Hey, Sweet Things!
You guys are so much fun. Thanks for getting excited with us about the app. I’m just thinking about how this whole technology thing was in the mind of God centuries ago when He inscribed His words on the sacred page through the pens of men. Too much to wrap our minds around, isn’t it? He is the One who knows “the end from the beginning,” and “from ancient times, what is still to come.” He says, “My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.” (Isaiah 46:10)
At the moment I’m typing up this post, we have a whopping 9250 entries under Verse 1. Never in my wildest imagination did I picture this. I was pretty blown away by our strong and steady couple of thousand in 2009. Keep in mind that the 9250 is not an exact reflection of participants because there are some replies under comments, like, “I’m copying yours!” and “I’ve never even heard that verse!” I’m not going put a restriction on that because community in Christ is what makes Siestaville work. We do know, however, that way over 8000 are participating because that many women ordered spirals or downloaded the artwork. Others who are participating grabbed their own spirals the easier way from the store. I also want you to picture the many preadolescent girls we have on our team. Don’t you remember loving stickers and pens and school supplies when you were that age? I should have known they’d take to the spirals. Just close your eyes and imagine them reciting some of the verses dearest to your heart. Many of us have lived long enough to know by life experience what they are reciting by faith. It’s such a precious thought to me. They will find Jesus faithful just as we have. Yep, we have junior Siestas but we also have plenty of senior Siestas which delights me just as much. Our joy in standing shoulder-to-shoulder with this mighty band of women is indescribable. I wonder how many football fields we would stretch across. Whew. For just a split second I saw us all in my bright red college drill team uniforms. Scratch that thought.
OK, before I call for your second verses, many of you asked for the exact date of the SSMT celebration next January. I double-checked the weekend with Sabrina and it’s January 20-21, 2012 from Friday evening until Saturday noon. Of course, we’ll get you the proper information starting early next Fall but, if you think you might want to come, put it down on your calendar, start saving your expense money, and plan to memorize your darling little head off. The event itself is our gift to you and your ticket in is your well-used spiral (of either kind).
Are you ready for SSMT Verse 2? I’m giving you a heads-up that I plan to target a lot of James verses this year so, while I’m still going to tell you mine each time, I’ll also suggest a good alternative for those of you who could use an additional idea. Remember! Limit your comments to Name, City, Verse, and Translation. Here’s mine:
Beth, Houston. “My brothers and sisters, do not show prejudice if you possess faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ.” James 2:1 The NET Bible
Here’s an alternative I really love and memorized a couple of years ago. My dear coworker, Diane, is memorizing it right now so it’s washing back over my mind:
Many, O LORD my God, are the wonders You have done. The things You planned for us no one can recount to You; were I to speak and tell of them, they would be too many to declare.” Psalm 40:5 NIV
And that, O Lord, is the gospel truth.
OK, Sisters! Bring on Verse 2!
I pray that Christ is so pleased. I feel in my soul that He is.
Have a great weekend!
‘Be still, and know that I am God ~ I will be exalted among the Nations, I will be exalted in the Earth. The Lord Almighty is with us!’ Ps. 46:10,11a NIV
Kaye, Stone Mountain
“Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous fall.”
Psalm 55:22 NIV
Jeanine, Athens, NY
Isaiah 46:4 (NIV)
“Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.”
Isaiah 26:8 (New International Version)
Yes, LORD, walking in the way of your laws,
we wait for you; your name and renown
are the desire of our hearts.
Kim from Springfield
…DON’T WORRY about ANYTHING, BUT in EVERYTHING, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your request be made known to God! Philippians 4: 6 NIV
Anna, Limehouse.
Canada.
“I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul makes its boast in the Lord, let the humble hear and be glad. O magnify the Lord with me and let us exalt His name toegther.”
Psalm 34vs 1 to 3.
Lisa- Arley,AL
Jeremiah 29:13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all or yur heart.
correction – all of your heart. NIV
Rachel, Ft. Smith, AR: “Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.” Prov. 12:18 (NIV)
Debbie-Highland, MI
I make known the end from the beginning,
from ancient times, what is still to come.
I say, ‘My purpose will stand,and I will do all that I please.’ Isa. 46:10 NIV
Lisa, Calgary
Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. Colossians 4:2 NIV (Thanks to my beautiful, wonderful sister… LOVE this verse)
Barbara, Winnipeg, Canada
And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ.
Ephesians 3:17-18 NIV
Michelle, Sylacauga, AL: I desire to do your will, O my God, your law is within my heart. Psalm 40:8 NIV.
Sherry, Dayton, NV ~ “Do all things without murmuring or disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world.” ~ Philippians 2:14-15 NKJV
Julie, Carlsbad, Ca- “The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners….” Isaiah 61:1 NIV
Samantha Amdall
Menomonie, WI.
Jeremiah 29:13 NASB
“…and you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for me with all your heart.”
Michele, Minneapolis, MN
“Cast your cares on the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous be shaken.” -Psalm 55:22 NIV
Amber in Conroe, TX.
Rev 17:14 (ESV)
They will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.
Rev 17:14
Shelly, Nashville
“For thus said the LORD GOD, the Holy one of Israel, “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.'” Isaiah 30:15
Randi, Knoxville, TN
NIV- 1 Samuel 17:47- All those who gathered here will know that it is not by the sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.
Kim, Charlotte, NC – “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ.” Philippians 3:7 NASB
Sara Haserot, Castro Valley, CA Deuteronomy 31:8 NIV
“The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”
The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. Psalms 24:1 KJV
Jamie Sulphur LA: blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you falsely, and say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Matthew 5:11 NIV
Sheila, Tampa
Psalm 24:4-5 “Show me your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior and my hope is in You all day long.”
Lindsay ~ Bangor
“I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out–plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.”
~Jeremiah 29:11 Message
Patty, Lecanto, What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, Who can be against us? Romans 8:31 NIV
Anna, Sullivan, MO
“Hear my voice when I call, O Lord, be merciful to me and answer me. My heart says of you, ‘Seek His face!’ Your face, Lord, I will seek.” Psalm 27:7-8 NIV
(O LORD, let this be true of me! Keep me focused on seeking your face!)
Paula, Brownwood, Tx
Hebrews 4:12. NET
For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any double-edged sword, piercing even to the point of dividing soul from spirit, and joints from marrow; it is able to judge the desires and thoughts of the heart.
Belinda, Nacogdoches, TX:
Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another and all the more as you see the Day approaching. Hebrews 10:25 (NIV)
Val, Waco
Many are the plans in a man’s heart but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.
Proverbs 19:21 NIV
Kelly Temple, Texas
I Corinthians 10:31 “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” NIV
Jill, Noblesville. “Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.” 1 John 2:6, NIV.
Robin, Littleton “Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear.” Ephesians 4:29 NASB
Marla, Yakima, WA
For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:7 NKJV
Sallye, San Angelo Only take heed to yourselves, and diligently keep yourself, lest you forget the things your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. And teach them to your children and grandchildren. Deuteronomy 4:9 NKJV
Brandee from White House, TN
“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NKJV
Cherie, Davidson, NC
Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.
James 4:10 NIV
Melissa, Sulphur, LA
As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Ephesians 4:1-2 (NIV)
Sharon
South Charleston, Ohio
Put on the full armor of God so that you can stand against the tactics of the Devil. For our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world powers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens.
Ephesians 6:11-12 (HCSB)
Diana MO
2 Timothy 1:7
For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power , love and self discipline.
Becky – tacoma
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:5 NIV
Heidi Tracht from Nampa, ID:
“Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up” (Deuteronomy 6:5-7, NIV).
Jennifer, Charleston, SC: You crown the year with Your goodness, and Your paths drip with abundance. Psalm 65:11 NKJV
Kelly Snodgrass, Rogersville, TN
Psalm 86.11 ESV
Teach me your way, O LORD, that I may walk in your truth; unite my heart to fear your name.
Cheryl, Cleveland, GA
Ps. 62:6
“He alone is my rock and my salvation, He is my fortress, I will not be shaken.”
Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, “This is the way; walk in it”. Isaiah 30:21 NIV
Jessica, Katy, Tx
‘But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wiings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.’ Isaiah 40:31 NKJ
Rebecca
Julian, NC
“The Lord is my light and my salvation–whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life–of whom shall I be afraid?”
Psalm 27:1-2 NIV
Tammy, Gadsden,AL
“For I am the Lord your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear, I will help you.”
Isaiah 41:13 NIV
Kathleen, Paducah, KY
Show me your ways, O Lord,
teach me your paths;
guide me in your truth and teach me,
for You are God my Savior,
and my hope is in You all day long.
Psalm 25:4-5 NIV