Single! Young Christian Woman March 2012 by On My Own Now Ministries

single!

A P U B L I C AT I O N O F O N M Y O W N N O W M I N I S T R I E S

MAR

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Young Christian Woman

I LOVE AMERICA (Maybe a Little Too Much) Outbid on eBay? Alternative Online Auctions

Believer or Disciple? Yes, there is a difference

Does He REALLY Love Cute and Cuddly?

w w w. o n m y o w n n o w. c o m

in this Single! Young Christian Woman Mar 2012, Vol. 4 On My Own Now Ministries, Inc., Publisher Donna Lee Schillinger, Editor Donna Lee Schillinger with Daniela Bermudez, Page Design Kimberly M. Schluterman Editorial Support Contributors Shellie R. Warren, Jeffrey Bridgman, Kimberly Schluterman, Tamara Jane, Julie Ann Except where noted, content is copyright 2012 On My Own Now Ministries. Articles may be reprinted with credit to author, Single! and www.OnMyOwnNow.com. On My Own Now Ministries, Inc. is a nonprofit organization with a 501 (c) (3) determination. Your donations aid in our mission to encourage faith, wise life choices and Christ-likeness in young adults during their transition to living on their own. We welcome submissions of original or repurposed articles that are contributed without expectation of compensation. May God repay you. Visit us at www.OnMyOwnNow.com.

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Center Ring Believer or Disciple? (Yes, there is a difference) by Brother Yun

Straight Talk from the Proverbs Does He Really Love Animals? by Donna Lee Schillinger An Election Year I LOVE AMERICA! (Maybe a Little Too Much) by Brandon Woodard The Recap All in Good Time Review by Donna Lee Schillinger Moving Out...Settling In Times, they are a changinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; by Kimberly Schluterman Spare Change Outbid on eBay? Alternative Online Auctions by Julie Ann

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feature article

Believer or Disciple?

(Yes, there is a difference)

hen he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.” Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.” Luke 5:4-5 When Jesus first found Peter, James and John, they were washing their fishing nets. From time to time it is necessary to clean our nets if we constantly use them to catch fish, but today many churches have become professional net washers. Instead of catching souls for the kingdom of God, they spend all their time talking about fishing, studying various fishing strategies and techniques, listening to the lectures of fishing experts, and singing songs about fishing. Yet they rarely, or never, actually go fishing! Many pastors fill their pulpits with fishing

Brother Yun

stories, and their congregation admires the fishing nets that are displayed on the church walls. The nets have been thoroughly cleaned. No effort has been spared to keep all dirt and impurity out of the church. Indeed, the nets have been bleached so white that nobody would ever guess they had once been used for fishing! The strings are carefully arranged so that each square has the same size and shape. After all, they say, “God is a God of order.” The pastor loves to boast about their nets and even invite Christians from other churches to come and admire their nets with them. … Week after week, year after year, Satan lulls individual believers, churches and whole denominations to sleep with his lies. The bleach that has removed all the stains and dirt from the nets also effectively disinfects the Christians until

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center ring Jesus never intended His people to become insular and just sit around edifying each other. they never consider becoming fishermen again. Christian, do you feel like Peter did after he worked all night but failed to catch a single fish? Have you convinced yourself that there are no more fish left in the sea? Have your church programs failed to net any new fish for so long that you would rather stay on the bank washing your nets, because one more failed fishing trip might be more than you can take? Many churches have given up on evangelism because they “tried it, and it didn’t work.” Many Christians hear God’s voice calling them to catch fish for the kingdom of God, but like Peter, James and John, they don’t believe there are any fish left in the water. How often have you heard Christians say, “Nobody around here is interested in the gospel anymore,” or “People’s hearts are so hard”? This is not true! Have you ever considered that the problem might be that your fishing is not under the direction of the Lord Jesus Christ? Perhaps you have spent years casting your nets in the wrong place. I promise you that there are fish in the sea all around you. You need to stop fishing your way and start fishing under the direction of Jesus. Peter caught nothing while he and his friends operated in their own strength. They were convinced there were no fish left. But when they gave up and allowed God to direct their efforts, suddenly “they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break” (Luke 5:6). Please understand this! When we try to serve the Lord and preach the gospel in our own strength, using our own programs and initiatives, we will

fail and will soon convince ourselves the problem lies not with us, but with the “apathetic heathens” who “show no interest in the gospel.” But when we learn what it truly means to give ourselves to God unreservedly, asking Him to fill and empower us, we will start to be in a place where God can use us for His glory. As long as you are looking to bless “your” ministry, you are wasting your time. He only blesses His ministry, done His way, by His leading. When we finally reach the end of all our useless programs and give up in desperation, Jesus will be there to show us a better way – His way. He will tell us where to throw our nets, and we will be amazed to see them bulging with fish. Your church must get busy fishing, because this is what the church is meant to do. Jesus never intended His people to become insular and just sit around edifying each other. It is also not the job of the leader to spend all his time dealing with problems in the church. Of course there will always be problems until Jesus returns, but they should not bog you down. Instead, you should see them as opportunities to mend your net so that you can go fishing for souls with a stronger net. … As I have traveled around the world, I have met many wonderful brothers and sisters. They listen intently to every word that is spoken, but there is one major thing missing in their spiritual lives. They need to start obeying the Word of God. They need to step out and start being doers of the Word instead of just listeners. James said, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says” (James1:22). You see, when you only listen to the Word of God, your heart gets filled up with spiritual food. This is good, but it is there to serve a purpose. That purpose is for you to go and share the food you have with the hungry, so that they too can know Jesus. If you just keep God’s blessings to yourself, you will become a bloated and sick Christian. When you share them with others, the Holy Spirit will give you more so that you can share more. It is a wonderful thing. … There are more than 2 billion professing Christians in the world today. … There are more than enough “believers” in the world today. God wants more disciples! Only disciples of Jesus can ever hope to impact the nations for God.

feature article “Believers” try to follow God, but their prayers and commitment are clouded with indecisiveness. Their prayers go like this: “Oh Lord, I am so weak. Please send Your power. I am weighed down with sin. Please come and relieve me.” “Believers” always seek assurance that nothing will go wrong if they step out for Jesus. Only when they are convinced that the coast is clear and no harm will befall them are they willing to take their first step! If they ever hear the King’s call to go somewhere and do something for the sake of His kingdom, they feel they need extra encouragement before they can safely step out: “First let me check with my wife, my pastor, my boss and my mother-in-law to see if it’s all right with them.” “Disciples” have a different attitude. They beg God to give them just a little of His dynamite power. They pray, “Oh God, if you will lend me just a little spiritual dynamite, I promise I will take it to the darkest area I can find, place it there and pray You will send Your fire from heaven to explode it.” God always does. This is the way the gospel is spreading so quickly in China and in other parts of the world. Since coming to the West, I have found it doesn’t really matter how much you preach in most churches, because the majority of believers have become “sermon proof”. They have listened to thousands of sermons and have become experts at tuning out. Their bodies are physically in front of you, but their minds and hearts are far away. They have been conditioned to listen to speeches rather than to respond to the power of the gospel and be changed. … The Lord is roused to anger when the precious

I have found it doesn't really matter how much you preach in most churches, because the majority of believers have become "sermon proof".

bride of Christ falls into such a lamentable condition. … Whether we are a disciple or a believer depends on the choices we make. The temptation is for us to ease back into our comfortable chair and continue to live a halfhearted Christian life, giving lip service to God but being unwilling to count the cost and take up our cross and follow Him. I pray that you will determine in your heart to follow Jesus with all your heart from this moment forward. You may face great hardship and come under constant attack, but you will never regret it. Taken from Living Waters: Powerful Teachings from the international bestselling author of The Heavenly Man by Brother Yun, Edited by Paul Hattaway. Copyright © 2008. Used by permission of Zondervan. www.zondervan. com. 299 pp. $14.99 ISBN 9780310285540 Visit BacktoJerusalem.com for more on the ministry of Brother Yun.

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straight talk

Does He Really Love Animals?

By Donna Lee Schillinger

A righteous man cares for the needs of his animals, but the kindest acts of the wicked are cruel.

Proverbs 12:10

’ve heard a few girls say that they would never date a guy who doesn’t like animals. Far from a comprehensive personality assessment, this criterion has some validity, and yes, even Biblical basis. Observing how a person treats animals is a quick ways to see into a person’s heart. Is it tender and compassionate or is it bitter and cruel? You will know you have seen the dark core of a person’s soul when you see true cruelty toward an animal. Likewise, an act of compassion toward an animal wells from a compassionate soul. However, the animal test is not always 100 percent reliable. For example, if you’ve made yourself known to be an animal lover, a deceitful person who wants to impress you may feign a love of animals – for a while. Then there are those who were not raised around animals of any kind and may be fearful of them or not know how to react around them. Americans have a unique relationship to domesticated animals that most cultures don’t share, a fact to take into consideration before applying the animal test to people of other cultures. Still

others may have had experience with only one kind of animal. My husband only ever had dogs as a boy so he did not easily take to a cat in the family. Over time, he learned to trust the cat and now he likes the cat – though he remains decidedly a dog person. And finally, there are people who like only one kind of animal and will be kind to that kind of animal and cruel to all the rest. You may catch a dog person with his dog and mistake that person for an animallover, not knowing that the same person will veer out of his way to hit a squirrel or opossum on the road. Take these exceptions into account before making character assessments based on how a person reacts to animals. Kindness toward animals manifests a basic ability to empathize and have compassion for another being. I am empathizing with a squirrel’s desire to live out the rest of the day when I slow down on the road to let the squirrel pass. When I capture a wasp and release it instead of swatting it to death, I’m empathizing with its desire to live. If we were to take animal kindness to the extreme and empathize with every creature’s desire to live, our houses would be overrun with cockroaches, spiders, ants and flies. And why not extend our compassion to the other major category of life on planet Earth – plants? If you’ve ever seen grass growing in the cracks of a concrete slab, you can appreciate how hard plants work to survive. The extremes to which some people have taken compassion toward all living things limits them to eating only things that have died a natural death – including only fruits and nuts that have fallen from the trees of their own volition. God bless those extremely compassionate souls as they wither away from malnutrition. Let’s be reasonable and find some middle ground on this issue. A better gauge of a per-

from the proverbs

sonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s compassion toward animals than whether or not he hunts or eats veal is how you observe him treating the non-insect creatures with which he comes into contact. How a person treats animals usually reflects how he treats people, as well. Can he really care for something other than himself? Why this test works so much better with animals than people is because they, unlike people, are not usually in a position to return any favors. When a person shows kindness to an animal, he is not expecting anything in return â&#x20AC;&#x201C; these acts are often true, unadulterated acts of kindness. The same can be true for kindness to children, homeless people, the elderly and people in subordinate occupations, like waiters and waitresses and other jobs in which a person must remain patient and longsuffering in order to keep the job. How does that special guy you have your eye on treat the living creatures in his life that cannot serve him any selfish purpose? If he is categorically rude or brutish to animals or certain

people, these same ugly attitudes and behaviors are just under the surface of all he does, and when the friction between you and him has worn off that smooth veneer, you too will experience the cruelty with which he treats a squirrel in the road.

Hold this thought: A person who is kind to animals -- and waiters -is kind indeed.

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An Election Year

I Love America (Maybe a Little Too Much)

love America. I thank God almost every day that I was born here and get to enjoy all of the advantages of life in this country. Sometimes, though, I wonder if I’m strong enough to be an ambassador of Christ’s kingdom in a place that’s made it so effortless to claim to be a Christian and so difficult to be distinguished as one. It’s undeniable that Scripture presents the church as an entity set apart from the world. The only way the church is going to remain separate is if the church is made up of individuals who live in the world without becoming absorbed by it. The idea of being in the world but not of it was a main theme of one of Christ’s last recorded prayers in John 17. It’s interesting that one of the things Jesus made time to pray about before He left His disciples was that they would be set apart by the truth found in the Word of God. A major part of spiritual growth is learning how to apply what Scripture says to our individual context. So what does it look like for us to be distinctly Christian in an American context? Is there a point where we become Americanized to the submission of our Christian identity? How far can we remove ourselves from culture and still be any good to it?

Brandon Woodard

Over the years there have been many different answers to these questions. Some Christian traditions have taught that we should be totally separate from the world. They argue that we shouldn’t join the military, vote or say the Pledge of Allegiance. Others would say that America should be a Christian nation and that we should be heavily involved in all aspects of the government to help realize this goal. Personally, I think the answer lies somewhere in between—exactly where, I’m not sure. As is the case with many other issues, this issue creates more questions than can be answered. But sometimes questions are better than answers. Questions are more likely to result in selfexamination, as well as honest, open discussions—two things on which the church is frighteningly short. My goal here is not to convince anyone to do things my way, but to encourage the ongoing conversation about what it means to be God’s church in America. Here are a couple of questions which might help to determine if we are becoming too wrapped up in the things of this world. Whose kingdom are you working for? Everything we do furthers someone’s kingdom. The issue

is whether it’s God’s kingdom or not. All too often we strengthen, and bring glory to, competing kingdoms. We work for our country, class, family, and sometimes worst of all, self. The Bible describes us as ambassadors of Christ, “We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us” (2 Corinthians 5:20). An ambassador represents the interests of one kingdom while living in another. Ambassadors are surrounded by a culture not their own. Yet in order to be of any use to the kingdom they are serving, they need to understand and to be able to function in the culture which surrounds them. But if they begin to identify too much with the foreign culture, they cease to be any good to the kingdom they are representing. Sometimes I think that Christ’s church in America has been pretty inefficient at this sort of kingdom work. We have the collective resources to change the world. Unfortunately, those immense resources are controlled by individuals who are more concerned about living in comfort and security than advancing the kingdom they have been born into through salvation. Are we more concerned with our own priorities, such as, family, community or nation, than we are with the priorities of God? Every Christian should regularly examine which kingdom their actions and lifestyles are advancing. Whose kingdom are we looking to for solutions? It’s not very hard to find problems when we look around the world today. America is no exception. As His church, we are called to be a part of reconciling the world to God. This means we are to be actively involved in making the world, including America and our neighborhoods, look more like it should. There are not too many Christians that would disagree with this. How we go about solving those problems indicates whether we are becoming too reliant and involved in the ways of the world. When we see these problems in society, do we look for God and His people to do something about it or do we look for the institutions of the world to solve those problems? Unfortunately, Christians all too often wait for the world to bring about the changes which God has called us to implement. Many times when we do get involved we want to work through man’s systems instead of God’s. We want laws to be created or enforced differently. We want the right person elected for the right office. We want the government to do a better job

of caring for orphans, widows, the homeless, the hungry and oppressed. When governments and corporations fail, we are quick to blame them for the sad state of the world. Should they do a better job? Yes, but God calls us to be concerned for people and issues. If our focus is on Christ and furthering His kingdom, we will have solutions which reflect Him. Instead of relying on the ways of the world, we need to rely on the ways of God. We often avoid doing so because it can be costly, uncomfortable and require a lot of faith and patience. It also requires being open to the direction of God with some creativity on our part. Always a good place to start is by looking at the example of Christ. Christ never founded any nonprofit organizations or created any new programs. He didn’t support any politicians or parties. Not that these things would not have been necessarily wrong, but His example shows they shouldn’t be our primary focus. He built relationships with people based on His love for them. He passionately gave of Himself and His resources out of His love and the world was forever changed as a result. These two questions go a long way in determining how our lives and actions are stacking up to the scriptural command to be in the world but not of it. We are never going to agree on where to draw that line in every situation, but it’s important to remember that we can disagree, as long as we realize that we need to draw a line somewhere. This is especially true in America because of the relative ease and comfort available to us here. It’s alright to love America and appreciate the advantages of life afforded here. But, it becomes dangerous when we begin to love the nation of our physical birth over the kingdom we were born into through the redemptive power of Christ’s blood. If this happens, it may hinder the way God uses us in the redemption of others. Brandon Woodard and his wife Jessica live in Odessa, Texas, with their two boys Jose and Elias. He attends University Park Baptist Church and supply preaches for churches in the area. This fall he begins a Master’s program at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, N.C. Contact him at brandonwoodard77@hotmail. com.

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the recap Review by Donna Lee Schillinger

When to Buy This Book?

Upon Release of the Second Edition. The Recap on All in Good Time: When to Save, Stock Up, and Schedule Everything for Your Home

hat do new homeowners and poorly parented adults have in common? They could both benefit from All in Good Time: When to Save, Stock Up, and Schedule Everything for Your Home by Tara Kuczykowski with Mandi Ehman, founders of DealSeekingMom.com, LifeYourWay.net, and now AllinGoodTime.net, which is just a promotional site for the book. I specify this last point because throughout the book, the authors point readers to AllinGoodTime.net/[some extension relevant to the topic], but when you navigate to AllinGoodTime.net, you learn the whole content of the site is just promotional to the book and for some reason (ad revenue or for simplicity’s sake?) the authors have directed to outside Web sites via their book site. All in Good Time is a good primer for anyone whose mother’s idea of a home-cooked meal was throwing a prefab frozen meal in the microwave or for whose father’s idea of taking care of the lawn meant writing out a check to the gardener once a month. But if your parents actually taught you some life skills, you’re not likely to find much new information in All in Good Time. And in case you’re thinking it might be helpful to just have what you do know pulled together in one

place and scheduled – after all the subtitle does promise help with scheduling everything for your home – you’ll be disappointed, if not perplexed, with the book’s organization. The authors go room by room in a typical house, tackling relevant topics alphabetically. For example, you’ll read about Appliances, Cooking Dinner and Dishes in the Kitchen; and Airline Tickets, Batteries and Exercise in the Rec Room. Some of these seem to match right up, but others, such as Alarm Systems and Winter Weather in the Basement, are a bit of a stretch. Fortunately, the Table of Contents lists all the topics by room, but unfortunately, each topic has subtopics that are not listed in the Table of Contents. So to use this as a frequent reference, some unnecessary page-flipping should be expected. But my real complaint about the user-friendliness of this volume is that the scheduling of tasks and when to buy is not charted in an appendix. Each topic/subtopic has pertinent scheduling information, but if it’s March and I want to know, “What should I do this month?” my only option is to sort through the entire book again. For this book to be highly useful to the reader, I would recommend you read it in front of a computer and chart out the

recommendations by month, then save each month’s list in your electronic or paper agenda to reference when that time comes. That, in the best of scenarios. But my other sort of gripe about this book is that a great deal of the information in it is not going to be relevant to a great many people. With tips on cutting your own hair, homeschooling, making cleaning supplies from scratch and how to flush your hot water tank, and none of them to the extent that you could put down the book and go do it, it’s just stretched too thin. Clearly there is a proclivity toward the frugal homemaker; but there won’t be much new to the veteran homemaker. In my opinion, this book is most useful to people who are purchasing their own home and have no clue how to maintain it. That’s not to say I didn’t get any benefit out of it. Had I paid full price for the book, it still would have resulted in being a bargain for one tip in particular I took from it: how to make your own foaming hand soap (p.90). And I also learned of a few worthwhile Web sites I hadn’t known about before, not the least of which are the authors’ own sites – both worthy of bookmarking, if not subscribing to. In the final analysis, I would say wait for the second edition, in which, hopefully, the authors will give month-by-month recommendations in the appendix to make this encyclopedic endeavor highly useful to the reader.

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moving out by Kimberly Schluterman

Times, they are a changin’ When I was in high school, my AP English

class had to read a book called Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. It was about an African village being missionized by the white man and the inevitable cultural and social changes that followed. The title is taken from a Yeats poem called, “The Second Coming.” The third line of the poem says, “Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold.” Achebe used this line to mean that for one central character who didn’t adapt to the changes, things

fell apart. The center (of life, of meaning, of social understanding?) could not hold. While most of the village embraced the changes, the story ended tragically for the one who resisted them. You’ve probably heard it said that the only certainty in life is change. This must be true. Personally, I get bored with too much repetition and routine, but I also find comfort in it. I like knowing what’s coming next, even if I’m not that stimulated by it. Change is more exciting,

settling In but it’s also scary, isn’t it? I tend to feel a lot of anxiety about the unknown. In the past two and a half years or so, very few things in my life have stayed the same. Three years ago, I was single but dating, and not sure whether I wanted to marry. I was working at a job I hated every single day (although I tried to make the best of it) and wondering what I wanted to do with my life. Today I am very happily married and going to school full-time for a career that I never would have imagined myself doing. It’s a step up to be sure, but not all changes are positive. Since I started writing this column today, for example, our television went out. It keeps turning itself off and then on again and it’s driving us crazy. I also upgraded the operating system on my phone, and now I don’t know how anything works. The season is changing from barely-winter to almost-summer. (Spring? What spring?) Within a few months, I will begin a master’s program, thus finally beginning to meet a goal that I have held for a very long time and at which I am terribly afraid of failing. Sadly, my beloved kitty is sick and will have to be put down soon. She’s been my constant friend for more than five years—longer than I’ve known my husband—and I can’t imagine adulthood without her. Michael Jackson died, Whitney Houston died, the Republicans have changed their leading candidate about 85 times, we’ve withdrawn troops from Iraq, Serbia is going crazy, tax season is in full swing, and I’m starting to put on a few pounds. One really can’t get accustomed to things the way they are. Some things do stay the same though, don’t they? For example, I have come to trust that my husband’s love will always be there for me, day in, day out, good day, bad day, in sickness, health, bad moods, Spring Break, grief, celebration and boredom. By the way, ladies, it’s a great credit to him that I am able to say this; God and my family know what a feat it was (is) to make me feel truly secure in anything. But he has loved me consistently and faithfully, usually quietly, for a long time, and that love is a truth in my life that I have come to accept just as sure as I know that Mondays follow Sundays.

But when I’m really honest, I must realize that even this love, as unending as it is, changes. He does not love me in the same way that he did when he first realized he loved me, or when he proposed, or when we married, or when we have faced adversity together. His love is constant, but it changes. If there is only one constant in our lives that truly doesn’t change, it is the unchanging nature of our Lord God. •“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” Hebrews 13:8 •“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” James 1:17 •“For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed.” Malachi 3:6 •“Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6 I find extraordinary peace, security and comfort from the truth of my husband’s love. Unfortunately, I know that my husband’s life is not guaranteed. As much as I wish I could just pretend we’ll truly be together until the end and die in bed together after 60 years of blissful marriage, I know how unlikely that is. I also feel safe in my home, but I know that a tornado could blow it away tomorrow. Even my own personality and knowledge base change as I mature and learn. Some of these possibilities aren’t very fun to think about, but the point is that nothing in this life is guaranteed except for our Lord and His Word. If, as people, we find our deepest peace from anything other than the constancy of God’s eternal love, then we are setting ourselves up for tragedy. If we can’t accept changes as they come, knowing that the base of who we are as humans was defined long ago, and that our lives have purpose, we could end up like Achebe’s fictional Okonkwo. Sometimes, when we aren’t careful, things can just fall apart.

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Spare Change by Julie Ann

Outbid on eBay? Alternative Online Auctions

hether or not you have used them to buy or sell, you are probably at least somewhat familiar with online auction site e-Bay and the online classified board Craigslist. But did you know there are many other ways to buy and sell online? When you think of online auctions, e-Bay automatically comes to mind as the undisputed king. But run a search for “online auction sites” and you’ll find hundreds of other sites. In general, auction ranking reviews rate e-Bay as the best choice in most categories. However, if you are auctioning something specific to a target audience, you might want to investigate auction sites tailored to that product. For example, if you have concert or athletic event tickets for sale, you would want to specifically focus on ticket-seekers using a site such as StubHub. If you are looking to buy via an online auction you might be tempted by a penny auction site, like BidCactus.com. Penny auctions are sites often used for selling consumer electronics such as computers, cameras and HDTVs. Items are listed with a minimum selling price and price per bid is set. For example, you sign up for a penny auction and pay 50 cents per bid on a laptop. The price of the laptop starts at one cent. Each time you bid, you pay 50 cents and the laptop price increases by one cent. The auction will ends once the bidding fees plus item price reach the seller’s set price. If 2,000 people each placed a bid at 50 cents each, the seller would net $1,000 but the winner walks away with a laptop for $20, plus whatever she spent in bidding. Unless you’re the only person bidding, auctions have an element of excitement as you go for the win, but with penny auctions, the thrill is more akin to that of gambling. At Bassabids.com you get

the penny auction excitement, but bidding is free. Penny auctions can be very risky, and while it seems like a good deal, what you spend on bids can add up fast and if you don’t win the item, you’ve just walked away empty-handed, much like gambling. Make sure you do plenty of research on penny auctions sites, how they work and which ones are legitimate before jumping in. If you just want to buy or sell items without the stress of online auctions (I know I do!) then you can check out sites like Esty, Craigslist or Facebook groups. If you are crafty or are looking for a unique homemade item, then point your browser to esty.com . Esty allows you to list handmade and vintage items or craft supplies. You will pay Esty a 20 cent listing fee and then a 3.5 percent transaction fee (there is also an optional advertising fee that varies by product). If you can crank out handmade jewelry, baby blankets or have a closet full of unused craft project supplies (like me!) then check out Esty to see if it’s a good money-making match. It’s also a great place to shop for unique gifts and maybe you can pick up a good deal or two from fellow crafters. Online classified ads are another way to unload unwanted items or pick up a great deal. Craigslist is the best known online classified ad service. You can use Craigslist locally to browse items you wish to buy or list items you are selling, and then arrange a pick-up/payment location in your community. I even know people who have scored really great items for free on Craigslist – all they had to do was pick the item up. Craigslist results are typically better when listing household items (furniture, dishes, and electronics) as opposed to collectables. As I said, check it out carefully to be sure it’s the right choice for your item.

Craigslist has its limitations though. If you don’t live in or near a metropolitan area with a Craigslist, it won’t be of much help to you. Also, there’s no easy way to search more than one local at a time, if like our editor, you live equidistance from three Craigslist cities. If Craigslist isn’t the best choice, often local communities or groups will host a classified board. My church even has a Web site where people can list items they are selling, giving away or ask if anyone has an item that they may need. Recently Facebook groups have popped up that allow people within the community to buy, sell or exchange products. Typically, you will request to be added to this group and then group members will post their items to the group’s Facebook wall. You can respond in the comments if you are interested in the item and strike up a deal with the seller. Sometimes these even follow a silent auction type format where you place your bid in the comments. Many states and cities also have auction sites to sell

inventory being replaced with newer models. You can find everything from computer equipment to medical equipment and desks to lawn mowers and a lot more you wouldn’t expect. Search your city or state’s name plus “government surplus auction.” Always remember to use extra caution when using Craigslist or another classified service that requires personal contact. Arrange pick up/delivery in a busy public place, take along a friend (preferably a big burly ultimate fighting champion) to ensure your protection and if something doesn’t feel quite right, trust your gut and back out of the situation. It’s always better to use a reputable service, such as e-Bay, that will offer a layer of protection even if you have to pay a little extra for the listing. Selling and buying online can be a great experience and help you earn or save extra cash. However be sure to do your homework on the sites you are planning to use beforehand and know the potential pitfalls and how to avoid them.

5 Auction Alternatives To E-Bay

Sam’s Club – You do have to be a member to buy, but in case you are, you can get some decent deals on new merchandise. Goodwill – Selling the best of their donations online. Bidding for Good – Online auction for hundreds of charities. The old silent auction to the extreme. Lots of swank here, as well as some decent deals if you really look. Property Room – Even the cops are in on the deal now. Police and warehouse sales. Look here for used Crown Victorias and mink coats – among other things.

Liquidation.com – This is where the Christmas returns go to be sold in lots to the second line resalers. You can literally start your own small resale business with a small investment OR how about everyone gets the same thing for Christmas this year. 35 beanbags for $100, anyone?

Spare Change

Tips to Prevent Buying “a Load of Goods” Online From the National Consumer League’s Internet Fraud Watch

• Understand how the auction works. Many online auctions simply list items that people want to sell without verifying that the merchandise actually exists or is described accurately; and they can’t guaranty that the sellers will keep their promises. • Check out the seller before you bid. Be aware that positive reports may have been “planted” by the seller and negative comments could be from a competitor. Other sources of information are state or local consumer protection agencies and the Better Business Bureau. • Be extra careful if the seller is a private party. Many consumer protection laws don’t apply to private sales, though government agencies may take action on multiple complaints about the same person or if criminal fraud is involved. • Be especially cautious when dealing with sellers in other countries. If you have a problem, the physical distance, difference in legal systems, and other factors could make resolving it very difficult (read “Kiss your money good-bye.”) • Get the name and contact information of the seller. The name, physical street address, email address, and phone number are helpful to have for checking the seller out and following up later if there is a problem. Don’t do business with anyone who refuses to provide that information. Run the address on Google satellite images to see if it exists. • Be wary of claims about collectibles and other expensive items. Since you can’t examine the merchandise or have it appraised until after the sale, don’t assume that claims about its condition or value are true, or that photographs are accurate. Print out and save the description and any photos to document the claims that were made. • Ask about delivery, returns, warranties and service before you pay. Get a definite delivery time and insist that the shipment is insured. Ask about the return policy. If you’re buying electronic goods or appliances, find out if there is a warranty and how to get service. • Look for information on the auction site about in-

surance. Some auction sites provide insurance that covers buyers up to a certain amount if something goes wrong. Others may have links to third-party programs that offer insurance for a fee. Read the terms of the insurance carefully. There is often a deductible, and there be other limitations or requirements that apply. For example, you may not be covered if the seller had a negative feedback rating on the auction site at the time of the transaction. • Pay by credit card. Under federal law, you can dispute the charges if you paid the seller with a credit card and the goods were never delivered or if they were misrepresented. If you are paying through an intermediary service, ask what happens in the case of disputes. • Look for bonded sellers. Some sellers are bonded through programs that have investigated their business backgrounds and credit histories and guaranty your money back if they don’t fulfill their promises. Click on the program symbol to learn how the bonding program works and verify that the seller is a member in good standing. • Consider using an escrow service for expensive purchases that aren’t covered by insurance or bonding. For a small fee, an escrow service takes your payment and forwards it to the seller once you confirm satisfactory delivery. If there is a dispute, the escrow service may act as a referee. Ask if the service is licensed and bonded, and how you can confirm that with the appropriate agency. • Try mediation to resolve disputes. Not all problems are due to fraud. Sometimes people simply fail to hold up their side of the bargain in a timely manner or there may be a misunderstanding about something. Some auction sites provide links to thirdparty mediation services that help people resolve disputes. There may be a small fee that is usually paid by the party who requests the mediation. • Inform auction sites about suspected fraud. They may have policies to remove sellers from their sites if they use “shills” or don’t live up to their obligations. Source: www.Fraud.org