AHW MINISTRIES NEWSLETTER 

 About His Work with Janet          December 2017   


My Christmas Card to You!

     
God's Perfect Gift!
 
This will be my last newsletter to you this year. I've prayed about what message to share. Many will be too busy to open this up and read it, but for those who are enjoying a moment of calm in the Christmas rush, I have a few encouraging words for you.
 
My blogs this month have been about keeping sanity in Christmas. I hope you'll read them at the end of this note. I haven't always been a sane person during this time of year, but God has helped me over the years to keep my mind, energy, and emotions focused on Jesus. I hope that I can mentor anyone struggling with this season, and you'll be encouraged to do the same.
 
Family and relationships take priority! I just got off the phone with a friend making an emergency trip to be with her sister in the hospital. My friend said she's always redecorated her entire house during Christmas, but this year the boxes are still in the corner and when she returns, she'll have her husband take them back to the garage.
 
The angel replied to Mary, "'What's more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month.'" A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth." Luke 1:35-36, 39 NLT
 
Embrace the unexpected . Elderly, pregnant Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist, wasn't expecting her pregnant, teenage, unmarried relative to show up at her door. But when she saw Mary, she exclaimed, "When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said." Luke 1:44-45 NLT
 
Comforting your friend or relative who calls or shows up at your doorstep is more important than making Christmas cookies or getting your Christmas cards out on time.
 
Trust God's Plans. Mary certainly didn't plan on carrying the Savior of the world or delivering him in a dirty manger surrounded by animals. But we're never told of her complaining, only that, "Mary responded, 'I am the Lord's servant. May everything you have said about me come true.'" Luke 1:38 NLT
 
You may have plans that go awry because of illness, weather, other people's plans, finances . . . but Christmas is God's one and only Son's birthday, and somehow someway He will work it all for good. "Jesus looked at them intently and said, 'Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.'" Matthew 19:26 NLT
 
Seek help if you're hurting or seek a hurting person . This may be the "season" when you desperately need a mentor who understands what you're feeling or going through. Or you know God has put someone in your life who needs you to mentor them. Many people are lonely, confused, or maybe going through a first Christmas without a loved one. Don't let the "have-to's" overshadow the "you need to's."
 
"Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back to her own home."
Luke 1:56
 
Sharing the story, love, and compassion of Jesus is the best gift you can receive or give to someone this year.
 
"The angel replied, 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you [Mary], and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God.'" Luke 1:35 NLT
 
Merry CHRISTmas and a blessed New Year!
 
About His Work,
Janet
 
PS: Remember ALL Woman to Woman Mentoring Resources are now available only at our website shop. Books always personally signed by Janet. Be sure to order you Mentor and Mentee Handbooks in time for me to sign each one!  

PSSS: I'm still receiving stories for my next book, "Get Your Brave On." I would love to hear of a time when God gave you physical, emotional, spiritual, mental . . . strength to do something you couldn't have done without His help. Please contact me.

PSSSS:
Leafwood Publishers, my publisher for Mentoring for All Seasons , is offering a 50% discount on orders of five or more books, good until December 31, 2017. Contact me for more information to share with your ministries and church. 
 
PSSSSS: I'm honored to be on the teaching staff of the 2018 Mount Hermon Christian Writer's ConferenceI hope some of you aspiring or seasoned authors will join me there. It's where I learned to write. To hear more of my writing journey, listen to my interview with John Vonhof below:     
 
 
PSSSSSS: I'll be in Southern California the first three weeks in April. Contact me about possible speaking for your event.
 
PSSSSSSS: Read the Author Interview with Kim Chaffin about her new book,
Simply Blessed - Finding Joy in the Little Things, and a chance to win a free copy. 
 
   
FEATURED BOOK OF THE MONTH

Face-To-Face With Elizabeth and Mary:  
Generation to Generation
 
 
$8.99 To Purchase    
or
Download to your Kindle or   Nook 
 
I chose to feature Face-To-Face with Elizabeth and Mary: Generation to Generation this month because they are a beautiful mentoring relationship in the Christmas Story. 
 
In Face-to-Face with Elizabeth and Mary, many young women are spiritually alone as the only Christian in their family or circle of friends, or separated by distance from family, and need a Christian woman's perspective. Even Mary, the mother of Jesus, knew she needed to talk to another woman who could relate to and understand her situation, she needed a spiritual mother. Face-to-Face With Elizabeth And Mary: Generation to Generation studies the reciprocal benefits and joys of one generation investing in the next. 
I Would Love to Speak at Your Event!
To contact Janet
 about your event 
call or email to discuss availability.
   
 
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               Mentoring Tip             
 "Mentoring occurs in all seasons of life--in the good and the challenging times!"
Mentoring for All Seasons:Sharing Life Experiences and God's Faithfulness
grammie  
   "GRAMMIE'S CORNER"    
     
               
A Facebook cartoon had a Christmas tree loaded with presents and a caption that this is what grandparents do, but promise not to do next year. I saw one of my friends write a comment, "I only wish." This friend is a widow on a fixed income with a number of grandchildren. She would love to lavish her grandkids with presents, but I know this grandmother lavishes her grandchildren with something that lasts much longer than wrappings on Christmas morning. She shares Jesus with them. She loves them with all her heart and she wants her legacy to be that each child knows Jesus as his or her Lord and Savior.
 
If you're able to afford it, there's nothing wrong with enjoying gift giving. But what your grandchildren will remember are the memories you made with them. Some of the traditions cost little. The best gift of all, is your prayers that each of them will accept Jesus as his or her personal Savior. 
    
 
  author2Meet An Author
      
         
Simply Blessed
Finding Joy in the Little Things 
   
A mutual friend introduced me to Kim and her new book peaked my interest. I think you'll enjoy meeting Kim too.
 
The stories of Simply Blessed have a different feel from some of the other devotionals I have read. What was your reason for writing Simply Blessed the way you did?
 
Simply Blessed is not deep theology, and I have a few reasons that I wrote the book the way I did. When I was a new believer, I was filled with so many questions. Sitting in my first Bible study, I remember feeling overwhelmed. I felt like a kid who was pushed into the deep end of the pool with those who already knew how to swim. As they enjoyed their time in the water, I was frantically dog paddling, trying to keep up.  
 
These thirty-one real life stories take the reader back to the nuts and bolts of whom God is. It is perfect for the woman new in her relationship with God while still allowing the most grounded believer to grow in their walk as well.

In your book you state that God is not the God of religion what did you mean buy that?
 
God is not the God of religion; He is the God of relationship. Man has made him into religion. When I think of God I think of him like my favorite Saturday sweat pants, comfortable, approachable and easy to just sit with. He longs to be with us in all things from right down to the most mundane moments of our life.
 
You mentioned that God is with us in the most mundane moments of life. Can you give an example from your book about what you mean by that?
 
Yes. In my book I tell how one day I saw God in my pile of ironing. Okay, not literally, but figuratively. I had a sour attitude while ironing my husbands button down shirts and God broke through that sour attitude when he put it on my heart how blessed I was to have a husband. Not only did I have a husband but also I had a husband who had a job that allowed me to stay home and take care of our family. In that pile of ironing, something so little in the scheme of life, I found happiness. I believe that when we take time to slow down, open our eyes, ears and hearts we will see God in the most unexpected ways.
 
What is it about Simply Blessed that you feel will keep people engaged all the way to the end of the 31-days.
 
I think my transparency will be a big part of keeping the reader engaged. I'm not perfect but I am forgiven. Each day I offer real life stories filled with practical teachings. Simply Blessed
offers something different each day from prayer, suggested worship songs to cleaning out your couch cushions. Yes, I said cleaning out your couch cushions. I think the variety of things offered in the book will bring the reader back each day to see what is next. Woven into the heartfelt stories there is also sprinkling of humor and who doesn't like to laugh a little?
Simply Blessed is bound to show the reader that there is joy in the little things.  
 
Kim Chaffin is an author and speaker. She sees God in the everyday moments that many people overlook. Her first book, Simply Blessed a 31-day devotional is to be released on January 1, 2018. She enjoys sharing her heart for the Lord at women's events or giving an occasional sermon at her church.
 
Priest Lake, Idaho, is Kim's favorite place to write. She cherishes summer days spent at the lake. Beyond the pages of Simply Blessed, Kim is contributor for the Whatever Girls Ministry and Living Better 50 online magazine. Her heartfelt ramblings can be found on her Heartfelt Ramblings of a Midlife Domestic Goddess blog.  
 
For more information about Kim and to order Simply Blessed go to her Amazon Author page  
 
Also available for order at Barnes and Nobel 

For a chance to win a free copy of Simply Blessed: Finding Joy in the Little Things, contact me.    
 
About His Work,
Janet
 
  
AHW Ministries 
www.womantowomanmentoring.com
Copyright © 2017 Janet Thompson. All rights reserved.  
In This Issue
Featured Book of the Month
Do You Need a Speaker?
Woman To Woman Mentoring
Mentoring Moment
Grammie's Corner
Meet an Author
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Speaking 2018

March 23-27 
Teaching at Mt. Hermon 
Mt. Hermon, CA