Hey Siestas!Ā We’re two weeks out from our big launch and, based on the number of people who got Siesta spirals -not to mention those grabbing their own – we should have one titanic team! Ā May God get much glory! (If you’re interested in a spiral and have yet to purchase one, click here for the details.) Numbers are nothing if they don’t translate into fruit displayed in our lives but if we truly decide to live out the words that are going to live in us, remarkable things are in store for the Kingdom of Christ among us.
Here is everything youĀ need to know about how to participate in the 2013 Siesta Scripture Memory Team!
First, a few things up front since many people joining us have no previous interaction here:
*For you new comers, āSiestaā is just an endearment for āSister.ā Thereās no club to join and no person you need to become. If youāve trusted Jesus as your personal Savior, youāre a sister in Christ. If you don’t know Him, we’d love for you to stick around and get to know us and see if anything around here draws you. Everyone is welcome. Here’s a bit of our back-story on the weird name: When we first began the blog, it never occurred to any of us how much weād come to love each other. As the community grew closer and closer and the participants more and more familiar with one another, one of you asked what name we should call each another. I tried to say, āIāll tell you what we are: Weāre sistahs!ā but spell-check switched it to āsiestas.ā It stuck and thatās been us ever since. We even liked the thought that its actual meaning is to take a nap. Weāll know weāve been a place of divine intervention if weāre a respite from the female competition and clatter out there. Only Jesus can give us that kind of relief in this exhausting culture.
*We call this a Scripture memory āteamā because thatās exactly what we are. Weāre a really long line of women standing shoulder to shoulder with our swords drawn. (For you newcomers, Ephesians 6 calls the Word of God the “Sword of the Spirit.”) And we donāt draw our swords to wound people, to convict our family members (Godās job) or to cut off the ears of our hearers. We draw our swords to fight the good fight of faith. While I was saw stacks and stacks of Siesta Scripture Memory Spirals being stuffed into envelopes for shipping, it hit me with fresh impact. What if thousands of women really did memorize 24 Scriptures in 2013?? What are the implications of that? What kind of repercussions might that have in our personal lives and our homes? That’s worth getting riled up over. SO, you bet this is a team. Donāt be too cool for it. Remember, Godās Spirit is a fire. If weāre too cool, we canāt help but quench it. If cheesy works around here, weāre not ashamed. Just throw in a can of jalapenos and grab a tortilla chip.
*Very often you will see me refer to SSMT. Just so nobody’s confused from the start, that is an abbreviation for āSiesta Scripture Memory Team.ā If you’re not participating in SSMT, please know that we donāt limit the entire blog to our Scripture memory participants. It has a big presence on here because itās twice a month but we still do lots of other things. Please donāt feel left out or forgotten.
OK, NOW FOR THE INSTRUCTIONS. You can cut and paste these somewhere if necessary. Hereās how it will go:
1. On the 1st and 15th of every month of 2013, you will find a post by 8:00 in the morning where I will ask for your memory verse and give you mine. This will begin New Yearās Day 2013. You are committing to 24 Scriptures in 12 months. In previous years, Iāve found this to be a very doable pace. If you do much more, youāll tend to fall behind and not retain. If you do much less, the impact is negligible. You really can do this. So many of you will surprise yourselves with what youāre capable of doing in the power of the Spirit. Yes, it takes work but itās tremendously fulfilling and the results are nearly immeasurable. Look at it this way: youāre going to be meditating on something: unforgiveness, toxic memories, misery, lust, greed, dissatisfaction, jealousy, competition. Choose Scripture! Christ Himself said as a man thinks, so is he. He also said His words are spirit and life. This is work worth doing, Sweet Thing. Never ā NOT ONCE ā have I ever known anyone to get to the end of a Scripture memory commitment and say that it didnāt make any real difference. Not a single time.
2.You are to enter the verse youāve chosen to memorize for that two-week period within twenty-four hours of the post going up. Iāve been asked many times if itās okay if youāre late supplying your verse and, yes, of course it is, but try to avoid doing it often. The people who make it to the very end of the year are overwhelmingly those who stay up with it month to month. Please know up front that one of the important parts of this process is the exercise of self discipline. This culture is mass producing wimpy narcissists. Year-long commitments like these that require punctuality and focused energy push back on that degenerating trend. All that to say, please donāt drop out if you get behind. I just want you to know that this will be much more successful if you treat it as a real, live commitment you are willing to work hard to keep.
3. When you clock in with your verse those two times a month, keep your comments limited to your name, city, verse and translation. Long comments on SSMT days are no-noās. It wonāt take you long to figure out why we maintain that rule. Wait till you see the powerful sight of hundreds if not thousands of verses flowing down the comment stream. It is a gorgeous sight. When youāre having a bad day, all you have to do is scroll down a few hundred of your sistersā Scripture selections and I promise you, youāll get a word. Itās a very powerful thing. Here is a sample comment:
Beth from Houston, Texas: “But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.” 2 Thessalonians 3:3 ESV
Always add your translation because so many of your sisters will want to know where you found the wording for your entry. One of the great impacts of this process is how much we reap from each otherās selections. Often youāll see a sister say, āIām doing the one so-and-so did last time!ā (Yes, you can make a comment that brief. Those can be fun. Occasionally youāll even see someone write, āFor the sake of my marriage, Iāve chosen to memorizeā¦ā Thatās okay, too, but try to keep it very succinct.)
4. THIS ONE IS KEY! As often as possible, choose a verse that means something to you in your present season or circumstance. This is the reason why we donāt all memorize the same Scripture. Weāre not all going through the same things. The more you let God lead you to verses that direct you or edify your soul in your present circumstances, the more He will renew your mind toward your challenges. This is a huge part of 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 where weāre told to demolish strongholds and take our thoughts captive to Christ. If you donāt have a verse on your mind or youāre drawing a blank when the 1st or 15th rolls around, you are welcome to share mine. I will always include it in the post. You might also look at a few of the comments and see if one of theirs resonates with you. I say this next part with a grin: try to refrain from memorizing Scriptures that you think your spouse or your children need to learn. Memorize what you need to learn. That means do your best to avoid jotting your verse on a stick note and planting it on your bathroom mirror where your man can see it and repent of his sins. He probably wonāt because heās got your game. I bet you can guess how I know that.
5. I strongly recommend that you stick with only one verse to memorize each time. (This is just a recommendation and not a rule. Youāre free to do whatever works for you.) Keep it simple and meaningful. (If I were addressing you live, Iād have you repeat that sentence back to me so just go ahead and say it out loud in order to nail it down. That sentence could be your best friend through this process.) If you do too many verses or get too complicated, you will soon be overwhelmed and want to drop out. Better to do 24 simpler verses over a 12 month period of time than a chapter over the first month then quit. We want this to be a discipline we practice for the rest of our lives. Think marathon. Not sprint.
6. Either shortly before or after making your entry each 1st and 15th in the blog comment, write the verse by hand in your own spiral. (Again, thatās a recommendation and not a rule. Iāve discovered that thereās something about writing it with your own hand and picturing it later in your own handwriting that helps it sink into your memory bank. Iām not entirely sure why.) Take that spiral with you everywhere you go. Read it and read it and read it and read it. Do mental gymnastics with it. Flip that baby over and over. Many women have told me along the way that theyāre not good at memorization and I truly understand that. I also beg to offer two responses: First, that may change. Give the Holy Spirit a chance to do something brand new with you. Second, even if you donāt get your verses down word for word, you are still meditating on them as you read and reread them. You still, thereby, accomplish one of the most important goals: captivating the mind to Christ. You just canāt lose on this one. Either way, it has a powerful effect.
OK, I think thatās enough to get us prepared for January 1st. Now, let me tell you well in advance how to qualify for our Siesta Scripture Memory Team Celebration on January 17-18, 2014 which is the biggest blast ever. I’m telling you about it now so that you can have it for a little extra incentive. Our main incentive is the will and good pleasure of God, of course, but He Himself authored great celebrations in His Name so feel free to be excited at the thought. Also, I want you to have plenty of time to start saving your money for your transportation and hotel. We do not charge for the event. Your entrance fee is your well-used spiral. By the way, we hope to have Travis back again to lead us in worship and Amanda, Melissa, my whole LPM staff and volunteer team will be thereĀ to serve you.Ā Hereās how you qualify throughout the year:
*Clock in by first name and city at least 21 out of 24 times. (But please make your goal 24 out of 24!) Let me reiterate that you can be late with your entry on a 1st or 15th of any month but, by the end of the year, there has to be a record in the comment sections of you signing in at least 21 out of 24 times on a SSMT post. Make sense? Please give us 24 hours to post your comment before you assume it got lost. We still moderate all comments and the amount we get on SSMT days necessitates a slower pace. Thank you for your cooperation!
*Bring your spiral to the celebration. Again, thatās your ticket in.
*Be prepared to say any 12 of your 24 memory verses to another Siesta (of your choice) during the designated time at the celebration. (We get in pairs.) Some of you will be tempted to let this be a deal breaker but donāt back out! Siestas are really sweet and patient with each other and we are notorious for giving each other hints. We can even act out charades if necessary. If youāre one of those who genuinely struggles with memorization, just tell your memory buddy up front and sheāll give you all the grace you need.Ā Tell her the gist of the verse as accurately as you possibly can. Sheāll be able to tell that you are well acquainted with it and that the goal was accomplished even if you canāt say the verse word-for-word.
*Register for the event when the time comes. (December 1, 2013)
Whew! Have I exhausted you?? Iāve worn myself to a pulp. Sorry this is so wordy! We just want to answer as many of your questions up front as possible.
I want to tell you something before I sign off. I may sound like a broken record but you have to let me say it again as we embark on this wild journey together. You have impacted my walk with Christ. This community has given me encouragement when I was nearly down for the count. I am more disciplined because you are here. You make a difference in my life. You make me think, and laugh, and study. You offer me company when I am lonely. You stir me up to love and good works. You are used of God in my life to make this hard world a better place.
Thatās what Siestaville is for. Women walking alongside women on our way Home, stirring up excitement toward that great day. SSMT is just one way we do that. AND ITāS A WHOPPER. Letās do it, Sisters, starting this coming January 1st! Iāll talk to you again about other things before then but I donāt want the New Year to take you by surprise.
Your blog mama loves you.
