Can we change our world?

 I'm posting on some political topics at the main Working Together blog these days.  I thought I would share that here.  It's hard to post at all the WT blogs right now.  :-)  I hope to change this over time, but I can't make any promises right now.

https://working-together-inc.blogspot.com

In Christ,

Deborah Martin

POLITICS :: What I discovered yesterday...

I opened up the email from EPOCH TIMES yesterday and looked to see what it had to share.  I think it may have been the title reference :: HOW THE SPECTER OF COMMUNISM IS RULING OUR WORLD.  What really struck me was the summary they offered :: 

"The devil chose Marx as its envoy among men. His Communist Manifesto of 1848 advocated the violent destruction of private enterprise, social classes, nations, religions, and the family."

That was a frightening statement to me.  I never studied Marx but knew he had something to do with coercive governments... and that some people in our age lift him up as their hero.  The idea that government needs to overcome all these very good entities in any society (except maybe social class distinctions) by any means necessary is quite hard to comprehend in my perspective in 2020.

How do people survive that kind of leadership?  I have no idea, and I don't want to find out in America!!

Our "elite" culture leaders use the John Lennon song "Imagine" as their Communist Manifesto.  I have said this before, but will say it again here, the idea sounds good but the reality is not.

As a Christian, one of the biggest issues attached to the Christian Community is that "we" don't live what we preach.  In reality, the application of GOD's Word by human beings is the reason this issue exists.  In Truth, the Body of Christ, the Christian Community, is filled with individual people who are at different levels of Faith.  Some have just been saved, some are learning what it means to be a Christian, some have lived for years as a devoted Christian always learning and changing, and some have been the same baby Christian their entire life.

The Bible teaches its believers to care for one another, to love the poor and the lost. It teaches that believers are to give ten percent of their profits to the church for its needs.  This giving is blessed by GOD.  The key to godly giving is that it is done voluntarily.  GOD blesses giving that is shared with a trusting Faith.  Other kinds of giving are not blessed.

The same is true with Communism, or the idea that the government will share the resources of the many to serve the needs of all.  The concept is similar to the BIBLE teachings about caring for one another, but in Communism the choice is forced, not voluntary.

In Communism, people look to the government as their provider.  

In Christianity, people look to GOD as their provider, protector, 

Healthcare is one example of how this plays out in our world.  The idea of some is to have the government the sole provider of care.  Mandates are now the rule of the land.  Once the government is the only provider, it will have the power to decide what gets provided, who gets care, and when your life is not worthy of sustaining.  

When healthcare is private, it may not be accessible by all citizens, but the choices are meant to be between the patient and the doctor, not the government.  

Healthcare is expensive. You cannot receive a million dollars of care in exchange for $6000 of premiums.  No matter who provides the payments, government or insurance providers or private income resources, the same principle applies.  There are limits on what can be provided if someone else is paying the bills.

It doesn't matter what candidates promise, the reality is still in effect.

It is hard for me to see the loss of Freedoms we are now encountering... one by one, in all aspects of our lives.

I hope this will not continue, and pray that GOD will allow me to fight the battle against this subtle, covert, relentless effort to destroy what made America a great nation in our world.

I hope you will fight this battle, too.

In Christ,

Deborah Martin

work2gather.us

and more...

The Target Boycott

I am up in what I call the "wee hours" -- I suppose that would be after midnight to morning, maybe 5 or 6 am.  Right now it is 4:15am, but I first got up about 1am.  When I can't sleep, I try to get up and get something done so the time isn't totally wasted.  I was about the go back to bed when I read my JULY 2016 letter from the AFA (American Family Association) about the Target Boycott they are promoting.

I have been thinking about these issues for many years, but the bathroom challenge is the worst event so far.  How to preserve the rights of ordinary people seems to be forgotten in the media extortions of the gay community.  Worse, it can be difficult to recognize the most dedicated transgendered or gender-changing people involved in this political battlefield.  It seems acceptable to violate the rights of most of America for the relatively few involved in this "need" for restroom access.  It is an extension of the marriage issue... where men become women and women become men (physically, but not genetically)... so a "man and a woman" can still fulfill the law while violating the principal of it.  We are truly in a pivotal moment in the history of the world.

I tend to see things from a biblical view because my focus is the End Times, where prophecy tells us that things will get difficult.  Many of the parts of our daily life that are healthy for Mankind will get lost, changing our societies.  Many of the battles for our souls will be won by the Enemy.  The rise of the gay community in social and political realms is really evidence that prophecy is true... and that the time for Christians on Earth is nearly over.

What does a boycott against Target achieve?  My letter from the AFA tells me ::

The company's stock has fallen 20% since AFA called for the boycott.  That computes to a loss of roughly $10 billion from the overall shareholder value of the company.  In comparison to other major retailers, Target's stock has dropped 3 to 4 times more than the stock of its competitors.

On both Facebook and Twitter, Target has remained silent on the boycott.  The importance of social media in business and marketing makes Target's silence significant.

Target isn't the only store trying to find its way through this commerce dilemma.  It happened to be the one that got "caught."  I suppose their bull's-eye logo and corporate size helped a little in the choice of who to make the victim of this social and moral and political issue. 

A boycott, by any side of any issue, brings unity to the opposition.  Christians are trying to have their voice heard, and a boycott helps to do that.  The money belt is always the most painful target for any group.  It is why boycotts are waged.

In reading my letter from the AFA, I am reminded again that issues bring in donations.  The gay community does the same thing :: seizing opportunities in the general news media to solicit funds for their cause.  So does Planned Parenthood and National Right to Life.  So does any group. To stay alive an organization has to generate donations/funds somehow.  Issues are the tool that helps them stay alive.  This funding connection always makes me wonder how much of a media event is truth and how much is hype to bring in the dollars. 

My AFA letter has some other very important details in it ::

[Christians are] angry that our own government is using its power to impose a lifestyle and belief system that relegates Christianity to the margins of our society when it should be front and center.

This radical idea that men who 'self-identify' as women should be able to use the restroom, locker room, or fitting room of their choice is ludicrous and defies common sense.  And yet if you dare to speak out you're called a bigot and at risk of being fired from your job. (My note: or sent to "sensitivity training" - but only if you have the Christian viewpoint.)

Moreover, by having a policy that allows this, Target has opened the door for the predators among us to look for the most vulnerable as victims.

The other side of this conversation would make an argument opposite of this, stating their rights are more supreme than the rest of the country.  Both claim to have the truth... and they probably do both have parts of the TRUTH... but the real truth is hidden in the middle of all of this rhetoric.

There are many different kinds of predators looking to take advantage of this "movement" to violate restroom gender in commercial businesses.  The list includes pedophiles and voyeurs, possibly rapists and those involved in child sex trafficking.  There are also earnest men who dress as women and women who dress as men - both of which may need to use a restroom when they go shopping and may not know which one to use.  Ordinary people who want to go shopping and not be afraid to go to the restroom also have rights in this issue.  How do we solve this dilemma?  Who's rights prevail?

This process of lobbying for change is the same for every cause.  Handicapped individuals had problems in our restroom world because few thought about their needs.  As a previously homeless person, I can testify to the problems of homeless populations who need to access a restroom.  What we are dealing with now is more than just access to a restroom, it involves the issue of gender, the need for separation of the genders in personal care activities, the right to privacy, the need for safety when you are vulnerable.  Handicapped persons and homeless persons still used the gender-appropriate group restroom.

Stores are required, I believe, to have a certain number of restroom stalls for the size of their building.  Like the number of parking spots required by the regulating government power, toilets cost money and take up space.  The only possible solution I see to the restroom gender problem is to create individual private restrooms.  And maybe they can (finally) be spread out around the different departments of a large store!

If we must make the change to individual, handicap-accessible restrooms, maybe some kind of tax relief is an option... and the sooner, the better !!

That is my view of the problem.  Christians cannot stop what prophecy has already told us is coming.  What we need to do is to find a way through these coming problems.  I am not advocating total submission... I think the enemy of our souls needs to be battled against, and those who oppose us on moral grounds need to accept our rights as equal to their own.  Solution respect both sides... I think individual handicap-accessible restrooms are our only option at this point.

I hope the remodeling starts today!

Friday, 12 FEB 2016 :: Some thoughts about the Democratic debate last night.

Hi...  I made a rather lengthy comment on my Facebook page last night about the Democratic debate I watched yesterday.  I was still recovering with my thoughts when I entered it.  In an effort to refer to it more easily, I want to enter it as a blog post here. 

I am deeply concerned for America as we go through another political cycle to choose a president and other legislators.  I plan to enter more blogs at this site as the election process continues.

I have left it in the same format as it was posted, which is without any breaks in the text!  Enjoy....

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Thursday, 11 FEB 2016
I guess I should add a few words about the debate coverage I was able to see... I think the idea of the government raising "revenue" to pay for the programs they want to implement is deceptive. The only revenue the government generates is taxes... and they keep looking for more victims to pay it, more ways to "raise" it... I think I was very struck by the accepted idea that wealthy people have a responsibility to provide all their wealth for the government to use. There is a post by Young Americans for Liberty below this space I am filling right now, and it says :: SOCIALISM....with a photo of the Berlin Wall, I think... barbed wire and fencing that kills, imprisons, and defeats the need for human freedoms. There is a catchy phrase below the title word, but the idea remains that government run countries create prisons of poverty for regular people, while the "leaders" enjoy lives of wealth and excess. I cannot understand why the people of America think this is better. I know what Welfare feels like, what it does to people, how it is a prison without metal bars... and I know the desperate need we have to accept it when it is all there is for us to access. America WAS a great country, but it is in that grey area where all countries go to die...struggling for air, looking for miracles, grasping at legal loopholes and regulations that might keep it alive. Our priorities have changed, ever so slowly, maybe, but they have changed. We are not invincible, but we are still free... maybe we can find a way to stay free, to allow differences of opinions without making laws to force everyone else to change. I suppose I was really amazed at the section I heard about forcing other countries to submit to our power and control. Technology is changing warfare, and it will be used to hurt us. Our military battles will be computerized, and the rest of the world will catch up with us. Anything, ANYTHING, attached to the internet will become a weapon, a target, a tool for destruction. I suppose there already are many crimes we don't know about because they are happening somewhere on the internet and haven't been discovered yet. Who will be able to deal with the changes that technology is bringing with it? How will we recover as a nation? Where will the funding come from. I think it is an indication of our country's healthcare budget when government insurance doesn't include new eyeglasses or basic dental care. I think it is another indication of our country's financial status when Retirement benefits are paid almost two months after the month they are designated for. I think we will see the real state of America's financial situation if we look at the way it is handling it's "saving money" efforts, including legalizing things that cost too much to deal with in the legal systems. Abortion is promoted, euthanasia is promoted, higher ages are suggested or required for receiving program funds, healthcare is mandated so the government can try to control prescription prices, etc.... if you look beyond the obvious, beyond the rhetoric, beyond the public displays, and recognize the diversions of your attention, I think you will find a foundation that is about to crack into pieces. I know I am trying to figure out what happens when your cash is worthless, and the banks lose what you trusted them with, when stocks disintegrate, bonds become bankruptcy, and there is no where else to turn.
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I am relatively new to Facebook and still learning how it works.  I think the link below may be to the individual post, but I am not sure.  It was on the page I gathered it from.

https://www.facebook.com/DeborahMartin.2014/posts/1682588245329345