**Siesta Celebration is January 20-21, 2012**
Hey, Sweet Things!
Finally, August 1st! I’m always so glad to see it come so that it can GO. But it’s not just the end of a long, hot summer for everybody. It’s also the last couple of weeks of summer vacation. Those of you with school-age children will soon find yourself back in carpool lines and going over spelling words. In just a couple of weeks, Jackson will start kindergarten and will catch our whole family by surprise even though we’ve known it was coming for five and a half years. We just cannot fathom it. We have a picture framed in our bedroom that I see everyday with Keith and I cuddling him between us when he was just a few hours old, and we brand-spanking-new grandparents are kissing over his head. Something was reborn in that couple of 25+ years that day. Our interests have always tended to be different and were getting increasingly so, but, that cold February afternoon in Dallas, Texas, we somersaulted right back into one another and tumbled into a well of love with a seven pound man-child.
Keith and I got to have Jackson and Annabeth Friday night while Curtis and Amanda went to dinner and a movie. They’d been gone for 10 days to Wyoming and, even though we’d seen them at a Mexican food restaurant the day they got home, we’d not had them to ourselves yet. We made a date right away. They delight us to no end and cause us to laugh until our sides split. Don’t get the idea there’s no work involved but investments don’t get better than this one. We have real, live conversation over dinner these days and, when you’re grandparents, not a single word gets wasted on you. All of it’s solid gold. Jackson told us at the dinner table Friday night while stuffing a piece of warm French bread into his mouth that butter is his “temptutation.” And, sure enough, it was dripping off of his chin and looked so good that we all shared that same temptutation and gave right on in to it.
We have an empty room in our house right now because we wanted Melissa and Colin to have her bedroom furniture and it’s turned into the perfect playroom. Nothing like an empty room to fire up the imagination. Jackson and I built an obstacle course Friday night that ended with a dizzying spin in my swiveling desk chair. It was so much fun. Amanda and Curtis walked through the door at 10:15 and we were all four still up in the kitchen, Paw Paw popping popcorn on the stove. It’s so good to have the Jones’s home. Melissa and Colin have been out of town for a week, too, and I can hardly wait to get my hands on them. They’re flying home from California this very moment. Most of the time they were out of cell phone range so we’ll have plenty to catch up on.
On to the business at hand! Our year is flying by! It’s time to check in with our fifteenth verses for our Siesta Scripture Memory Team. For some reason I’ve seen the word “gentleness” turn up a number of times in my Scripture reading lately so I’ve decided to choose a memory verse that makes especially important use of it. Here goes:
Beth, Houston. “Brothers and sisters, if a person is discovered in some sin, you who are spiritual restore such a person in a spirit of gentleness. Pay close attention to yourselves, so that you are not tempted too.” Galatians 6:1 The NET Bible
Restoration is one of the most powerful, intentional works of the Cross of Christ. Let’s never refuse anyone his or her right to be restored. Here’s to a little gentleness in a harsh world. Everyone could use some.
Stay in the Word, Siestas! You are so loved here!
1 Peter 5:6-7
New Living Translation (NLT)
6 So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. 7 Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.
laura -burbank
Phil 4:4 (kjv)
Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice
You will be firmly founded in righteousness. You will stay far from oppression because you won’t fear, far from terror because it won’t come near you. Isa 54:14 CEB
Beth and Tori, Waco, TX
“He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed, miracles that cannot be counted.”
Job 9:10 NIV
Maria – New York, NY
Jeremiah 33: ESV
Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.
Deborah, Katy, TX
You hem me in behind and before,
and you lay your hand upon me. (Psalm 139:5 NIV)
Amanda, Katy, TX
You hem me in behind and before,
and you lay your hand upon me. (Psalm 139:5 NIV)
Kara, Houston, TX
You hem me in behind and before,
and you lay your hand upon me. (Psalm 139:5 NIV)
Sarah, Blairsville, GA. “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Eph 4:32 NIV
Becky – Cynthiana
2 Timothy 1:7 NIV – For God did not give us a spirit of timidity but of power and of love and self discipline.
“Psalm 52:8 NIV
“But I am like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God I trust in God’s unfailing love for ever and ever”
Bubs
Rochester, MI
Psalm 40:1 (NIV) Do not withhold your mercy from me, O Lord; may your love and your truth always protect me.
Mary, Pierre, SD
3:20 Now to him who by the power that is working within us 45 is able to do far beyond 46 all that we ask or think, 3:21 to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Mary, Pierre, SD
3:20 Now to him who by the power that is working within us 45 is able to do far beyond 46 all that we ask or think, 3:21 to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. The Net Bible
Ann – Sardis, AL
Rom 5:2 ESV Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
“Keep my Decrees and follow them. I am the Lord, who makes you Holy.” Leviticus 20:8 NIV
Chrystie C.
Piedmont, SC
“As for me, may I never boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of that cross, my interest in this world has been crucified, and the world’s interest in me has also died.” Galatians 6:14 NLT
Psalm 119: 114
You are my shelter and my shield;
I put my hope in Your word.
Poorna, Indianapolis: “Yet he [Abraham] did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.” ~Romans 4:20-21 (NIV)
Katie, Houston. “Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.” James 4:17 NLT
Jessie, Meriden, CT
“Because of Christ and our faith in Him, we can now come fearlessly into God’s presence, assured of His glad welcome.”
Ephesians 3:12, NLT
Helen from Broxton, GA.
The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows). (John 10:10 AMP)
Tangila, Pearland TX
“Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.” (James 5:16 NASB)
Psalm 59:16
But I will sing of your strength in the morning I will sing of your love;
for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble.
Valerie, SC
I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”
Psalm 91:2, NIV
Lanita from Lake Jackson, TX
Psalm 119:10
I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands.
May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed. Ps. 20:4 NIV
Linda, Delray Beach, FL
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.”
John 1:1-2 NIV
Cheryl
Leesburg, IN
Look to the Lord and his strength, seek His face always.
II Chronicles 16:11 NIV
Denise, Hernando Beach
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.
Ephesians 3:16-17 NIV
Your word is a lamp to my feet
and a light to my path.
(Psalm 119:105 NIV)
Emily
Fuquay-Varina, NC
“When there are many words, transgressions are unavoidable, but he who restrains his lips is wise.”
Proverbs 10:19 NAS
Janet, Lenoir, NC. “He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams.” Psalm 23:2 NLT
Dawn Lafayette, LA
Galatians 3:3 NIV
Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort?
Tracey Knight ~ Arkadelphia AR
Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. James 3:10 NIV
Sharon Meekins
Richmond, VA
“God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them.”
Hebrews 6:10 NIV
Judy from Lake Charles, LA
“At daybreak, Lord, You hear my
voice: at daybreak, I plead my case to you
and watch expectantly.”
Psalm 5:3 (HSC)
Mary, NH
Hebrews 12:1-2
Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith…
But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. 1 Peter 4:13
Brenda, Denton,TX: “Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the LORD has been good to you.” Psalm 118:7 NIV
Jane, Greenwood, SC
The Lord is good, a strong refuge when trouble comes. He is close to those who trust Him. Nahum 1:7 (NLT)
Diane, Lumpkin
The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? “I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind to reward each person according to their conduct, according to what their deeds deserve.”
Jeremiah 17:9-10
Megan–Kansas City, KS
Romans 5:8 NIV
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered:
Blessed is the man to whom the LORD shall not impute sin. Rom 4: 7 – 8 NKJV
April, Hume
So we have come to know and believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 1 John 4:16 ESV
Emily from Birmingham, AL (formerly Washington, DC) … “But you are a shield around me, O Lord; you bestow glory on me and lift up my head.” Psalms 3:3 NIV
Fresno, CA
“And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God.”
Colossians 1:10 NIV
Teresa, Orange City
It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery. Galatians 5:1
Psalm 37:4-5 NAS Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him and He will do it.
Karyn, Elberfeld IN: (8)For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; (9)not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. Ephesians 2:8-9 (NASB)
Mary Beth, St. Louis
“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.”
Romans 15:13 NIV