digresses into everything gross and ungodly. It is hard to watch any TV anymore.
I am praying for the lives and futures of my sons... People seem to lift up the things in our world that are against the goodness of GOD. It is hard to separate ourselves from the society we live in. Without a commitment to godly living, people rarely see the problems in these activities. I have a battle with it myself. I start watching something that seems OK, and it turns into the promotion of gay sex, has horrible crime references, if filled with abuse of all kinds, or denigrates the biblical faith. Even the news is a succession of terror...with one "human interest" item when they can.
These are the "pictures" of our society.
I remember reading and/or hearing people from other countries saying they believed the TV programs portrayed life in the United States. They were referring to a popular soap opera of the time. Imagine what the people of Iran think of our country when they see our movies and TV programs now. Maybe that is why we are so hated in the world these days.
All of these changes in our world are part of the End Time process...and they are leading to the ungodly and violent society that will exist.
I would like to build a place where I can live with other Christians... where we can fellowship and work and worship and live in as much peace as possible until the Antichrist arrives. It may not be possible, but I think we need to try. Our time is running out.
The weekend was filled with lots of busy-ness, trying to sort out the things that need to get done. I worked a long time on my latest Etsy listing, a revision of a previous one... making my writings into postcards that can be mailed or sent in an envelope. I only have one listed so far, but will be getting a separate listing up when I can.
I am having income issues, and other problems to deal with that are beyond my ability to control, so I am taking this part of my life one day at a time. I consider it a sign of the future we will all have to deal with. :-( Not a good thing. ------ We believe that GOD controls all things, and He does. I have to trust that He has a purpose for this time in my life. My sons are involved and I am praying through.
There seems to be a lot of crime shows on the channels I get. Why criminals do what they do is always a part of the story...but how can healthy people even begin to understand the causes of criminal behavior? We can't understand drug addiction, abuse, illiteracy that is taken advantage of, unending emotional pain...etc. I don't think all these portrayals of brutal crimes can be good for anyone who watches them... I think unstable people will want to emulate them. It isn't a good thing? Why is it happening? And when there is a decent program it digresses into everything gross and ungodly. It is hard to watch any TV anymore.
I am praying for the lives and futures of my sons... People seem to lift up the things in our world that are against the goodness of GOD. It is hard to separate ourselves from the society we live in. Without a commitment to godly living, people rarely see the problems in these activities. I have a battle with it myself. I start watching something that seems OK, and it turns into the promotion of gay sex, has horrible crime references, if filled with abuse of all kinds, or denigrates the biblical faith. Even the news is a succession of terror...with one "human interest" item when they can.
These are the "pictures" of our society.
I remember reading and/or hearing people from other countries saying they believed the TV programs portrayed life in the United States. They were referring to a popular soap opera of the time. Imagine what the people of Iran think of our country when they see our movies and TV programs now. Maybe that is why we are so hated in the world these days.
All of these changes in our world are part of the End Time process...and they are leading to the ungodly and violent society that will exist.
I would like to build a place where I can live with other Christians... where we can fellowship and work and worship and live in as much peace as possible until the Antichrist arrives. It may not be possible, but I think we need to try. Our time is running out.
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