WELCOME, EVERYONE, TO THE OFFICIAL LAUNCH OF THE 2015 SIESTA SCRIPTURE MEMORY TEAM!
WOOOOOOHOOOOOO!!!
Allow me to introduce myself to you as your fellow sojourner for the next 12 months and your official cheerleader. It will be my pleasure to remind you often that, in Christ Jesus, you most certainly CAN be victorious in this adventure of the faith, this challenge of the mind and this discipline of the Spirit.
Nothing we’ve done on this blog since its inception has seemed to attract more outrageous favor from God. We are convinced that He loves it. God never misses a single individual going to the work of memorizing His Word but imagine His delight when a huge community of tremendously diverse women in age, background, and worship tradition band together in a pilgrimage of faith. You don’t have to stop and wonder if it’s God’s will for His words to abide in you. The Word of God alive, active, and abiding in us speaks to us, shields us, warns us, strengthens us, sanctifies us, equips us in our callings, and directs us in our decision making. It sharpens our insight and improves our discernment. It makes us wiser and, let’s be bold enough to say, even smarter. Our brains were hardwired to flourish across the board when nourished by the Scriptures. Above all else, Scripture abiding and thriving in us builds up our faith, for “faith comes from hearing and hearing through the word of Christ.” (Romans 10:17) Â And, Girlfriend, we want to be women of faith. That faith erupts into works that were planned for each of us before the creation of the world. (Ephesians 2:10)
OK. I want to get right to it before I lose some of you so that no one will be unclear about the protocol.
The entry of your first verse is your official registration for SSMT (Siesta Scripture Memory Team). Everybody who joins us needs to start right here in a designated comment to this exact post. Even those who may jump in with us a couple of months late who are willing to work double-time to get it all done will start right here.
For a quick recap of our objective: Remember, we are committing to the memorization of 24 verses in 12 months. Two a month. We each get to select our own verses to align with our personal needs and challenges. Choosing a Scripture that resonates with you is immensely helpful in the memorization process. If you have trouble coming up with one of your own, you can always share mine or look through the other entries for ideas. You’ll find your SSMT posts right here on the blog at 8:00 AM on the 1st and 15th of every month in 2015. [Under the LINKS section listed on the right hand side of our blog home page, you will find all SSMT posts will store together for easy access. See “Scripture Memory Team 2015”.] If you haven’t had a chance to read all the instructions and hear about our end-of-year celebration, please go back and read the informational post then return to this spot. Questions unanswered here are answered there.
One of the most important things for you to know from the top is how to arrange your comment with the verse you’ve selected. We limit each comment to this information:Â
Your name, city, verse (written all the way out), reference, and translation.Â
SO, here goes mine! I’m obsessed with the Book of Ephesians right now so much of my memory work will probably come from those pages.
Beth Moore, Houston, Texas. “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God.” Ephesians 2:19 ESV
We’re fellow citizens with the likes of Peter and John and James and Stephen and Paul and Timothy and Barnabas and Joanna and Susanna and Lydia and Tabitha and just try counting all the Marys. We’re fellow citizens and members of the household of Middle Eastern believers confessing Christ in hostile climates, of Chinese believers meeting in house churches, of Eastern European believers finding hope in the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. We have brothers and sisters in Thessaloniki, in Paris, in Belfast, in Riyadh, in Copenhagen, in Calgary, and Rome. We – right here in this community – are sisters to a household of God that stretches across this globe, saved by the blood of Jesus Christ alone. By grace through faith. “It is the gift of God, not the result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9) That’s what makes us family. We, beloved sister, are in gorgeous company. Let’s give our time on this planet as part of this household all we’ve got. Christ is so altogether worthy.
Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait! One last thing before I say Go! Don’t panic or jump the gun and post a second time if you don’t see your verse published soon. I will be moderating all these launch comments by myself because I don’t want my staff to have to work on the holiday so I beg your patience. I’ll be hard at work on it but it will take me a while to get them all posted. As a rule over the next 12 months, only post a second time if it’s been 48 hours since you left the comment and you still don’t see it.
****I noticed that some of you posted verses earlier than this post was published and they came up on the SSMT informational comments.  I should have doubly emphasized what time the posts will go up each round: 8:00 AM, each 1st and 15th. So sorry if I did not make that clear enough! If you submit your verse earlier than that, it unfortunately appears under the wrong post and, the way blog moderating works, there’s no way for us to transfer the comments over. If you left your 1st verse under any other post than this one, please add it here as well. This is the official registration post.  I know it’s a bit complicated at first! Hang with it! So sorry for your extra trouble!
Hey, I am so glad you’re doing this with us. So much love to you.
OK, GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
“Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. Isiah 1:18
1 James, a servant[a] of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To the twelve tribes in the Dispersion:
Greetings.
Testing of Your Faith
2 Count it all joy, my brothers,[b] when you meet trials of various kinds,
ESV
Vanessa Kekahuna. Hilo, Hawaii. Isaiah 43:18-19 (MSG) “Forget about what’s happened; don’t keep going over old history. Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something brand-new. It’s bursting out! Don’t you see it? There it is! I’m making a road through the desert, rivers in badlands.”
Cyndi, Bartley, NE Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me, for in you my soul takes refuge; in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge, till the storms of destruction pass by. Psalm 57:1 ESV
Natalie Harrison, Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada
” Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. ”
1 Thessalonians 5:17-18 NLT
Jodi Pinkham
Tabernacle, NJ
“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”
Colossians 3:17
Judy M, Kansas City, And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists, and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him. Hebrews 11:6 NIV
Janey Parker Visalia Calif
– For the wages of sin is death: but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Roman 6:23 (NIV)
Danielle Gahman, Graterford, Pa – “And from His fullness, we have all received, grace upon grace.” John 1:16 ESV
Debbie Fitzpatrick from Bossier City, Louisiana: “Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” Isaiah 43:19 ESV
Kim Working,LaFontaine,IN
“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
April, Dallas, TX
Proverbs 1:33English Standard Version (ESV) “but whoever listens to me will dwell secure
and will be at ease, without dread of disaster.”
Jane Kendrick, Pell City, Alabama
“Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:13-14
Vickie Czlapinski, Farmington, NM
Commit everything you do to the LORD. Trust him, and he will help you. (â€Psalm‬ â€37‬:â€5‬ NLT)
Lorrie, Rutledge GA
For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Colossians 1:13-14 NASB
And I am sure of this, that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. Phil 1:6 English Standard Version
“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.” John 14:1 NKJV
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
Ashley from Vienna, Va
Tiffani from Ruth, MS
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 waste land. Isaiah 43:19 NLT
Ashley Simpson
Rancho Cucamonga, Ca
“For the LORD your God is living among you. He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.” (â€Zephaniah‬ â€3‬:â€17‬ NLT)
Terrilynn Martin, Kernersville NC. “Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill His promises to her!” Luke 1:45 NIV
Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord. Jeremiah 17:7 (NIV)
Jessica Boyd, Fort Worth, Tx
“Now finally, all of you should be like-minded and sympathetic, should love believers, and be compassionate and humble, not paying back evil for evil or insult for insult but, on the contrary, giving a blessing, since you were called for this, so that you can inherit a blessing. 1 Peter 3:8-9 HSCB
Laura Stevens, El Paso, TX
1 Peter 1:13 NIV
Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.
Emily
Billings, MT
Ephesians 4:1 (ESV) I Therefore, a prisioner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called.
Psalm 65:11
NIV
You crrown the year with your bounty,and your carts overflow with abuundance.
Stephanie Burch Carrollton, Virginia But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, Romans 6:17 NASB
Stephanie from Houston, TX: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Philippians 4:6 (NIV)
Dawn Winslow, Clever, MO
Psalm 25:5 (NLT) “Lead me by Your truth and teach me, for You are the God who saves me. All day long I put my hope in You.”
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. (â€Jeremiah‬ â€29‬:â€11‬ NIV)
Jamie Hunt from Saint James, Missouri. 2 Timothy 1:7…For God did not give us a spirit of timidity but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. NIV 1984
Christen, Mionument, CO. And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit. 2 Corinthians 3:18 NRSV
Amy Umphlett, Carrollton, VA, “O Lord, you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar.” Ps. 139:1-2
Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things [are] honest, whatsoever things [are] just, whatsoever things [are] pure, whatsoever things [are] lovely, whatsoever things [are] of good report; if [there be] any virtue, and if [there be] any praise, think on these things. Philippians 4:8. KJV
Kim Lawhorn from Alvin, TX. Jeremiah 29:13 “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” NIV
Betsy Speed
Valrico, FL
“my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.” —Philippians 1:20. (NIV)
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Romans 12:14 NASB
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path. Proverbs 3:5-6 NKJ
Bari Zepernick, Patchogue,NY Neh 8:10b And do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength Neh 8:10b ESV
Amy Biniasz, Chino Hills, CA: “Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.” Colossians 3:12 ESV
I wait quietly before God, for my victory comes from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress where I will never be shaken. Ps. 62:1 NLT
Jaime Dishman – Gray, La.
Behold, I am doing a new thing. Now it springs forth. Do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. Isaiah 43:19 ESV
Liz Tatham Olathe, KS
“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” Matthew 6:33 ESV
Chris Parramore, Winters, Texas
Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you;
He rises to show you compassion.
For the Lord is a God of justice..
Blessed are all who wait for him!
Isaiah 30:18 NIV
Sarah Boor/Troy, Mi
Romans 5:5
Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. -NKJV
Sue from Kalamazoo, MI: “God has chosen you and made you his holy people. He loves you. So always do these things: Show mercy to others, be kind, humble, gentle, and patient.” Colossians 3:12 NCV
Krystal Klassen, Niverville, MB
The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease.
Great is his faithfulness; His mercies begin afresh each morning.
Lamentation 3:22-23 NLT
Marchelle San Diego -Irvine, CA “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” Proverbs 3:5-6 KJV
Carri Butcher, Flippin, Arkansas- But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weakness, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 2 Corinthians 12:9 NIV
Lesli Burson of Strong, Arkansas
“Stop being angry! Turn from your rage! Do not lose your temper- it only leads to harm.”
Psalm 37:8 NLT