Hey, Everybody!
I am writing to you on Sunday afternoon since this post needs to go up first thing Monday morning and I am typing away on my laptop from Jackson and Annabeth’s room in our home. It’s the room where Keith and I get the best internet hookup. I like it anyway because it is filled with expressions of the only two kids on the earth I love as much as the two that I birthed. From Annabeth’s twin bed where I’m sitting, I can see a pink and green doll house, a blue and yellow race track, a dark green, fairly-convincing rubber lizard, a kids’ brightly colored exercise bike, a cardboard playhouse and a cardboard castle. It’s full on here in this room and, boy, has it had a work out in the last week.
Keith and I are blessed out of our minds to do lots of life with our grandkids because they only live about 20 minutes from our front door. Delightfully, their voices often reverberate off of these walls and their sweet feet are slap-happy on these wooden floors on a regular basis. We get to have sleepovers on occasions through out the year but once every summer Keith and I have them for the better part of a week and let their darling parents get some time together all by themselves. This last week was that segment of time – Camp Bibby we call it – for the summer of 2013. We kissed them goodbye on Friday night after a good, solid 5-day dose of them. I hate to admit to a small lump in my throat when they drove off with Amanda and Curtis, although I needed a nap in the worst way. Grin. It may be of some encouragement to you mothers of young children that, on Day 1, I did not shower until 3:00 PM. Yes, I do indeed remember what it was like to be a busy young mom whose life is not her own and when I forget, my two sweeties help me remember. Good grief, I would not trade them for anything in this world.
We do not have the time or space here for all the new quotes that have been added to my repertoire in the last week. Jackson and Annabeth are each hilarious, even when they don’t mean to be, so I try to have a pen nearby at all times. Annabeth announced to me on Friday afternoon that, when she grows up, she most definitely does NOT want to have a baby. “Why not?” I asked. “Because you have to go to the hospital,” she replied. And I thought to myself, whoa baby, that’s not all you have to do. As my mama always said, you also have to walk through the valley of the shadow of death. Translation: you think you’re going to die but, ordinarily, you do not, although at times your husband could be in considerable harm’s way if he spouts another word. Of course, I kept these thoughts to myself.
Annabeth paused for just a moment then spoke back up. “I just want a chihuahua and a cat.”
And that was that.
Jackson asked me how old I was while he was here because I recently had a birthday. He’s asked me that kind of thing before and it always ends up following the trail of whether or not I will still be his Bibby when he is in college. Curtis’s grandmother died a couple of years ago and I think he’s got it in his seven year-old head that grandmothers are tenuous creatures, here today, gone tomorrow. So, I said to him, “You know, Jackson, both your grandmothers are actually pretty young to have a grandkid as old as you. Because we all started so early, I think you can probably assume we’ll be around a while and see you grow up.” He sat on that a few moments then said, “Bibby, that makes you a rookie grandma. Do you know what a rookie is, Bibby?” Ah, yes, I do, Mister. I was a rookie mom with your mommy and a rookie grandma with you and I cannot think of two people on the planet through whom I’d rather be cast into those auspicious, busy, and often humbling roles.
I guess you’re wondering what all of this has to do with our Scripture memory. Well, I am getting to that right now. We have a daily verse at Camp Bibby and Psalm 32:9 out of the New Century Bible was our verse for Day 3 and the immediate favorite and clear winner for the fastest memorization. I taught the whole verse to Annabeth and Jackson but we only memorized part of it. Perhaps you will see why Jackson all but claimed it as his life verse. Kids totally love this kind of thing:
“Don’t be like a…donkey.” Psalm 32:9a
It made them almost as happy as talking about bathroom sounds. If I heard this verse once out of their mouths since Wednesday, I heard it 50 times. They could tell you what it means, too. I’ll stick the phrase back in the wider Scripture segment so that you’ll know what it means, too:
8      The LORD says, “I will make you wise and show you where to go. I will guide you and watch over you.
9      So don’t be like a horse or donkey, that doesn’t understand. They must be led with bits and reins,
or they will not come near you.”
Jackson would tell you that it means that God doesn’t want to have to tie us all up, or sit on us, or be all hard on us to get us to come to Him and to walk in His gracious and good will for our lives. He doesn’t want to have to make us obey Him so He can bless us. His deep desire is that we’d want to go with Him because we know that He is always for us, always leading us to triumph, always trustworthy, always right, and forever wanting to crown us with love and compassion and lead us away from bondage and such unnecessary harm.
I know it’s basic. But my mind’s been on the basics this last week with a seven year-old and a four year-old either one foot from me or on my person. I guess the question I’m throwing out on the table this week is this: Why do we continue to fight God and lash about in His grasp like He’s a big Taker instead of a Giver? What is it we think He’s trying to rob us of? To whom have we compared Him so that we’ve assumed we cannot trust Him?
Don’t be so stubborn, the psalmist is saying. Cooperate and go with God some place beautiful. Some place almost magical.
Revel in the two preceding verses in the same psalm (32), this time from the NIV:
6Â Therefore let all the faithful pray to You
while You may be found;
surely the rising of the mighty waters
will not reach them.
7Â You are my hiding place;
You will protect me from trouble
and surround me with songs of deliverance.
Surround sound. Oh, if our spiritual ears could only be opened for a few glorious minutes, what a musical score we’d hear all around us. To go with Jesus is to go the way of deliverance. The way of music. The way of symphonies. The way of ascent amid mighty rising waters. So, I’m going with Jackson in my memory work this round:
Beth, Houston. So don’t be like a horse or donkey, that doesn’t understand. They must be led with bits and reins, or they will not come near you. Psalm 32:9 NCV
So, what’s yours?
You are loved around here, Sister. We are honored to serve you.
Tags: Scripture Memory 2013
Mindy- Andalusia, AL
And we know that all thibgs work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28 NKJV)
“Therefore let all the faithful pray to you wile you may be found; surely the rising of the mighty waters will not reach them.You are my hiding place;You will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.”
Psalm 32:6,7
Jane Mattox from Lubbock,Texas: For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. Ephesians 2:8-9 NKJV
Jan, Denton TX, “Do not be like a senseless horse or mule that needs a bit and bridle to keep it under control.” Psalm 32:9 NLT
Peggy, Yorktown, VA
My son (daughter), pay attention to what I say; turn your ear to my words. Do not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart; Prov 4:20-21 NIV
Susan, Pittsburgh PA
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.
Zeph 3:17 (NIV)
Taylor, Temple, TX
“As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.”
Ephesians 4:1 (NIV)
Kelly, Fowler, CA
God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?
Numbers 23:19 (NIV)
Cindy K, Rock Hill, SC
But this God is our God forever and ever, He will be our guide even to the end.
Psalm 48:14 (NIV 2011)
danae | lafayette, in
you who are young, make the most of your youth. relish your youthful vigor. follow the impulses of your heart. if something looks good to you, pursue it. but know also that not just anything goes; you have to answer to God for every last bit of it. — ecclesiastes 11:9 [msg]
For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. Romans 8:5 NASB
Martha
Dickinson. ND
You did not chose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit- fruit that will last- so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you.
John 15:16 NIV
Philippians 1:9-11 NIV
And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ – to the glory and praise of God.
Brenda from Santa Rosa Beach Florida
Psalm 139:3 You know where I go and where I lie down, You
know everything I do
NCV
Brea B. – Gardendale, AL
Now to the King, eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
1 Timothy 1:17 (NIV)
Bette, Danville
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us. Ephesians 3:20 NIV
Joan (Coppell, TX): Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check. When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. James 3:1-6 NIV 1984
Vicksburg, MS
Lord, set up a guard for my mouth,
keep watch at the door of my lips.
Psalm 141:3
NIV
Michelle, West Des Moines, IA
Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few.
Ecclesiastes 5:2 NIV
Vicki, Surprise AZ
I constantly trust in the Lord;
because he is at my right hand, I will not be upended.
Psalm 16:8 NET
Jessica, Sioux Falls, SD
Isaiah 26:3 ESV
You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.
Jennifer of Liberty, NC
Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. James 1:19 NLT
Melanie, Midland
Don’t work only while being watched, in order to please men, but as slaves of Christ, do God’s will from your heart. Eph 6:6 HCSB
Luann, Grand Junction CO
Psalm 71:15 NIV
“My mouth will tell of your righteousness, of your salvation all day long, though i know not its measure.”
Zoe L from Oklahoma City, OK
How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?
Romans 10:14 ESV
Stacey, Mount Pleasant
We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ
2 Corinthians 10:5 ESV
Marie, Post Falls, Idaho –
“My soul follows close behind You; Your right hand upholds me.” – Psalm 63:8 (NKJV)
Vickie, Spokane, Wa.
Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.
Hebrews 11:1 NIV
Jenna from Liberty NC
“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” (Ephesians 2:10 NLT)
Kristin, Panama City, FL
Therefore we do not give up. Even though our outer person is being destroyed, our inner person is being renewed day by day. For our momentary light affliction is producing for us an absolutely incomparable eternal weight of glory. So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:16-18 HCSB)
Mansfield, OH
If any nation comes to fight you,it is not because I sent them.Whoever attacks you will go down in defeat.
But in that coming day no weapon turned against you will succeed.You will silence every voice raised up to accuse you.These benefits are enjoyed by the servants of the Lord;their vindication will come from me.I, the Lord, have spoken!
Isaiah 54:15&17 NLT
jenny
white hall, ar
“go easy on those who hesitate in the faith. go after those who take the wrong way. Be tender with sinners, but not soft on sin. the sin itself stinks to high heaven.”
jude 1:22-23 (msg)
Ontario, OH
Jesus replied, ” Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. But those who drink of the water I give will never thirst again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.”
John 4:13-14 (NLT)
Christina McClain, Nampa, ID, HCSB, James 1:12 “A man who endures trials is blessed because when he passes the test he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him.”
Chrissy
San Tan Valley, Arizona
Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.
They collapse and fall,
but we rise and stand upright.
Psalm 20:7-8 ESV
Janice, Bakersfield, CA
In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. John 1:4-5
Marty Stringer, Spanish Fort, AL
Every word of God proves true; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him. Proverbs 30:5 ESV
Be ready for service and have your lamps lit.
Luke 12:35
Kristi S. Rogersville, TN
1Corinthians 2:9. NIV
However, as it is written, no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him
Susie Johnson Bloomington, IN “The Lord your God is in your midst, A victorious warrior. He will exult over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy. (Zephaniah 3:17 NASB)
T.Nutt, Mansfield, TX
“You reveal the path of life to me; in Your presence is abundant joy; in Your right hand are eternal pleasures.” HCSB
For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him,
Colossians 1:19 NIV
Nicole Hudnall, Lynchburg, VA
He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies. (Psalms 103:4 NLT)
Sherri Bennett, Huntington Beach, CA:
“But Jesus often slipped away to be alone so he could pray.”
Luke 5:16, NCV
Neeley from Auburn, AL
James 3:13 NIV
“Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.”
Marsha, Knoxville, TN
Seek God’s will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. Proverbs 3:6 NLT
Bombey Bellaire, Tx
Matthew 9:36
(NIV) 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
Kim Beechem from Center, TX
Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God. Hebrews 13:16 (ESV)
Anita
Heaven and earth will pass away but my word will never
pass away.
Matthew 24: 35
NIV
Dawne,Nampa
They are forever true, to be obeyed faithfully and with integrity. Psalm 111:8 NLT