Finally!!!!!!!!
Are you ready, Sisters? Do you hear me cheering?? I have never been more excited about doing this.
I am on the verge of doing about 10 backward flips on my hardwoods. I said on the verge. Not quite doing it. Well, I’m doing it in my heart. That counts for a lot around here.
SO LET’S DO THIS THING! Now, promise me this! Promise me you will read this entire post before you leave a single comment. I know you’re about to burst and I am, too, and, for that reason, I’ll keep it as short as possible. It’s so important that we get our ground rules firmly established so that we’ll have a fabulous experience. Remember, hundreds of our participants this time around are brand new so let’s make sure everybody’s on the same page.
A few things you absolutely MUST KNOW:
*Your comment to this post is your official registration onto the team. Everybody starts at Verse 1 no matter when they begin the process. (Word gets around and we often still have people joining in with us even in March and April. We don’t mind how late they begin as long as they can catch up, memorize their verses, and document each one of them on the proper post as an official participant.) This launch post will remain right here in this January 1st 2013 slot all year long and each new person will need to make her first entry here. This is how we track who signed up when we get to the end of the year and it’s party time.
*Your comment must be strictly limited to the following 5 pieces of information: name, city, verse, reference, translation. I’ll say it slower now for those brand new to the process:
Your name (or first name if you prefer), city. Your verse for that two-week period written all the way out, the reference for it (where it is found in the Bible: Book, chapter, verse) AND the *translation you’ve taken it from.
(*For instance, is the Bible you’ve pulled the passage from a KJV, an NAS, HCSB, NIV or NLT? Or is it The NET Bible, The Message or another similar version? The translation almost always appears on the outside spine of a Bible. If not, you will find it on the first few pages. If you’re looking on line, you’ll get an option to choose a translation. Do so as it speaks most clearly to you. We aren’t fussing over translations here in our memory work. You also do not need to stick with one version throughout.)
Just those 5 pieces of information! They will comprise every comment to this post. And the moment you start scrolling through all of them, you’ll see why. Page after page after page after page of Scripture and each one telling a reader exactly where to find it. It is the most powerful sight to behold. This invites people who are not participating in the memory work to reap tremendous benefits by just reading the comments and taking strength from verses they may not have known existed. This way it has the potential to bless our whole community or any weary visitor to our blog. I’ve been in crises before and gotten on the comment pages and scrolled from Scripture to Scripture and practically wept with relief and fresh courage or revelation. That’s why it’s best to keep the SSMT comments as succinct as possible. If you’ve got an exclamation in you that you just can’t hold back, you can occasionally make the briefest comment like, “I really need this one!” or “I’m sharing so-and-so’s verse” but, please, no more than that.
Comments other than the verse-entries on the 1st and 15th of each month can’t be approved. I’m so sorry and I hope you’ll understand. Thousands of us will be doing this together so the moderation process is monumental from the administrative side. The verses will be all Lindsee and I can handle in the comments for our two SSMT days per month. Keep in mind: NONE OF THESE INSTRUCTIONS PERTAIN TO THE OTHER BLOG POSTS HERE AT LPM. We will be completely free to do our regular thing on all other posts! The really stringent rules are only for the 1st and 15th of each month in 2013 and in reference to Siesta Scripture Memory Team. I hope that makes sense!
*Your comment may take 24 hours to get moderated (or posted if you’re new to the blog process) and sometimes a bit longer if it falls over a weekend. We try our hardest to stay up with it but on those days when 500+ come in at once, it’s quite a task! But we love it! It just requires a little patience on all sides! Before you assume that your entry somehow vanished and you’re tempted to write it again, give it one full day and see if it shows up. Keep track of what time you posted it and double check the comments around that same time. The accidental repeats make it much harder to track participation through the course of the year so always double check. If you don’t find it a day later, by all means, post it again!
*Remember that you get to choose your own verse! That’s really important! The ease with which you can memorize a verse is greatly impacted by how much it means to you. The more you need it or want it, the more you’ll absorb it. If you come up dry at times, no problem! You can either share my verse or another in the comment line that really speaks to you.
*PRAY that God will bless you in this endeavor and will enable you to memorize His Word! Ask continually throughout the entire year! When I get stuck and frustrated that I can’t get my words in order, if I’ll stop what I’m doing and ask God to supernaturally infuse me and help me to concentrate, you would not believe how quickly a breakthrough will come.
Are you about to stuff a sock in my mouth?? I’m about 2 seconds from stuffing one in my own mouth. Melissa gave me two new pair of boot socks for Christmas so at least I have fresh choices.
All right, already! Here goes mine! In honor of our process ahead and how willing the Holy Spirit is to help us…
Beth from Houston Texas, But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. John 14:26 NIV84
Here’s one more alternative if you’ve never memorized it for a new year! I just love it for January 1st:
You crown the year with Your bounty, and Your carts overflow with abundance. Psalm 65:11 NIV
May God’s grace abound to you, Sweet Thing. WELCOME! We have such a fabulous challenge ahead of us. GOD, GRANT US YOUR GOOD FAVOR!
So…what are you waiting for??? SIGN IN WITH VERSE ONE!
PS. I thought you guys might find it a bit amusing that I brought in the first 300 comments in the CAR on the way to the airport to catch my Atlanta flight for Passion 2013. Laughing. You keep your blog mama busy. I love you so!
Tags: Scripture Memory 2013
Ryan from Sussex, Wi
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and Petition, with Thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
Philippians 4:6 NIV
Cher from Toledo,Ohio, Psalm 40:8 NIV84 “I desire to do Your will, O my God; Your law is within my heart.”
Lydia Hutchison from Memphis,
” And now dear brothers and sisters, let me say one more thing as I close this letter. Fix your thoughts on what is true and honorable and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”
Philippians 4:8 NLT
Jeannine from Eagan, MN
They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony: they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.
Revelation 12:11
Oops – its the NIV
So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 2 Corinthians 4:18 NIV
Nicole from Sturgis, MS: “And how has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me?” Luke 1:43 NASB
Kim, East Granby, CT: For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him. Philippians 2:13 NLT
“See, I am creating a new heavens and a new earth; the former things shall not be remembered nor come to mind. Instead, shout for joy and be glad forever in what I am creating. Indeed, I am creating Jerusalem to be a joy and its people a delight. I will rejoice in Jerusalem and exult in My people. No longer shall the sound of weeping be heard there, or the sound of crying.”
Isaiah 65: 17-19 NAB
Olympia, WA
“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!”
Philippians 4:4 NIV
Tiffany from Tyler, TX
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for The Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.
Joshua 1:9 NIV
Maureen Guilbault, Pascoag, RI
Do all things without murmuring and arguing.
Philippians 2:14
NRSV
Jody from Locust Grove, GA
“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” Isaiah 26:3KJV
Tracy from Lake St. Louis, Missouri
“Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails.” Proverbs 19:21 NIV
Nicole Turnquist from Selden, NY –
“Therefore, the Lord longs to be gracious to you,
And therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you.
For the Lord is a God of justice;
How blessed are those who long for Him.”
-Isaiah 30:18 (NASB)
Melanie from Griffin, GA
Teach me thy way, O LORD, and lead me in a plain path, because of mine enemies.
Psalm 27:11 KJV
Deborah from Port St. Joe, FL – Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in Heaven may forgive you your sins. Mark 11:24-25 NIV
Cathy Laker from Warsaw, IN
Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you. Psalm 9:10 NIV
Charissa – West Chester, OH
Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.
Philippians 4:6 NLT
Andrea, Saskatchewan Canada
For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.
Isaiah 43:19, NLT
Cindy K from Rock Hill, SC
Before the mountains were born or You brought forth the whole world from everlasting to everlasting You are God. Psalm 90:2 (NIV 2011)
May the LORD make you increase, both you and your children. May you be blessed by the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. Psalm 115:14-15 (NIV-1984)
Lynn in Frankfurt, Germany
“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
Stacy from Bowling Green, KY. God the Father knew you and chose you long ago, and his Spirit made you holy. As a result, you have obeyed him and have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ. May God give you more and more grace and peace. 1 Peter 1:2, NLT
Kristin, Panama City, FL
No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised.
Rom. 4:20,21 ESV
Joyce Costopoulos, Okeechobee FL
Jesus replied, “Love The Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind”. This is the first and greatest commandment,”. Matthew 22: 37 – 38. NIV
Katie, Charleston SC
“This is what the LORD says— he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters, “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.”
Isaiah 43:16, 18-19 NIV
Cheryl, Coffeyville, KS.
“And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love.” 2 Jn 6 NIV84
Claudia, Brunswick, GA
I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in Him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13, NLT
Ambur from Fulton, MO ‘Know also that wisdom is sweet to your soul; if you find it, there is a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off. Prov. 24:14 NIV
Teri from Aledo, Texas “being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform.” Roma’s 4:21 (NKJV)
Ashley Sullens
Kings Mountain, NC
Nehemiah 13:31b -NKJV
Remember me, O my God, for good.
Laura from Hudson, Illinois:
Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.
Isaiah 43:18,19 NIV
Kristen Oestreich from Moose Factory, Ontario. “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45 NIV84
Stacey *Arkansas*
Teach me to do your will for you are my God.
May your gracious Spirit lead me forward on a firm footing.
(NLT) Psalm 143:10
Circleville, Ohio
Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is Gods will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 NIV
Deb Knepp in Bremen, In
God, investigate my life; get all the facts firsthand. I’m an open book to You; even from a distance, you know what I’m thinking.
Psalms 139:1 The message
Linda, Mandeville, LA “A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones.” Proverbs 14:30, NIV
Debbie from Nashville, TN, I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. John 8:12b NIV84
Jennifer Ruttan~Fishers~Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Psalm 51:10 NIV
Julie, Nixa, MO
James 1:12 God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.
New Living Translation
Brenda from Oneonta, AL
So she called the name of the Lord Who spoke to her, You are a God of seeing, for she said, Have I [not] even here [in the wilderness] looked upon Him Who sees me [and lived]? Or have I here also seen [the future purposes or designs of] Him Who sees me? (Genesis 16:13 AMP)
Tiffany from Dallas, GA
But you, O Lord, sit enthroned forever, your renown endures through all generations. You will arise and have compassion on Zion, for it is time to show favor to her; the appointed time has come. Psalm 102:12-13 NIV
Janna from the GTA, Ontario – For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. 2 Tim 1:7, NIV
Cindy – Houston, TX
‘A heart at peace gives life to the bones, but envy rots the bones.’
Proverbs 14:30 NIV
Stephanie, Winder, GA
Isaiah 41:3 NIV
But those who hope on The Lord will renew their strength.
Kandi from Tallahassee, FL. I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you. Psalm 32:8 NIV
Lisa Campo from Blue Bell, PA
“See, I am creating a new heavens and a new earth; the former things shall not be remembered nor come to mind. Instead, shout for joy and be glad forever in what I am creating. Indeed, I am creating Jerusalem to be a joy and its people a delight. I will rejoice in Jerusalem and exult in My people. No longer shall the sound of weeping be heard there, or the sound of crying.”
Isaiah 65: 17-19 NAB
Judy from Panama City, Fl
The LORD himself will go before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forget you. Don’t be afraid and don’t worry.
Deut 31:8 (NCV)
elaine from brea, ca
So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Isaiah 41:10, niv
Laura ~ Plainfield, IN
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.
Proverbs 3:5 NIV