Cathy Messecar & Deanna Koehl

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Deanna Koehl’s dad urged her to find a woman who would give her weekly feedback after the women’s Bible class she was teaching. Cathy Messecar had newly returned to the women’s ministry after her mother’s lengthy illness about the time Deanna transitioned from teaching teens to teaching women. Deanna asked Cathy to give suggestions for her presentations, and within a few months, their friendship evolved. They even began team-teaching. Their original class materials have evolved into one book so far, Winning Every Woman’s War: Defeating Temptations, and another book will be coming out in the summer of 2017.

Their teaching has a unique appeal because they have a passion to reach women of all ages with Christ’s message of grace and truth. One way they accomplished this is through their age difference of about twenty-five years. Cathy, a wife, mother, grandmother, and business owner, shares from her experiences of living in the sandwich generation, caring for aging parents and remaining active in grandchildren’s lives. Deanna, a wife, mother, and business owner, presents from the standpoint of having a teen and pre-teen at home.

Women of all ages, single and married, enjoyed Cathy and Deanna’s first team-teaching effort and urged them to seek a book contract. Fortunately, Abilene Christian University Press and Leafwood Publishers offered a contract and Winning Every Woman’s War: Defeating Temptations is now available at booksellers and online.

While teaching the original material for their class at Conroe Church of Christ, they encouraged women to wear camo clothing to class, pray a weekly combat prayer, and be faithful and courageous as they live in a culture of declining morals. They also wanted to model the instructions in Titus 2:3–5 that tell faithful women of age to teach younger women to love their husbands and children. Wherever they present as a team or individually, this remains a common thread of their presentations.

When Deanna and Cathy were asked what their little girl dreams were, Cathy said, “I wanted to grow up and marry Tarzan.” Deanna said, “I wanted to marry a rich cowboy.” God slightly altered those plans, but provided each with loving husbands and children. In addition, he has blessed them to teach and author women’s Bible study guides. Available locally and online.