**Siesta Celebration is January 20-21, 2012**
Hey, you Scripture memory freaks!
Your mama needs a hall pass in the worst way for a while regarding lengths of posts. We are now only about 6 weeks from the LifeWay deadline for all things James. To say that Melissa and I are under the gun is an understatement and, of course, so are all our friends on the publishing side. It’s stressful for everyone concerned this close to rolling the press. You will not waste a prayer on us, or on any member of our family, for that matter. Amanda and Curtis are finding out what kind of warfare you sign up for when you determine to get out there where the wind of the Spirit is blowing and dare to fulfill your calling. It’s hard to watch your children go through it. I tell them all the time (and they don’t need convincing) that enduring is so worth it but, man oh man, as many of you know, the fire is hot. And it’s often very personal, don’t you think? Satan goes for the psychological jugular.
I have had a great – almost life-stopping – time poring over James for well over the last year and I will miss the process so much. I love the intensity an in-depth journey demands and I genuinely fight a wave of depression when it’s over. (I’ll ask for your prayers about that at the time.) But, the fact is, push is about to come to shove. I no longer have the luxury of taking all the time I want. This baby is almost due. Thank you for any spare prayers! I am not in a bad way or in a contentious state. I’m just wide-eyed and aware that a very loud clock is ticking. So is my baby girl. I know some of you must be getting so tired of hearing about it! Stand with me a little longer, in hopes that Jesus may be glorified.
In my memory work, I’m still choosing verses out of 2 Timothy. I couldn’t split these four verses up without shortchanging the context so I’m posting the whole segment.
Beth, Houston. “And the Lord’s slave must not engage in heated disputes but be kind toward all, an apt teacher, patient, correcting opponents with gentleness. Perhaps God will grant them repentance and then knowledge of the truth and they will come to their senses and escape the devil’s trap where they are held captive to do his will.” 2 Timothy 2:24-26 The NET Bible
This portion of Scripture and others like it seem altogether ignored or dismissed in a culture where believers stay embroiled in one heated dispute after another. Scripture tells us how to differ without ripping the fabric of our common faith to shreds. In the segment above, the Apostle Paul uses words like kindness and gentleness. When we tend to think that carnality is the only kind of sin that can keep the church from revival, we’re overlooking the steady stream of commands in the New Testament about how to treat one another. Disunity can shipwreck the whole lot of us right there on the shore of disgrace. We can even be right and fall into the chastisement of God because our hearts were wrong. May God forgive us, heal us, and help us.
OK, Sisters. Let’s hear your 13th verses. While you’re at it, remember that what we’re doing here is IMPORTANT! We’ve got to protect these minds of ours! That’s where our battles are won or lost. You will never waste a single moment rolling God’s Word around in your sweet head. Your health will be the better for it. Your marriage will be the better for it. Your job will be the better for it. Your relationships will be the better for it. Your obedience will be the better for it. Your calling will be the better for it. YOU will be the better for it.
Me, too.
I’m crazy about you. Keep your eyes to the skies.
Diana, North Attleboro, MA
Let us strive to know the LORD.
His appearance is as sure as the dawn.
He will come to us like the rain,
like the spring showers that water the land.
Hosea 6:3 HCSB
ONE OF MY FAVORITES, Diana!
Yes, great verse!
Tina, Gahanna, Ohio
That the God of out Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him. Ephesians 1:17 NASB
Emily, Thibodaux :
Psalm 20:1 NIV
May the Lord answer you when you are in distress;
may the name of the God of Jacob protect you.
Erica, Houston
Psalm 37:4
Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.
Jackie, Platte City MO
My heart breaks for an Iranian pastor condemned to die for his faith as the Iranian court upheld charges of apostasy on June 28, 2011. Please pray for Youcef Nadarkhani. google it, siestas…
NIV
Psalm 94
1 The LORD is a God who avenges.
O God who avenges, shine forth.
I am praying, even now. Bless you for your heart of compassion. May we all be BOLD and COURAGEOUS in our faith.
Sharon, Riverside, Ca.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. Matthew 5:10-12 NIV
God, bless Youcef Nadarkhani. Grant him your grace and mercy. May he endure faithfully until the hour You choose for his death. Your will be done, Lord.
Kristen from Covington, Ga:
“So I am willing to endure anything if it will bring salvation and eternal glory in Christ Jesus to those God has chosen.” 2 Timothy 2:10 (NLT)
powerful
Pittsburgh, PA
“But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him.” Jeremiah 17:7 New International Version
Amy, Washington D.C.: “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” – Matthew 6:34 NIV
Thank you Mama Beth for all your encouraging words. Love you!
Sandra, florida. “Watch the way I talk. Let nothing foul or dirty come out of my mouth. Say only what helps, each word a gift. Don’t grieve God. Don’t break His heart. His Holy Spirit, moving and breathing in me, is the most intimate part of my life, making me fit for himself. Don’t take such a gift for granted. Make a clean break with all cutting, backbitting, profane talk. Be gentle with one another, sensitive. Forgive one another as quickly as God in Christ forgave me. Ephesians 4:29-32(MSG)
Terri, Pleasant Hope, MO
I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ Ephesians 3:16-18 (NIV)
Keep me safe, O God, I’ve run for dear life to you. I say to God, “Be my Lord!” Without you nothing makes sense.
Psalm 16:1-2
The Message
Jodi:Fairhope,AL – But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven. Matthew 10:33 NKJV
Kate Charlottesville
2 Corinthians 12:9 The Message
“My grace is enough; it’s all you need. My strength comes into its own in your weakness.”
Sandra
Wichita Falls, TX
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Lk 12:34 NIV
Michelle, Houston, “But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.” Hebrews 3:13 NIV
Eph 6:16-17
In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinquish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmut of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Barb, Medina, Oh
Kim, Atlanta
“God made my life complete
when I placed all the pieces before him.
When I cleaned up my act,
he gave me a fresh start.
Indeed, I’ve kept alert to God’s ways;
I haven’t taken God for granted.
Every day I review the ways he works,
I try not to miss a trick.
I feel put back together,
and I’m watching my step.
God rewrote the text of my life
when I opened the book of my heart to his eyes.”
– 2 Samuel 22:21-25 (The Message)
Elaine ~ Powder Springs ~ I will sing to the Lord, for he has been good to me. Psalm 13:6 (NIV)
Katie, Augusta, Ga ¤ So throw out spoiled virtue and cancerous evil into the garbage. In simple humility let our gardener, God, landscape you with the word, making a salvation-garden of your life. James 1:21 (The Message)
LOVE this Word picture… Linda
“Let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from start to finish.”
Hebrews 2:12
Jen Griffin
Jax, Fl
“We put no stumbling block in anyone’s path, so that our ministry (of reconciliation, 5:18) will not be discredited.” II Corinthians 6:3 (NAS)
Atlanta
Kimberly Orr
Zionsville, IN
Therefore let those who suffer acording to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good. 1 Peter 4:19 ESV
and
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. Psalm 51:17 ESV
Molly, Macon, GA
“We know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies. And if anyone thinks that he knows anything, he knows nothing yet as he ought to know. But if anyone loves God, this one is known by Him.”. 1 Corinthians 8:1b-3 NKJV
Kat, Clarkesville, GA
“Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.” Prov. 19:21 (ESV)
Vicki, Colleyville , TX. “He must become greater; I must become less.” John 3:30 NIV
Romans 15:13 NIV
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Andrea
Woodstock, GA
Jennifer Greensburg, La
24 And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. 25 Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth
II Timothy 2:24-25 NIV
Heather Greensburg
For God did not send His son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.
John 3:17 (NIV)
Emily Greensburg
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Jeremiah 29:11 NIV
Chrissy, Clemmons, NC:
Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. Ephesians 6:14-15
Kit, Central Islip, NY
“Consider the work of God, for who is able to straighten what He has bend?” NASB
Psalm 71:20
Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter, you will restore my life again; from the depths of the earth you will again bring me up.
Leverett, MA
Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to Him as instruments of righteousness.
Romans 6:13
Amy, Snellville GA
Finally, my brothers and sisters, always think about what is true. Think about what is noble, right and pure. Think about what is lovely and worthy of respect. If anything is excellent or worthy of praise, think about those kinds of things. Phil. 4:8 (NIrV)
Julie, Windsor, Colorado — Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord as forgave you. Colossians 3:13 (NIV)
Ola, Woodbridge
Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Psalm 51:10 (NIV)
Jennifer Lutz, Florida
“But you are a shield around me, O Lord, you bestow glory on me and lift up my head. To the Lord I cry aloud, and he answers me from his holy hill” Psalm 3:3-4 NIV
Kat, Latham, NY
“From one man He made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and He determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live.” Acts 17:26 NIV
Diane, Commerce Twp., MI
He led me to a place of safety; He rescued me because He delights in me.
Psalm 18:19 NLT
“Stagger not at the promise of God thru unbelief, but be strong in faith, giving glory to God.” Romans 4:20 KJ
Sylvia V. Jersey Village, TX
John 15:7 (NKJV)
If you abide in Me, and My WORDSs abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.
Gretchen, Thousand Oaks Deut. 31:8 The Message God is striding ahead of you. He’s right there with you. He won’t let you down; He won’t leave you. Don’t be intimidated. Don’t worry.
Lissa B, Greenville
(I’ve been gone for a while, but thank the Lord for repentance and glorious revival!)
“Does not my word burn like fire” says the Lord,”Is it not like a mighty hammer that smashes a rock to pieces.”
Jeremiah 23:29 (NLT)
“Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”
Matthew 11:29, NIV
Debbie from Elon.AS WE HAVE OPPORTUNITY,LET US DO GOOD TO ALL, ESPECIALLY TO THOSE WHO ARE OF THE HOUSSEHOLD OF FAITH. Gal. 6:10 NKJV
Jenni, Spartanburg, SC ” Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4 NIV
“Now godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.” 1 Timothy 6:6-8 NKJV
Kay, Sheridan: “‘If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is
possible for him who believes.” Mark 9:23 NIV
Adrienne, Jasper, TN
“…so that all people may know of your mighty acts
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.”
Psalm 145:12 – NIV
“Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.” Colossians 1:28-29 ESV
Kim, Poplar Bluff, MO; “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 2:5 (NIV)
Zephaniah 3:17 NIV
“The Lord your God is with you, The Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; and rejoice over you with singing”