Hey, everybody! You are in the exact right place to submit your Verse 2!
This is such a fun first for SSMT! Remember in the SSMT informational post when I told that, while I’ll still be doing all the SSMT posts on the 1st of every month, the one on every 15th would be written by various sisters in our blog community? Welcome to the first one! It took me about 5 seconds to decide who we should ask to kick off our SSMT guest posts. My beloved friend, Jan Morton, has been an active member of this community from its inception. I fell in love with her by watching her interact with countless women in the comment line, ministering to them and encouraging them and mothering them and making them laugh. And through that connection, we became personal friends. Our SSMT guest bloggers throughout 2015 will be from various age groups but this one happens to be right at my age and in a very similar season in her personal life and serving life. Those of you who have been around a while know that Jan Morton became so dearly loved in this community that we early on named her the “Mayor of Siestaville.” So, without further hesitation, please grant me the honor of introducing you to one of the mightiest women in the faith that I know. Jan, we are so honored to have you host us today! Thank you for investing in us!
Happy 2015 Siestas! This is such a privilege for me to share with our SSMT. I adore this community! My name is Jan Morton. I’m a pastor’s wife from Georgia. [I am also “GJ” for Gran Jan/Georgia Jan.] I’ve been married to my husband Gary for 37 years. Only 20 years old when we got married¸ we were way too young but who knew? ☺ We have two grown married sons, two sweet daughters-in-love, and 5 delightful grandchildren ages 6, 4 ½ , 4 ½, 2 ½, and 17 months – Gran Jan’s JOY! I love gardening, singing in choir/praise team, reading, quilting, and serving in the women’s ministry of my church. I work in our local school system (26 years now) as the Administrative Assistant to our Superintendent. A new ministry I’m involved in at my church is called Taste & See, a mentoring, encouragement time for women. Cooking and conversation! We get in the kitchen and wonderful things happen. Isn’t the kitchen a great place to gather? It is at the Morton home!
Ecclesiastes 3:1 “For everything there is a season and a time for every matter under heaven.” ESV
The word says: For everything [it says everything], there is a season and a time for every matter/purpose/activity under heaven. Everything – the entirety of; a great deal, especially of something very important, EVERYTHING!
God has been drawing me to the theme of seasons, and that is what I want to share with you today. All of life relates to seasons. The beauty found in the four seasons of a calendar year to the seasons of our lives. I’m in the season of life known as the empty nest. Just me and my man like when we had “only just begun.” I’m loving this season, especially being a grandmother. Looking back as a 57 year old woman can do…I can truthfully say I’ve learned in every season of my life. I pray to grow old gracefully and stay relevant and young at heart.
What is your season of womanhood right now? Are you in SPRING – a young woman in school or just beginning a career or education or newly married? How about SUMMER – in the “zone” raising children or building a career or marriage? Maybe you’re in AUTUMN – children grown, and you may be looking toward retirement? Or perhaps you find yourself in WINTER – your senior years as a woman, perhaps a widow, reflecting on past seasons and all that God has brought you through.
WHEREVER YOU ARE, BE ALL THERE. This is what God is showing me because in the busyness of life I can easily lose focus. Don’t be longing for another season and miss what’s going on around you now. This deception is one of the biggest lies of the enemy of our souls; the distraction and discontentment with where we are today. Embrace your season: SEASON – SAVOR EVERY AVAILABLE SENT OPPORTUNITY NOW! Some are more enjoyable than others, sure they are! Just as changes in seasons bring mosquitoes in summer or storms in winter, there are extremes in our lives. Some of you empty nesters may suddenly find yourself caring for both your grandchildren and aging parents. Some of you young women may be longing for marriage. Some of you stay at home moms or single moms may have to go into the workforce for a season to pay the bills. If our entire lives were one continuous season we wouldn’t have the changes we desperately need to help us grow. As much as I love to garden, if every day were spring or summer, I wouldn’t have autumn to harvest, or winter to dream and plan.
This old gal has learned some things in 57 years of seasons:
• Our constant, never-changing, faithful Lord Jesus is with us in every SEASON, in everything.
• Sometimes seasons overlap – in fact, several might descend on you at once. Sometimes joy and sorrow meet in a season.
• You may think springtime has come, but unseasonal cold snaps may occur and you better be ready. Memorizing God’s Word is a lifeline.
• Ask God to give you a strong focus in your season today and receive it as the gift it is, embracing the wonder. God will provide your daily bread.
“Which is the happiest season of life?” was asked of an older woman. She replied: “When spring comes, and the flower buds are breaking through I think, ‘How beautiful is spring.’ And then when summer comes and covers the trees with heavy foliage and singing birds are among the branches, I think, ‘How beautiful is summer.’ When autumn arrives with golden fruit, and the leaves bear the gorgeous colors, I think, ‘How beautiful is autumn.’ And then comes winter, and there is neither foliage nor fruit, and I look up through the leafless branches as I never could until now, and see the stars shining in God’s home.
Embrace whatever season you are in now. RIGHT NOW. Don’t long for another season. I know the days may be long, but at my age, the years seem so short. So wherever you are, be all there. Because of Jesus, one day we will be “SEASONED TO PERFECTION” and live with Christ for eternity. Let’s get there one day at a time and savor our seasons as God wills. Because He has made everything beautiful in its time. (Ecclesiastes 3:11).
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OK, ladies! It’s me, Beth, again. Submit your second verses! Remember to limit your comments to these 5 pieces of information:
Name, city, verse, reference (where it is found) and translation.
Here’s mine!
Beth Moore, Houston, Texas. “In Him the whole building, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.” Ephesians 2:21-22 ESV
I love you guys!
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. – Is.43: 18-19 NIV
Lana Coffee, Denison, Texas. “Seek the Lord and His strength; seek His face continually.”
Psalm 105:4 NAS
Christa. San Diego For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. (1 John 5:4 ESV)
Alichia, McKinney, TX “The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.” Zephaniah 3:17 (NIV)
Molly Baldwin – Auburn AL
“As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.”
John 15:9 NKJV
Deb from Aledo, IL
Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer. Psalm 19:14 KJV
“If we love our brothers and sisters who are believers, it proves that we have passed from death to life. But a person who has no love is still dead.” 1 John 3:14
Wendy Houston, Rocklin CA – Psalm 27:5-6 NIV
Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will do this: He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun.
Ooops…I accidentally wrote Psalm 27, instead of 37…please correct! Sorry!
Sandy, Rio Rancho, NM
Then Jesus said to them, “A little while longer the light is with you. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going. While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.” These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them.
John 12:35-36 NKJV
“You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord, is the Rock eternal.” Isaiah 26:3-4
Jan Jensen, Waterloo, Iowa. “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.” Romans 15:4 NIV
Chris Bradbury, Greeley, CO
And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:7 (NIV)
Jennifer, Van Alstyne, TX
“This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:24 ESV
Hana, Waconia, MN
” But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation.” Psalms 13:5 NIV
Jill Wiggins, Salt Lake City, UT. “He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken.” Psalm 62:2 NIV
Erica Crain – Springfield, Missouri
2 Corinthians 9:19 & 22 (ESV): 19 “For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them. 22 To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some.”
Kim Brooks, Silverdale,WA. The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. (Romans 8:16-17 ESV)
Rebecca, Las Vegas, NV, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” John 13:34 (NIV)
Brandi Wesson, Deatsville AL: Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. Phil 4:6. (NIV)
Molly Hale, Billings, MT
1 Corinthians 13:7
Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through ever circumstance.
1 Corinthians 10:13
No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted[b] beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.
NIV
Felicia from california
Debi, Emmett, MI
Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and he will help you. Psalm 37:5 NLT
And we know (understand, recognize, are conscious of, by observation and by experience) and believe (adhere to and put faith in and rely on) the love God cherishes for us. God is love, and he who dwells and continues in love dwells and continues in God, and God dwells and continues in him. (1 John 4:16 AMP)
Pam, Wichita, KS “I long, yes, I faint with longing to enter the courts of the LORD. With my whole being, body and soul, I will shout joyfully to the living God.”(Psalms 84:2 NLT)
Judy Madison, Beaumont, California
Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.
Hebrews 10:23 NASB
Lynn Watson
Luke 6:38 NIV
Give and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
Mary Ann Roach
Wichita Falls, Texas
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing. So that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
Romans 15:13
Wanda Martin Calif.
John 15:2
Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit,He takes away, and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.
Erin Keel, Chesnee, SC
“Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come fearlessly into God’s presence, assured of his glad welcome.” Ephesians 3:12 NLT
Stacy, Cape Girardeau, Missouri
Colossians 3:2 (NIV)
Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.
Glenda, Lee’s Summit, MO
You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:13
Shannon Taylor, Monmouth, Oregon
“In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.” Eph 3:12 NIV
NIV Psalm 84:11
“For the Lord is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless.”
Linda Franklin, Fort Worth, Texas. “I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me [I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency]. Philippians 4:13 Amplified
Santa Clara, CA “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful.” Colossians 3:15 NASB
Justine Tausch
Helotes, TX
“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.”
Ezekiel 36:26 NIV
Santa Clarita, CA
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble if its own. Matthew 6:34 NIV
heather crawford; minneapolis, mn. “from His fullness we have all received grace upon grace.” john 1:16 nrsv
Gina Garcià, PUEBLO, CO
For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance. – Romans 8:24-25 NKJV
Janelle Fitzler Sioux Falls SD
If you do well will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. It’s desire is for you but you must rule over it. – Gen. 4:7
Aimmi Adams, La Russell, MO
In Him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in Him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit.
Ephesians 1:13 ESV
“For He Himself is our peace, Who has made us both one and has broken down in His flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that He might create in Himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility.”
Ephesians 2:14-16
Proverbs 4:23
Above all else guard your heart because it is the well spring of life.
Felicia, Des Moines, IA
Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. Ephesians 4:29 ESV
Annette Nelson Escondido, Ca My prayer for all of them is that they will be of one heart and mind, just as you and I are, Father—that just as you are in me and I am in you, so they will be in us, and the world will believe you sent me. John 17:21 Living Bible
Susan, Middletown, OH
Now all glory to God, who is able, through His mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.
Ephesians 3:20 NLT
Austin, Texas: “No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening – it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained on this way.” Hebrews 12:11, NLT.
Jeanne Gammon, Renton, WA – For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39 NASB)
“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.
That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
When my heart is overwhelmed,lead me to the rock that is higher than I. Psalm 61:2 KJV