Hey, Sweet Things! I’m sorry I’m not able to check in more often during this season! It’s mostly just me on here with you these days and the balancing act of a heavy writing and work schedule with a very busy family imposes some sizable limitations. To say that we all miss AJ is a vast understatement! I’m still so proud of her for the decision she made on behalf of her family. It was the right thing but we surely do have a gap around Siestaville. Thankfully, I don’t have a gap in my heart and home where she’s concerned. We all live life in pretty close community. Her little family is unending delight to me. We have LOVED having Melissa and Colin back! Their apartment is just darling and we so hope they stick around a while. Something really fun happened last night. Melissa and I knew we were going to be out much later than usual because we were hosting guests after Bible study so she asked Colin if she could just spend the night at our house. She lives much further out than Keith and I do and, after dropping me off at my house, she would have been super late getting back to her apartment. Colin blessed her to do that then called back a little while later and said he’d just come, too. So he packed a bag and they both stayed at our house. That is one reason why we love him to no end. He is a family man to the bone. Hopefully Melissa will be able to say hi a little more often on here in the near future. We are keeping her hands full but she has a soft spot for Siestas. That’s a fact.

I’m just sitting out on my back porch having a few minutes to myself. I’ve been throwing the ball to Star and watching her and Geli chase birds and reflecting on the last day or two. God brought us another astounding group of women last night. I have never seen a larger group with a smaller feel. What I mean by that is, they participate like they’re all on the front row. If I ask them to repeat something, they do it LOUD. They stay right on point and they’re happy to tell me if I miss a blank on their handout. (I love that. That means they’re paying attention.) Honestly, I think this is one of my favorite Tuesday night groups ever. I know, I know. I say that a lot. I fall in love easy. But my worst nightmare is that I’d just keep “teaching” the same people the same thing year after year after year after year and nobody’s heard a fresh word in five years but everybody’s too fast asleep to realize it. O Lord, deliver us. This is one reason why we have to study under many teachers and why teachers have to serve different groups. Sometimes we need to shake it up. It’s so easy to grow dull of hearing even a voice we dearly love. Sometimes all it takes is a break. Other times we need a change. Knowing the difference is critical.

I am so relieved and grateful to our merciful God that, for now, He’s bringing numbers of people we’ve never seen before and even their presence there stirs up the ones who have been around a long time. I love the familiar ones and the new ones alike. My concern is that women be in the best environment for learning and living the Scriptures. When we’ve ceased hearing or changing, we need a new environment. I am also mindful that, as I beg Him to keep me fresh and thrilled in His Word, that He often uses difficulty to answer that prayer. About the time I’m feeling a little lifeless or dull, something happens to make those words jump off the page again. Most of my revivals come from survivals. I still need Him so much. I need His Word. I need His Presence. I  need His help. I need His deliverance. It’s weird to realize that sometimes our desperation for Him is an answer to our very own prayers to love Him like nothing else. He is so faithful. I shake my head at the wonder of Him again today.

Last night we had a treat that many of us are still talking about today. Kari Jobe and her band led us in worship. Many of us were first introduced to her through “Revelation Song” and are familiar with her through the Gateway worship projects. She is tremendously gifted, blatantly anointed, and absolutely delightful. Amanda had the joy of hosting Lysa TerKeurst at Bible study last night and afterward for a quick bite while Melissa, Michelle, and I hosted Kari, her mom, her sister, her coworker and several lifelong friends. By the way, you guys, Lysa TerKeurt’s book Made To Crave is flying off the shelves and into the hands of women who are being deeply effected by the power of Christ. It is one of two books I plan to read next. Made To Crave recently hit the NY Times Best Seller list and we praise God for drawing attention to this powerful message and messenger. I noticed that a number of you were reading it in your comments to the last post. We got to have Lysa at Bible study last night because she was in town for interviews all day today on our local contemporary Christian radio station, KSBJ. (89.3 FM – find it on line. You will love it.)

Here are a couple of pictures we snapped with our iPhones last night after dinner with Kari. We took several of the whole group with a regular camera but those haven’t made it to me yet. Is she the cutest thing you’ve ever seen?? (Yes, single, but not presently interested in everybody fixing her up with their best single guy friend. It is a shame though, isn’t it?) I was so glad that I changed my mind at the last minute and didn’t wear my tutu. She might not be ready for us to dress alike yet. I am going to get me one of those headbands, however. Just think what a poof I could get going with one of those.

This is Kari with Michelle who did indeed wear her tutu. You just can’t see it in this picture.

Well, my man is acting like he’s hungry and I’m supposed to do something about it. I am especially taken with him right now so I’m going to hop off of here and tend to him.Keith and I ride a roller coaster…and it’s sort of on the upside right now. Thank You, Lord. I don’t know why but I’m laughing out loud.

I’m so happy to touch base with you today! I love you guys like crazy! You know what I’d like to hear this week? One thing God is teaching you right now. Just one. Do tell.

Your Mama loves you.

Hey, Darling Things!

I’m working from home today and thought I’d take a little break and let my study-brain relax a minute and tune my heart into Siestaville. Let me tell you how proud I am of you for clocking in with the same general number of 2nd verses as you did your first verses. The hard part is not the start. It’s pressing on all the way through the year to the finish. But, then, like all runners that make it across that beautiful line, we get to celebrate a huge victory that only comes to those who sweat it out. We give all praise and glory to our empowering, sustaining God and sit back for a reflective moment, take a deep breath, and feel His glorious good pleasure. Community will become more and more essential as we realize that, without making a public commitment and running the race beside a host of others in this Scripture memory marathon, we’ll probably fizzle out. There is no doubt in my mind that we’re more successful at this together than we are separately. It’s God’s way.

Yesterday was a really fun day at LPM. I already put this on Twitter but it took about a half a dozen of our staff members to put together additional shelves for the books Melissa has acquired since she last worked within the ministry office.

I have promised Melissa my library when God takes me Home, but if she keeps this up at this rate for the next fifteen years, she’s going to pass me by and I’m going to leave mine to Curtis. (That threat won’t mean much to you but it will get Melissa and her dear brother-in-law  sparring again over who gets the books which, in turn, gives me a great laugh.) Amanda has been promised other things like what sits on my left hand. But I might spite them all and live a really long time…with colored hair and firm foundations (and I don’t mean the latter in the religious sense. Or the former for that matter. I cannot find hair color in the Scriptures unless I get to count head coverings which, to me, is not unreasonable. In that way and others like unto it, I am a very submissive woman).We’ll see how that pans out. (The timing of my demise not my hair color.)

The other really cool thing we did yesterday at LPM was preview the movie Courageous. It’s the new movie by the people that gave us “Face the Giants” and it comes out in September. (www.courageousthemovie.com) I will remind you guys about it when the release day gets closer but I can’t wait till then to tell you about it. Sisters, it was so good. I don’t want to give away the story line but I can’t quit thinking about it. They have done such a magnificent job with it. We honestly laughed out loud and cried and cheered. I can hardly wait until it comes out. I think God has something far beyond good, solid family entertainment for this film. I’ve told you guys before that, after retiring from the Army, my daddy ran movie theaters so I love few things on this earth more than good movies and great popcorn. (Yes, we popped corn yesterday. And I ate mine with a Starbucks instead of a coke which was an odd pairing and one I might not venture to combine next time.) The primary message of Courageous is targeted to our men who we all know are also targeted by our very vicious enemy. I really believe I can tell you in advance that the guys in your life will love the movie. Mine will and he’s not easy to please. Courageous scores very low on the cheese factor which we know drives most guys crazy about any form of Christian entertainment or encouragement. I dare say that we may be a tad cheesy in Siestaville but we try to keep our Velveeta loaded with jalapenos.

Lastly, I’ll tell you that we started our January Bible study on Tuesday night with one of the best groups God has ever brought our way. We were flabbergasted. May He be greatly praised and glorified in that sweet sanctuary where He’s met with some of His people so many times. We’ll be talking on here about meeting on Tuesdays but we won’t be talking on here about the material because I’ve established a gag order. Laughing. The on-site participants are previewing a (very little) bit of homework so that their experience will be richer but, for copyright’s sake and for future publishing, we’re going to keep it and the session materials low key. It’s not that we’re hiding something. It’s that it’s just a long way from being finished. I also don’t want hype. Ick. Even well meaning hype from those who are sweetly biased. I just want to study Scripture as God presents it to us in His own good time and His own good way. I won’t actually do the LifeWay taping for this series until late April when we do it with a studio audience and I’ll still write through most of the summer. I am reluctant to keep bringing up the series on here because I don’t want to build it all up in anybody’s mind. A curriculum that speaks to one person can hit another person cold. How this turns out is all up to the Holy Spirit but what I can tell you in advance is that, God willing, we will do our best to know that brief Book of the Bible by the time we’re done.  Whether anybody will actually “like” it or not is up for grabs. James isn’t necessarily a party bus.

Well, I’ve had about as much of a break as I can afford today. You’re on my mind every day and I pray for you often.

Oh, and this is one reason I got on here today! You know what we’re doing to stay in the Word this early 2011 but what are each of you doing? (Besides memorizing!) Tell me what you’re studying right now!

I love you guys.

My Dear Ladies,

It has been *so* long since I have written on this blog. WOW. Things have been so busy at work and around the Fitzpatrick house but today I got some news that compelled me to get on the blog immediately. Joanne Heim, a dear siesta, suffered a stroke this morning. She is the thirty-eight year old wife of Toben and mother of Audrey (12) and Emma (9). Some of you around here may know her as the Simple Wife. Joanne has inspired me countless times with her witty and profound comments. She is a brilliant student of Scripture, an amazingly devoted wife, and a fun and creative Mom. The last time I heard from her she told me that she was teaching her girls Greek. My heart was pierced when I heard the news a few hours ago and I have not been able to get the Heims out of my mind. Please hear me when I say that I know nothing except that Joanne has been in surgery, they located a blood clot, and she is out of surgery. I have been stalking news about her on Twitter, and apparently she is still sleeping but has been responsive by squeezing her husband’s hand.  The family will not know anything substantial until she wakes up.  I am not an authority on what is going on as I have very few details (and the ones I do have are from Twitter!), but Mom, Amanda and I do want to invite you to pray for our dear sister Joanne. If you feel inclined, please use the comments on this post as prayers for Joanne and family.  We have been told that there is a call to prayer tonight at 6:00 CST. Check Twitter (@joanneheim/#prayingforjoanne) because the last we heard, they were going to try to Skype. No matter when, no matter where, let us all join together and pray for all things concerning the Heim family.

Love to you all,

Melissa

Hey, Sweet Things!

I feel like I’ve lived a month-full of events since the last I checked in with you but decided in retrospect that maybe God had kept me busy so I’d leave up that last post a little longer. I knew in my heart that many of your lives were touched by hidden disabilities just as mine has been. Some of yours, vastly more than I’ve experienced but I know some of the pain and bewilderment and fear. My prayer is that, at the very least, you know you are not alone and that God sees every struggle and is moved to compassion by every heartache. He is still our Healer and when healing doesn’t come the way we wished and prayed, He is still our Strength and Sustainer.

OK, let me think what has happened around the Moore world since I talked to you last. Thursday morning I had the great joy of heading to San Antonio for one of my closest and dearest spiritual daughter’s first baby’s birth. (Did you follow that??) I have known Amy since she was barely out of college and came to work at my home church years ago. We were not instantly close because of such a wide age gap between us but God wove our hearts together through the ups and downs and twists and turns of time. For years now we have been as thick as blood. She is big sister to both of my girls and I love Amanda and Melissa even more for always opening their arms to her. As tight as the four Moores have been, I have never for one second been able to tell that they felt the least bit threatened as Keith and I loved this young woman second only to them. I relish so many dimensions of life in Christ and one of my top five favorites is family that He brings together, not by natural means but by the bond of the Spirit. The riches are immeasurable.

Amy moved to the Texas Hill Country where her man works after they married two and a half years ago.  Then eight months ago while Keith and I were at our cactus ranch, I got a text from her that said, “Hey, can you call me when you get a minute?” That was not unusual but I just had the weirdest feeling in my stomach. I dialed as fast as my fingers would move and when she answered, I blurted out, “Are you having a baby???” And we both screamed and then cried. Amy married just on the other side of her mid-thirties and God knew that the desire of her heart was to have a baby. I was all about rushing it but, since I had no control, I let Amy and Steven do what they thought was best. And, boy, did they ever do a good job of it.

Michelle drove me to San Antonio so I could still work on my laptop in the front seat of the car. When she offered, I reasoned that it was a tad above and beyond her job description but she countered that I am her job and, after all, it was a workday, and, furthermore, when I’m out of the office, she doesn’t have as much to do. The truth is, I think she caught a bad case of itchy feet from me and I’m just as glad. She is the easiest person in the world to travel with and a big help to boot. Her Dad works for Marriott so she got us two rooms close to the hospital for $40 each. Not bad at all.

I stayed in touch with Amy and Steven all the way from Houston to San Antonio and made it to the hospital in time to lend some support to my sweet girl while she labored from 6-9 centimeters. I was so proud of her. I’ve thought a lot about Amy and Steven and that baby coming in their later thirties rather than their early twenties. I know this is not always the case but, as for this young woman, she felt so blessed to be carrying that baby that she virtually never complained about being sick or, as most of us feel from seven months to nine, ample of stomach. She was nothing but grateful all the way from push to shove. As I stared at the two of them staring at her, I wondered if I’d ever known a baby that was more welcome or more apt to be savored every single second of her young life.

Ainsley Elizabeth was born to Amy and Steven at 6:12 PM as Steven’s parents, Amy’s mom, sister, and brother-in-law, and our dear friends, Steve and Bonita Seelig, and Kimberly McMahon and I waited nearby on pins and needles. Steven shot me a text about ten minutes later and we shouted till the dead could have been raised at Methodist Hospital in San Antonio, Texas. In no time at all, we all got to go back and see as beautiful a newborn as any of us had ever laid our eyes upon (needless to say, alongside Jackson and Annabeth Jones). A little while later while I was hogging her, everybody but her parents (busy with the doctor) gathered around to gawk at the gorgeous reality of her. I said to that darling little thing, “Ainsley Elizabeth, the generations welcome you! Come into this family and be loved!” And she had an expression like she might do just exactly that.

Ainsley and her absolutely darling new Mommy. I normally would never post a picture of a woman who’d just walked through the Valley of the Shadow (what my mom called childbirth) but Amy looked so fantastic that she earned this. This baby wasn’t even an hour old in this picture.

Since I did that to her in her unadorned hour, I think it is only fair that I show you a regular picture of Amy with her man. This sits on an end table in our den:

Back to the hospital Thursday night. This is some of our very best lifetime friends, the Seeligs, with Ainsley and me. Steve is a minister at “the other” big Baptist church right down the road from us and has been on the LPM board of directors since its inception. He is a nut just like he appears to be in this picture and that’s why I’m posting it.

This is one we keep looking at and laughing. I mean this in good humor and with nothing but respect (and our dear Sister Lynn knows that’s the truth) but doesn’t Ainsley look a little like Mother Teresa as an infant here?

This is Ainsley and the uncontested man in her life: Daddy.

And this is Miss Pris all by herself. This is her first outfit and I was given the dubious honor of putting it on her:

I got back Friday night and threw a roast in the oven and sliced potatoes in a pan and prepared a heaping helping of birthday dinner for one of my favorite men in the whole wide world. Curtis Jones turned thirty and our entire family unit was there to celebrate. It was one of those nights you can’t really plan when everybody laughs like there’s no tomorrow and makes big over everything. Colin and Melissa gave Curtis a great set of speakers for his I-pod and we turned up the music and danced our legs off on the kitchen tile. Well, at least Amanda, Melissa, Annabeth and I did. Keith wanted to. I could tell. He just wouldn’t bring himself to do it since the other men were sitting back laughing while we were carrying on. Believe it or not, Keith Moore was a disco king back in our college days and could twirl a girl on the dance floor with impressive flair. After we were entirely out of breath, we crowded around the Cotton Bowl until Amanda, our resident Aggie, just couldn’t take it anymore. All of us texted each other the next day and said what a blast it was.

Such a great welcome to the weekend then yesterday came.I spent the first part of it in near euphoria with both my daughters at lunch at a great little tea room by the ministry. Melissa had a decked-out veggie sandwich and my favorite pasta salad in the world. AJ had chicken enchilada crepes and a green salad and I had chicken and spinach quiche with tortilla soup. Man, my mouth is watering thinking about it. We then dropped Lis off at the ministry to do some catch-up work then I took AJ home and grabbed the boy. He, Buzz Lightyear, and I headed to the park where we played for about the next hour and a half. If I loved this boy one iota more, I’d break into pieces.

Then I got a text. A horrific thing happened in Arizona, sending shock waves all over the United States. A gunman unloaded a semiautomatic weapon at a public gathering for Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. He wounded thirteen people and stole six precious lives right out from under their families. One was a nine year-old little girl. A nine year-old little girl. It’s the kind of thing that makes you throw your hand over your mouth. A bloody rampage. What on earth makes a person do a thing like that, we wonder. What kind of world is this we live in??

These are strange days. Terrifying days. Sometimes I just sit and shake my head and wonder what on earth is ahead. During those times, my mind often turns to the divinely intended irony of the exact same phrase found in Acts 2:17 and 2 Timothy 3:1 –

In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Acts 2:17

But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2 Timothy 3:1

A few days ago an older man I respect so much told me that he was scared to death for our world and that he believed we were facing history’s most perilous days. I hadn’t even unpacked my suitcase yet from a conference where I saw 22,000 college-age men and women wildly proclaim the Name of Jesus, pore over His Word, and support His cause with over a million dollars for missions. I thought of the irony. I thought of the truth. I thought of the prophesy of the worst of times and the best of times. The same days that will give rise to such peril will also see the rising of a refined church. Darkness will come but light will shine in the darkness. The shroud of death may threaten to cover the earth but the tender cries of newborns still remind us that beauty can rise from the ashes.

Somebody new might read this post and think how idealistic and out of touch I seem and that’s okay. Enough of the rest of you know that I didn’t even make it out of toddlerhood as a budding Pollyanna. Though many of you suffer in ways I can’t imagine, I have ongoing hardships and some personal challenges that seem overwhelming at times. Even in the midst of escalating horrors, Scripture commissions us in the final words of Romans 12, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

Some verses skim easily off the surfaces of our lives. Others make it deep into the echoing chambers of our hearts. Psalm 27 is one of those for me. I memorized it years ago out of the KJV at a time when I thought I’d be swallowed up whole by my enemy. To this day, I call its closing words back to my conscious mind every single time I feel overcome by evil.
13      I would have lost heart, unless I had believed
That I would see the goodness of the LORD
In the land of the living.
14      Wait on the LORD;
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the LORD!  (Psalm 27:13-14 NKJV)

The goodness of the Lord. Here. RIGHT HERE. In the land of the living. May He strengthen your heart. And may He crowd around the suffering with such force and affection that His healing presence is palpable.

We are praying for you, Arizona. And we are so, so sorry for your suffering.

Hey, Sweet Things! I am about to do something that I don’t often do. I’m about to mention a website that has no official connection to Living Proof Ministries. I hardly ever do this because we would not know where to stop. By God’s grace, there are so many great resources out there that our entire blog would be given over to a steady stream of recommendations, swallowing up our purpose here. We also don’t have the ability to thoroughly police every site, founder or author we might want to mention. I’ve learned the hard way that, to many folks out there, a favorable mention or a recommendation about someone or something means that you line up with everything they’ve ever said or, scarier yet, will ever say. The risk can be enormous.

The reason why I’m taking the risk this time is because those of you who stand to be helped could need it in the worst way. There is no doubt in my mind that many of you Siestas have a family member with what can be called a “hidden disability.” Or, it might not be a family member at all. It might be the God-cherished and Christ-chosen person you see in the mirror. The new website is called Chosenfamilies.org and its founder and CEO is Shannon Royce, a brilliant woman of God I have known for the better part of 20 years. In order to avoid misquoting or misrepresenting her, I have taken the following excerpts straight off the website so she can explain for herself what Chosenfamilies.org is all about.

Shannon Royce explains,

As a mom of a child who has been diagnosed with a hidden disability, I know the challenges our families face. These hidden disabilities — Anxiety, Asperger, ADHD, Autism, Bipolar disorder, Depression, Learning disabilities, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Tourette syndrome, and others — are neurological disorders that affect every area of a child’s and a family’s life.

While the medical community is beginning to understand these disabilities, they are less understood in the church. As if the diagnosis and daily challenges were not enough, the burden is often made heavier by a lack of understanding and support from the body of Christ. At best, the church is silent, and at worst it is hurtful. Wrong-headed theology treats these disorders as sin or demonic possession rather than as neurological disorders affecting an organ of the body — the brain.

Families struggling with these issues are left to fend for themselves as they seek to raise their child or live with their family member who suffers from one of these disabilities.

Some of you know what she’s talking about. Here’s a brief bio on Shannon so you’ll know she didn’t just fall off the apple cart: (Again, I’m quoting off the site)

Prior to founding the organization, Shannon served in various pro-family organizations as a public policy advocate.  Among her experiences were the privilege to serve as the Director of Public Policy and Legislative Counsel for the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. Prior to her work with the Southern Baptist Convention she served two Senators as a policy advisor.  She earned her Juris Doctorate from the George Washington University School of Law and is licensed to practice in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Siestas, along the way so many of you have asked me questions concerning (what we can now call) hidden disabilities and often I didn’t feel qualified to answer them. It wasn’t because my life had been untouched by them. On the contrary, my life was effected by them in the past and is effected by them in the present. Still, those kinds of answers need to come from people with more focused education and professional experience. I am relieved to now have a place to suggest to you for information and potential support from those with a Christ-centered world view. (There may be more out there but this is the first one I’ve learned about firsthand.) I implore you to allow me to make this suggestion to you because I love you and care for you so much without holding me responsible for every conversation or article that could take place on the site.  This I can tell you: I have known Shannon Royce to be a steadfast, sound, and mighty woman of God and I don’t look for that to change overnight.

LPM exists to encourage women in their walks with Christ. I am painfully aware that many of you are walking under a burden that is far beyond our area of education. (I am reluctant to use the word expertise as I’m not sure I’m an expert at anything.) I love you so much and I want to see you get the help you need. My hope is that this connection might be extremely helpful to some of you and offer you the relief of knowing you are not alone. Allow me to strongly suggest that you seek professional counsel from qualified physicians to make sure you have or your loved one has been properly diagnosed. One last thing. Let’s be careful on our comments to this post. Remember how public this blog is. Please don’t share anything about a loved one with a hidden disability that he or she might feel dishonored by. If you want to share something under the leadership of the Holy Spirit, by all means, do, but leave off names or identities that could be (even unintentionally) damaged by it. Let’s also stay encouraging and retain our Blessed Hope!

Life can be hard, can’t it, Sisters? But our God is good and our God is so faithful. He tells us to “be concerned about one another in order to promote love and good works.” (Hebrews 10:24 HCSB)

And, how about a shout of praise for God enabling my very small but mighty staff to fill EVERY SINGLE ORDER for SSMT spirals! And over holidays! The resource department is completely up to date in your orders which well surpassed 6000 spirals. (Some have just gone in the mail so that doesn’t mean all your orders should have reached you by now. Only that they are filled and soon on their way.) As you can see from the January 1st post, 8000 of us are memorizing Scripture together. PRAISE YOU, LORD!!!! Listen carefully with ears of faith and you just might hear the sound of Swords slicing through the air to the glory of God the Father.

You are loved here and counted into every week of ministry that takes place within these doors.

My Dear Siestas,

I am writing you from an altitude of about 25,000 feet on my way home from Atlanta. I’m in the window seat and it’s a gorgeous day on our trek over Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi and I trust Louisiana and Texas, too. I’m sure I’ve told you before that I am one of those weirdos who actually loves traveling. As Melissa and I often say, our boots were made for walking. AJ is game, too, but two preschoolers have a way of coloring your present views toward air travel. Air Traffic Control is a breeze compared to Air Toddler Control. As for Keith, he prefers his size 13 D cowboy boot on the accelerator of a Ford pickup truck. I’m not a fan of the whole travel ordeal, mind you. A life thrown at the mercy of security lines, weather delays, mechanical difficulties, cancellations, and overbooking will take a toll on you. Sometimes my body feels so dog tired I can hardly fathom doing it all again but in no time I do. God gave me itchy feet.

You are one of two big things on my mind this morning as I make my way back to Houston. To say you completely blew me away with your Scripture memory commitments is an understatement almost too silly to say. My mind is spinning with what God might be up to. A few minutes ago I was looking ahead to the next portion of Scripture that I’ll write about in the James study. It’s James 1:19-21. (I know you are wondering how on earth I can only be that far in the writing process after all this time! It goes very slow because each portion has to be researched, mulled over, written, and self edited before I ever send it into LifeWay. The process takes a year to eighteen months of solid work.) As I read over the familiar portion, I fastened my gaze on the finishing words of James 1:21. It is the exhortation to all of us Christ-followers to humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. My eyes stung with tears.

God’s implanted Word has saved me from myself more times than I can count. I love it. No, I don’t always feel giddy about it nor do I always know what to do with it but the written Word of God hits me often enough in my daily exposure to keep me going back for more. I just do not know where I would be or, God help me, what my life would look like without my battered mind being interrupted and rewired by Scripture. Those words implanted deep into my belief system have convicted me, changed me and, at times, wrecked me. These thoughts are what led me to stop my research that very moment and write to you instead. I want you to know that you will never waste a moment of your life in God’s Word. (Unless you are trying to avoid actually doing what it says. There comes a time to shut the Book and go live the Book then go back to the Book so that You can again live the Book.) As you give yourself to the monumental, ongoing task of studying Scripture and hiding it in your heart through memorization, your life is altered. Unblocked and guarded, the words of God make it all the way into the marrow of your bones. Your way is made clearer, your thoughts brighter, your purpose stronger, and your glory to God greater.

I just want to tell those of you who have committed to a year of Scripture memory what I have a hunch you already know: you will not be sorry.

And that brings me to the second big thing on my mind, tied to you, the first, by way of the very same Scripture in James. I just left Passion 2011. It’s still going strong and will not end until tomorrow morning but my schedule was best suited to the first half of it. (I hate so much to miss Dr. Piper though.) If you’re not familiar with the Passion movement (Louie and Shelley Giglio, founders), I will never do justice to it here in this brief explanation so please google it and behold a mighty work of God. In a nutshell, however, it is perhaps the most powerful thing God is doing among college-age men and women across the globe. Do not believe the hype that Jesus has left the college campus. My whole family and I have had the mystifying privilege of being involved since the national conference began in the late 90’s. Even Keith adores it. Curtis serves as one of the community leaders and Amanda ministers right by his side. Every single time I stand in awe of God’s palpable presence in a secular arena packed with students but never more than this year. The event always attracts way over 10,000 people but this new year it sold out at a whopping 22,000 and about five minutes into the event, it was clear why. God.

No other reason.

He has as uncanny a way of showing Himself at these events and, in light of His innumerable mercies, we can guess why. There is no age demographic at greater risk than 18-25 year olds and He’s chasing them down like He’s got nothing to lose but a generation. Our embarrassingly secular culture (of which, in many ways, we are all a part) would be explanation enough for so many young adults walking away from the faith. Add to it the burgeoning disdain for Christianity and mockery of Christians on many college campuses and you’ve got yourself a boiling hotbed for disbelief. But our God is so faithful. We know He will retain a voice in the generations on the latter-day Kingdom calendar because Matthew 24 says that the testimony of Jesus Christ has to make it into every people group. Revelation 19 also tells us that He will return for a Bride refined and made ready. Jesus will indeed raise His Church to her feet but the closer and closer we get to His return, the stronger and stronger she must be. She will know a persecution and ultimately a suffering that 20^th Century Westerners could never have imagined.

I saw about 22,000 reasons for high hopes in the last forty-eight hours. You see, Passion isn’t for the faint of heart. The schedule is packed and the sessions are refreshingly unrushed. About two seconds into the conference you lose that warm, fuzzy feeling that any god goes. If you’ve got an aversion to Jesus, you’ve got an aversion to Passion. The Word of God is preached and taught, read aloud and read in unison. The worship is…well…impossible to describe. Just go right ahead and anxiously anticipate the worship CD that will come out of it somewhere down the road. World missions and the needs of the downcast and suffering are kept at the forefront constantly and the 268 concept for the “Go-Center” is nothing less than genius. (Google all of this if this is news to you. You will be astounded and your faith will surge.)

Even this very moment, the Word of God is being implanted in those thousands upon thousands of young lives. Words that can save. Words that can sanctify. Words that can serve. Words that can send. Words that can be shared.

That’s the power of God. That’s the power of His Spirit. That’s the power of His Word.

That’s the power of Jesus.

Let’s keep saying it until every knee bows and every tongue confesses He is Lord.

Good morning, Sweet Things!

It’s one of those rare days around the Moore house when we get to sleep late. I got up about 7:30 because I like to have a few minutes before everybody else rouses around here. I just got finished with my quiet time and had you on my mind so I thought I might show you what life looks like from exactly where I’m sitting:

My man and I usually get a tree that is way too big for our low ceiling and have to cut two feet off the top. After all, we are the Moores and if medium is good, more is better. This year we got one that fits our size room a little more appropriately and is less accommodating to Star and Geli for chewing and climbing and all-around-dragging. Up front is me in my favorite house slippers. They are called “The Pinks” (forenamed by Melissa and I when we got our original pairs). Everyone in the family knows The Pinks and God forbid one of the dogs getting hold of them. I am very picky about my house slippers because my man keeps the house ten degrees below zero and my feet nearly freeze into nubs.

To the right of The Pinks you can see the very top of my favorite coffee cup. I’m annoyed at myself for not getting it in the picture better but I don’t have time to take another one and upload it. My Greek tutor, Dr. Joe Wall, and his beautiful wife gave me a set of dessert plates and cups and saucers from Russia where they train pastors. (Replicas of Catherine the Great’s official dishes.) I don’t have a ton of attachments to things but, if my house caught on fire, these would come out right after the baby pictures and the dogs. Coffee and tea drinker that I am, I love delicate cups and saucers. So do Amanda and Melissa and we have used this set no less than a thousand times. They have the added sentimental value of coming from people I love and respect so they make English tea or fresh brewed coffee taste even better.

On each side of the tree are dolls that hold candles and move their arms (hence, the blur). I’ve had them for twenty years and they mesmerize me. I could sit and stare at them for hours. Annabeth is also completely taken with them. She stands right in front of them and needs to talk to me at length about them. The one on the right has a hood on her red velvet coat and AB likes to put it on and off and on and off and with the delicate touch of a chimpanzee. Nonetheless, the doll stands tall and takes it like a trooper.  If you’re wondering where the presents are, we don’t bring them out until Christmas Day because they take up too much room in our den.

Shhhhhhhh. Don’t tell them you saw what’s in them but these are my girls’ stockings:

I made each of these from kits with my own little hands right after each girl was born. (Amanda was born ten minutes after we were married. Not really. Nine and a half months to be exact and, no, I’m not kidding.) Of course, I also made a stocking for Keith and one for me. I still can’t believe I did it. (Don’t you dare ask how hard it could be. This might as well have been chiseling heads on Mt. Rushmore for me.) That was back when I had more hope of being the home goddess. I may have even had a sewing machine back then. I had high hopes of carrying on family tradition. My mom could sew anything and I didn’t have a store bought dress until junior high. My older sister, Gay, and I dressed alike all our young lives and still think it might be fun.

Uh oh. Melissa and Keith are up so I’ve run out of time. Here’s one more. It’s a picture the girls and I took yesterday at Saltgrass Steak House with Melissa’s I-phone on our Christmas shopping day. By 2:00, we hadn’t gotten a single gift but we’d eaten twice.

Oh gracious. I love those girls so much. They remain the greatest proof in my life of God’s inconceivable redemption. Even more than the ministry, as thankful as I am for it. God didn’t just do a miracle in my serving life. He did a miracle in my HOME. In my own troubled family. How Keith or I either one did not destroy this home is a mystery only God can explain.

OK, so now it’s your turn. What holds a special Christmas memory or tradition around your home? Do tell!

I love you guys so much.

PS. OK, because you insisted, here’s a close up:

And I couldn’t bring myself to show it to you empty so you just caused me to have a fourth cup of strong coffee. I’m typing really fast and feeling extra energetic. Going to get off and do handsprings in the den until I calm down.

Hey, Darling Things! A quick, random post here. The last day of work before Christmas is always ministry-on-steroids around this place. We close to the public and work like crazy to get last minute details done. Several of us (yours truly included) will still have to put in a few days between Christmas and New Year’s but this is our last day of 2010 as a team. Characteristically at some point on the last day, all of us pitch in and help Diane and Evangeline with resources. Lots of people place last minute orders that they’re hoping will make it by Christmas Day and we try hard to accommodate. This year someone also came up with this insane idea that tagged on, oh, about 6000+ orders and in December, no less.  (Perhaps you’ve noticed that we are having to freeze new SSMT spiral orders for a few days because we’ve gone into back order for printing.) But we are so happy and the Lord is so faithful!

Christ has called us to Romans 15:13 over the last week due to some long term struggles a few of us are having.  We’ve been saying it back and forth to one another as a reminder of His blessing to us. Maybe you could use this reminder, too. Hopelessness is never of God. Never. Nothing is too difficult for Him. Nothing is beyond His reach. His restoration. Even His reconciliation. I’m going to try to write the verse by heart to you:

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

As you trust in Him.

As you trust in Him.

AS YOU TRUST IN HIM.

If we’ve got His Word on it, let’s not stop believing Him for our situations until our lack of hope transforms into an OVERFLOW of hope. Do it, Lord. I felt the victory begin the moment I started committing the verse to memory. God is so amazing.

Anyway, here are a few random pictures from the last two days. I had so many more but they won’t upload and I’m so annoyed. This is a quick pic of our staff Christmas lunch yesterday at Grand Lux by the Galleria:

This is your very own Siesta Mama stuffing envelopes with spirals. That’s my buddy of 30 years, Johnnie, to my right (she’s the one the David revision is dedicated to. That’s my buddy of 20+ years, Diane, to my left. She is one of our LPM managers and one of the people I trust most in the world:

These are some of the last minute orders waiting for our wonderful UPS man.

Gotta go! I get to babysit tonight! I’ll be in plenty of touch around here. I love you guys!

Hey, Siestas! You are the biggest blast of a blog community EVER. Thank you for being so much fun about the Siesta Scripture Memory Spirals. You would have thought we were doing one of those big Oprah giveaways where everybody in the audience gets a really fabulous free gift and women scream for fifteen minutes. Oh, man, I wish these could have been free gifts! Would you believe that 1393 of you placed orders within the first 24 hours?? At this point, over 4000 of you have placed orders so it’s safe to say that we at LPM really did scream for fifteen minutes – and, yes, with absolute joy. Even laughter. I got a text when they hit a thousand spirals and it had about 20 exclamation marks at the end of it. I threw my head back laughing before the Lord and flat out slapped my leg. About a month ago when I shared this vision with Sabrina, I said, “I don’t know. I may be wrong but I think they’ll like them.” Well, you did. Which tells me it had to have come from God because some of my really good ideas have sunk  deep into the abyss…but only after costing us an arm and one and a half legs. Anyway, back to the spirals. To say that my staff is busy is an understatement but we’ve got wonderful volunteers and everybody will still get the designated time off for the holidays. I go down stairs every little while and tell them I’m sorry (and they laugh and say you’re a privilege to serve) and we’re also trying to feed them a lot. Here are a few of them hard at work right now:

(There is lots of hugging at LPM. Nancy Mattingly heads up correspondence around here – oh, MAN! I am so thankful to God for her – and her daughter Sara just got home from college for the Christmas holidays and came to lend a hand. That’s one of us hugging her. We adore all the LPM offspring.)

We are getting them in the mail (the spirals, not the offspring) as fast as humanly possible but, as you can see, we are big in heart and small in numbers around here. Still, we are pressing on and you will have them at the earliest possible date. There’s no loitering around here. I hate to rub it in but I already have my set. I’m chomping at the bit to write the first verse in it but I’m waiting till January 1st on the dot.  Remember me telling you that I can tend toward obsessive thoughts? Well, case in point: I’m fighting the mild urge to obsess over which verse to choose first (what if it sets the tone for the year?) and which pen I want to use. I’d also like to have better penmanship on this year’s set. Ordinarily by the time I get to April and I’m in the middle of this crisis or that, my verses look like they’ve been written in an ambulance – and maybe half the time they should have been. I know you’re thinking I should get out more but just think how much I get out already and remain this odd. Well, I hope the Lord is getting some amusement out of us being this excited about memorizing Scripture. And don’t tell Melissa and Amanda but I am making theirs stocking stuffers.

Speaking of getting out more, guess what I’ve been doing? I flew to Atlanta two days ago, jumped in the car with Melissa, and started a two-day trek home to the Lone Star State. Colin has a brand new job that is enabling them to come back to Texas! Wooooooooo-hooooooooooo! Or in the expression coined right here in Siestaville, “Yahoo-Jah!” (Hold the “Yah” for about five seconds then say the “hoo-Jah” really fast. It has a rodeo-type feel to it.)  Colin is on his way right now with the moving van and Melissa and I got home with one of their two cars last night.

A couple of quick shots on the I-phone…

Walking to the car where we’d climb in, pay for parking, and head straight out of town. I am walking behind her thinking how I can’t believe this is really happening. Baby girl is heading back to Texas!

The first border we crossed out of Georgia. We literally drove through snow and sleet the first hour here. It was really exciting for me though. Snow is still a novelty around here!

The sky as we crossed the border into Mississippi:

A toast for miles behind us:

Day Two was really sunny and I wore my sunglasses for hours. Finally they were making deep dents and, let’s be honest, my nose doesn’t need any added distress. Melissa had this tiny little rag on her console for some reason and I made good use of it. Michelle said I looked like I was about to stage a hold-up at a Stop -N Go.

We had every plan to take our very best picture at the “Welcome to Texas!” Landmark in our own home state. Just as we were driving by it with my I-phone out the window, an eighteen wheeler sped by on our right side and gave us the evil eye. May God forgive him. We railed about it for a solid hour. No, there was no going back. It was freeway and would have taken too long to recreate. We consoled ourselves with sugar.

Thank you for enduring this long, unimportant-to-anyone-else  family narrative. It’s not over yet. I’m just thanking you now so you can continue hanging on by a thread. We are beside ourselves to welcome the Fitzpatricks back. We’ll have them in Houston for at least several months and will soak up every minute. I think you can anticipate hearing much more about them and from them as we have her back at the Living Proof office. We are so happy and praise God with all of our hearts. Except for small amounts of time over summers or holidays, Melissa has been away from home for ten years and from Texas for eight. She’s got itchy feet like her mom so don’t look for permanence out of them in Houston but we’re at least hoping that, wherever they ultimately land, they’ll stay within half day’s driving distance. That’s all up to the Lord. When you raise your kids with the hope that they’ll follow hard after Jesus and live their lives as a divine adventure, there is literally no telling where they’ll end up. We’re so happy for seasons we get to spend together.

Amanda made last night one of our all-time best 4-Moore memories. When Melissa and I drove up last night, Amanda was standing in the driveway holding big welcome home balloons and blowing a party horn. (I snapped a picture but the flash caught their eyes funny and they look a little possessed so I’ll spare you. And myself. It was my worst nightmare when they were growing up.) At that very second, Keith drove up from out of town, too, and the four of us had this spontaneous moment together. The timing was so perfect that we couldn’t have planned it. We got in a group hug and blew our party horns as loud as we could then laughed our heads off. Then we did what Texans do when they get back from being out of State: we headed to a Mexican restaurant and rekindled our family affections over hot sauce and tortilla chips. We topped off the evening by driving around our subdivision of 26 years and looking at Christmas lights. The whole evening was a family gift with a big red ribbon God alone could have wrapped around it. Our little family has been through a lot and grace is the air we breathe. We don’t take moments like these lightly.

Right now I am praying in Jesus’ lavish Name that He will appoint some spontaneous moments like these for you and your family or friends. I am well aware that life is hard and all of us could use some reminders that God has not forsaken us – and never will – and that He is only good and never malicious or unfeeling toward us. My next memory verse is James 1:17 “Every generous act and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights; with Him there is no variation or shadow cast by turning.” (James 1:17 HCS)

Oh, thank You, Lord. You never change. You never turn Your back on us.

We are blessed to be His daughters, Siestas.

OK, I’ve got a ton of work to do so I’ll sign off right after one last thing. For you Houston-area girls, we are having a book signing tomorrow (Saturday) at the LifeWay Christian Store in Willowbrook Court from 12:00 noon to 1:30. (17776 Tomball Parkway) This location is really special to us because it’s the closest one to my home. I have no idea how many times I’ve been in that store and perused those shelves for something new to read. It is also the location many years ago where Keith took me as a surprise to see the first Bible study on the shelf. (The original A Woman’s Heart: God’s Dwelling Place) He’d called the store in advance to find out when it would hit the shelf (I was too green to even know to ask)  and took me out to dinner that night without saying a word about it. When we drove away from the restaurant, he said, “I need to make one stop on the way home.” I was perplexed when he drove up to the Christian bookstore because it really wasn’t his thing but what wife would pass up an opportunity like that? He grabbed me by the hand and made a bee-line straight to the aisle where they’d told him in advance he’d find the new copies. I was so shocked I couldn’t believe my eyes. There wasn’t much to that original Bible study cover (a big purple flower, I recall) but it was a beautiful sight to us. We neither one said a word. We just stood in the aisle and cried. It was priceless.

All that to say, this Willowbrook location is “home” to us because it was simply the most convenient location and became such an active partner in Bible study ministry. I’ve shopped in there a jillion times. I’ve sat cross legged in the resource/commentary corner and pulled books off shelves more times than I can count and also bought innumerable music CD’s. A couple of years ago, my good buddy, Johnnie, and I dropped by there after having lunch next door at Sweet Tomatoes and had Jackson with us in the stroller. He was almost three at the time and there was a stack of Get Out of That Pit hardback books near where we were perusing. We got so tickled as he kept pointing at the cover and yelling, “Bibby! Bibby!” Silly stuff but fun family memories.

It’s a great store and I, for one, loathe the thought that on-line book orders (as many as I’ve placed!) would ever replace the kind of store you actually get out of your car and visit. I don’t know about you but, half the time, I don’t even know what I want to read until I see it.

Anyway, that’s where Michelle (AKA: “The Hawk”) and I will be tomorrow.  Melissa and/or Amanda may drop in but Michelle will be there for sure to help me. If you want to drop by and grab something off the shelf to have signed for somebody for Christmas, we’ll be blessed to serve you. These days the really abbreviated versions of certain written messages mean that the price range starts lower. We never, ever want to talk the women we are privileged to serve into overspending. No pressure here whatsoever. We just want you to know that we’ll be there to serve you…if you want to be served. Grin.

I sure love you guys. You are such a bright spot in my ministry life. I think of you every day. And right about now, my whole staff is thinking about you every minute. Pray your spirals home!

I’ll be back on here soon, Sweet Things. This mama loves you.

My dear Siestas, talk to me today about miracles. I know some people who could use one. Take some stones of remembrance this day and be used of God to build up somebody’s faith. Ground rules: No exaggerations. No make believe. Just pure honest Biblical truth about what you know your God can do from first hand experience.

You guys are so dear to me.

Lord Jesus, show up in a mighty visitation this week in our community. You are our Hope and our Salvation. In You we place our trust. The very sign of that first Christmas was a miracle: “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel – which means, ‘God with us.'” O Come, O Come Immanuel. So many need to know You are here. Grant us eyes to see and hearts to love. You are our everything. Thank You for Your goodness to us.