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!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Christy Hutchinson, Shreveport, LA “Look to the Lord and his strength; seek His face always. Psalm 105:4 NIV
DeLand, Florida
Whom have I in Heaven but you? And, besides you, I desire nothing on earth. Psalm 73:25 ESV
Psalm 46:1-2a NLT God is our refuge and strength,
always ready to help in times of trouble.
So we will not fear when earthquakes come..
D. Wallace, Germany. “Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.” Psalm 27:14. NLT
Psalm 147:3 He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.
Daphne, El Paso, Texas – “Jan 15 – Romans 8:32 says, “Since he did not spare even his own Son for us but gave him up for us all, won’t he also surely give us everything else?” (TLB)
Leslie, Alpharetta, GA
1 Thessalonians 5:6 (New International Version)
So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled.
Angela, Huntington Beach, CA
“I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources God will give you mighty inner strength through his Holy Spirit.” Ephesians 3:16 (NLT)
Amy, Wilmington NC
“He must become greater, I must become less” John 3:30 NIV
for Jan1,2015
But Who do You say that I am? Matt 16:15 NLT
For Jan 15th
Speak, Lord, your servant is listening. 1Sam4:9
Beth Edge; Apex, North Carolina: His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his glory and goodness. 2 Peter 3 NIV
Margit Riley Brenham,Texas
Jan1,2015
But Who do You say that I am? Matt 16:15 NLT
For Jan 15th
Speak, Lord, your servant is listening. 1Sam4:9 NLT
Phyllis- Norwich, CT
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6-NIV
Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praise shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s whole ness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.
Philippians 4:6-7 (message)
Annette Gray, Tomball, TX, ‘I will bless the Lord at all times, His praise shall continuously be in my mouth.’ Psalm 34:1 KJV
Jennifer Martin; Brandon, MS
“A wise woman builds her home, but a foolish woman tears it down with her own hands.” ~Proverbs 14:1 (NLT)
Palm Harbor, FL “Show me your way, Lord, teach me your paths; Guide me in your truth, and teach me for you are God my Savior and my hope is in you all day long.” Psalm 25:4-5
Amelia Moxon, Lubbock, TX
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
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 of my weakness, So that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 2 Corinthians 12:9 NIV
O’Keelia, Brockton, MA. “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.” Romans 1:1 (NASB)
11 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
2 Chronicles 20:1
“He said,” Listne King Jehoshaphat and all that live. In Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the LORD says to you: Don not be afraid or discourage because of this vast army. For this battle is not yours, but Gods.
Robin H. ~ Villa Ridge, MO ~ 1 John 4:4 You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.
2 Chronicles 20:1 NIV
“He said,” Listne King Jehoshaphat and all that live. In Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the LORD says to you: Don not be afraid or discourage because of this vast army. For this battle is not yours, but Gods.
Amelia Moxon, Lubbock, TX
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
Kristine Penn, Benton, AR. “May those who want to harm me be totally embarrassed and ashamed! May those who arrogantly taunt mebe covered with shame and humiliation!” Psalm 35:26 NET
Deuteronomy 31:6 (MSG) “Be strong. Take courage. Don’t be intimidated. Don’t give them a second thought because God, your God, is striding ahead of you. He’s right there with you. He won’t let you down; he won’t leave you.”
Katie Moore, Edmond, OK
“Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and His love is perfect in us.”
1 John 4:11-12, ESV
Leslie, Plymouth, IN
So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Isaiah 41:10 NIV
Rachel Wright, Louisville KY. “Do not fear, little flock. For it is the Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions and give to the needy. Provide for yourselves money bags that will not grow old, a treasure in the heavens that will not fail, where thieves do not approach and moths do not destroy. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”
Luke 12:32-34 ESV.
Jen Oxley, Jonesville, La.
1Peter 3:10 ESV
For whoever desires to love life and see good days,
Let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit.
Lee Patterson, Columbia SC.
Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. (â€John‬ â€15‬:â€4‬ ESV)
Margie Sims, Land O Lakes, FL
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, New International Version (NIV)
Sarah Dillon, Springfield, MO: Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails. Proverbs 19:21, NIV
Cathy McDaniel, Hendersonville, TN – “The entire law is summed up in a single command: Love your neighbor as yourself.” Galatians 5:14 NIV
Susan Warner Robins, GA
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.”
Col 3:16 ESV
Do not be conformed to the ways of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve the will of a God. His good,pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2
Carol Stainbrook, Kimberling City, MO. “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10 NIV
Joyce Lobmaster, St. Louis MO Those who know your name will trust in you, for you LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you. Psalm 9:10 NIV
Hannah Carroll – Waco, TX
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.”
Colossians 3:16a (NIV)
Stacy Klein, Medina, TN “Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be.” James 3:10 (NIV)
Summer, Clinton, OK
We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. Hebrews 2:1 NIV
Therefore, my dear brothers, be steadfast, immovable always excelling in the Lord’s work, knowing that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.
1 Corinthians 15-58
Apologetics study Bible
Trust in the Lord with all of your heart and lean not onto your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your paths. Proverbs 3:5,6
Michele, Hilltop Lakes, TX
So here is what I want you to do, God helping you! Take your everyday, ordinary life ~ your sleeping, eating, going to work and walking around life ~ and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Romans 12:1 -Message
Take control of what I say, O Lord, and guard my lips. Psalms 141:3 NLT
Christy, Jonesboro, AR
Psalm 46:10 NIV
He says, “Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”
John‬ â€14‬:â€27‬ (NIV)
Wait for the Lord;
Be strong, and let your heart take courage;
Wait for the Lord!
Psalm 27:14
English standard version
Claire Skinner Greer SC 8 years old EPHESIANS 6:1 Children obey your parents because you belong to the lord for this is the right thing to do.
Jennifer Fowler Deland, Fl
I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. Psalms 119:11NIV