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!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Jan Witt, Rockwall, TX
1 Peter 1:8 ESV
Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory.
Pat Shake, Danville , IL Do not be wise in your own eyes, fear the Lord and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.
Proverbs 3: 7-8
Columbus, MS. Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. Hebrews 11:1 niv
Danielle Barger, Chesapeake, Virginia
Psalm 143:8
Let me hear of your unfailing love each morning, for I am trusting you. Show me where to walk, for I give myself to you.
ESV
Cutler, IL
James 1:12 NIV
Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial; because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.
Cryss – Milford, IA “Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.” Psalm 119:18 NIV
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Hebrews 13:8 (NLT)
Starting out the new year with this verse to remind myself that no matter what changes or what state of chaos the world is in, Jesus Christ remains the same.
Tricia Enfield, Gardner, KS. “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”. Romans 12:2, NASB.
Shenita Terrell, Tampa, FL
“Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him, and show him My salvation. ”
Psalms 91:14-16jp
Melissa, Sacramento, CA “A good man produces good out of the good storeroom of his heart. An evil man produces evil out of the evil storeroom, for his mouth speaks from the overflow of his heart.” Luke 6:45
Terri from Houston, TX
Hebrews 4:16 (NIV)
Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
Terri-we have chosen the same verse. Please pray for me that I not only memorize it, but do it as well. I will be praying for you as well.-Shelia
Shannon Lindgren, Loveland, OH Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations. Psalm 100:1-5 NIV
Valerie Parker; DeQuincy, LA 1 Peter 5:7 Casting all your cares upon Him, for he cares for you. KJV
Cara, Parker, Colorado: “Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord, O my soul! I will praise the Lord a long as I live! I will sign praises to my God as long as I exist.” Psalm 146:1-2 NET Bible
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6
Alice , Baileyton,AL. “a merry heart makes a cheerful countenance. But by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.” Proverbs 15:13 NKJV
Peggy, Queen Creek, “Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” NIV
Kay, Sierra Vista, AZ – Hebrews 4:15 (HCSB) For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tested in every way as we are, yet without sin.
Monica Garner, Bridgeport, WV
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 entrust my life. Psalms 143:8 NIV
I’ve been divorced now for a year and a half and I have been working on my healung, but was can’t find complete happiness or fulfillmeng. I know only a God can fill it, but I don’t understand why his grace hasn’t been enough for me. However, this year I want to be thankful for the unanswered prayers and the blessings I have, that God has giving me. I miss my husband and t he family we had, but I can’t hold on to that, any longer. I need God direction for my life and my children.
I will be praying for you Leticia!! Jesus is so faithful in healing!! One day you look back and realize what He has done and go WOW!! Keep moving forward and trusting sister!! -Allison
Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.
Deana, Decatur, IL
Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about what happens to you.
1 Peter 5:7 (NLT)
Angela Brown, Rogers AR.
But those who wait for the Lord [who expect, look for, and hope in Him] shall change and renew their strength and power; they shall lift their wings and mount up [close to God] as eagles [mount up to the sun]; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint or become tired.
(â€Isaiah‬ â€40‬:â€31‬ AMP)
Kristen Bowman, Germantown, TN “I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you” John 15:15 NIV
Joanna Schumacher, Arlington, TX “O Lord, be gracious to us; we long for you. Be our strength every morning, our salvation in time of distress.” Isaiah 33:2 NIV
Thanks Joanna. I wanted to let you know, I am using your scripture as my first since it is my hearts cry. ~k.
I’m so glad! It is one of my favorite verses from the Beth Moore Bible Study, Beaking Free.
Kelley Ezell, Boiling Springs, SC
Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God. 2 Corinthians 3:5 NAS
Natalie Kenney – Odessa, TX
“I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 NIV
Kristi Rice, Memphis TN
“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from your presence and do not take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and sustain me with a willing spirit.” Psalm 51:10-12 NASB
JoAnne Beckner, Lake Worth, FL
This is what the Lord says, “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 43:16,18-19 NIV
Andrea Jones, Houston, TX
Isaiah 43:19 NASB
Behold, I will do something new,
Now it will spring forth;
Will you not be aware of it?
I will even make a roadway in the wilderness,
Rivers in the desert.
Kerrie, Malvern AR
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. Joshua 1:9 ESV
Psalm 119:130-131
The entrance of Your words give light; it gives understanding to the simple. I opened my mouth and panted, for I longed for Your commandments.
Kerri – Albion, illinois The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid ; do not be discourage. Deuteronomy 31:3 NIV
Shelia Buchanan Seguin, TX Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. Hebrews 4:16 NIV
Sue Stanley, West Monroe, LA Colossians 1:9-10 NIV
9 For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives,[e] 10 so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God,
Danna Ross, Logansport, LA
For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote to you with with tears, not that you might be pained but that you might know the abundant love I have for you. 2 Corinthians 2:4 (NAB)
Galatians 5:25 NIV
Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.
“Be still, and know that I am God;”
Psalm 46:10a
Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again”. John 11:23, NIV. For my Dad, who died December 19th. Angelica (Angel) Chilton, Hillsboro, TX
Rebecca Potter, Johnson City, TN
“The Lord is my rock and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” Psalm 18:2 ESV
Kim Golden, Clinton, MS, Yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles, They will run and not get tired, They will walk and not become weary. Isaiah 40:31 NASB
Lilburn, GA
Proverbs 3:5,6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.
Deuteronomy 4: 29 and yet there too you shall speak the Lord, your God; and you shall indeed find him when you search after him with your whole heart and your whole soul. NAB
John 16:33 NIV
I have told you these things so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart I have overcome the world- AMEN!!!
Janice, Georgetown, South Carolina
Mark 12:30 NIV
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.
Denise Anderson, Great Bend, Kansas. “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” Romans 12:12 ESV
May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. Psalm 19:14 EVS
Charlotte Heisel, Modesto, CA
Philippians 3:13-14 esv
Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But ont thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call if God in Christ Jesus.
The Lord will fight for you. You need only to be still. Exodus 14:14 NIV
Sherry Page, Elizabeth, CO,
“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
Kristen R., Mech., PA- 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. – Matthew 6:34 NIV