Flirt A Little

By: Jenifer Metzger

When was the last time you flirted with your hubby?

Flirting is a fun, playful, sometimes sensual way to catch your mate's attention. It is a way to show him that you are still attracted to him and love him. When we are dating, we flirt. We give him those special looks, we bat our eyelashes, giggle at their jokes even when they are not funny, and caress their hand as they hold ours. We may have snagged our man, but the fun of flirting should not stop.

Introducing...

Friends, today I am ecstatic to announce the newest member of the Woman to Woman family, my sweet friend Sarah MacKinney! Sarah is going to be our new Family Friday writer. {For those of you who have followed Angie's Family Friday posts, she is not going away! She will be posting devotions on the weekends once a month.} Sarah encourages me with every word she says and I know she is going to bless you as well.

Sarah and her husband, Dale, have 5 children and have been children's pastors for 8 years. Sarah loves coffee & chocolate and volleyball & running! Her hearts desire is to teach and encourage young girls and women and her dream is to be a traveling speaker. Sarah is a credential holder with the Assemblies of God and a certified Life Coach.

Connect with Sarah:
Email

Please help me welcome Sarah to the family!

Close Encounters with God...

by Debi Baker

God has been dealing with me so much lately.  The problem is the topic.  See, I don't know what to do to 'fix' the thing He wants fixed in anyone other than myself.  Oh, I've been preaching and preaching on this subject and the congregation will amen throughout the message, however, there isn't any change!

What am I to do?  I know that God wants to get churches out of their 4 walls and into the 'highways & byways.'  I know that God is tired of people sitting around in their pew on Sunday morning and then after church they get up and leave and go about the rest of the week with NO CHANGE.

I know deep down in my knower that God is speaking to this world today.  It's way past time for us to 'get serious' about Him.  Time is short and we must be about our Father's business!  Am I saying we can't have fun?  No.  I am simply saying that every breath we take should be taken doing the work of God.  Jesus' return in the clouds is at hand!  Even if we don't really care about strangers, every one of us has unsaved loved ones.  Do we want them to miss heaven?  I don't!  I want each and every member of my family & friends to know Jesus Christ and to have a personal relationship with Him!!

What Legacy are You Leaving?

By: Shari A. Miller


Please don't forget to stop by our Cap Creations Giveaway, for your chance to enter to win a $50 gift certificate to their store!


Sometimes we all think that we have all the time in the world.

Time to visit a loved one tomorrow, time to play catch with our sons another day, time to get down on the floor and play dolls as we here our daughter's laughter echoing throughout the house.

The truth is we don't even know if we have tomorrow. Nothing is a guarantee.

I don't know if you've heard about a knew app that's out, called Periscope. I's a live streaming app that allows you to talk to friends in all places of the world. You can go from the the states, to Paris, London, Germany, and back to the states again within the blink of an eye.  It's an absolutely   wonderful tool that allows you to grow your business, learn about the world, and gain Christian encouragement all at the same time.

However.

Peach Freezer Jam

By: Melissa Baker

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup unsweetened white grape or apple juice
• One 1.75-ounce package no-sugar-needed fruit pectin (or 3 tablespoons from a jar)
• 5 to 6 medium peaches, peeled, diced and coarsely pureed in the food processor (3 cups of puree)
• 1 cup granulated white sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Five 8-ounce freezer-safe glass jelly jars & lids (cleaned and dried)

Recipe & Image courtesy of Recipegirl.com

Giveaway Fun!

By: Jenifer Metzger

Today we have a super fun giveaway for you!

The very sweet Cathy from Cap Creations is offering a $50 gift certificate to a Woman to Woman reader! That's an amazing gift!

I found Cap Creations about 6 years ago and fell in love with their beautiful metal hand stamped jewelry. I have 2 pieces right now and alternate between the 2 wearing 1 almost every single day. Here are the 2 pieces I have:

Family Number

Gather Around

10 Ways to Calm the Morning Rush

By: Jenifer Metzger

Most schools are back in session or are starting very soon. Our family homeschools and we started back on August 12th. Whether you homeschool, attend private school or attend public school, the morning rush can be hectic.

Having a hectic morning is good for no one. It causes cranky kids and a stressed mom.

Today we want to share a few tips to help calm the morning rush.

1. Prepare what you can the night before. Have showers done at night, not morning, and have their clothes and back pack laid out and completely ready before they go to bed at night. This will trim your time down and help things go more smoothly. We get everything from undergarments to jewelry out. It really does help.

On Borrowed Time...

by Debi Baker

August 9th I got home after a 9 day trip to Florida.  On August 11th, my air conditioner decided to die.  Now, this ac unit was 25 years old, which by industry standards is almost twice the life it should have had.  We've known for a while that we were on borrowed time with the ac/furnace, but we hoped to keep them running for a l-o-n-g time.  That was not the case.

Trying to be the positive thinker and trust God, I 'said' with my words that we would just have to have no ac for a while.  After all, purchasing a new unit was not in the budget!  As with Mid-west summers, the days were growing increasingly warm and with each passing day, my patience was growing thinner.  I was trying to be pleasant and positive and not succeeding at either.

Will you Abandon it All, for the Sake of God's Call?

By: Shari A. Miller

I have a friend who is a missionary, in fact she used to be part of the team here at Woman to Woman Ministries. Her name is Jenilee, and you can follow her story and learn how to pray for her family at, Our Goodwin Journey. Jenilee is one of the sweetest individuals you could ever meet. She is married to her husband Jeremy, and they have 3 beautiful daughters. Her and her family recently spent a year in Paris, France, learning French at a language school. Within the past few days her family has moved to Africa, to begin their 2 year journey of being the hands and feet of Jesus to the African people.

Many times I have felt called to pray for her and her family as they have packed up their lives and moved everything from the states to follow a call that God placed on their hearts. I've followed their journey in pictures as I've seen numerous bins and suitcases being packed as they moved forward and onward to the mission God gave them.

Burrito Pie

By: Melissa Baker

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds ground beef
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1 (2 ounce) can black olives, sliced
• 1 (4 ounce) can diced green chili peppers 
• 1 (10 ounce) can diced tomatoes with green chile peppers
• 1 (16 ounce) jar taco sauce
• 2 (16 ounce) cans refried beans
• 12 (8 inch) flour tortillas
• 9 ounces shredded Colby cheese

What To Do When He Won't Read the Bible

By: Jenifer Metzger

The Bible is our daily bread. Something we should read, study and pray over every single day. It's vital to our spiritual life.

But what happens if your husband won't read and study the Bible?

Here are a few tips to help:

Making Christ a Priority

by Angie Ketcham

Where does God fit into your life personally and as a family? Only a few decades back, it was common that families made faith a priority in their homes. It was understood that Sunday was consecrated as "The Lord's Day" and spending our time focusing on Him, whether in the local church or a setting of the same, was how the day would be spent. Today, the pews in the church are empty as the ball park bleachers are full with cheering fans. Families choose to stay at home and sleep in rather than be in the house of the Lord, building their faith in God.

Glorify God in all you do...

by Debi Baker

"Each of you has been blessed with one of God’s many wonderful 

gifts to be used in the service of others. So use your gift well."

1 Peter 4:10 CEV

This past week I had the privilege of taking 3 teens from our church to the Assemblies of God National Fine Arts Festival in Orlando, FL. I love watching God use people for His glory...especially teens and kids! One of our teens, Lylea (also my granddaughter - smiles), normally competes in the digital photography but this time she wanted to try her hand at the short sermon category. She did remarkable and received an excellent rating (score). Destinie is an amazing artist and did a canvas painting that will blow you away! Quincy, also a photographer, entered a photo of her horse, Rosie. Destinie and Quincy also received an excellent rating (score). These girls are amazingly talented and to see them using their talents for God is exactly what He would have them do. Our verse in 1 Peter tells us to use our gifts and talents for others and to use it well.

I will be with You

By: Shari A. Miller

Welcome, I'm so glad that you stopped by. Let's start out by reading one of my favorite Bible stories below.

"After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, and the boat was already a considerable distance from the land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.  Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. "It's a ghost," they said, and cried out in fear. But Jesus immediately said to them: "Take courage! It is I. Do not be afraid." "Lord, if it's you," Peter replied, "tell me to come to you on the water." "Come." he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus, but when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink, cried out, "Lord, save me!" Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little faith," he said, "why did you doubt?" And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, "Truly you are the Son of God." ~ Matthew 14:23-33 (NIV)

I don't know about you, but I probably would have done the same thing.

Granola Bars

By: Melissa Baker

Recipe & Image courtesy of Food Network

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces old-fashioned rolled oats, approximately 2 cups
• 1 1/2 ounces raw sunflower seeds, approximately 1/2 cup
• 3 ounces sliced almonds, approximately 1 cup
• 1 1/2 ounces wheat germ, approximately 1/2 cup
• 6 ounces honey, approximately 1/2 cup
• 1 3/4 ounces dark brown sugar, approximately 1/4 cup packed
• 1 -ounce unsalted butter, plus extra for pan
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 6 1/2 ounces chopped dried fruit, any combination of apricots, cherries or blueberries

Don't Be Mrs. Fix-It

By: Jenifer Metzger

If you stop and think about your husband, you can probably think of a few areas of his life that you want to fix. Maybe you want him to be more romantic, clean up after himself more, be more playful with the kids, be better at fixing things around the house, take better care of the car, the list can go on and on and on.

You try your best to nag encourage him to change and be better. After all, you know he has great potential and can be great!

The problem lies not with him, but with you. While you want him to live up to his full potential and be the best that he can be, it is not your job to fix him. It's your job to love and accept him, just the way he is.

Preparing Your Kids For Big Changes

by Angie Ketcham

One thing in life is always constant and that is that life will change.  I'm not trying to sound like an insurance commercial here, but it's true:  life changes.  Sometimes it's small things like our hair color or new do.  Other times it can be big enough to turn your world upside down.  Helping your children get through these transition times can be challenging.  Here are some tips to help make these challenges easier.

Beauty from Ashes

By: Shari A. Miller

Over the past few days our city has been smoke ridden due to the forest fires in the area. The air has been thick, the sky gray, and the feeling of being caught in a compressed room of gloom has been alive and well.

On the first night of the smoke enveloping our city, my husband and I decided to go watch the sunset. When we found our perfect place, we were amazed at the beauty that unfolded. The sky exploded with beautiful reds, oranges and yellows, it was a portrait that encompassed the whole sky.

Chicken and Asparagus Crepes

By: Melissa Baker

Recipe courtesy of www.FoodNetwork.com

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for the dish
• 2 1/2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken
• 1 1/2 cups ricotta cheese
• 3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh herbs (such as parsley, dill, chives or mint)
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 8 store-bought crepes (about 9 inches each)
• 1 shallot, sliced
• 1/2 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into pieces
• 3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

A Wise Investment

By: Jenifer Metzger

We hear the word investment a lot. We invest in things that are going to be around a long time, things that are going to benefit us in the future. Many people invest in things such as retirement plans and big purchases like a home.

But what about investing in your marriage?

Your marriage is important. It's going to be around a long time, till death do you part, so why not invest?

Investing in your marriage is the wisest of investments that you could make. But how do we invest in our marriage?