Hey, all of you lovely things! It’s nearly Spring and we’re all the way to verse 6! You are doing fabulously, Sisters. We are still THOUSANDS strong on this Scripture memory team. Thousands of Swords drawn and in the hands of women who want to love and not hate, build up and not destroy, rejoice because our God is faithful and not throw ourselves in the nearest ditch because life is hard. And, boy, is it.
I think God has given me something that could be a tad fun to do this time around. Since we started off the week here on the blog talking about clothes, what do you say we end it that way? For those of you who want to come alongside this theme with me, I’m throwing out three different Scriptures about clothing ourselves. You are still welcome to do your own selections as always but, just in case some of you were still in decision-mode and this sounded fitting (pardon the pun), come along with me into the closet of Scripture and let’s come out some well-dressed women of God! I’m offering the first two selections to you in two different versions so you can choose which one resonates most.
Colossians 3:12-13 (NIV) — (As you can see, this one includes two Scriptures. You’d only need to choose one of these for Verse 6 but I thought just maybe somebody could use a fresh, strong exhortation to forgive as you’ve been forgiven. I don’t know about you but that verse is never wasted on me. If you’d like, you could do the first verse for #6 and the second verse for #7.)
12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.
12Â Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with a heart of mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, 13Â bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if someone happens to have a complaint against anyone else. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also forgive others.
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Now for the second set of verses on clothing ourselves. Sometimes we need to clothe ourselves in humility before we try clothing ourselves to no avail with compassion. Our pride is usually reason #1 that we don’t feel compassionate. At least it has been for me.
1 Peter 5:5 (NIV)
In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.”
1 Peter 5:5 (The NET Bible)
In the same way, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. And all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.
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And you’ve just GOT to love Luke 24:49 in view of our clothing theme this week! Here’s the third selection out of the closet of Scripture, straight from the mouth of our Lord Jesus Christ:
Luke 24:49 NIV
 I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.
Luke 24:49 The NET Bible
And look, I am sending you what my Father promised. But stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”
Power from on high! Bless His most holy Name.
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So there you have it! Three gorgeous jackets to wear. Which one do you need to wrap around you most right now? Do you need to be clothed with compassion? Humility? Power?? He’s got you covered. But just like we do each morning, we’ve got to get dressed on purpose.
Here’s what I’ve been thinking about in view of our clothing theme. Remember all those jackets in my 5+ Year Club? Several of them I’d had for ten solid years and I’m still wearing them. When it comes to tangible clothing, that can be good stewardship. But sometimes we can do the same kind of thing spiritually and emotionally and it’s not pretty. We can keep wearing the same old jacket…
…of anger
…or of bitterness
…or of negativity
…or of chronic disappointment
…or of sensuality
…or of desperation
and we’re so used to wearing it that we throw it on automatically, without giving a thought to the fact that we really could have a whole new wardrobe. It might be time we changed the way we dressed. And this whole new incredibly expensive wardrobe of compassion, humility, and anointing has already been paid for. And it’s in your size and mine.
Yep. I’m in the mood for some new clothes.
Beth, Houston. Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with a heart of mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if someone happens to have a complaint against anyone else. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also forgive others. Colossians 3:12-13 The NET Bible
OK, Sisters! Let’s have it! What are you memorizing this time around???
PS. LifeWay Women’s All Access Blog did the funniest thing. They dug into the Living Proof Live archives and pulled out pictures of every single one of those jackets in Monday’s post. Some of you might get a kick out of it. Here’s the link: The Proof Is In The Jacket.
Tags: Scripture Memory 2013
You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Matthew 5:14 NIV
Kat, Charlotte NC ~ I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Galations 2:20 NIV
Angie Edwards
Severance, CO
Romans 15:13
“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.” (NIV)
Kim Cliatt
Loganville, GA
“Be sure to fear the Lord and serve Him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things He has done for you.”
1 Samuel 12: 24
NIV
Ps 112:8 (NIV) His heart is secure, he will have no fear; in the end he will look in triumph on his foes.
Catrina, Clarksville. “But you, O Lord, are a shield around me; you are my glory, the one who holds my head high.” Psalms 3:3 (NLT)
Nikki from McGregor, Texas. “Has not the one God made you? You belong to him in body and spirit. And what does the one God seek? Godly offspring. So be on your guard, and do not be unfaithful to the wife of your youth.” Malachi 2:15, NIV.
Carol, Littlestown, PA -Do nothing out of selfich ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.= Philippians 2:3 (ESV)
Laura Berg in Carlsbad, CA
“He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God – children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.”
John 1:10-13 NIV
Ashley Edwards- Dallas, Ga
“Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God- children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.”
John 1:12-13 (NIV)
Sandy, San Antonio, Tx
Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life. Psalm 139:23-24 NLT
Psalm 109:21-22 “But you, O GOD my Lord, deal on my behalf for your name’s sake; because your steadfast love is good, deliver me! For I am poor and needy, and my heart is stricken within me.”
Lisa, Wichita,KS verse 2 this time
(1) It is good to give thanks to the LORD, to sing praises to Your name, O Most High; (v.2) to declare Your steadfast love in the morning, and Your faithfulness by night. Psalm 92:1-4 ESV Â
Ruth, New Hampshire.
“Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”
I Corinthians 15:58 (NIV)
Just kidding about that last post! That was my memory verse from Feb 15!! 🙂
Catrina, Clarksville.
“Wisdom is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her.” Proverbs 3:15 (NLT)
Marrissa, Orlando, FL
Colossians 3:1-2
“So if you have been raised with the Messiah, seek what is above, where the Messiah is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on what is above, not on what is on Earth.”
-CSB
Breanna Dennis
Belle Vernon, PA
“For jealousy and selfishness are not God’s kind of wisdom. Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and demonic.”
James 3:15 NLT
Teresa, Orange City. Philippians 4:6-7
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (NIV)
Nancy, Junction City, Ar.
“And He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.” 2 Corinthians 5:15 NKJ
Phil. 1:27a NLT
Above all, you must live as citizens of Heaven. Conducting yourself in a manner worthy of the Good News about Christ.,,
Michelle – Austin, TX
She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life. Proverbs 31:12 NIV
Gena Carter
Elgin, Texas
Isaiah 25:1 (NIV)
Lord, you are my God;
I will exalt you and praise your name,
for in perfect faithfulness
you have done wonderful things,
things planned long ago.
Diana Anderson, Greenville, Kentucky Hebrews 10:23. Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm., for God can be trusted to keep his promise.
Amanda from Fairbanks, AK
“Proclaiming your love in the morning and your faithfulness at night.” Psalm 92:2 NIV
Yvonne
Louisville, KY
Hebrews 12:28-29 (NIV)
Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thanful and so worhip God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.
Sadie
Louisville, KY
John 14:6 (HCSB)
Jesus told them I am the way,the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Suzy, Wheelersburg. OH: As for God, His way is perfect; the word of the Lord is flawless. He is a shield for all who take refuge Him.
Kellye. Knoxville. TN.
“I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.” – Luke 29:49 (NIV)
Marci, from Florence, SC
“And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus. By His death, Jesus opened a new and life giving way through the curtain into the Most Holy Place. And since we have a great High priest who rules over God’s house, let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting Him. For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water.”
Hebrews 10:19-22
Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!
Psalm 133:1 ESV
Ann, Gainesville
Romans 12:12 NIV
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
“For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.” ~ Deut. 4:24 (NKJV)
Nan, Greenville, SC
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.
Col 3:23 NIV
Alycia from Greenville, TX: “[She] will have no fear of bad news; [her] heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord.” (Psalm 112:7 NIV), emphasis mine.
Betty Stephens, Austin, Texas Remember, O Lord, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old. Psalm 25:6 NIV
You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you because he trust you. Isaiah 26:3 esv
Laura from Chisago City, MN
Luke 12:15 NIV
“Then he said to them, ‘Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.'”
Katie Euken
Muscatine, IA
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart, my portion forever. Psalm 73:26 HCSB
Bonnie, Arden, N.C.
“The Lord your God himself will go over before you.”
Deuteronomy 31:3a ESV
Valerie
Clinton, Me
Romans 8:38-39 (NIV)
“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Lala Ball Cooper from Ruston, Louisiana, says:
“But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.” 1 John 2: 20 KJV
“He who walks with integrity walks securely,but he who preverts his ways will become known.” Proverbs 10:9 NKJV
Terri, Natchitoches, LA
To declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night, (Psalms 92:2 ESV)
Debbie, Kokomo, IN
The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight In you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing. Zephaniah 3:17 NIV
Kim Warren, ME: So the king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and threw him into the lions’ den. The king said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you!” Daniel 6:16 HCSB
Karen Edlund
Rochester, MN
2 Corinthians 5:7 NLT
“For we live by believing and not by seeing.”
Julie Victorville
The LORD will keep you from all evil;
he will keep your life.
The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in
from this time forth and forevermore.
Psalm 121:7-8 ESV
Miriam from Columbia, SC
“For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed – a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” Romans 1:17 (NIV)
Sarah from Woodsboro, MD
Matthew 5:5 MSG- You’re blessed when you’re content with just who you are- no more, no less. That’s the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can’t be bought.
Rachel
Wellington FL
Jud 1:2 Mercy unto you, and peace, and love, be multiplied.
Dawn, Dubuque, IA
“It is good to praise the LORD and make music to your name, O Most High, to proclaim your love in the morning and your faithfulness at night.” NIV Psalm 92: 1