Now, from AJ.

Where do you enjoy going on vacation and what you like to do?
Our whole family loves to be in the mountains. Believe it or not, I didn’t see a real mountain until we took an unforgettable summer trip to Colorado when Melissa and I were teenagers. Most of our vacations up to that point had been to beach towns on the Texas Gulf Coast. (That’s what happens when your dad loves to fish. No complaints here though!) So there’s a very big part of me that needs to spend quality time at the beach every summer. I am not one to lay out for hours in the sand. I like to swim in the waves and catch hermit crabs. In the mountains, my mom and sister really enjoy hiking but I would prefer to be on a horse going through those trails with my dad. In the winter, Curt is the only one in the family who skiis but we all like to snowmobile.

What is your favorite place to eat out in Jackson Hole?
My favorites are The Virginian for breakfast, Billy’s Hamburgers for lunch, and The Mangy Moose restaurant for dinner. Sweetwater is another good place if you want to eat girly food. It depends on when you go because some of these restaurants close during the “off season.”

What Bible study software does Beth use that has “talking Strong’s”?
Beth constantly uses WORDsearch 7 (there is now a version 8). Another Bible study software tool with talking Strong’s is Bible Explorer Premium 4.0. If you are only looking for talking Strong’s, which will teach you how to pronounce the Greek and Hebrew words, Bible Explorer’s lower price might make it the best choice. Both of these can be found at www.wordsearchbible.com.

How do I leave a comment on the blog?
See if this helps.

Is Beth almost done writing the Esther study?
Beth’s deadline for this study is in June. She is currently finishing Week 5. This brings me to another question, which is “How can we best pray for Beth?” She covets your prayers for this project!

When Beth has her quiet time by the fire, is it a wood burning fireplace or gas logs?
It was a wood burning fireplace up until two years ago when my parents remodeled their house. Now they have gas logs. This is very good for me because my son has a deep longing to play in ashes.

Can Living Proof develop an online community for the Siestas?
This is a very good question that I have received through email a number of times. LifeWay hosted a Believing God community for us five years ago when that Bible study was published online. It was a great experience for that season and we absolutely loved having that kind of interaction with women around the world. However, it required a lot of work, training of staff and volunteers, and constant observation. LifeWay even carried the larger load for us since they took care of the technical side of things. At this point, I think it would take at least one full time worker to oversee an online community and to take care of the technical aspects. Even with a full time employee taking care of this, it would generate another handful of work for Beth. And there are only two hands! I’m not sure we could sustain a blog and an online community and still have her writing Bible studies and teaching at conferences.

Has Beth read the Mitford series by Jan Karon?
My mom was obsessed with the Mitford books. She even had an audio version of one that she lent me for a road trip.

By the way, Beth, that is one gorgeous little Tod you have! How will you EVER say “no” to those beautiful big eyes?
Recently I saw a little boy in a Spiderman suit out in public with a woman who I assumed was his grandmother. Immediately I realized that one day my son would go out in public, under the supervision of his grandmother, dressed in anything he wanted to wear. Because she could not say no to the big blue eyes. The only difference is, my mom will be dressed up with him.

In what order should the Bible studies be taken?
There really isn’t a suggested order. I think for someone in the very beginning of their walk with God, Jesus the One and Only and Living Beyond Yourself are great places to start. Believing God is an excellent follow-up to Breaking Free. Other than that, I think someone should start with whichever study seems to interest them most or however the Spirit seems to be leading at that time. If you really, really need some direction, it wouldn’t hurt to do them in the order they were written.

What does Keith do? We know about all his caveman adventures, but what was/is his job?
Keith ran the family plumbing company from the mid-1980’s until just a few years ago when he sold his share of the company to his partner. Since then he has been extremely blessed with lots of freedom to live out his caveman adventures, manage the Moore household, and take very good care of his woman. My parents are especially grateful that my dad can be an active part of her ministry through the TV program, Life Today with James and Betty Robison. (She can be seen on the program every Wednesday teaching Bible study.) He is present for every filming and has accompanied her on both mission trips to Angola. I think it’s fair to say that their lives have had an extra measure of peace since my dad sold the company.

When are you going to have another baby?
Right now we’re only planning to have one more child, so we want to be good and ready before we expand our family. I was sick for the first trimester with Jackson, so I want to really want it before I go through that again. Aside from the morning sickness, I want to savor everything about being pregnant and having a newborn again. I look forward to being more confident the second time around and hopefully being able to enjoy it more, knowing that it goes by so quickly. Of course, God is sovereign and only He knows how the expansion of our family will go.

Do you get bombarded 100 times a day with “Can your Mom come speak to…”?
I used to get asked that a lot but not as much anymore, for which I’m thankful. It’s hard to say no to a friend, so I usually let Susan do that for me! Susan is my mom’s assistant and she has the very tough job of being the protector of Beth’s time. Every “no” she says to an extra opportunity is a “yes” to our family. “Yes, you can come down this weekend for a visit. I’m dying to see my grandson.” “Yes, Dad and I can come up this weekend and hear Curtis preach.” “Honey, there’s an opening in my schedule and Dad and I are heading to the mountains for a week.” We do not take no’s and yeses for granted.

Melissa and I used to function as Mom’s assistants when we were younger. The Lord knows how many messages we took on scraps of paper (with markers) in the kitchen for speaking engagements here and there. If any of you had to deal with our seven and ten-year-old selves on the phone, I’m so sorry! There’s no telling what we said!

As a Mom, are you able to get your quiet time in EVERY day? What is your way of doing quiet time, journaling, reading a study or just reading the Bible?
It took me a long time after Jackson was born to get back on track with my quiet times. I finally found a routine that works well for us. When we wake up, I give Jackson a cup of milk to drink while I make breakfast. Then I pull his high chair into the living room where he can eat and watch Noggin. I sit right next to him on the couch, eat my breakfast, and have my quiet time. That gives me about 20-30 minutes before he is ready to get down and run around the house. I like to journal my prayers because it helps my mind to stay focused. The last two devotional books I used were David: 90 Days With a Heart Like His and Jesus: 90 Days With the One and Only. Both of those have built-in prayer journals. I am biased because my mom wrote both of them, but I thought they were excellent. Right now Curtis and I are using Devotions for a Sacred Marriage: A Year of Devotionals for Couples by Gary Thomas and we are loving it. You’re only supposed to do one a week, but we are cheating and doing one every day. I would highly recommend it. I definitely have days when I miss my quiet time, especially if we are traveling. I struggle when I’m out of my morning routine.

How does one get on the Deeper Still blog?
The Deeper Still blog is temporarily suspended due to the gap of time
between events. LifeWay is currently looking at the possibility of restarting
it for the 2008 locations.

Can you recommend a child-raising book or author who you believe gives Biblical advice?
Someone mentioned this in a comment, but I read James Dobson’s Bringing Up Boys and I learned a lot from it. I haven’t read many parenting books yet, but I will say that I love to listen to radio programs like Family Life Today and Focus on the Family. I always learn something and feel encouraged when I get to tune in.

Why does God wait so long to let some of us ladies get married?
I do not know the answer to this question and I wish there was a good explanation. Sometimes I think we would all benefit from going back to arranged marriages and getting married around the time that teenage hormones kick in. Call me crazy, but I have a whole argument for this in my head.

How do you live a normal life? Can you go to the mall without being swarmed?
I don’t think there’s ever been a “swarm” at the mall. Usually we get to meet a couple of Bible study sisters and that’s fun. I was sorry I missed getting to meet Jen the Newlywed a couple weeks ago when she ran into my mom and sister at Willowbrook Mall.

Any thoughts on a study on Job? I’ve been reading and re-reading Job lately, and it really just moves me. God says SO much there….
Check out Yet I Will Trust Him in our online store. It was recorded at a Living Proof Live conference in New Orleans in, I believe, 2002.

What is your very favorite worship song?
Curtis and I are currently obsessed with Savior King by Hillsong United. It really takes off halfway through, so be sure to listen to the whole thing.

How did your mom pass on her passion for Christ to you girls?
More than anything, I think we saw her abundant life and knew that it was because of her commitment to and love for Christ. We also spent lots of time talking about the Lord and worshipping Him together through contemporary Christian music. (Much of this happened while we were driving in the car. That’s one reason I can be thankful for Houston traffic.) I always had lots of spiritual questions and we had some awesome conversations about the Lord through those. One of the main things she taught me was to submit myself to Christ every single day so that I could be dead to my flesh and alive in the Spirit. In other words, have my quiet time! (See Galatians 5:16-18.)

Melissa and I both went through a time when we had to make our faith “our own” and choose for ourselves whether we would continue to follow Christ when our parents weren’t there to direct our steps. I think we both got a taste of the world and learned the hard way that abundant life was only found in Christ.

What is the best advice your mom ever gave you?
Choose joy.
“This is the day the LORD has made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 188:24)

What Bible studies or books do you recommend?
Someone asked how you define ministry. I learned from C. Gene Wilkes’ book Jesus On Leadership that ministry is simply service. “Minister” is just a fancy word for servant. This is definitely a study I would recommend to anyone. Another book I absolutely love to recommend is The Prisoner in the Third Cell by Gene Edwards. If you have felt disappointed by God recently, get this book!

Has your family been attacked by the enemy because of your ministry?
Without a doubt. And so have the Gates, Hamm, Harris, Kirby, McClure, Mattingly, McMahon, Meyer, S. Moore, and Riley families. When we get to hear testimonies from women whose lives and whose families’ lives have been changed by power of God’s Word, we get a glimpse of what is at stake in the heavenly realms. Whatever we are allowed to go through for the sake of the Bride of Christ being prepared for her Groom, it will be more than worth it when we see His face. We consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. (Romans 8:18)

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.” (Ephesians 6:12-13)

I don’t want to sound like Queen Compalainy from the Hawhiney Islands, but this week is not one I’d like to do over! I know lots of us are leading Bible studies or ministering in tons of other ways, so I’m thinking there’s a good chance that a few of my siestas have also had an “off week” where serving the Lord is concerned.

On Wednesday night I hosted a shindig at my house to welcome our college girls back from their long winter break. I went to Central Market and bought all kinds of goodies to snack on – California rolls, chips and salsa and guacamole, and chocolate chip cookie dough. I know, it was a very weird assortment of food. I put The Tod to bed, rearranged our furniture to make room for a crowd, and waited for knocks on the door. Well, I got two knocks on the door. Thankfully, that was a total of four girls. But still. I normally have about fourteen on a Bible study night and I was expecting a comparable amount. (I guess it’s a good problem to have that your college girls would rather study the Word than hang out!) Do y’all have any idea how much sushi is in my fridge? And that’s not the kind of thing I really want to eat the next day. *Grin*

Today I drove out to Fort Worth to meet a new friend from church for lunch. This friend is in the area temporarily while a loved one is receiving treatment at a local hospital. Well, of all things, I drove out to the wrong medical center. I was supposed to have been in Dallas! Thirty minutes away! How in the world had I turned that around in my mind? We ended up having to reschedule.

Then, if that wasn’t enough, I went to meet my husband for a spontaneous lunch at The Black Eyed Pea – comfort food at its best. And I needed some comfort. I’ll spare you the details, but a toilet exploded water all over me. The bottom of my jeans are still wet. Please, someone put me to bed and let’s call it a day!

My mom shared this little tidbit with me and it looks like I might not need to go straight to bed afterall.

One thing is for certain: if we’re looking for a position with automatic and instant affirmation, we might not want to go into ministry. God always blesses but He often applies the Law of Sowing and Reaping and sometimes it takes a mighty long time for that plant to show.

Well, amen, Mama!

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” (Galatians 6:9-10)

Comments closed! See below!

Good morning, sisters! My mom already spoke to this in a little paragraph she added to the previous post, but I want to say that I was blown away by all the amazing testimonies of freedom that we shared! We were astounded at how they ministered to the first group of Breaking Free comments. I could not keep from praising our Savior. He is so mighty! There were several comments that addressed things I was dealing with that very day and they gave me an extra measure of faith to believe God for my victory. Thank you to everyone who shared and most of all, thank You, glorious Jesus, for setting us free!

Whew! Okay! Now for a breather! Mom and I thought it would be fun to do a Question and Answer post. We are going to open up comments for thirty minutes and see what you girls come up with. So if there’s something you want to ask, bring it on! I’m sure we won’t be able to answer every one, but I think it will still give us lots to talk about. Here’s a hint: we are hoping to give lots of shorter answers rather than a few very long ones. Okay, you’ve got thirty minutes! One, two, three, go!

TIME’S UP! Can’t wait to see what we’ve got! Watch for answers over the weekend! You guys are such a blast!

I’ve got some water boiling on the stove for lunch. We’re having reduced fat Velveeta Shells and Cheese. Yes, very nutritious! It’s been years since I’ve had Shells and Cheese and I couldn’t resist the temptation when I saw the box at the grocery store. Since a watched pot never boils, I thought I would come and blog for a minute.

(Pause to cook and eat.)

Mom and I had a very interesting conversation last week in which I was telling her that Curt and I had been at each other’s throats for a couple of days. She suggested that if I would go and “tend to my ministry” (wink, wink), maybe it would help things. At that point we both busted out laughing because, in our family, Mom is known as “The Titus Woman From Heck.” She gave herself that name, actually.

Titus 2:3-5 says, “Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can train the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.”

(Pause to wipe cheese off my child’s body and put him down for a nap.)

We got to talking about some…

(Pause to change his diaper.)

Ahem. We got to talking about some of the more unusual, humorous, or even downright good Titus advice we’d ever given. When I shared mine, my mom laughed really hard about it. It might have been a little funny, but I tell you what! It was needed!

So we thought it would be fun to share some Titus advice. Whether it’s your best, your worst, your funniest, or your most unusual, as long as it’s family friendly, let’s hear it. I’ll share mine in a comment. Let’s hear from some single sisters as well as married ones!