Superwoman Is Dead

Most mothers fight a constant battle between stress and guilt.


by Emuna Braverman

“The Age of the Superwoman is dead,” says Samantha Parent Walravens, editor of the recently released TORN: True Stories of Kids, Career & the Conflict of Modern Motherhood. I called Ms. Walravens at her Northern California home to discuss the impetus for the book and her goals and vision. We forged an instant bond because I know first-hand exactly what she is talking about.
Many of us today have bought into the superwoman myth. We think we can do it all – careers, children, healthy marriages – and then we realize that we still need to sleep at night!

How Often Should You Have Sex?

Eventually, all marriage and sexuality authors and speakers get around to this one, right? How often should a married couple make love?

The usual response from experts is something like: "It depends. Some couples are content with once a month while others desire that close contact several times a week. Whatever amount keeps you both satisfied is sufficient."

Hormones and lovemaking during pregnancy

It's perfectly safe to enjoy lovemaking during your pregnancy, unless there are medical reasons why you should abstain for a while. Every pregnant woman has the potential to enjoy sex - and some enjoy it more than they've ever done before.

© Jupiter

How much you want and enjoy sex can vary during pregnancy, not only from one woman to another, but also in the same woman at different times throughout the 40 weeks. Most women feel less interested in lovemaking during the first trimester (especially if suffering from tiredness and nausea). Desire generally increases in the second trimester and declines again in the third.

5 Things Men Fear Most About Aging

It starts with sex and goes downhill from there.

By Paula Spencer Scott, Caring.com senior editor

Worried about getting old? Who isn't -- except perhaps those who are already unmistakably there. Survey after survey shows the elderly are more content with life, less depressed, and less fearful of death than the young.

"I'm a lot more sanguine and comfortable about aging at 76 than I was at 56," says George Vaillant, professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School who codirects its Study of Adult Development.

In the meantime, though? Guys in midlife harbor plenty of fears when they peer ahead. (Women have their own, slightly different set of aging fears).

Among men's top fears about getting older:

If Shared Housework Brings About Divorce, You Need To Pick Better

by Laura Donovan

If you’re a lifelong clean freak like me, you believe that your living space can never remain immaculate for too long — and that you prefer to clean things your way. That could help explain the fact that couples who share housework are more likely to split up, according to new research, and prompt partners to only have one person fulfill such duties.

The research, which was compiled into a study titled “Equality in the Home,” reveals that the divorce rate is higher among couples who divide household chores than among those where the lady takes care of pretty much everything.

What Can We Learn from the Prayer in the Garden?

Charles Spurgeon

Let us notice Christ's prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane. It was a lonely prayer. He withdrew even from His three best friends about a stone’s throw. 

Believer, especially in temptation, be much in solitary prayer. As private prayer is the key to open Heaven, so is it the key to shut the gates of Hell. As it is a shield to prevent, so is it the sword with which to fight against temptation.

Further, it was Son's prayer. Matthew describes Him as saying, “O My Father.” Mark puts it, “Abba, Father.” You will find this always a stronghold in the day of trial to plead your adoption. Hence that prayer, in which it is written, “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil,” begins with, “Our Father which are in Heaven.” 

Plead as a child. You have no rights as a subject. You have forfeited them by your treason, but nothing can forfeit a child’s right to a father’s protection. Be not, then, ashamed to say, “My Father, hear my cry.” 

Good Reasons To Continue Having Sex After Menopause

Relationship of sex and health

The more you understand about any subject, the more interesting it becomes. As you read this article you'll find that the subject of correlation of sex and health is certainly no exception.

Truthfully, the only difference between you and correlation of sex and health experts is time. If you'll invest a little more time in reading, you'll be that much nearer to expert status when it comes to correlation of sex and health.

You can see people living with healthy sex lives from a mile away. They’ve got a bounce in their step, they reply with serenity and contentment, and every once in awhile you can catch them gazing off, radiating with bliss. This is a person who just got laid.

It’s well known that having a healthy sex life feels great!  But have you ever heard that sex is actually good for your health? The following article discusses the benefits of sex and how sex toys can enhance your sex life and overall health. 

Help me satisfy her sex drive My wife is wearing me out because she craves sex all the time.

Dear Miriam

My wife is wearing me out because she craves sex all the time.

She wasn't always like this. Before the menopause, we had sex once or twice a week and were both content. Now there's no worry about getting pregnant again - we have four children - she says she feels relaxed and eager for as much sex as I can manage.

I've been wondering if a vibrator or other sex toy might take the heat off me, at least a little, and keep her satisfied?

Yes, using a sex toy as a team mate to keep your wife happy is a great idea. Good on you for seeing a sex toy as a supplement to your skills rather than a replacement.

These toys can add a little fun and adventure to the bedroom, solo or together.

5 Things Men Fear Most About Aging

The Five Romantic Needs of a Woman

A great lover must be committed to satisfying his wife’s unique needs.
by Dennis Rainey

I’m sure it comes as no shock, but men and women think of romance differently.

When asked to describe the purpose of romance, a woman will use words such as friendship, relationship, endearment, and tenderness. Given the same question, a man will answer with one of the shortest words in the English language—sex. For him, physical oneness and affirmation of his manhood equal romance.

Discover Purpose Is this the life for me?

       Other languages            中文             中文           

Take a look at your life. How would you describe it? Contented? Rushed? Exciting? Stressful? Moving forward? Holding back? For many of us it’s all of the above at times. There are things we dream of doing one day, and there are things we wish we could forget. In the Bible, it says that Jesus came to make all things new. What would your life look like if you could start over with a clean slate?

The Bible talks about the world beginning with the creation of a beautiful garden and two blameless people who walked and talked with God. They were truly innocent – they didn’t even know that they were naked. But it didn’t stay that way. They chose to turn away from God and sin entered the world, and with it guilt, shame, regret. Humankind was no longer blameless. But God still loved the world that he created and so he sent his Son to redeem it.

Jesus came, and died, and rose again to wipe the slate clean. He was scourged, tormented, and finally nailed on the cross for humankind’s sins – this was all part of God’s plan to bring you and I back into relationship with him. God wants to be a part of your life. Is this the life for you?

God is perfect, powerful, and yet personal. The Bible tells us: “He (God) is the Rock. His work is perfect. Everything He does is just and fair.” (Deuteronomy 32:4)

God created the world, which reflects His magnificence, balance, and beauty. “For God created the heavens and the earth and put everything in place, and he made the world to live in and not be an empty chaos.” (Isaiah 45:18)

Would you like to know God personally?.

God loves you and created you to know Him personally.
God’s Love: “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

God’s Plan: “Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent” (John 10:7-10).

What prevents us from knowing God personally?

People are lost and separated from God, so we cannot know Him personally or experience His love.

People are Lost: “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23)

People were created to have fellowship with God; but, because of our own stubborn self- wills, we chose to go our own independent way and fellowship with God was broken. This self-will, characterized by an attitude of active rebellion or passive indifference, is an evidence of what the Bible calls sin.

People are Separated: “The wages of sin is death” [spiritual separation from God] (Romans 6:23).

This diagram illustrates that God is holy and people are lost. A great gulf separates the two. The arrows illustrate that people are continually trying to reach God and establish a personal relationship with Him through their own efforts, such as a good life, philosophy, or religion but we inevitably fail.

.

The fourth step of your journey explains the only way to bridge this gulf.

Jesus Christ is God’s only provision for our sin. Through Him alone we can know God personally and experience His love.

He Died in Our Place: “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).

He Rose from the Dead: “Christ died for our sins…He was buried…He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures…He appeared to Peter, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred…” (1 Corinthians 15:3-6)

He is the Only Way to God: “Jesus said to him, `I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me’” (John 14:6).

The diagram above on the right illustrates that God has bridged the gulf that separates us from Him by sending His Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross in our place to pay the penalty for our sins.

It is not enough just to know these three truths…

.

We must individually receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord; then we can know God personally and experience His love.

We must Receive Christ: “As many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name” (John 1:12).

We Receive Christ through Faith: “By grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is a gift of God; not as a result of works that no one should boast” (Ephesians 2:8,9).

When we Receive Christ, we Experience a New Birth: (Read John 3:1-8)

We Receive Christ by Personal Invitation: [Christ speaking] “Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him” (Revelation 3:20).

Receiving Christ involves turning to God from self (repentance) and trusting Christ to come into our lives to forgive us of our sins and to make us what He wants us to be. Just to agree intellectually that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that He died on the cross for our sins is not enough. Nor is it enough to have an emotional experience. We receive Jesus Christ by faith, as an act of our will.

These two circles represent two kinds of lives:

Self-Directed Life

 Self is on the throne

Christ is outside the life

Interests are directed by self often resulting in discord and frustration

Christ-Directed Life

 Christ is in the life and on the throne

 Self is yielding to Christ

Interests are directed by Christ, resulting in harmony with God’s plan

.

Which circle best represents your life?

Which circle would you like to have represent your life?

The following step explains how you can receive Christ…

.

You can receive Christ right now by faith through prayer!

(Prayer is talking with God)

God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as He is with the attitude of your heart. The following is a suggested prayer:

Lord Jesus, I need you. Thank You for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life and receive You as my Savior and Lord. Thank You for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Take control of the throne of my life. Make me the kind of person You want me to be.

Does this prayer express the desire of your heart? If it does, pray this prayer right now, and Christ will come into your life, just as He promised.

If you have a question first, click here.

gotquestions  http://powertochange.com/discover/faith/discoverpurpose/

The Happiest Jobs in America

By Jacquelyn Smith | Forbes

When you think of a cheerful job, you probably don't think of loan officer, warehouse manager, or accountant. But it turns out these are some of the happiest careers in America, according to online jobs site Careerbliss.com.

CareerBliss compiled a list of the 20 happiest jobs based on analysis from more than 100,400 employee-generated reviews between February 2011 and January 2012. Employees were asked to rate 10 factors that affect workplace happiness, including one's relationship with the boss and co-workers, work environment, job resources, compensation, growth opportunities, company culture, company reputation, daily tasks, and control over the work one does on a daily basis.

The employees valued each factor on a five-point scale, and also indicated how important it was to their overall happiness at work. The numbers were combined to find an average rating of overall employee happiness for each respondent, and then sorted by job title to find which occupations had the happiest workers. A minimum of 50 employee reviews was required to be considered for CareerBliss' 20 Happiest Jobs in America, and executive level jobs, like chief executive, were excluded from the study.

"Since we tend to spend more waking hours working than doing anything else, our work happiness is a huge factor in our overall happiness," says CareerBliss' chief executive, Heidi Golledge. "Nearly every person has a desire to feel valued and content, and a workplace or a career that provides that for its employees is key to not only happiness for the employees but the long-term success of the business."

The happiest job of all isn't kindergarten teacher or dentist. It's software quality assurance engineer. Professionals with this job title are typically involved in the entire software development process to ensure the quality of the final product. This can include processes such as requirements gathering and documentation, source code control, code review, change management, configuration management, release management, and the actual testing of the software, explains Matt Miller, chief technology officer at CareerBliss.

With an index score of 4.24, software quality assurance engineers said they are more than satisfied with the people they work with and the company they work for. They're also fairly content with their daily tasks and bosses.

These professionals "typically make between $85,000 and $100,000 a year in salary and are the gatekeepers for releasing high quality software products," Miller says. Organizations generally will not allow software to be released until it has been fully tested and approved by their software quality assurance group, he adds.

Golledge says, "In past studies, we have noted that the long hours and intense demands on software engineers' time caused them to rank as less than happy. However, we are happy to report that software quality assurance engineers feel rewarded at work, as they are typically the last stop before software goes live and correctly feel that they are an integral part of the job being done at the company."

Tied for the second most blissful job is executive chef and property manager; both earned an index score of 4.15. Executive chefs, also known as chefs de cuisine or head cooks, do everything from menu creation and staff training to ordering and purchasing inventory. They cite the work that they do and the people they work with as the main drivers of their happiness.

Property managers plan, direct, or coordinate the selling, buying, leasing, or governance activities of real estate properties, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Workers in this profession are most satisfied with the people they work with and the work that they do.

"Many of the happiest jobs have some component with working with people," Golledge says. "Folks who work with others tend to rate their happiness higher on our site."

Bank teller and warehouse manager round out the top five happiest jobs in America, with index scores of 4.14 and 4.13, respectively.

"The roles that we did not expect to see were teller, accountant and financial analyst," she says. "Even though all three of these positions ranked low on compensation, they all ranked very high on 'the company you work for' and 'the people you work with.' Clearly, working with likeminded folks who share a love for calculators and numbers drive their happiness."

A few support roles, like customer service reps and administrative assistants, also made the list. Why? "Through our research we have seen that many people who take on these roles are typically happy supporting or servicing other people, and are therefore fulfilled in their jobs."

Golledge adds, "We have also noticed that happiness definitely does not align with pay, and once someone's basic needs are met, the additional money on the job is a nice perk but is not what drives employee happiness."

CareerBliss also found that many people appreciate their jobs more in a down economy. "As the job market is improving every day, we see that employees are looking to evaluate if they are happy in their current position and if their company is providing the type of culture they identify with," Golledge says. "This year will be a very important year for employers as employees look at a possible career or job change to improve their satisfaction at work."

Here is a list of the top 10 Happiest Jobs In America, based on analysis from more than 100,400 employee-generated reviews between February 2011 and January 2012.
1. Software Quality Assurance Engineer
Score: 4.24

2. (tie) Executive Chef
Score: 4.15 

2. (tie) Property Manager
Score: 4.15

4. Teller
Score: 4.14

5. Warehouse Manager
Score: 4.13

6. Administrative Assistant
Score: 4.11

7. Customer Service Representative
Score: 4.06

8. Accountant
Score: 4.05

9. (tie) Systems Engineer
Score: 4.01

9. (tie) Construction Manager
Score: 4.01 

Click here for the full slideshow of The Happiest Jobs in America.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/the-happiest-jobs-in-america.html;_ylt=Asjb48dUSxVg60duCpXH6PAX34dG;_

Waiting on God for Maximum Effectiveness

Debbie Przybylski, Intercessors Arise

" We experience the adventure of intercession to the degree we have learned to wait on God. Everything about our human nature rebels against waiting. To those of us who were born in 'overdrive', waiting is not our favorite pastime. However, we discover that waiting on God in humility and faith because of who He is, and obeying His signals according to His timetable, are really where the exciting action is." Joy Dawson

How many of us rush around and have not learned the secret of waiting on God. In order to move with God's direction in the end times, we must learn this secret. The truth is that it is in waiting that we will accomplish the most for God. It is in waiting that He will give us His secrets to kingdom living. It is in waiting that we will live as overcomers and walk in joy, peace and contentment. How much time is wasted when we run down the wrong road?

Waiting on God in prayer brings forth his maximum purposes.

I am a very active person and over the last several God has taught me and my husband to wait on Him. All the world was rushing around us but He stopped us and disciplined us into waiting on Him. And now is waiting is often the place of joy because that is where God tells us His secrets. Many of you are learning the same lesson.

Waiting is going to be the key to our effectiveness. God is not looking for soulish activity. Anyone can do that. God is looking for those who can wait and let the flesh die so that the spirit can truly live for His purposes.

It is in waiting that the very highest direction for our life can come forth on a daily basis. What may look like a loss of time is really only time multiplied on our behalf. God is able to do things with a lot more efficiency than we are. The unnecessary falls to the ground and the very purposes and wisdom of God come forth in purity, holiness and power. "My soul, wait silently for God alone, for my expectation is from Him (Psalm 62:5).

"Waiting is a discipline that has tremendous rewards. And yet vast numbers of Christians, including many who pray for others, seldom, if ever make it a way of life."

What are you waiting for today in prayer? Don't give up. Make it a way of life. It is in waiting that we make room for God.

"The tests of our willingness to wait patiently for the Lord come almost daily for most of us.Waiting requires patience -- a willingness calmly to accept what we have or have not, where we are or where we wish we were, whomever we live or work with. To want what we don't have is impatience and mistrust of God. A spirit of resistance cannot wait on God. It is this spirit which is the reason for some of our greatest sufferings. It is here and now that we must win our victories or suffer defeats. Spiritual victories are won in the quiet acceptance of ordinary events, which are Gods 'bright servants' standing all around it. Peace does not dwell in outward things, but in the heart prepared to wait trustfully and quietly on Him who has all things safely in His hands. Can I not then wait patiently? He will show me the way." Elisabeth Elliott

"Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. ... I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry” (Psalm 27:14, 40:1).

Together in the Harvest,

Debbie Przybylski

Intercessors Arise International

deb@intercessorsarise.org

http://www.intercessorsarise.org

http://www.crosswalk.com/church/worship/waiting-on-god-for-maximum-effectiveness.html

Sex and Romance Quotes from the Bible

http://www.chacha.com/topic/bible/gallery/1700/awkwardly-funny-sex-and-romance-quotes-from-the-bible