Hey Siestas! 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! 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 you 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, “Siesta” is just an endearment for “Sister.” There’s no club to join and no person you need to become. If you’ve trusted Jesus as your personal Savior, you’re 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 we’d 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, “I’ll tell you what we are: We’re sistahs!” but spell-check switched it to “siestas.” It stuck and that’s been us ever since. We even liked the thought that its actual meaning is to take a nap. We’ll know we’ve been a place of divine intervention if we’re 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 “team” because that’s exactly what we are. We’re 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 don’t draw our swords to wound people, to convict our family members (God’s 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. Don’t be too cool for it. Remember, God’s Spirit is a fire. If we’re too cool, we can’t help but quench it. If cheesy works around here, we’re 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 “Siesta Scripture Memory Team.” If you’re not participating in SSMT, please know that we don’t limit the entire blog to our Scripture memory participants. It has a big presence on here because it’s twice a month but we still do lots of other things. Please don’t feel left out or forgotten.
OK, NOW FOR THE INSTRUCTIONS. You can cut and paste these somewhere if necessary. Here’s 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 Year’s Day 2013. You are committing to 24 Scriptures in 12 months. In previous years, I’ve found this to be a very doable pace. If you do much more, you’ll 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 you’re capable of doing in the power of the Spirit. Yes, it takes work but it’s tremendously fulfilling and the results are nearly immeasurable. Look at it this way: you’re 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 – NOT ONCE – have I ever known anyone to get to the end of a Scripture memory commitment and say that it didn’t make any real difference. Not a single time.
2.You are to enter the verse you’ve chosen to memorize for that two-week period within twenty-four hours of the post going up. I’ve been asked many times if it’s okay if you’re 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 don’t 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-no’s. It won’t 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 you’re having a bad day, all you have to do is scroll down a few hundred of your sisters’ Scripture selections and I promise you, you’ll get a word. It’s 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 other’s selections. Often you’ll see a sister say, “I’m doing the one so-and-so did last time!” (Yes, you can make a comment that brief. Those can be fun. Occasionally you’ll even see someone write, “For the sake of my marriage, I’ve chosen to memorize…” That’s 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 don’t all memorize the same Scripture. We’re 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 we’re told to demolish strongholds and take our thoughts captive to Christ. If you don’t have a verse on your mind or you’re 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 won’t because he’s 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. You’re free to do whatever works for you.) Keep it simple and meaningful. (If I were addressing you live, I’d 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, that’s a recommendation and not a rule. I’ve discovered that there’s something about writing it with your own hand and picturing it later in your own handwriting that helps it sink into your memory bank. I’m 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 they’re 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 don’t 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 can’t lose on this one. Either way, it has a powerful effect.
OK, I think that’s 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 there to serve you. Here’s 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, that’s 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 don’t 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 you’re one of those who genuinely struggles with memorization, just tell your memory buddy up front and she’ll give you all the grace you need. Tell her the gist of the verse as accurately as you possibly can. She’ll be able to tell that you are well acquainted with it and that the goal was accomplished even if you can’t say the verse word-for-word.
*Register for the event when the time comes. (December 1, 2013)
Whew! Have I exhausted you?? I’ve 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.
That’s 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 IT’S A WHOPPER. Let’s do it, Sisters, starting this coming January 1st! I’ll talk to you again about other things before then but I don’t want the New Year to take you by surprise.
Your blog mama loves you.
Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth
and under the earth and on the sea, and all
that is in them, singing:
TO HIM WHO SITS ON THE THRONE AND TO THE LAMB BE PRAISE AND HONOR AND GLORY AND POWER,
FOREVER AND EVER!
Rev. 5:13
Vicki
Sachse TX
18 For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends. NIV
Maria from Detroit
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Psalm 73:26 (NIV)
And you yourself must be an example to them by doing good works of every kind. Let everything you do reflect the integrity and seriousness of your teaching. Teach the truth so that your teaching can’t be criticized. Titus 2:7-8a
Mandeville, LA
Psalm 105:4 (NIV)
Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always.
And be sure of this; I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Matthew 28:20 NIV
“Therefore do not go on passing judgement before the time, but wait until the Lord comes who will both bring to light things hidden in the darkness and disclose the motives of men’s hearts; and then each man’s praise will come to him from God. ” 1 Corinthians 4:5
“He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God; Many will see and fear and will trust in the Lord.” Psalm 40:3 NASB
Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Eph 4:32
rose
Kathy
Epsom, New Hampshire
Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. (Hebrews 4:16 NIV)
Emily McLean
Maryville, MO
“I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.”
Psalm 27:13-14 NIV
Jodie Evans
Rock Port, MO
“My heart may fail and my spirit may grow weak but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever.”
Psalm 73:26 NLT
Jer. 17:7
But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him.
The Lord your God in your midst, The Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.” Zephaniah 3:17
Leah
Driftwood, TX
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
But those who trust in the LORD will find new strength.
They will soar high on wings like eagles.
They will run and not grow weary.
They will walk and not faint.
Isaiah 40:31
1 Chronicles 16:11 ESV
Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually!
1 John 3:16-18 NIV1984
“This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.
Michelle from San Antonio, TX
“Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.”
Colossians 3:23 NLT
Linda from Boerne,
“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
Galatians 2:20 NIV
A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control. Prov. 29:11 NIV
And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. Romans12:2
Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. Lamentations 3:22 (NIV)
If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.
James 1:5 NIV1984
Kim, Richmond, TX, Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life. Prov 4:23, (NIV)
Lisa from Huntington,Indiana
“Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative,God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.”
Matthew 6:33 msg
Carrie from Highlands Ranch, CO
But in your hearts set apart Chist as Lord. Always be ready to give an answer to everyone who ask you to give a reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect. 1 Peter 3:15 NIV
From Burnsville, MN
May God himself, the God who makes everything holy and whole, make you holy and whole, put you together-spirit, soul, and body- and keep you fit for the coming of our Master, Jesus Christ.
! Thessalonians 5:23 (Msg)
Share each others troubles & problems, in this way obey the law of Christ. Gal. 6:2 NLT
Rachel from Appleton, WI
James 3:3-12 NLT
“We can make a large horse go wherever we want by means of a small bit in its mouth. And a small rudder makes a hurge ship turn wherever the pilot chooses to go, even though the winds are strong. In the way, the tongue is a small thing that makes grand speeches. But a tiny spark can set a great forest on fire. And the tongue is a flame of fire. It is a whole world of wickedness, corrupting your entire body. It can set your whole life on fire, for it set on fire by hell itself.”
Psalm 27:1,4–
The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in His temple.
For God hath not given us the spirit of fear but of power and of love and of a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7
Lisa from Odon, IN
Matt 6:4
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Hebrews 13:8
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.”
Psalm 13:5
But I trust in your unfailing love;my heart rejoices in your salvation. NIV
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Matthew 28:19, ESV
Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old is passed away; behold, the new has come. 1 Corinthians 5:17 ESV
“If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight reign on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless.” James 1:26 NIV
Chrissy G
Flower Mound, TX
“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” 1 Corinthians 13:13 NIV
Sue, Standish, ME: “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” Romans 12:2 (NLT)
From Greenville, TX
Psalm 119:116-117 ESV
Uphold me according to your promise, that I may live,
and let me not be put to shame in my hope!
Hold me up, that I may be safe
and have regard for your statutes continually! (Psalm 119:116, 117 ESV)
April Nelson from Xenia Ohio: Philippians 2:13 HCSB
For it is God who is working in you, enabling you both to desire and to work out His good purpose.
Connie from Plano, TX–Ephesians 2:4-5–“But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions–it is by grace you have been saved.”
1 John 5:2 HCSB
This si how we know that we love God’s children when we love God and obey His commands.
Cowpens SC
“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless, I live: yet not I, but Christ liveth in me and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me.” Galathians 2:20
Janet Winter from Huffman, Texas
Psalm 86: 11-12
11 Teach me your way, Lord,
that I may rely on your faithfulness;
give me an undivided heart,
that I may fear your name.
12 I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart;
I will glorify your name forever.
Teresa
Platte City, MO
“Rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say, rejoice.”
Philippians 4:4 NASB
They must realize that the Sabbath is the Lord’s GIFT to you. That is why he gives you a two-day supply on the sixth day, so there will be enough for two days. Exodus 16:29 NLT
Wichita, KS
“I will thank the Lord because He is just; I will sing praise to the name of the Lord most high.” NLT
Dana from Round Hill, Virginia
Jeremiah 29:11
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.