I am continuing to work on the patio area when it is not raining. I got a little more dug out today, but it was very hot, muggy, and buggy. The gnats were terrible. It seems lavender repels them a little, and I have a spray that I use to keep them away from my face as I work.

Here are some updated pictures.

You can see from the pictures the last time I worked on it was April 24th. Then I had a lot of family things going on and began to work in the garden. It feels amazing to know I’ve moved this much dirt with a small wheelbarrow and a shovel, by myself.

I only got a little further today even though I worked on it for about 3 hours.

While I’m working, I listen to podcasts. Today I was listening to the Unashamed Podcast with Phil Robertson. The whole family is very entertaining and Phil always shares some deep spiritual truth. Today they were discussing how many times in the small book of Titus, he wrote about doing what is good. Phil said it occurred eight times in the book. He read each one, but I wanted to find them for myself. So here they are:

• Titus 1:8 “Rather he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good...” (speaking to the elders)
• Titus 1:15 “To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted. They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.”
• Titus 2:3 “Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good.“
• Titus 2:6-7 “Similarly, encourage the young men to be self-controlled. In everything set them an example by doing what is good.”
• Titus 2:13-14 “while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, Who gave Himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for Himself a people that are His very own, eager to do what is good.”
• Titus 3:1-2 “Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men.”
• Titus 3:8 “This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.”
• Titus 3:14 “Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good, in order that they may provide for daily necessities and not live unproductive lives.”

My take away—God is very clear, He wants us doing WHAT IS GOOD.

AND — Phil was right! Doing what is good occurs eight times in Titus. (All scriptures were taken from the NIV version as that is what the Robertsons use most of the time.)

Another thing I’ve learned to do as I work is drink plenty of water, take rest periods, and use Energy Balls to keep me going.

I copied the recipe for the Energy Balls off of Kaitlyn Cash’s YouTube channel and tweaked it a little, to add what I like to the treats. Kaitlyn’s channel is very uplifting spiritually, and I love her adoption story. She shares lots of home decorating tips, recipes, gardening, and family ideas. You can follow this link to check out her channel https://www.youtube.com/c/KailynCash.

Here is the recipe. They will keep for about two weeks in the refrigerator. I kept a few in the refrigerator and put a large portion in the freezer and have pulled them out as needed.

I usually eat one or two a day as needed when I’m working outside.

I ordered my protein powder from Thrive Market, an online health food store. I am subscribed to their auto ship, because I can get healthy items that I might not find in the grocery stores nearby. I ordered Vanilla Sun Warrior, plant-based, protein powder, because it was recommended on another YouTube Channel that I love to watch. The title of that channel is EATMOVEREST and it is a sweet family that teaches how to change over to a plant based lifestyle. If you would like to check them out, here is the link https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPU-z_1fyruAf4OIeKM8FZA.

I highly recommend both channels for healthy tips and life encouragement.

Do you have any channels or podcasts to recommend as uplifting entertainment when anyone is working on a big job? If so, leave them in the comments below.