They'll Never Know the Half of It

I do not have time to be writing on this blog this morning. I have five - count them FIVE - lessons to finish for my taping for Life Today this weekend. But I am also out of Midol and I'm hoping that blurting a few things out there in Siesta land will make me feel better. Keith and I had a perfectly wonderful morning until 11 seconds before I was pulling out of the driveway when he teased me about something and hurt my feelings. No, made me MAD. As mad as a hornet. A hornet with PMS. I knew I had to stop by the Walgreens on my way to work to get women's personal supplies so, after waiting on the world's longest stop light, I wheeled into the parking lot with considerable expression. (I'm not one given to road rage but I am on occasion given to husband rage.) I made a bee-line to the feminine supply aisle, looked through 47 different kinds (for crying out loud, I want choices at Starbucks. Not on the feminine aisle! What ever happened to two simple categories??? Next thing you know they'll have supplies for women with highlights and without, with stay at home jobs or corporate careers. Oh, I am in such a bad mood).

THEN, TO TOP IT OFF, after I finally make my choice and am standing there balancing two jumbo size economy boxes, a man (did you hear me say A MAN?????) came right up to me and said, "I just wanted you to know that I just finished 'Get Out of That Pit' last night and it meant so much to me." I nearly sent him back to the pit. OK, not really. He was so sweet. Now you've made me feel guilty. I nearly sent myself to the pit. There I was trying to act normal, with two (did I emphasize HUGE?) boxes of feminine supplies under my arm like a man would hold two footballs. It was the longest short conversation of my life.

I don't know if I was just humiliated or having my first hot flash but then I started to sweat. I am in the worst mood. On my way to work I made my usual stop at Starbucks and after I made the order, I felt the first real stir of the Holy Spirit that I'd felt in a half hour and, under divine influence alone, blurted out, "You better make that a decaf today."

To top it off, Keith hasn't tried to call me yet. I've been dying for him to call so that I can let it ring and not answer it.

And here's why I'm telling you all this. Because I am in the middle of researching the Book of Esther for the next study God is leading me to write and a good while back I chose the subtitle: "It's Tough Being a Woman." I just want to tell you in advance that, because I'm going to have to be proper in my approach, when I get to the end of that Bible Study, there won't be a soul on the earth but a full grown woman who will know the HALF OF HOW TOUGH IT IS TO BE A WOMAN.

Sniff.

I love you, my fellow Siestas. And if you're not a siesta, you might want to wait until tomorrow to talk to me. I'm in no mood today.

It's That Time of Year

When I married a student minister and speaker, my wedding vows included, "I promise to love you, cherish you, be faithful to you, and follow you to as many camps as I can humanly take as long as we both shall live." I think the second summer of our marriage we were only home for three weeks. This summer, our sixth married summer, will be a little less hectic. I'm thankful for that since I have no idea what I'm getting into by taking a toddler to camp. Tomorrow is the big day when we'll load everything but the kitchen sink into our car and head off to our first one of the summer. We're so excited!

Since your one and only comment moderator is going to be off in the piney woods of East Texas, presumably without Internet access, the blog is going to be a little quiet this week. My mom might post, but you won't see any of your comments until I get back into town. My parents will be at a Life Today taping at the end of the week, so Bethie might be a little out of touch too.

For our Boone girls who are eager to get their commissioning, keep an eye on the LifeWay event recap page. They should post it soon. I've provided a new link to it on the left side of the page for future reference. They have recaps for a ton of events, so if you've attended one in the last two years you might see yours listed.

Yesterday, Memorial Day, I thought a lot about my grandpa. If he had still been alive I would have written him a little email or left him a message thanking him for serving our country so bravely. Last month I took a picture of the shadow box we have that contains his medals.

If you look very closely at his picture within it, you can see the hole in his cheek where he had been shot. Part of the bullet traveled down to his heart and remained there for the rest of his life. He had that picture taken to mail to my grandma so that she would know what he was going to look like from then on. Fortunately, the doctors were later able to patch it up better so that you couldn't see the hole.




And this is a picture I forgot to post of my grandpa with that bunny I told you about in this post. One of the bunnies is a decoy and the other is the famous Thumper.



See you next week!

Boone Recap

View it here on GodTube.

A Tribute to Travis Cottrell

Beth and Travis are serving at the Living Proof Live event in Boone, North Carolina, this weekend. What makes this event so special is that Boone is Travis' hometown! In honor of this big weekend, many friends and family members, the LifeWay team, the Living Proof Live team, and Beth put together this Tribute to Travis Cottrell. I'm so excited and so thankful to be able to share it with you all. Travis is such a huge part of Living Proof Ministries. I can't tell you how much all of us LPM girls love him, Angela, Jack, Lily Kate, and Levi. I hope you will enjoy this video as much as I did. And if you're like me you might need to have a tissue handy.



Many thanks to Rich and Stephen for helping us get this on the blog!

Living Proof Live - Boone, N.C.

Esther

Today is a big day for our Beth. After many weeks of studying and researching for Esther, today she will take on the vital task of writing the outline for the Bible study and video lessons. Everything in the study stems from this outline. Please pray for Beth today and ask God to give her His thoughts, creativity, organization, and vision for this project. She will also work on it tomorrow and Monday, but today is the most important day. Thanks, siestas!

One More Thing, My Dear Siestas

A few minutes ago, I jotted AJ (Amanda) an email to let her know that I had posted the commissioning for our "Sistas" and my spell-check objected and insisted that I call you my "siestas." It made me laugh.

And made me hungry for an enchilada. Then ready for a nap.

Belated Albuquerque Commissioning

My Darling Albuquerque Sisters, please forgive me for not getting your commissioning up until now! My delay could not possibly be a poorer reflection of my high esteem and deep affection for you. I totally loved my time with you. You were a terrific group and hand picked by God for that exact weekend. So gracious and compassionate. As you remember, I had just buried my Dad a few days before I came and, although God granted me complete focus and engagement while I was there, I returned to mountains of details to still take care of regarding his death...and my own grief to deal with. And in the process, I lost my notes of the commissioning! Dad blast it! Thank goodness, my buddies on the LifeWay event team had copied it and posted it and I was able to get it from them. I love you dearly and I am so thankful for you. For all of you who were not with us, our text that weekend was Philippians 2 if you care to read it first then reflect upon the charges below.

I am deeply grateful to be each of your servant. My inmost desire is to serve you Jesus and for the bottom line of all our interaction to be a more passionate love and knowledge of Him. Make no mistake. He is Life.


Dearly loved one
You’ve been called by God
To shine like a star
In a dark, depraved world
Don’t blend in
Refuse the daily temptation
To be absorbed in yourself
Take interest in others
Deliberately humble yourself
And live the life of a servant
As you live in the crisis
Of “continue to”
Keep working out
What God is working in
Watch your mouth
Choose words of life
And one glorious day
You will see the face of Christ
And He will show you
Every good purpose
He fulfilled through you
And there will be delight
Even if you are despised or ignored
You are Christ’s star
Go forth and shine

Jackson - 15 Months

My first time to play with the water hose.


Waiting at the airport a few days ago for our mystery guest.


Jackson's expression when he realized who the mystery guest was.




I can't be bothered to take a posed picture.












See ya! I have a squirrel to chase.

The Self Condemnation of a Red Bird

I just have a second but I can't get something off my mind so I decided to log on and throw it up here. I've told you before that I really dig birds. I keep lots of feeders and feel really co-dependent when I'm out of town and can't fill them up. As ridiculous as it sounds, they bring me untold joy. One of my birds, however, is having a serious issue. I think it's mental - and I can certainly relate - but it's manifesting itself in all manner of outward expressions. I've been home plenty lately so it's not my fault...I don't think. But it may be my responsibility. I'm too co-dependent to know for sure. Here's the scene: This lone female red bird keeps attacking the mirrors on both sides of my car. She wildly flaps her wings, chatters madly, and runs into one mirror repeatedly then flies to the other side of the car and gives it an equal piece of her mind. Like she's got anything left. She makes such a racket that I can hear her all the way in the kitchen and I just stand there in total astonishment, looking out the window onto the driveway. I, then, proceed outside and try to talk some sense into her. No matter how close I get, she never lets up. She just keeps attacking her own self. Only she doesn't realize it's her.

She's got such a beef with the red bird in the mirror that she has nearly pecked her blessed little beak into a nub. Clearly, the whole ordeal has her stomach upset. I've had to hose down the car on both sides. I keep trying to tell her, "It's you! It's only you in the mirror! Let up, Girlfriend!" For lack of a better solution, we now have old kitchen towels draped over the mirrors which upsets me since some of my neighbors think we're crazy religious freaks as it is. Now they'll think we're vampires to boot.

I think the problem could be hormones. Hers. Not mine. I'm not sure if birds have hormonal issues but I know that girls do and she is clearly a girl. (In case you aren't up on your basic ornithology, you can tell by the color.) It really doesn't matter what age she is. All it takes to have to have hormone problems is to be the right gender. She and I could start a support group. I feel sorry for her and I hate to see her go on this way. After all, I know how she feels. I've been pecking at myself a lot lately. I always have had the tendency to self-peck. I recall one time clearly but silently in my own mind saying to God, "You hate me." Absurd, I know. And after all He'd done for me. The chilling part was that I sensed an unexpected clear response come right back at me in my mind. "No, Beth. You hate yourself." Dang it. And it's sin. Self loathing is sin. It's just another form of self-absorption.

Maybe you've got some anger issues like that bird and maybe the person you're maddest at it you. Maybe regret over a decision you made years ago or a path you took a long time ago is still eating you alive. Maybe you've nearly self-pecked your beak into a nub. Maybe, truth be told, you've been thinking that God hates you, despite all He's done, but today He's opening your eyes to the fact that it's you who hates yourself. And it's got to stop. Nothing about it honors God. Your God loves you with an everlasting love. A love that heals and restores and takes a disfigured soul one day at a time, treats it with Truth, and makes it whole. A love that breaks old patterns and paves new pathways and not just for you. For a lot of people who are walking behind you. But you have to let that love in. You have to believe God feels it for you just like He says He does. You've got to be convinced of it to the marrow of your bones. What more could He do to tell you? What more could He do to show you? Choose to accept it. Embrace it. Wallow yourself in it.

"This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in His presence whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts, and He knows everything." 1 John 3:19,20

Omaha Recap

Thanks, Rich!

A Glimpse of God in Omaha

Oh, my gracious! Thank you so much for praying for us as we gathered in expectation of a Jesus-show in Omaha, Nebraska. (I had prayed this acronym over Omaha after I arrived: Omnipotent Merciful Advocate Here Appear. I believe with all my heart - despite human frailties and inadequacies - that He did.) I fell head over heels in love with those women and their lean-forward and grab the seed out of the air attitude. I challenged them to memorize a (hard and wordy) verse and they screamed it out with holy passion over and over. Now, that's my kind of group! (I never have a group I don't end up crazy about but this was one of those that came to meet with Jesus and wasn't leaving without a revelation.) I don't know about the 6000 others but this woman right here had her own personal God encounter. I came to this event with a battered heart from an onslaught of hurts and God had profuse mercy on my sad soul. (Please don't get distracted by that. All of us have hurts. You might just say a prayer for me and for my extended family then leave it to our faithful Father. You and I have plenty of others to pray for who are hanging on by a thread.) I've already seen several requests for the commissioning we did at the conclusion of the event so I'll include it below. I often get the ladies in pairs at the very end, ask them to look each other straight in the eye and call each other to faithfulness as we prepare to take on our worlds once again. The commissionings are always different because they reflect the Scriptural subject matter. This one was based on our three sessions out of Philippians 4:4-13. Even if you weren't there in Omaha with us, you might read those verses then grant me the privilege of speaking these challenges over you, Darling One. I love you dearly.

Beloved, in the Name of Jesus
I commission you
To rejoice in the Lord always
And again I say rejoice.
Stop worrying about everything!
Dump your anxiety
And start praying like mad.
Start thinking about
What you're thinking about!
Start feeding your spirit
And stop feeding your flesh.
Never forget the true Secret:
Christ in you, the Hope of Glory!
You, Dear One, have the supernatural CAN DO!
Now, believe God
And turn your CAN DO
Into WILL DO!
You are NOT a wimp.
You are a warrior.
In the Name and power of Christ
Go out there and act like one.

Living Proof Live - Omaha, Nebraska

My Mama Always Said

Yesterday I went to "Muffins With Mommy" at my son's mother's day out. We got to sit at his little table in the little chairs and eat little muffins together. We watched a video of the kids playing on the playground. They were having a blast going down the slide with their teacher. When I picked him up in the afternoon, I was given a gift bag that Jackson had made me for Mother's Day. I'm saving it for Sunday. Even if there's just a used Band-aid (as long as it's his) or a banana peel inside, I will love it. The bag alone is enough. Jackson's little hand print decorates the front and I couldn't help but kiss it. I was overwhelmed with the joy of motherhood. Drunk on younguns - my youngun - as my mama always said.

We will spend this weekend celebrating the women who have poured out their lives to provide for us in every way. We will send flowers, buy gifts, write heartfelt I love yous on greeting cards, and go to brunch. We will try to communicate our gratefulness and find that words just aren't enough. But our meager attempts sure do mean a lot to Mom. We will not forget to honor the women who didn't birth us, but who have loved us like their own. Women who, like my mama always said about herself, could mother a fence post.

To celebrate Mother's Day LPM blog-style, let's hear what your mama always said.

Older Sisters and Milestones

Hey, My Darlin' Sistas! Thank you so much for celebrating Melissa's graduation with us! You are such a blast to do this God-life with! We want you to know that we celebrate God's glorious work in your family, too. When Amanda and I read your comments, we react over your news just like you react over ours. We wish we could write back personally to every single one. Before I get to what I want to share with you (next paragraph), I need you to humor me for a second while I say something about Melissa's big sister. Something that Melissa's big sister is going to want to snap me in half about but I'll take that chance. Melissa is all of those things Amanda said she is and in addition, she honestly is one of the funniest people on earth. But she will tell you what I will tell you. She has the most incredible big sister on earth. (Amanda, just don't read the next few sentences.) Amanda Jones is one of the most caring, loving people I've ever known. One of the best friends to people I have ever seen. So tender hearted that she would cry with you in an instant. So witty that Melissa and I have to order an extra shot in our Starbucks just to keep up with her quick mind. With your loving patience, I will only take this moment to boast in Christ's gift to me in these two young women but, in light of what Amanda wrote about her sister, I cannot let the gap go unfilled. Each of my daughters has become indispensable to me in ministry, just as God in His great mercy planned it. (Melissa will soon join Amanda and me at LPM. It is their heritage.) Melissa's education and experience in the academic world has already (even in the last two Bible studies) had a huge impact on my research and the resources I can access for study. She also has well-surpassed me in formal language studies so I now have a resident assistant who can aid me tremendously in Hebrew and Greek. Melissa will undoubtedly be my greatest help on the research side of what God has called me to do. Amanda, on the other hand, is my greatest help on the other side of any project. I never write anything she does not proofread for me and reflect upon with me. Just as I trust Melissa's help on the front side of a project, I trust Amanda like no one on earth on the back side. She is my number one editor and my absolutely uncontested number one encourager. They are equally amazing young women - just as I can tell so many of you blog sistas are.

Now, here's what I want to say: God has been so lavish - so scandalous, for crying out loud - in His outpourings of grace and mercy upon our family. None of us Moores or Jones are the least bit confused about how on earth we arrived at this or any other milestone in one celebratory piece. Jesus. J-E-S-U-S. And He will be the only way we make it to any other. At staff prayer time yesterday, my beloved coworkers were about to burst with enthusiasm to hear every detail about our weekend and Melissa's graduation. They were so proud for us. I told them something I want to tell you. The beauty of finding yourself at a milestone of any meaningful kind in life is not that the journey there was so pretty. Or so successful. In many ways, the mysterious beauty of the whole thing is that the "getting there" was so awkward, wobbly, inconsistent, and even down-right messy that most of the time, you thought you'd never make it. What makes life on this frightful sod so exquisite is God's merciful propensity to perform divine tasks amid deeply flawed people. To paint intricate colors on a torn-up canvass. We can recognize a miracle when we see one because we know that, for God to use us, redeem us, or complete one stinkin' thing of value in us, it would have taken nothing less. That's what He calls getting the glory.

I don't know if you happen to be under heaps of discouragement right now over how messy your trip to any place good - even any place "God" - tends to be but I'd like to clear something up. No one does this life-thing perfectly. NO ONE. Not your biggest hero. Your favorite pastor. And certainly not your Bible teacher. At least not this one. No one's kids grow up perfectly. No one's marriage is one hundred per cent healthy. No one's character is beyond wrecking. I don't care how people around you seem, they do not have it together. At least no one I have met, been around, or known anything about. I know plenty of God-seeking, authentic followers of Jesus Christ with humble hearts and sacrificial service...but not even they are perfect. And if they were, I probably wouldn't want to have coffee with them. (They wouldn't drink caffeine anyway.) Don't misunderstand me. Everyone of us is called to live in victory and authenticity. You'll never get permission from me to be hypocritical and I never want that permission from you. We must be what we seem. I'm just suggesting we quit trying to "seem" perfect. Because we're not...and sooner or later people are going to find out. I'd just as soon tell them in advance.

The four Moores have a TON to be thankful for. But not because we've done it so well. Because Jesus has. And because He has graced us when we didn't deserve another chance and held us when we squirmed to get loose.

"Prone to wander, Lord I feel it, Prone to leave the God I love,
Here's my heart. O take and seal it; Seal it for thy courts above.

Jesus sought me when a stranger, Wand'ring from the fold of God,
He, to rescue me from danger, Interposed his precious blood,
/Prone to wander, Lord I feel it, Prone to leave the God I love./
O to grace how great a debtor Daily I'm constrained to be!
Let they goodness, like a fetter, Bind my wandering heart to thee"

(Lyrics to the hymn "Come Thou Fount")

The Graduate

This weekend my little sister graduated from Wheaton College with her Master's Degree in Biblical Exegesis. She worked unbelievably hard for the past two years to accomplish this goal. We are so proud!

Mom, Dad and I flew up to Wheaton to be with her for the big weekend. It was the Original Four Moores for the first time in quite a while. Dad treated us to a celebratory dinner at a French restaurant called Suzette's where we enjoyed a five course meal and live jazz music. We were in food heaven with every kind of crepe you can think of. I don't have any pictures because I was too busy with my fondue, salad, vegetable chowder, chicken crepes, and bananas foster to bother with it!

It was my first time to visit Melissa in Wheaton and I had so much fun seeing her campus, staying in her cute apartment, meeting her friends, and seeing the professors she loved so much. A few of her professors even wrote commentaries that our mom uses when she researches for her conferences and Bible studies. Melissa has had the privilege of studying under some of the world's most incredible Bible scholars while at Wheaton.

When Melissa came walking down the aisle with all the other graduates, our hearts overflowed with joy. She flashed us a sassy smile and we said to each other, "That's our girl!" When she took her seat next to her classmates all I could do was cry. My sister had earned a Master's Degree. From an incredibly hard program. And what a spectacular person she is. She's beautiful, brilliant, hilarious, outgoing, godly, and a friend to anyone - especially the friendless. Daughter, sister, prom queen, varsity athlete, sorority girl, fasionista, and now scholar. Melissa, I don't even have the words to describe how proud I am of you. You might be the most unique person God ever made. I can't wait to see how God will use everything you've learned during your time at Wheaton. I know He has great things in store!

Come Sit a Spell With Me in My Backyard

Hey, my dear Sistas! I wanted to invite you over to my backyard for a few minutes because it's so dear to me...and you're so dear to me. I thought it was time the two of you got together. This is the place I most often meet with the Lord Jesus. Yep, right there at that iron table my wonderful Sunday School class gave me. Before it was another. And before it was yet another. My devotional books, an extra Bible of a second translation, my colored pens and my index cards sit perched on that table at all times, ready at a moment's notice for a Divine meet and greet. It's the dearest spot on earth to me.

I'm really not much of a house person. I've had the same house for almost twenty-three years and, and even though Keith refurbished it for me last year, I still spend the majority of my awake time at home outside. I am a yard person. I love garden flowers because my mother loved garden flowers. And my mother loved garden flowers because her mother loved garden flowers. I especially love this time of year because my 2 jasmine are in full bloom. I have a huge vine covering much of my front porch and an even bigger vine in my back yard that you can see in the picture below. You can't open a single door at my house right now without your senses being enraptured by the most delicious scent. My bird feeders are usually swarmed with feathered friends singing for their breakfast. The pictures don't really do it justice because you can't smell the fragrances or hear the birds, but I wanted to share with you my little corner of the world where I have poured out my heart to God and, through the pages of His Word, heard Him pour out His to me. Many tears have been shed in that very spot. Many confessions made. Many questions posed. Much coffee consumed. What happens in that small place marks my whole day. If I'll let it.

So, what about you? Where's your favorite place to meet with God? In as few words as possible, draw me in and help me picture how the two of you get together. Moms of young children, don't get a stronghold of discouragement or self-condemnation. This entry is not about how much concentrated time you spend with God. He meets you where you are as you lift your sweet chin to Heaven and bring Him your sincere desire. I'm just wondering if there's a special place you most love to seek Christ's face. And, if there is, I bet it's His very favorite place in your entire world.