Today is our first 2nd Saturday of the month! More info can be found in the Classroom here. I know this group is new and we haven't really gotten into the groove of posting our discussions yet, but I didn't want to pass up this opportunity to tell you all about the 2nd Saturday business promotion option available to all members. Of course, the primary purpose of our group is ministry, encouragement, and support in our goals, NOT business building, but we can still support each other in that area. Following is an example post of how you may share your business or products with our group. (This is NOT a format or template, just a guide for including all pertinent info.) Who: Hi, Friends! I'm Sherri and I love to crochet! In fact, I love it so much that I started designing my own patterns! (Who are you and what is your business?) Why: Have you learned how to crochet the basic single and double crochet stitches, but just haven't figured out how to decipher all the abbreviations in a written crochet pattern? I can help! (Why should I buy your product or service?) What: I especially enjoy creating simple patterns that not only produce a beautiful finished object, but also that can help you learn pattern reading while you work! (What specifically are you promoting today?) When: This week in honor of Valentine's Day, February 14 through 20, I'm offering a special low price on my simple pattern tutorials that take the guesswork out of reading a crochet pattern. (Is there a special sale or time frame for your offer?) Where: You can get your copy of the Easy Double Crochet Scarf right here on Ravelry. (You need a free Ravelry account to access it.) (Where can I access your product/service?) Follow me on Instagram: @crochet.colored.glasses (Feel free to add your website and social links in your post.)

Hi, Friends! I have paused a few days on posting as I ponder our path forward here. Also, if you read my earlier post about my trip to the ER and that it turned out that I had a stroke, well… I have a tendency to just keep going as if it never happened and assume I can keep up the same pace. As I sit here with ice on my foot while typing due to a wildly ungraceful tumble I took this morning while taking the trash can to the curb, I realize that I need to make a few tweaks. For our group, I’d like to start by going back a bit to share the history of how the idea for this group came about and what I hope we can accomplish together here. I will start with that tomorrow, as honestly I’m finding it a struggle to think creatively with throbbing toes. 😝🚨 For now I’ll just say as both old and new friends join the group, I can sense your hopefulness for dreams and ideas that you’re excited about achieving and I believe we are all going to support each other forward. 🥰 PS: Will you please say a prayer for my toes, my knee, and my wrist? 🤪 I’m a little banged up at the moment. 🙃 Thank you!

As we consider the state of our mindset today (and every day), the direction of our thoughts will follow the direction of our identity. In other words, who or what we think we are will determine what we do. The first identity crisis we see in the Bible is in Genesis chapter 3, right after Eve and Adam ate the forbidden fruit. Most translations of Genesis 3:10 read, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.” But if you look at the way it was written in the original Hebrew, the sentence is actually formed as: "And he said, 'Your voice I heard in the garden, and I feared, because naked I am, and I hid myself.'" "Naked I am" has a very different meaning than, "I was naked." It's a statement of identity, rather than a wardrobe emergency. Then God's response, from the literal Hebrew: "And He said, 'Who told you that naked you are? Is it from the tree that I commanded you so as not to eat from it — you have eaten?'" That was mankind's first experience of shame, and God has been working from that time until this to teach mankind that we can be released from that shame and once again be clothed in His righteousness. The literal Greek translation of Galations 3:27 says "For as many as into Christ were baptized, Christ you clothed yourselves with." 2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!" So what does this have to do with pursuing our dreams and goals? I think that many times when we sit down to begin working toward something we really want or need, we feel like we're starting from way behind where we've been somehow convinced we "should" be. But the truth is, in God's sight we are already way ahead of where we think we are. He's been trying to convince us of that. We may be at the very beginning of a new idea or dream, but we're coming at it as a child of the Most High King, blessed, highly favored and supernaturally supported; loved, and abundantly supplied with wisdom for the asking, and blessing for the taking. Isaiah 1:19 "If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land:"

As I was preparing today's post, I was considering how clarity is seldom instant. It usually develops over time, and more often than not, it develops out of hard times. Sometimes we get clarity on the things we really want by realizing a few things that we absolutely do not want, or are not willing to put up with anymore, or after emerging from particular storm. ⛈️ As I considered these things, the following song lyrics came to mind: [𝚅𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚎 𝟷] 𝙸 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚜𝚎𝚎 𝚌𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚕𝚢 𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚛𝚊𝚒𝚗 𝚒𝚜 𝚐𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝙸 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚜𝚎𝚎 𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚘𝚋𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚌𝚕𝚎𝚜 𝚒𝚗 𝚖𝚢 𝚠𝚊𝚢 𝙶𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚍𝚊𝚛𝚔 𝚌𝚕𝚘𝚞𝚍𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚑𝚊𝚍 𝚖𝚎 𝚋𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝙸𝚝'𝚜 𝚐𝚘𝚗𝚗𝚊 𝚋𝚎 𝚊 𝚋𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝, 𝚋𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚜𝚞𝚗 𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚢 𝚍𝚊𝚢 𝙸𝚝'𝚜 𝚐𝚘𝚗𝚗𝚊 𝚋𝚎 𝚊 𝚋𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝, 𝚋𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚜𝚞𝚗 𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚢 𝚍𝚊𝚢 [𝚅𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚎 𝟸] 𝙸 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚔 𝙸 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚖𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚒𝚝 𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚊𝚒𝚗 𝚒𝚜 𝚐𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝙰𝚕𝚕 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚋𝚊𝚍 𝚏𝚎𝚎𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚍𝚒𝚜𝚊𝚙𝚙𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚍 𝙷𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚛𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚋𝚘𝚠 𝙸'𝚟𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚙𝚛𝚊𝚢𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝙸𝚝'𝚜 𝚐𝚘𝚗𝚗𝚊 𝚋𝚎 𝚊 𝚋𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 (𝙱𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝), 𝚋𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚜𝚞𝚗 𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚢 𝚍𝚊𝚢 And then of course that reminded me of the scripture: Psalm 30:5 (KJV) Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. And along these same lines, reality is that a rainbows only shows up after it rains. As you work on being clear in your own mind which goals are going to get your time and attention, is there one you'd be willing to share that emerged out of a "dark cloud" season?

One of the things I love about writing out my goals on paper, as well as writing in my journal periodically, is discovering the little pivots and realignments that just happen almost subconsciously along the way. I'll admit, some of my goals start out at wild hare ideas that seemed like a good idea at the time, and others may start out in a certain direction, but then slightly change course as I go. I experienced that this week. I've been working on a particular goal the last few days, then when I went back to read what I had written a couple of weeks ago, I realized, "Oh, wow!" It had morphed into a totally different direction than I first intended. (Of course, I love where it's going now!) And I don't feel like it was "wrong" when I started, I'm just glad I decided to apply effort in the direction of building it and allowed it to become what it really wanted to be, so-to-speak. Tell us about a goal you had that started out one way and ended up landing somewhere else, either a little or completely different.