Hey, Everybody!
I’m so happy to spend these next few minutes with you. I like to remind you in a writing season like this that I am thinking about you constantly even when it appears from your side of the screen as if we’re less in touch. As I study and write workday in and workday out, you are the first group that comes to my mind. Teacher’s pets if I’ve ever had any.Ā I’m chatting to you constantly right now as I peck away at the keyboard. You just can’t hear me. I’m smiling thinking about how those tables may turn in a little over a year for any of you that end up doing the Bible study. You’ll be talking back to me as we discuss various passages in your homework but I won’t be able to hear you either. What a weird and beautiful dynamic.
I had the biggest blast getting to see a whole bunch of you Siestas at our Eugene, Oregon Living Proof Live. I was shocked when I walked in that room right after the event and David Lowe (our good friend who subs for Rich when he’s out) already had you split into two groups for our picture-taking. It would be hard to over-blow how much I loved being in Oregon for our event. God brought together one of the most wonderful, enthusiastic, Jesus-seeking, gonna-get-a-word-or-else groups ever. One of my top ten favorite groups in all fifteen LPL years. I could have cried when it was over.
(I just happened to remember that I have a few pictures on my iPhone of various shots from this trip so I’ll pitch a few in here for those of you like me who love visuals.)
(In the above picture, we took that State-famous “O” for Oregon and made it into a few divine adjectives for an “Omnipotent,” and “Overflowing,” “Overcoming” and “Out-breaking” God.)
Try to wrap your mind around the fact that God incited 7300 women by His Spirit to attend that event. That was nearly twice what we would have expected in that part of the United States for a gathering of this kind. Travis, the praise team, and I knew within about 2 minutes that Jesus was planning to be there whether we came or not. We felt completely incidental to the whole thing. He has something huge stirring in the Northwest. I can’t quit thinking about it. I got a DM from my good friend, Louie Giglio, last Friday saying that he and Chris Tomlin and their team had just been to that part of the country and were blown away by what God was doing. We left feeling the same astonishment.
I got to spend a little more time in the area than I usually do because I couldn’t get a flight out on Saturday night. That meant several walks in several different parks.
This scene was walking distance from the Holiday Express where we stayed in Eugene. Your blog mama is in there but it’s kind of like “Where’s Waldo?”
Most of our team went to Mount Pisgah Arboretum on Saturday afternoon and, honestly, it was like we were caught in the hobbits’ glen in Lord of the Rings. If Frodo Baggins had stepped out from behind a tree with his short legs and long hairy feet, the whole scene would have been complete. The trees looked just like the ones that talked in the trilogy and they groaned and creaked in the wind like old men trying to get out of a low chair. It was crazy.Ā I didn’t even bother taking pictures with my iPhone because it would have been a travesty but our friend David got some great ones with his grown-up camera. This one doesn’t even give a hint of the gorgeousness that was surrounding us in that park but I think it is especially gorgeous because I love this group of women so much. These are some of the hardest working girls you’ll ever find on earth. They are part of the LifeWay women’s event team that actually puts on Living Proof Live events. (As well as Priscilla Shirer Live and many others.) They don’t often come to the platform but trust me when I tell you that no one would serve on that platform if not for these women doing all the front work, sight inspections, training, praying, and city coordinating. Then, once the weekend arrives, they are busy behind every scene, down every hall, and all over the arena. I am nuts about them. There are at least a dozen others who weren’t assigned to our Oregon event over the weekend. I wish you could see them, too. They are all stellar women.
I could have stayed a solid week in Oregon. Or, if all my people had been there, a month. But Bibby gets cranky for the grandbabies after too many days away. I saw them right before I left for Oregon and the day after I got back. Thank you, thank you, thank you to my beloved Amanda and Curtis, who always make room for the grandparents in their hyper-busy pastoring lives. I happen to be typing this post about five feet away from this picture right here. Now, I ask you, who could stand to be far from those two for very long?? My point exactly.
Oh, one more thing about the trip. On the rare occasions when much of the team gets to stay an extra night after the event, there is considerable foolishness. With God-fearing people, especially of mixed company, off-color humor is out so we have to go with just plain stupid and it works for me every time. This is Travis with his good friends Clay (who played the mandolin for us at this LPL! We loved him!) and Seth (who we always love and get to have on the team most of the time).
I bet Travis wore those glasses for 15 minutes in the drugstore. (Yep, that’s where all this stuff was.) Long enough to where I found myself talking to him normally as if he didn’t look like an idiot. Of course, it might be a tad hypocritical for me to say he looked like such a thing since…
Tragically, that’s not plastic you’re seeing there below the glasses. That’s my real nose. (I made myself laugh.)
Well, I could talk on and on but, the fact is, we have Scriptures to do today, Sisters! I love mine this time around. Remember how we talked about the importance of choosing one to memorize that really means something to us personally? This one’s really speaking to me right now. Lately I’ve been especially aware of the contrasts in the Christian public square between those who build up the Body of Christ and those who tear it down. If we’re going to be builders in a world tearing apart, we’re going to have to be deliberate. We’ll also have to accept the materials we’re working with. We’ll never have a flawless body of believers to edify. Not this side of our completed state. As my friend Carlos Whittaker says, we’re all crazier than we think we are. It’s a mess out there. Oh, for crying out loud, I’m a mess in here. But we do have a flawless Savior and we are indeed God’s chosen people, loved and planned for and accounted for in the Kingdom agenda. We’ve got to decide how we want to treat one another on this thorny journey. This verse says it well.
Beth, Houston. So with yourselves, since you are eager for manifestations of the Spirit, strive to excel in building up the church. 1 Corinthians 14:12 ESV
There He says it: don’t just take a stab at it. Strive to excel in it.
Oh, Sisters, I love you so much. I truly do. I’ll talk to you soon!
Tags: Scripture Memory 2013
Bethany, Evart,Michigan
For physical training is of some value,
But godliness has value for all things, holding
Promise for both the present life and the life to come.
I Timothy 4:8 NIV
Beth, Dyersburg,TN
…that you may know…19 His incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of His mighty strength. Ephesians 1:19 NIV
” God did this so they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him though he is not far from all of us.”
Acts 17:27 NIV
Sherry, Moore,OK Rom 15:6 so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Ashleigh, Mobile, Alabama
“You have led in your steadfast love the people whom you have redeemed; you have guided them by your strength to your holy abode.”
Exodus 15:13 (ESV)
Amanda, Lexington, KY
“Rejoice always! Pray constantly. Give thanks in everything, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 HCSB
Cathy, Fridley;”My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the LORD. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.”
kathy from leesville, la Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. Colossians 3:9-10 NIV
Freeland, MI “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Luke 6:37 NIV
Deborah, Katy, TX
If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all–how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?
Romans 8:31b-32, NIV
“Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials,
knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.”
James 1:2-3 NASB
Amanda, Katy, TX
If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all–how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?
Romans 8:31b-32, NIV
Allison, Katy, TX
If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all–how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?
Romans 8:31b-32, NIV
Debbie, San Antonio, TX
Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Col. 3:12 ESV
Tiffany, Katy, TX
If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all–how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?
Romans 8:31b-32, NIV
Cyndi, Katy, TX
If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all–how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?
Romans 8:31b-32, NIV
Kara, Houston, TX
If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all–how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?
Romans 8:31b-32, NIV
Mollie from Northwest Arkansas
“So it is with you. Since you are eager for gifts of the Spirit, try to excel in those that build up the church.”
1 Corinthians 14:12 NIV
Job 12:7-10
Annette, Tomball
But ask the animals, and they will teach you,
or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you;
or speak to the earth, and it will teach you,
or let the fish in the sea inform you.
Which of all these does not know
that the hand of the Lord has done this?
In his hand is the life of every creature
and the breath of all mankind.
Job 12:7-10(NIV)
Cora Lee from Nebraska
James 1:2
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds. NIV
Galatians 2:20 (NIV)
20 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.
Allison Chicago, IL
At the time, discipline isnāt much fun. It always feels like itās going against the grain. Later, of course, it pays off handsomely, for itās the well-trained who find themselves mature in their relationship with God.
Hebrews 12:11 MSG
Billie, Greenville, KY “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” (John 10:27 ESV)
Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always be ready to give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that you labor in the Lord is not in vain.
1Corinthians 15:58
Elise–Newark
Connie, Tyler I will bless The Lord at all times, His praise shall continually be in my mouth… Many evils confront the righteous, but The Lord delivers him out of all of them. Psalm 34:1,19 NIV
“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in the season we will reap, I we do not give up.” ESV
Galatians 6:9
Katy, TX Matthew 6:25 NIV
āTherefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?
Kathy Bryson
Albuquerque, NM
Romans 8:5-6 NIV
Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace;
Sheila, Splendora, TX
“In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.” Psalm 4:8 (ESV)
Michelle, Warner Robins GA
My salvation and my honor depend on God; he is my mighty rock, my refuge. (Psalm 62:7 NIV)
Keaton McCurtain OK
Then you will again see the difference between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.ā (Malachi 3:18 NLT)
Proverbs 16:24 “Pleasant words are a honeycomb,sweet to the soul, and healing to the bones!” NIV
Kristen, Round Rock, Tx.
Psalm 51:10 ESV
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
Kelley Mann, La Verne Ca. Colossians 1:11 May you be strengthened with all power according to His glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy! ESV
Neeley- Auburn, Alabama
James 3:9- NIV
“With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness.”
Continuation of memorizing James 3
Cindy, St. Louis, MO: Jeremiah 29:13 : “You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart.” NIV (was in hospital after surgery and couldn’t post till now – I hope this still counts).
Jeri, Lynchburg, Va Philippians 4:6 NIV 84 “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”
Allison Crook
Albuquerque, NM
“And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.” (Romans 5:5 NLT)
Fran, Eden Prairie, MN
Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love, for in you I trust. Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul. (Psalms 143:8 ESV)
Gigi, Tyler – The Lord hears His people when they call to Him for help. He rescues them from all their troubles. Psalms 34:17 NLT
Norma
Leander, TX
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him, In love.
Ephesians 1:3,4
Dusti Pugh
Carthage, Tx
John 15:4 NIV
Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
Stephanie
Woodward, OK
NIV
Matthew 19:5
āFor this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’
My 20year Anniversary verse!!!
Allison Dalke
Edmond, OK
Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you.
Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.
Psalm 143:8 NIV
Glenna, Cumberland House, SK “These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies goldāthough your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world. (1 Peter 1:7 NLT)”
Marsha Lee’s Summit, MO
Therefore my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of The Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. 1 Corinthians 15:58 NKJ
Stephanie Parrish
Lynchburg, VA
“Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples!”
1 Chronicles 16:24, ESV
Ava, Tyler Tx.
“My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry,” James 1:19 NIV.
Darl, Bakersfield, CA
“Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.”
Psalm 143:8
Brenda Cousino, Frisco, Texas
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:10 ESV)