The LPM Blog: Siesta Summer Bible Study Introduction

Monday, June 16, 2008

Siesta Summer Bible Study Introduction

WE INTERRUPT YOUR REGULARLY SCHEDULED PROGRAMMING FOR THIS SPECIAL REPORT: NORTH DAKOTA JUST REPORTED IN!!! ALL 50 STATES, GIRL FRIENDS! ALL 50 STATES! YAHOO-JAH!

(Siestas: Remember that your comments to this post are meant to FOLLOW your Tuesday gathering so that you can tell us a little bit about your time together. This will be our format for dialogue on our Tuesday Bible study days. Can't wait to hear from you!)

Welcome to our first Tuesday Siesta Summer Bible Study! I hope so much you were able to view the video greeting I did for you because it has lots of information about our Siesta Summer Bible Study. Rough as it is, it comes with lots of love! I promised to put your instructions for your gatherings today in writing in case, as usual, I talked too fast for you to follow on video. You have only two assignments for your first meeting:

A. Please share what you perceive to be your biggest challenge toward walking victoriously with God this summer. House full of children? Heavy work load? Difficult season emotionally? Just had your heart broken? Just feel far from God? Whatever it may be, share it with your small group and take some time to pray for one another in your meeting today. Also, intercede accordingly toward your sister’s need for the duration of the study.

B. Turn to Jude 1:24,25 and read your summer Bible study memory verse-segment. (Oh, yes, you can memorize!!! You just have to learn how to make fun associations that make it memorable!) This is our only memory segment all summer so it’s very doable. Spend most of your gathering time thinking of ways as a small group to memorize it. Get creative! You can make up hand motions or actions to go with it - anything fun, clever, or meaningful to make it easier to memorize. If you think you did a really great or funny job with it, here’s what you do! Fine tune it over the next four or five days then video tape it with all your siestas in mind. Save it to your computer then email it to us using the following instructions:

1. Recording should be on a digital camera with a SD card.
2. With the SD card in your computer, go to www.senduit.com.
3. At the senduit web site click browse and select the video file name (note: file
cannot exceed 100MB).
4. Next (at the senduit web site) select the “Expire” option for 1 week.
5. Click “upload.”
6. When the file is finished uploading Senduit will give a location message and the option to email this information.
7. Select the email option and send to blog@lproof.org.

Remember, this will be Jude 1:24-25 (spoken or on power point) on tape with actions that help the viewer memorize it. The video can be no longer than two minutes in length but you probably won’t need nearly that much time anyway. Our LPM staff and I will judge all the entries and choose a Grand Prize Winner. The Grand Prize Winning video will be shown on our blog in two weeks for our second Siesta Bible Study gathering. In addition, the Grand Prize Winning Group (or individual) will receive a care-package that I will prepare personally and send to your location with about ten tons of love. I’m clapping right now like a five-year-old. I love contests!!! Surely we have a few competitors out there! Put that competitive spirit to good use and help your Siestas memorize some Scripture!

Y’all are so fun. Totally jazzed to be in the Word with you this summer. Have a blast with Jesus!

333 comments:

«Oldest ‹Older 1 – 200 of 333 Newer› Newest»

Ashton said...: cute Beth. Thought I would share this in case not picked in my small 3 group woman.
memorize
personalize
visualize
harmonize! the Word
Allion; June 16, 2008 6:14 PM
Anonymous said...: I'm wondering what God is up to!! My husband & I spent two weeks in Maui, May 25-June 8. While we were there, guess what Scripture verse I memorized, Jude 1:24-25. Bless His holy name!!!; June 16, 2008 6:31 PM
The Roberts Family said...: I just logged onto the blog. I would love to do this study with you all, ordered the book today.
Erica
Group: 1-3 (friends and family)
Chandler, Arizona
Meeting in my home or somewhere in between.
Thank you for this opportunity, I am excited! ;); June 16, 2008 6:33 PM
Katie in ND said...: Hello from North Dakota! I wanted to tell you I am jealous of all involved in this study! I very much would like to be involved, but I became prior involved in a quite in-depth study on Hebrews with a small group that will last all summer. I don't want to over extend myself (have done this before). But know I will try to be involved by praying for your time and study! Thanks for noticing our absence! I hope another group in ND arises!

P.s. 10-4 on the moisturizing/protecting our necks!! :); June 16, 2008 6:37 PM
Rebecca said...: Here we go, I am so excited I can hardly wait. He have a big blog page were a lot of us solos are talking with each other. Looking forward to what He's going to do in our lifes. Thank you Beth
going solo join us at
http://forums.delphiforums.com/n/main.asp?webtag=siestas&nav=message; June 16, 2008 7:14 PM
Anonymous said...: Oh, I just can't STAND it! Siesta Bible Study looks like SO MUCH FUN this summer and so, even though I'm up to my eyeballs in another study - I JUST AM GOING TO HAVE TO JOIN 'cause I can't stand to miss this much fun.

Here goes:

Name: Warm in Alaska

#in group: not sure - but I had already planned for girlfriends and a boatload of kids to come over tomorrow for lunch anyway. So while you all are eating enchiladas, we're going to be nibbling on quiche and strawberry/spinach salad (well, the kids get ravioli)

Locale: Palmer, Alaska.

Let's have some fun!!!; June 16, 2008 7:30 PM
Anonymous said...: Happy Happy Birthday Bethie! YAY! Can hardly wait to get started studying together. I am going solo with the study (so far) so did I miss something? Was I supposed to try to link up with someone else going solo or wait for instructions on that? Anyway, I am pumped and this is just what I needed. Let me go see what Jude has to say..... Sharon in Corpus Christi (The Body of Christ) now how's that for COOL!!!!; June 16, 2008 8:42 PM
Kathy (In Arkansas) said...: Beth,

I have been out of touch for a few days and came in last night to read about Beanie, I am so sorry!!!

I only read part of it as I lost a dearly loved cat, "Baby" over the weekend and I could not continue. May I ask for prayer?!

Loosing my precious Baby Love is one of my biggest challenges along with time. To be honest right now I don't feel like communicating with God. I am "mad" he took my Baby Love. I want her back!!!

On with Bible Study; June 16, 2008 9:13 PM
Anonymous said...: My heart is broken because I couldnt get the study.Mabey some other time.You all are in my prays & mabey someone will win that needs the biggest hug of all .God bless love sister in Christ Victoria Redsville NC; June 16, 2008 9:19 PM
littlerad said...: i'm so excited...
Connie
GBU; June 16, 2008 9:55 PM
Anonymous said...: Ok... I am 8 months pregnant with my first and not quite feeling like I want to join a group or even have to leave my house to be honest with you as this summer is going to involve lots of new things for me. However, I want to be involved. Can I just get the book and follow along? Any special instructions if I am alone?; June 16, 2008 10:03 PM
kimemmerich said...: North Dakota IS alive and well, and pumped about summer siesta Bible study. 2 of us moms are studying with our 20 year old daughters. Cool, huh?!; June 16, 2008 10:11 PM
Anonymous said...: I would love to participate in this study, I've hosted 4 of Beth's studies in my home. I will do this one solo.

Cheri (solo)
Texarkana, TX
group of 1 for now
can't wait to get started!; June 16, 2008 10:19 PM
Missy said...: Ok Momma Siesta.... I found the World's GREATEST flip flop this week in Charleston. You change them to match every outfit!!!
www.switchflops.com
You girls have GOT to check them out!!!; June 16, 2008 10:28 PM
Anonymous said...: Dear Beth, Thank you for answering God's call in your life and blessing us! Please enjoy and relax during these next few weeks-you are our dear sister and we eagerly look forward to whatever our Lord has to share through your ministry-Lots of Love-You are Incredible!; June 16, 2008 10:29 PM
MITZI said...: Beth, I'm so glad you'll be speaking to us through Godtube. I just love your enthusiasm, you couldn't stay still in your seat you;re so excited. :) I love it! I joined the Lifeway Forum as my group. Look forward to getting to know my siestas there.; June 16, 2008 10:51 PM
Anonymous said...: It's so funny that you showed us your absolutely adorable flip flops-- our small group made a blog called www.acloserwalkinflipflops.blogspot.com to communicate about this study. We are so excited!; June 16, 2008 11:14 PM
Pam said...: Ok. You have talked me into it! I am finishing up "Stepping Up" this week so why not. I am moving from North Alabama to the Greensboro NC Area at the end of summer. Would love connect with one person or even a group doing this study there via email.

Contact me at pamcarrigan@remax.net if you have any siestas from Greensboro NC.
Thanks!; June 16, 2008 11:20 PM
Elaine said...: Kelly Minter who? Not any more. Kinda like Oprah's book club. But better!; June 17, 2008 12:56 AM
Li'l Rae said...: Hello Beth & Siestas~
Just a quick request for prayer please from this solo Bible study siesta. Our family found out last night that my husband's maternal grandmother went home to be with Jesus. It was not unexpected (she was 92) but it still won't be easy as we deal with everything. The most precious part of the phone call was being told that our teenage daughter had played the piano for her shortly before grandma passed on and how happy she seemed to be while listening to the performance!
Thanks and I love y'all a bunch!; June 17, 2008 3:44 AM
Anonymous said...: Hi Beth:

Please count me in as a solo siesta! Looking forward to it.

My book is due to arrive tomorrrow

Annie from Whitby, ON; June 17, 2008 5:15 AM
Anonymous said...: Cute video! My group of 7 had to meet last night instead of tonight for the first meeting (people going on vacation). Alot of the ladies said the same thing after reading a little of the study and discussing our idols..."This is challenging". This study allows us to examine everything about ourselves through God's eyes...we need that and are ready for it!

Leann
Florence, AL; June 17, 2008 5:54 AM
Heather said...: Please share what you perceive to be your biggest challenge toward walking victoriously with God this summer ...

Being in pain from this pregnancy ... just 7 more weeks to go before they will induce and prayerfully she will be ready to come out then. The pain has become unbearable and walking is excruiating from the sciatica. there is not much they can do except deliver her and we need her to "cook" longer before she can come. This is making my summer hard, my time with God and my time with my family. Would appreciate the prayers.; June 17, 2008 6:30 AM
Sheila said...: Happy belated birthday my sweet friend Beth!!! What a blessing you are to me! I am so excited about the Bible study!

Also...I have Deeper Still tickets!!! If you know of anyone who needs them email me:
sheilalackey@bellsouth.net; June 17, 2008 6:33 AM
ROBIN said...: will post later on meeting but must know where to get the flipflops :) blessings, robin robinjonescotton@aol.com; June 17, 2008 7:10 AM
Maria Cristina said...: whooop! whoooop!!! I am sooo pumped! Beth, i *LOVED* the introductory video!!!!! I'm going to brainstorm the verse memorization ideas!!! I'm sooo thrilled! We're startin'!!!!! YAHOOOOO!!!!!

maria cristina; June 17, 2008 7:25 AM
tracy l. said...: I have Text Messaging "ministry" where every so many days I text to all my friends a word of encouragement or verse. They love it and it keeps us connected to each other. My text this morning was Jude 1: 24-25. How cool is THAT????; June 17, 2008 7:33 AM
Nancy said...: Love seeing you on video, Beth! You're a doll! And thanks for doing this for your siestas! We sure do appreciate your time.

Speaking of Siestas, I wanted to tell you about a Father's Day card I ran across the other day. It had Snoopy on the front and it said "It's Father's Day. Have a Siesta Fiesta!" Then on the inside it said, "I think that's Spanish for 'Relax to the Max!'" My son was with me and couldn't figure out why I thought it was so funny!

I'll be doing the bible study solo and saw that Rebecca posted a site in the comments where solos could interact with each other, but I keep getting an error when I try to access the page. Could anyone offer help with this?

Thanks so much!; June 17, 2008 7:40 AM
Nancy said...: I just figured out why I was getting an error message at the aforementioned site. Some of the letters got cut off of the address when Rebecca posted. Here's the complete address: http://forums.delphiforums.com/n/main.asp?webtag=siestas; June 17, 2008 7:43 AM
Lenore said...: Thanks, Beth. Question- are we now supposed to begin actually doingt the bible study? I guess my question is whether, by the next time you post comments, should we have gone through two weeks in the book?

Any guidance you can provide is greatly appreciated. Thanks!; June 17, 2008 7:53 AM
Rachel in Louisiana said...: I read the memorization verses this morning in my quiet time and I was moved to tears. God is going to do something big. I'm praying the ladies in my group (with diverse ages, denomination backgrounds and different stages of maturity in Christ) walk away feeling safe to talk, share and laugh.; June 17, 2008 8:09 AM
Marina said...: so far going solo in san antono,tx can't waith to see what God has in store for me if there is anyone in san antonio,tx that is doing these study please email me my email is on my web site thanks.Beth,marina; June 17, 2008 8:26 AM
Melana said...: Totally having a blast with Jesus!!
We are so excited for tonight. Can't hardly wait to see what God has in store for us. Thanks for doing this, Beth. I could tell from the video how excited you were too.

Love you!!!

Melana; June 17, 2008 8:34 AM
tiggerdaisy said...: Cha-ching! I'm so glad that this moment has arrived!

Beth, thank you so much for taking the time to record us a personal message. It really spoke to my heart to hear and see you on video charging us on to victory. What a wonderful leader and encourager you are! It was as if we were sitting across from one another drinking coffee like old friends. What a way to start this study!?!?!

Love you oodles!
Rebecca; June 17, 2008 9:04 AM
lavonda said...: thanks for the sunscreen reminder for the NECK... Since the three of us are meeting by the pool in our swimsuits for the summer Bible study here in HOTlanta, that was a perfect note to go out on! and I'm so showing my husband the end of your video... he thinks I'm over the top because I have sooo many pairs of those cute cheap flip flops for the summer (he kids me about getting rid of some!?) that would be like throwing out extra hair product!!
you just validated me :)
love from Atlanta,
Lavonda; June 17, 2008 9:05 AM
Anonymous said...: I would like to JOIN the Bible Study. I will be just one person: JH
City: Aurora, Illinois
Could I please sign up? Thanks!; June 17, 2008 9:08 AM
Yvonne said...: Beth,

IF I can get the book today at Lifeway, count me in. I'll be going solo. (better late than never!!!)

Yvonne
Group of 1
Louisville, KY; June 17, 2008 9:19 AM
Anonymous said...: I think I can get the study own time , so I am calling some one more place if not I will call LifeWay & say go ofr it, I can doi this isnt God the best God bless love sister in Christ Victoria ps for the one that lost the cat my heart goes out to you.I lost 2 dogs in 9 months but in between them I was given a Black Lab. whom now is a therapy dog just starting going out to do her job.she is 11 months & so very dear, so mabey God has somehting planed for you like that.:); June 17, 2008 9:21 AM
Anonymous said...: (Okay, so this is the 3rd time I'm trying to write this.....don't know what I'm doing wrong, but if 3comments that are the same appear, know that it's because I'm technologically-challenged!).....
I just had to laugh when I heard the verse we are to memorize this summer. Our group is actually going to have to start late because one of us FELL last Friday and is having surgery this morning to put 2 pins in her toes!! I know she will be comforted, though, to be reminded that God is the One who will keep her from falling (especially as she's using those new crutches)!! By the way, she was wearing flip-flops at the time. So, Beth, be careful when you put those cute little things on....you might want to repeat the Jude passage to yourself while you're wearing them!

Thanks for the study.....can't wait!

Kay
Little Rock, AR; June 17, 2008 9:30 AM
Bonnie/Mom of 3 said...: OK. I've just completed my first day of study and it is awesome. I'm going solo because of so much traveling this summer, but I may have to email our dear friends in North Dakota ... or someone. This is speaking to my belief system, as I came from a background where appearance and how you presented yourself were so important. It didn't matter if there had been mayhem at home (and I mean mayhem), you were told to put a smile on and be perfect. Name and fame were the most important. Thankfully, I knew I wanted it to be different even at the age of 7. I love this study. I'm going to make this black bean recipe as I think my family will love it.
Melissa, I continue to think of you and your cooking as you live just north of us in Atlanta. Twenty-five years later, I still love cooking for my family.

Love you all,

Bonnie; June 17, 2008 9:55 AM
Momofsix said...: I am so excited about this study. I am looking forward to the Lord jump starting my spiritual life- and I am ready for Him to do some serious changes!!

One of your Many siestas!

Angie; June 17, 2008 10:06 AM
pinkmommy said...: I was just wondering if you guys were sending out emails pairing us with someone, or if I should try contacting a few ladies that signed up in the comments?; June 17, 2008 10:15 AM
valerie said...: Love the video, love the cute flip flops, love you...! You are too cute!
I never got a partner or a group to do my study with, but am working on it.
I've been gone to church camp for a week (away from my computer and most other technology) and am trying to play catch up. I ordered my book "No Other God's" before I left for camp and picked it up yesterday. I didn't realize I was supposed to get the workbook and not the book. Hummmm,
it took a week for that one to come in. I wonder if I'll be too far behind?
Life is crazy busy for me right now, but I don't want to miss out on this, so say a prayer that I'll find a workbook quick. :)
It is very exciting that over 3000 people are going to be doing this study at the same time.
Thanks again and hope you're feeling better with all the sadness in your home the past couple of weeks. You've all been in my prayers.
Love,
Valerie; June 17, 2008 10:22 AM
ProverbsWomanWannaBe said...: I am so excited. Sadly, NO BOOK! I ordered and was informed yesterday that the seller canceled my order because they couldn't verify my address (small rural town.. figures). I am on the hunt again for a book. I am still going to try and keep up though and will memorize and work along with. I met a nice lady from RI and have joined there group from here in Camden, Alabama. Sure appreciate all you siestas.
On another note, this is extremely personal and since we are beginning a study together I ask you all to pray for me. I was a victim of serious physical and mental abuse. God saved me during the time of abuse, but now the Enemy is attacking. The man that was sentenced and fined for all the damages (left me penniless) APPEALED AND WON AN APPEAL. I am stunned, frightened, angry, and worried. I can't afford a lawyer and I just don't know what to do. Everything I believed and felt secure in has been basically thrown out and it is like the judge and people in town and his family are saying he didn't do anything wrong. This is my summer burden, its great. How do you forgive this and move on? How can I let it go? Ladies help me find the ROCK!!! I am hanging by a finger. (Sorry this is so long!); June 17, 2008 11:02 AM
Cindy said...: We just finished out first Siesta Summer Bible Study Session! It was GREAT!! We all had a great time sharing and enjoying the wonderful food. We had the enchiladas, chile con queso and the butterfinger cake, from the book. The food turned out wonderful! Thanks so much for leading us in this summer adventure! God is good all the time!

Cindy in Indiana; June 17, 2008 11:57 AM
Sarah Martin said...: Beth,
You just blessed me so much with that video. I am a brand new mommy of a two week old and He is wonderful (pics on my blog if you want to see the cutest baby ever :) but it is really HARD!! I feel strung out every day and like I am on the brink of losing my mind. Just seeing your video gave me the encouragement that I needed to dig into the Bible for strength from my Almighty Father...

Thanks! PS Please pray that my little one sleeps for another hour so I can do my study!!

love,
sarah-North Carolina; June 17, 2008 12:02 PM
Anonymous said...: Amybeth in Hickory, NC reporting:

We had the sweetest time together today! I'm a single 20-something leading precious group of girls in high school. We all agreed that God must be up to something big since the timing of this study worked out so perfectly. We are praying for God to conquer our comfort zones, busy schedules, fears about future and family sicknesses so we can walk victoriously with Him!!! Praising God for a great launch!!!; June 17, 2008 12:13 PM
GrannyTam said...: Anna, Candace, Debbie, Pam and I are so excited to get started with the study!

Challenges: A common challenge we all anticipated facing this summer is all the distraction that nicer weather can bring.

Memorizing Scripture: We didn't come up with anything worthy of making a video, but Anna shared that she was told if you say a verse daily for 3 weeks, then weekly for 3 months and then one time per month for the rest of your life you'll never forget it.; June 17, 2008 12:23 PM
Ashton said...: a little correction here:

first...Memorize
then...Visualize
then...Personalize
then...Harmonize
the Word

Somehow when you finally make a song of the word you memorize it sticks. Alli; June 17, 2008 12:26 PM
Anonymous said...: Name: WOW (Women of the Word - the name of our group at church that studies the bible together - that is do the Beth Moore studies)
Group: 4
Location: Starbucks in Newport News, VA
We discussed "challenges" and what "walking with God" means. We are psyched to see the winning memorization tool...felt way too intimidated to try that!; June 17, 2008 12:32 PM
Tara said...: Hey! I posted from North Dakota in the orginal role call so you must have missed it! We have 7 gals from my church that haven't been in a bible study yet this year!
Tara
Dickinson, ND; June 17, 2008 12:42 PM
Anonymous said...: I ordered the book today. What a wonderful way to spend part of the summer.; June 17, 2008 12:47 PM
Jen said...: Checking in from another country on the map...

HONDURAS -- Tegucigalpa

Size of group: 5-10 (other missionary women living here who are desperately needing a Word)

Can't wait to join you all in this. Thanks so much Beth for the invite.; June 17, 2008 12:49 PM
Leticia said...: Am I the only one in Las Vegas? I've already signed up but here is my info again.
Letica solo yes dlpitts@live.com
Las vegas Nevada; June 17, 2008 1:03 PM
Cheri said...: Attention Kentucky gals....
We have a blogsite called Kentucky Siestas which was created for ladies in the Kentucky area to discuss "No Other Gods" and to fellowship in the bluegrass state. If anyone would like to join us, just let email me and I will add you to our list of contributers.
Can't wait to get started on the study!
Cheri
cheryl.winebrenner@gmail.com; June 17, 2008 1:04 PM
Rachel in Louisiana said...: We met this morning. It was just three of us, but there's seven of us normally. We shared where we're at in life right now and the hang-ups and hurts holding us back. Most of them are pretty deep and painful. Only God can heal them. And it's so obvious to all of us that God planned this time for us. We each need this more than ever.; June 17, 2008 1:26 PM
Anonymous said...: Dearest Siestaville! I have tried to talk myself out of doing this study. I have so much going on in my life right now, I don't know what way is up right now...and just today, I felt God telling me this is just the right time to be DOING this study, when you are overwhelmed, and life is just almost beyound bare, look up to Me and I will make your path straight. Just follow me, as my arms are open to you.
Thank you for this blog, and the encouragement I receive from it.

marianne,
Oceanside, CA
Doing it with 1 other friend in my home on Friday's after work.; June 17, 2008 1:49 PM
Cheri said...: My partner and I discussed our challenges to the study - mostly time and focus for both of us. We are looking forward to memorizing the verse and finding a creative way to remember it - wish us luck!! We don't have our books yet, but we are looking forward to what God has to say to us through this study.; June 17, 2008 2:21 PM
Amanda said...: I am so excited about this study!! I got chills when I saw that we are learning Jude 1:24-25. It's practically my motto in life! I will forever carry it with me because it changed my life several years ago. Now, I'm super excited!

For the past two days, I've been feeling a hunger for the Word and the yummy food! It's my job to make the queso, so I better get started!

Love,
Amanda
Bono, Arkansas; June 17, 2008 2:26 PM
jan in nc said...: Hey LPM,

Well, our first meeting consisted of my mother, my sister, and my nephew's wife. All are Christians, but it was a nice time of fellowship and prayer. Then, as they were about to leave, a woman that I haven't seen in 10 years came to my door in tears. She was having a panick attack. She came in and we were all able to pray with her till she was calm enough to go on. WOW! Next week, we'll have 3 other family members with us and I plan to cook the black beans and rice recipe from the book. I'm sure Melissa's recipe was great, but I just couldn't pull off the food this week. I was a little nervous about doing this study with family members, but to my surprise, it was very nice. Thanks for getting us all together.; June 17, 2008 2:26 PM
Donna Schultz said...: Just finished the intro and section one. I have already been profoundly touched. I am in the process of growing a teaching/preaching ministry and God revealed to me a few days ago that to a certain degree I was seeking fame. He told me, "I'll give you fame when you stop wanting it so much". (And now I know...more than Him) Today I was blessed to know that He said that because He is jealous of any thing that I put before Him. Convicted and blessed all at the same time. This is going to be a blast!; June 17, 2008 2:38 PM
Beth said...: Sweet Sisters, so glad the study is off the ground and on it's way to our hearts! Just to clarify since one siesta asked, you don't need to have your first 2 weeks of study finished until 2 weeks from today. Pace yourself at one week of homework (Session One: Days 1-5) per week. I love you guys!; June 17, 2008 3:24 PM
Tabby/ Tabitha said...: Yeah! Glory to God!

I cast the line and have a fish (neighbor- I've been praying for)that came into my home!!! The fish is wanting to get the book! She's wanting to meet again!..
..
The video helped! I said..I'm so glad you're here...now watch.. this lady on the video will explain it all! (Beth, I needed the support you see...so she didn't think I was crazy just saying all this stuff.. you backed me up, I felt more authentic and believed)

What is He up too?? Thank you for listening to Him!--- I'm just riding the wave and following Him.

You are sooo right , ...........GOD is A BLAST!

YEAH SIESTAVILLE!!; June 17, 2008 3:32 PM
Anonymous said...: We met at church for almost 3 hours. 5 women. We ate brownies with ice cream and hot fudge. Had a wonderful discussion. It was hard for a few of us to narrow down what we perceived as our biggest challenge toward walking with God victoriously this summer, but we did. A couple of the women have lost their sisters to cancer and are still grieving but feel God has lead them to the study. I definately feel as though God has placed each person in our group for a reason and am excited to see what He plans to do!; June 17, 2008 4:16 PM
knlzell said...: Two of our five met today and enjoyed wonderful fellowship, prayer, and excitement at being able to study together this summer! The enchiladas were outstanding (no one checked the calorie content!), and we marvalled at an awesome God who could bring together so many across the globe at one time to do the same study! Blessings from Friendswood, Texas!; June 17, 2008 4:19 PM
Mel said...: I hope it's ok to be better late than never!

Mel
group: me & Jesus
where: at home in East TN or wherever I happen to be...

I am waiting on a book ~ thanks, Lifeway, for making the first section available! Thanks, Beth, for involving your cyber sisters in the summer bible study!!! I, for one, am very grateful!

Blessings from Mel; June 17, 2008 4:54 PM
His princess said...: Love the video, and especially the flip flops. I found a website (www.biblegateway.com) where I can listen to the passage read with music. I am very auditory so I am hoping this will help.; June 17, 2008 5:16 PM
Redeemed by Christ said...: I was so Jazzed I found a fellow Utahn... to do this Bible Study with. I have also made a website for anyone who would like to join, it doesn't matter if your going at this solo or not. This site is free of charge. Here is the link: http://www.myfamily.com/SignUp/Respond.aspx?invid=AakjhHSz10Juu9jNtnqkNQ
May God Bless You all. I'm so EXCITED for this Bible Study. On my blog is how I'm planning on memorizing Jude 1:24-25. Love and Hugs to you fellow Siesta's.; June 17, 2008 5:20 PM
sister sheri said...: Since I'm solo at the moment, I did my own post to invite other ladies to join me.

My biggest challenge: lack of accountability

Portland, Oregon

http://theleakingwindow.blogspot.com/; June 17, 2008 5:20 PM
Lyn said...: Dear Beth,
We had our first meeting today. Since we meet at 8:00 am we are having light breakfast foods. Today we had baked oatmeal and fresh fruit. Yummy!!! Since we don't have a starbucks around I brought starbucks coffee to us.
We did the intro and shared and prayed together. Not sure of what we are doing for the memory verse yet.
Love those flip flops.
We are all pumped up for doing this study.
Love to you all from Littleton and Monroe NH and St. Johnsbury and Waterford Vermont.; June 17, 2008 5:41 PM
Sonseeker said...: Flying solo but spreadin the word to a friend here in southern CA. I so enjoyed seeing you Beth in San Diego back in April. I've been itching to do a study and this one really caught my eye. I know God's working on my heart and I'm going through some major changes in my life as we are about to send our boys to public school after home schooling for the last 8years. I want to fill this void with God. I just love Living Proof.
Sabrina; June 17, 2008 5:55 PM
kimberly said...: Love the flip flops! I was planning to go solo but joined Siesta Rebecca and others on the Delphi Forum blog. This is just the coolest way to connect and do Bible study. We're all gonna have a blast! Thanks so much Beth! Love you!

Kimberly
VA; June 17, 2008 5:58 PM
Andrea said...: Hi Beth,
Did my first Beth Moore bible study, Daniel, this last month and I am hooked! Just love your teaching method! I would love to join the siestas and do this summer bible study...its just me! I ordered the book today!
Andrea
Going Solo
Big Rock, IL; June 17, 2008 6:03 PM
byfaithdiana said...: Our group met last night : )
We are a group of 12 in Locust Grove GA and it was awesome. We are a little bit ahead because our county has a short summer so we had already done our homework and WOW!!! what an awesome study, and what revelations! Thanks for the prompting Beth, we appreciate your service to the Lord.
Diana; June 17, 2008 6:17 PM
Jessica Leigh said...: Hello :) I was out of town last week so I didn't get to post my stats, but here I go.

My name is Jessica, I am from Clarksburg, West Virginia, and I am going to be doing this study with my two friends at my home. I'm looking forward to trying out some yummy new recipes! :) The three of us are all in our early 20's and have limited cooking experience so this will be great practice :) More importantly, I'm so excited to connect with my sisters here at home and all over the world through this bible study!

Jessica Leigh :); June 17, 2008 6:21 PM
Jessica Leigh said...: Hello :)

I was out of town last week so I didn't get to post my stats, so here I go...

My name is Jessica, and two of my friends and I are going to do this bible study right here in my home in Clarksburg, WV. We are so excited about this bible study! I am also excited that I get the opportunity to connect with my sisters from around the world!

Jessica; June 17, 2008 6:32 PM
Cindy in HP, NC said...: My biggest challenge: Trying to stay positive today.

I received my stimulus check yesterday. 2 hrs later my lawn mower died. Needless to say my stimulus check is now gone.

Went to the grocery store, got all the ingredients for the enchilada's. The mixture turned out soupy. Is it supposed to ? The tortilla's crumbled apart as I was trying to fix them. For supper, I'm sitting here eating Peanut Butter Pie and attempting to do this study.

Lord Please give me strength. This is not a good week !!; June 17, 2008 6:32 PM
April said...: Our first get together went great. The ladies loved the recipes, thanks Melissa, and we enjoyed the fellowship time. We discussed things in our lives that might hinder our walk with the Lord this summer and will continue to pray for each other. We haven't come up with a catchy way to learn the verse but we haven't given up! We had lots of children running around wildly but no one got hurt! We had a few more mud holes in the back and had to hose off a few children outside but God is good and we rejoice in summer fun! Due to time conflicts we have changed our date to Thursday but everyone is excited. We have our books and we are off and running!!; June 17, 2008 6:44 PM
Anonymous said...: Dear Siesta Mamma, First HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! Mom and daughter study focused on the challenges of serving God and working in the world. Hit square between the eyes with the thought of worshipping God yet serving an idol. BIG OUCH!!!!!! Oh, Steph liked the idea of new flip-flops for summer. :) In Jesus' Love Kathy and Steph Knoblock; June 17, 2008 6:45 PM
Darcy said...: Going solo here in FL. Enjoyed the video very much today in my cozy chair with my 4 yr old next to me-- pointing at Ms. Beth saying..."can I go see her?" and "Can we go there now?". I had to explain that Texas is a little far to drive right now to see Ms. Beth but we could watch her video!!

Biggest Challenge: 3 children and pregnant with #4- quiet time is rare. Also motivation, as I'm in a "dry" spot- if you know what I mean. I'm praying for renewal through this study and looking forward to this "virtual accountability"!; June 17, 2008 6:56 PM
Camille said...: I am excited to have stumbled upon this Bible study. One word would describe my biggest challange this summer: PRIORITIES!!! Husband, children, work, church obligations,... it is easy to let any of these take priority over my time in the Word.; June 17, 2008 7:01 PM
Karen said...: We just finished meeting tonight. Five wonderful Christian sisters who were brought together by God through your blog, Beth! There are 5 of us in Grapevine, TX: Sheri, Niki, Lori, Michele and me. Michele used Rebecca's wonderful recipe provided for us by Melissa to make the chicken enchiladas and the salsa. She can definitely cook! It was scrumptious. We discussed our varied challenges as Beth directed, and we prayed for one another. We also discussed the memory scripture and decided we aren't creative enough to enter the contest. Plus none of us have recording devices that use SD cards. So we're a little sad about that but we're confident we'll manage to memorize God's word - maybe with some help from the creative, SD owning Siestas who win this contest and whose entry is posted on the blog to help us! We're very much looking forward to the study and the Siestaship and to the glory of God in our lives. More in two weeks!!!; June 17, 2008 7:34 PM
Connielynn said...: My friend Carol and I met this afternoon in my home. She and I co-lead women's ministry at our church. We shared several challenges toward walking victoriously with God, but the one we had in common and the one that kept coming up is discouragement.
Not discouraged with God, but with ourselves and with others.

The "Killer" Chile Con Queso was delicious.

Connie and Carol
Jena, LA; June 17, 2008 7:48 PM
Michelle Bentham said...: If you are online and doing it solo, join us over at the Lifeway Forums. We start live Forum in about Three Minutes... and will meet there every two weeks at 8 PM Central Time!

Try this link:
http://forums.lifeway.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/2866019561/m/740108911?r=288108911#288108911

See you around the Blogosphere!; June 17, 2008 7:58 PM
Karen said...: I just want to thank you for putting all this together. We solo Kentucky girls are meeting online and it is already a wonderful experience and a God thing.

The two things that I have come away with so far are:
This study starts in the same spot I am reading in my chronological bible study. Did God know that or what?

The second thing is that sin is sure ugly when I wear it. And too many days, I seem to pick it up and put it on without recognizing it. Those days are coming to an end though!

I'm praying for you girls!
karen; June 17, 2008 8:07 PM
amylozano said...: Hey Siestas!!

Started the study - doing it with my sweet college-age daughter! We will be dining on the Word together (probably with a little physical food to boot!) and I am sooo thrilled about that! My thought is: What we profess with our mouths is nothing compared to what we long for with our hearts.. in the secret place. I am asking myself the question - Is it God I am long for?? hmmmmm. Not too thrilled with the answer I keep getting.... :-(; June 17, 2008 8:07 PM
Victoria said...: My 9 yr. old and I began the study this evening...WE are both excited about doing it together...We read over the intro part of the book and watched the video together...My daughter gives you a thumbs up!!! She is very excited that we received our Simulcast tickets in the mail today...She is very interested in making a video for the memory verse...we'll see what happens there...I think we are going to try the butterfinger cake soon....This is the lst Bible study that we have done together...Thanks for the idea for this summer study....
Love ya bunches!!!; June 17, 2008 8:14 PM
the4moyers said...: We had a great group at our first meeting - 8 ladies who are very excited to get together. It seems our biggest hurdle is discipline to get into God's Word each day and do the homework! Plus all the busyness that comes with summer! We agreed to pray for each other and the group! We are looking forward to what God has planned for us! YAY for FLIP-FLOPS!!!! :o)
Tanya in Lancaster, CA
Valley View Nazarene; June 17, 2008 8:14 PM
Melanie said...: The last one of our little group just left a little while ago and we had a great time. Melissa, that recipe had me totally intimidated, but the chicken quesadillas turned out delish. I will make that again.

After dinner, we had a wonderful time of sharing while the kids all played outside. We are very much looking forward to seeing what God has in store for each of us this summer.

Now for some leftovers...

Smiles,
Melanie; June 17, 2008 8:36 PM
Anonymous said...: Had our first meeting tonight- talked about many things. Beth, your video was a riot!!- what a way to kick things off!!! We are all jazzed about this study. Reading Jude 25, though, really reflected on how worship, realizing Who it is we bow before and our stand before Him, is the first step in doing anything! What a worshipful verse for such a BIG GOD!! Nothing says it better than the Bible itself. See ya in 2 weeks.
Your Siestas in Boston.; June 17, 2008 8:41 PM
twinkle said...: Loved day 1.
Biggest challenge...like Paul said, what I want to do...I don't...and what I don't want to do...I do. Why is that so true?!? So I guess in one word it would be "distractions."
Studied during my lunch hour at work and within an hour, a friend came over asking for prayer. Would ya'll pray for "Tony?" He needs God to open some doors for him.
Thanks and blessings to all...; June 17, 2008 8:47 PM
petrii said...: Our first meeting was absolutely wonderful!! We had the Chicken Enchiladas, the Con Queso dip, and the Butterfinger Cake in week 1 ~~ delious!! But even more important than the food were the ladies ~~ And even more important than that, God was here!! There are many requests that went up to Abba Father today and I'm so excited to see what He's going to do in our midst. The ladies in this group are so great!! They are each one special and so loving; I can't wait to see God move and answer prayers. He's already started ~~ What an Awesome God we serve!!
Blessings and love,
Dawn; June 17, 2008 8:56 PM
Michelle Bentham said...: We are just wrapping up our meeting time at the Lifeway Forums tonight. Two of our ladies shared a long distance common meal - Pizza! I had the Chicken Enchiladas (My Momma's Recipe, but it was quite tasty... we did ours with refried beans and spanish rice.)

I think the most intersting thing about our group is where we are meeting and how similar yet diverse we are - I love that our common thread is we are so hungry for more of God in our lives. God is doing a great thing here Mrs. Beth.

I'm asking God to bring the wrecking ball and break down our high places so we can built Him an altar that is only for the Most High. Love You Bunches and thanks so much.

We are going solo on memorization - though sharing ideas you may look for a video from me that incorporates all our ideas. Blessings.; June 17, 2008 9:06 PM
Jennifer said...: This study was perfect timing for us. My Mom and I get together (my house, cincinnati, oh) on Tuesdays to watch "Dancing With The Stars" (we watch it recorded from Monday). The show has ended, but now we have a better reason to get together.

Great verse! It's been a favorite of mine for a while. Of course I don't have it memorized and I don't live like I believe it.

I made the Black Bean recipe from the book and it was SUPER yummy! I did have to substitute instant white rice at the last minute, because my brown rice was really gummy. I followed the directions on the package, at least I thought I did. Oh well, it worked out great!; June 17, 2008 9:09 PM
rusty'swife said...: I am doing the study solo. Did not think I was, but when the first week was provided knew God was telling me do this..

I feel very far from God at the present time, due to sevral factors both within and without. Please be praying that I will develope and maintain a deep love for God and His word during this study.

Sallye
solo San Angelo TX; June 17, 2008 9:10 PM
The Joys of having Boys said...: We had a great study tonight. Some ladies were unable to make it to this one, but hopefully will be at the rest. Thank you Lord for the great conversation and meaningful words.; June 17, 2008 9:11 PM
Jaime said...: I have a Texas sized favor to ask...

Can you either video Beth saying "Yahoo-Jah", or give the pronunciation for it?

Each time I read it on a blog I try saying it several different ways in my head and for the life of me can't think of what it should sound like!

I hope you can help a siesta out! THANK YOU!!!; June 17, 2008 9:15 PM
Alissa said...: We had a great study tonight! Seven of us were together at my house and we had so much good food! Thank you Melissa, that cheese dip was "killer"! I just LOVE making food with 10 or more ingredients...NOT! I even made a blackberry pie with fresh picked berries--I don't know what got into me today. Our group was a little awkward tonight, but I think it was because so few of us actually knew each other. I tried to pick ladies that I don't know very well or that were complete strangers to everyone! (I invited Norma Frances from a solo study in Austin!) So I guess we need prayers of connection. Connection to each other and connection to God the Father! Thanks for this opportunity, I can't wait 'til next time!; June 17, 2008 9:18 PM
Anonymous said...: Greatest challenge- just had #3 (it's a girl, 8lbs. 11 oz and-I need a few "bless your heart"s here- my epidural wore off!!), I have to keep the house clean because it's up for sale, my husband works LONG hours right now, and the AF has us moving from NC to CA in 7 weeks.

I'm anxious to explore this topic as the Lord has already been presenting this over the past year.
- T.G.; June 17, 2008 9:21 PM
annette said...: We had our first meeting tonight, three attended, but I think we will have 4 the rest of the study.

The biggest obstacle seems to be letting our schedules and quiet time with the Lord slide in the summer due to children being home in 1 case and in my case increased workload at the office.

We are pumped and so thrilled to be meeting and holding each other accountable.

I pray for all of us to be open to what the Lord wants to impart on us as we do the study.

Annette; June 17, 2008 9:21 PM
Luv2Praise said...: Beth,

We just finished our first meeting tonight. We had so much fun. We are a group of women from church, work and one who we met on line through your blog! We are Randi, Joyce, Suzanne, Jaimie, Sylvia, Mary, Chanita, Christy and Lori.

We made the Butterfinger Cake from the Bible Study and the Chile Con Queso. They were both YUMMY!! Thank you Melissa!!

We had such a fun time with the memorization task and we have already sent our production to you!! We were so busy with this task that we did not get to the discussion of what our distractions might be to our being in the Word. I guess that does not bode well for us that we were distracted from discussing distractions. Oh well we can't wait until we get together in two weeks to get into the study and great discussions. Praise God for putting us all together. He is awesome!!; June 17, 2008 9:29 PM
Brad & Shana said...: Just got in from our first meeting. Can I just say that I'm totally blown away and completely floored.

I was really nervous about tonight, as facilitating anything in front of anyone is not my giftedness. But, I was especially worried about getting participation from the group for the second part of the assignment. I thought almost 20 people were going to look at me as if they were "dear in headlights".

Much to my surprise and complete joy, we had a total blast with it. We're shooting a video tomorrow night (didn't have video camera) and I can't wait to send it in.

I'm convinced & praying expectantly that God is going to do something absolutely amazing in our lives.....in our study and all over the world.

So incredible excited, and greatful to be a small part.

Thanks

Shana
Dalton, Ga; June 17, 2008 9:33 PM
Melinda said...: Just got home from our first meeting...awesome time! I am shaking my head in wonder at how obviously God put our group together, but that is SO GOD, isn't it? The right group at the right time for the right study!

We made every recipe and relished every bite - SO GOOD! Although after discussing the ingredients in the enchiladas, we started calling it "coronary casserole"!:o)

We are all committed to see it through to the end - can't wait to see what God will do!; June 17, 2008 9:35 PM
Keri said...: Our study just ended and I am so excited to see what God is going to do through our group of women. Several of the women met for the first time tonight even though we live in the same neighborhood and our kids go to the same school. It is sooooo much fun to watch new friendships grow!

The queso ROCKED.....too intimidated by the enchiladas to try them. Throw in some fudgy brownies and watermelon for the healthy ones and we were good to go.

We all laughed when sharing about gods in our lives that distract us from our God.....we mentioned food and thought it was ironic that there were incredible recipes to go along with the study. Guess we'll get to deal with that one up front and center! Anyone else excited about trying out the Butterfinger Cake???; June 17, 2008 9:40 PM
Anonymous said...: biggest challenge toward walking victoriously with God this summer is being in a new city. It is so easy to hide when no one knows that you have an eating disorder. One that only comes when there's change. I haven't had change in almost 4 years. This is a big change for me and i'm overwhelmed. This fight that is contstantly going on in my head. ED won tonight but there is hope for tomorrow.; June 17, 2008 9:40 PM
Anonymous said...: Hey gals!
This morning, my 11 year old daughter and myself and a friend with her 11 year old daughter met from 10:00 until noon! And that is with no study to go through...

I was going to just do it with my daughter, but something made me invite Tami and her daughter Jessica - funny thing - her daughter Michaela was in my third grade class this year. But Jessica and my Meg are the same age. So we met, shared prayer requests about our obstacles about living victoriously. It was a perfect time to explain what that meant to us moms to our girls. We all seemed to agree that busyness along with other things keeps us from victory. For me, physical pain, for Tami - 5 kids and a hubby and no alone time, for Jessica - friends who are not always Christians, and for Meg - TV, music and video games and her dad's house. We had a nice time of prayer and then tackled the verse. I shared a song that I learned waaaaay back in high school that quotes Jude 1:24-25 word for word. I will have to ask my techie sister how to record it because I do not have a device that records. But the best thing we did was draw pictures. We sat on the floor and drew with colored pencils what those verses spoke to us. All the while the girls were giggling and bonding and Tami and I were enjoying ourselves immensely. As a single mom - it was so good to hear her tease her daughter about the same things that annoy me as a parent - hippy - ha - hoo! My kid is sooo normal! Anyway - I am going to try to get my sis to help me - I would love to send the pictures we drew (of course they are masterpieces, haha) and somehow the tune...any ideas anyone?

I can't wear flip flops - they make me stumble! Cheers to all of you who can enjoy them!

Marci in Scappoose, OR; June 17, 2008 9:48 PM
Fun With Five said...: We just had our first meeting and it was great! The unique thing about our group is some of us know each other quite well...and others we were meeting for the first time tonight! How exciting-new Siestas! There were 9 of us, and the main obstacle standing between us and victory seems to be finding the time to study among the many little ones we all have. We are sooo excited and looking forward to starting the study!! :) Thank you for being our facilitator. :); June 17, 2008 9:52 PM
Rebecca said...: We had such an amazing time together today! God is working for sure!; June 17, 2008 9:54 PM
cindi weber said...: we just met this evening. we went to our local coffeehouse in the neighborhood, but it was closed. the only other places open in our neighborhood were bars or my house...so...we chose my house. *grin* we ate m&ms and just had a good time together. there were 5 of us, most having obstacles with time, one with "the people i live with" and the other needing a "lobotomy" to facilitate a change in poor thinking patterns. we are looking forward to meeting the rest of the summer at my house, pajamas required, and then one time at a local restaurant where they have homemade s'mores made at your table. or maybe 2 times.

oh yeah, we are too tired to come up with something clever for the verse. but apparently there is a song to it, so we will go there!

thanks so much...
the kessler community church mamas; June 17, 2008 10:02 PM
Rebecca said...: Two ladies got together in Houston, Texas for some grand-fellowship. My dear friend of 4-years and I talked about the challenges we foresee this summer (Boy are they huge). I can't divulge my sister's challenges, but I can tell you one of mine. My parents are splitting after a 27 year marriage!!! Lord Jesus help us!!!! Please pray for me and ask God to help me not make an idol of the parent who is not a fault.
I bless all of you ladies!!!
Rebecca; June 17, 2008 10:02 PM
allyaggie said...: 8 of us ladies met at my home in League City, TX, this evening over Chicken Spaghetti, Spinach Salad and Banana Pudding. We should have at least 2 more join us next time.

Most of our challenges involved carving out consistent time to meet w/God. I was thrilled by how 8 women from diverse backgrounds could come together over a common meal with a common purpose to get closer and to fall deeper in love with the Lord! I am thrilled by what God is going to do...what He is already doing!

Allyson; June 17, 2008 10:05 PM
matiaskardia said...: Our first meeting laid the foundation for an encouarging and challenging summer. We were able to openly share and commit our time, our energy, and our focus to the Lord, then pray for the Holy Spirit's enabling. This is going to be one powerful and much-needed bible study!!! Many thanks to you Ms. Beth for being willing to facilitate!!; June 17, 2008 10:12 PM
Anonymous said...: Crystal and Jacki
Michigan and Missouri
We had a great time talking on the phone tonight! As we prayed together tonight, we asked the Lord to show us those areas in our lives that are consuming us. We know that He will be faithful to show us!; June 17, 2008 10:13 PM
Anonymous said...: We had a good first meeting tonight. Talked about our challenges to living victoriously this summer and about what it meant to have an idol. We're looking forward to getting started in the Word!; June 17, 2008 10:15 PM
purefire said...: Well, my ladies left about an hour ago and it was great! Each one is excited to see what God has in store for us. Our biggest challenges were just as many others have said: an sense of being overwhelmed by responsibilities and the discipline to stick to our quite time and bible study. Why do we find it easy to let our quite time slide, to do the "lesser things"? We all commited ourselves to being deligent to get into the Word this summer and let God work in us. I made chicken enchiladas, but my own recipe - didn't have time to try something new. We made do with chips and salsa instead of the cheese dip. Several of us are trying to watch the calories, so I was trying to be good about the food choices. All in all, it was just a great time of fellowship. We talked for 3 hours and could have went longer but some of us have to go to work in the morning! We just got our books tonight and we read the introduction together. We're excited and ready for a fresh Word! Thanks Beth, and thanks to God our Father for coming up with this fantastic idea!

Love ya'; June 17, 2008 10:16 PM
Anonymous said...: Checking in after an awesome evening with the ladies. The video was great! Loved the flip flops. We were trying to figure out if you said cheap or chic flipflops? Either way, we loved the flips!! My group is not quite becky homecky, it was rice crispy treats that we enjoyed in fellowship. We got to see the body of Christ in instant action as we shared our biggest challenges. Either someone had already broken that stronghold or had just read or done a Bible study relating to it. Quite amazing how God works that like!!

Michelle in Lakeland; June 17, 2008 10:22 PM
Holly said...: The food was fabulous--especially the queso! Chris said that the casserole should have had a longer time marrying (loved that word in the salsa recipe, Melissa!) in the oven. Also, we made Amanda's fancy sopapilla cheesecake for dessert. So yum!

Cynthia and I met tonight--and it was God-ordered. She is my neighbor. We talked about the biggest challenges and our families and Bible study. Also we're thinking of ways to incorporate the verse with signs...and we prayed. It was the best time! We even took a stroll through my garden and enjoyed the sunset.

Thanks Beth for hosting this! I cannot wait to see all that God has in store.; June 17, 2008 10:25 PM
Melana said...: Ok, we just finished our kickoff less than a half hour ago. The dishes are still in the sink but the sweet aroma of the Savior presence (and Melissa's recipes) still lingers. The NOGS (No Other Gods Students) have decided to meet at 6:00pm on Tuesdays as previously discussed. We've decided to do just dessert. But because we seem to love each other and might just be craving this fellowship with other women thing...we will be getting together at one of the other ladies' homes, for dinner, next week.

We watched your little video. I wanted them to capture your excitement. I think they came pre-excited though!

We discussed the challenge of walking in victory this summer. Everyone was open and all seem to be ready for A WORD!

We also decided...What happens at Melana's, stays at Melana's! Thank-you again Beth for doing this.

Melana in Wyoming; June 17, 2008 10:26 PM
Jill_in_AL said...: Hi, Beth! I'm flying solo but with Siesta for Him on the Delphi blog that Rebecca started. There are 147 Siestas there commenting, praying and loving each other. The intro and first day's homework got me thinking about Who I worship and what I serve....whew!

My hubs brought home doughnuts (I was good only ate one though) and we made decaf about 9 p.m. so I'm saying that was my group's snacks ;-) Love to you all, J

PS I think the solo round-up discussion blog can be found at
http://forums.delphiforums.com/siestas/; June 17, 2008 10:27 PM
Melana said...: Oh and I forgot to mention. We added a 7th member! Yay!; June 17, 2008 10:27 PM
Anonymous said...: Hi from Houston, Tx. We had 3 of us, we met in my home. We loved the video and your encouragement, Beth. We had a wonderful time of praying and sharing, and laughing! Our biggest challenges were struggles at home, worry over family, feeling far from God. But we are determined to persevere...oh and Hurray! for the cute flip flops. And Melissa, I made the tarte aux pommes dessert and it was so pretty, we almost didn't want to eat it....but we did! It was great! We are excited to get into God's word.

Judy in Houston; June 17, 2008 10:33 PM
tracykj said...: Our group of four met and enjoyed the delicious mexican recipes tonight. All our "barriers" to living victoriously had to do with stress, usually involving relationships (big surprize). We committed to praying for each other and had an incredible 3&1/2 hour night of eating,sharing,laughing,praying and getting to know each other better. It went better than I could've imagined. We are pumped. God is good.; June 17, 2008 10:35 PM
donna said...: we had a great time and loved the chicken enchiladas. i also made the butterfinger cake that was in our workbook. it is YUMMMMMMYYYY!!!
looking forward to the next 2 weeks of homework.
from the wives of the warriors in Washington.; June 17, 2008 10:49 PM
Jen said...: We both loved the "welcome video!" It's like Beth is the 3rd member of our group - sitting on the couch next to us via the laptop!

Our biggest challenges: one of us is beginning her 1st trimester and is always tried and crabby for the first 12 weeks. A challenge indeed! :) The other has recently been through a major life crisis and feels far from God and "out of practice." Being in the Word is like working out - the more you do it, the better you get at it. When you slack off, it's feels like a lot of hard work to re-gain what you've lost.

As for Jude, we came up with a few moves that we considered video-worthy (entertaining at the very least)...ridiculous but effective! :); June 17, 2008 10:53 PM
Julie Ratcliff said...: Dear Beth,
We had our first meeting of our Bible Study tonight(7 of us) and it was great. Also, happy birthday! You share a birthday with my precious three year old niece. To the siestas who mentioned brand new babies, I commend you for committing to this study. I pray that God would bless you richly through this.

In Him,
Julie; June 17, 2008 11:04 PM
Anna said...: WOW!! 3000+??? We are so honored to be a part of this amazing group! Our group of 2 met in Gulfport, MS (will have 1 more next meeting, anyone reading this in the area, contact me through my blog and we'll connect!). First of all, Salsa, Queso, Enchiladas all AWESOME! Forever indebted to Mrs. Fitzpatrick! And was so neat to be eating the same snacks as my Siestas all over the blogisphere! But more importantly, study was AWESOME! God was there ladies, and He showed us how He has been preparing us for what is to come over the next 8 weeks, praise His name! Thank you Beth, we will continue to check in!!; June 17, 2008 11:12 PM
Leslie Young said...: We had a great first meeting - five of our seven women present -- all 40+ dealing with challenges ranging from ailing parents to impending empty nests and assorted other stresses associated with this particular phase of life. The enchiladas, queso and salsa were spicy hot and the fellowship was extra sweet! We're hoping to put together a video entry - we've got our eyes on the prize!!!; June 17, 2008 11:15 PM
Melana said...: I know this is like my 3rd, could be 4th post on this, but I keep forgetting what you wanted to know.

Seems like the biggest challenge for all of us in one way or another is PRIORITIES. What's really important in our lives? If Christ is first than what comes second?

Melana (again) in Wyoming; June 17, 2008 11:16 PM
MaryBeth said...: We had our first meeting tonight and were all pretty astounded by God's timing for this particular study in our lives... right this moment! There were six of us, but it looks like we've got a group of 9 working our way through this together with you all this summer. We're so excited to see what God has in store!!; June 17, 2008 11:18 PM
Anonymous said...: I had planned on going solo, but God brought 2 girlfriends Glynda and Tammy to meet with me. Another girlfriend, Susan, plans to do the study but could not meet tonight. We were blessed with time to catch up on each others lives and discuss struggles. Today I read Psalm 135 in the One Year Bible. I believe God was affirming the timing for this study. Praises to Him from White House, TN; June 17, 2008 11:22 PM
Teri said...: We met tonight. 8:30.
Had the Queso. (Oh.My.)
Great, authentic conversation.
Prayer.
Two words that describes how I am feeling tonight. Honored. Humbled.; June 17, 2008 11:24 PM
Georgia's blog said...: I am really excited about this study and have already seen God move in a very awesome way!!! Our 15 year old daughter went home to be with Jesus in April. There have been MANY people praying for our family. It turns out that one of the ladies that we have decided to email study with is one of those people. We have yet to meet but look forward to meeting and seeing what else God is going to do with us in this study. Thank you for the opportunity and the suggestion to partner up by email if we were going solo.

Now let's do some Bible studyin'

Georgia
www.easysite.com/fulenwiderfamily; June 17, 2008 11:37 PM
Anonymous said...: Ours did not go as planned. I was at my parents for Father's day and without the internet and was coming back this morning to get ready for tonight. I received a call from my other group member yesterday that one of our fellow high school teachers(a single mom) was in an automobile accident Sunday night. Her father was killed instantly, her 18 year old son is in a coma with a brain injury and she has a broken back and pelvis. We spent our preparation time at the hospital today. We managed a quick trip to the store and had tacos tonight. We are ready to start this study. We know days like today would be impossible to get through without our faith in Jesus Christ. We are anxious to strengthen our walk with Him. Please join us in praying for Lou and Barret.

In Christ,
Lisa; June 17, 2008 11:43 PM
Isaac's Mom said...: We had our first meeting this evening at my home. There were 12 of us. We will have 3 more at our next meeting. We met at 6:30 and did not end until 10:30!! We had a blast. We laughed and we ate until we could eat no more. I prepared all 3 of Melissa's recipes and they were a hugh hit. Thank you Melissa.

We made a short video of our way to memorize the scripture of Jude 1:24,25 and I will be following the directions to upload it soon. We all think it is a great way to memorize the verses and it was fun!!

Our greatest challenges seem to be our work schedules and hectic life styles. We all agreed we will not let anything stop us from doing our homework and meeting at our scheduled time every other Tuesday.

Ok...the video was so fun to watch and I love that we are participating in this study with women all over the world and all 50states. God is up to something.....we may never know what it is but we will have been a part of it none the less.

Did someone say FLIP FLOPS???? We got some FLIP FLOPS now.....

Blessings to you,
Royana, (Isaac's Mom); June 17, 2008 11:51 PM
Anonymous said...: Had a great time tonight in Arizona! Prayed for each other and memorized our scripture. Can't wait to start the lessons. Thanks so much for doing this.

Julie; June 17, 2008 11:56 PM
Patty said...: Beth,
We finished our intro session tonight. I got a late start on cooking and by the time we were finished eating it was getting dark. I made a video after we were done. If you have time you need to check it out because you will see why I am blonder than I pay to be. Making a video at night doesn't go so well. ALL I am sayin' hehe

On a serious note, we discussed Jude 24-25. We had a great discussion on those verses. It hit me that Jesus will present us, we talked about how we could picture it almost like a wedding scene, Jesus walking us to the Father as a father would walk his daughter down the aisle in her wedding to her groom. No matter our past we are washed clean because of the blood of Christ, presented pure before the Father.

To your question: Challenges, Georgia's challenge was work and consistent time in God's Word,
Cecelia's was being busy and not taking the time to spend in God's Word or prayer.
Mine, I am in a waiting season with God over a matter of finding a job, God is leading me to wait and as a single mom that is hard. When the world would think I am crazy to wait in my situation but that is where God has me and I pray every day for God to help me wait on Him and not move ahead of his plan for my life.

This was so much fun, thank you so much!
Much Love Siestas!
Patty; June 18, 2008 12:07 AM
Velma said...: Hey ya'll. We just finished up our first meeting tonight in Colbert, OK. The fellowship and laughs were great and the sharing of our needs was refreshing.

We had the chicken enchiladas and the dip--great recipes. .

Ready to jump into the study with both feet. God is good!; June 18, 2008 12:14 AM
Suzanne Morton said...: Instead of having the common meal... we had a dietitic spread of cheese,turkey,ham,fruit,pitas and a Soapilla Cheesecake made with Splenda! ( 2 of our ladies are diabetic)! We had 4 out of 5 attend and we had a fabulous time in our siesta study!!
My college grad son set up his lap top in the dining room and we started off with your video!!! Yahoo-jah!! It was awesome!
We shared our hearts and found that we definitely had some common issues and concerns. We all have sons that have recently returned to the nest via college diplomas and some have health issues as well as the need to stay in the Word everyday and on our knees!!
We are working toward the memorization methodology.. we don't have a fancy video camera,so I guess we will stay tuned! I did type out the verses in a beautiful font (Castellar) and added some clip art ( a girl climbing a mountain and Jesus/ with the cross) and made copies to give to the girls! I say tape it up to the mirror as we prepare our hair and makeup and apply our sunblock to the face and neck! Ha!
Blessings from the siestas!
Suzanne,Gail,Jamie,Valerie and Vickie FBC Decatur, Texas; June 18, 2008 12:38 AM
Bold in Him said...: Okay, I'm flying solo and didn't have anyone but lil ol me in my group tonight.
My greatest challenge this summer will be all the summer camps and our vacation to Chicago. I am Director over 5th and 6th at our church and I go to summer camp next week YEA, my jr higher in 2 weeks then vacation then my High schooler goes to camp so lots of laundry and packing for mom.
I felt so compelled to do this study, and almost said no and I didnt get signed up before but then God just kept laying it on my heart.
Cant wait to see what awesome thing God is up to.
Blessings sweet siestas.
Mary in AZ; June 18, 2008 1:11 AM
Michele said...: What I perceive to be my biggest challenge in walking with God victoriously this summer, to be totally honest, is just plain laziness. You see I ALWAYS have a house full of children, as I am a homeschooling mother. During the school year I am very busy homeschooling. I also work at home which requires my day to begin at 4:00 a.m. On top of that I work for my husband as his real estate agent. Plus I teach Sunday School and a Wed. night class (which I actually took off for the summer, but will return in the fall). I have 2 girls who play soccer during the fall and spring and then my son and other daughter play basketball during the winter. Nevertheless most of the time my life is BUSY, BUSY, BUSY. Oh, and did I mention that I homeschool too? This summer I told myself I was going to try and minimize activity and just enjoy as much of summer and my children as possible. I have already read a whole book from cover-to-cover and have been very lazy. So really my biggest obstacle is really myself and just being lazy b/c during the school year it is so hectic (one of the reasons I decided to go solo). God is good though and I am so grateful I have had this time to rest.

I know God is stirring my heart for this study and I am sooooo excited. Thanks for pulling all of this together Siesta Mama and Siesta sisters Amanda and Melissa. I love you all.; June 18, 2008 4:18 AM
"Miss" Clair said...: MIddleburg Ladies checking in!! We had a wonderful time together last night. We made the black bean recipe from the book and it was delicious and easy!! As we ate we were in awe to think how many other ladies were also meeting together studying God's Word. We shared challenges (motivation, schedules, kids) and plan to be accountable to each other throughout the study. We can't wait to meet again!!; June 18, 2008 5:24 AM
katiegfromtennessee said...: Checking in early:)My group shared w/ each other our biggest challenges this summer and prayed for each other and had great fellowship:)(meal was fabulous)Two of us are in the midst of fertility issues (have aptmt today..waiting again this mo. (with drugs) to see if I will be a mom yet:), and two of us are trying to balance husband and kids and time for spiritual renewal (along with motivation). Will have my sis's group pray for us too and vice versa. Girls excited about video contest. (tried to fit in sm. paragraph:)

Love always in CHRIST,"On Ya"

katiegfromtennessee
Ps. 136:23-24 (AMP); June 18, 2008 5:37 AM
Hollie said...: We met last night. Five of us. Women with a different past, but a common thread-Jesus. He is all over this. The memory verse is one that one of the ladies read just one day before. The study something another lady has been yearning for. And each one of us testified that God is calling us to something more. None of us are emotionally small. We all live large (not a lavish lifestyle, but just with lots of spunk). We laugh big and love big. God is the only thing we have made small and we are ready for Him to be the big God that He is in our lives. We are tired of resisting His pull to be something more. And so we begin....; June 18, 2008 6:09 AM
Anonymous said...: Fantastic first meeting!!!There will definitely be 6 of us Alleli,Becki,Natalie,Shannon,Michelle, and Patti. Patti being our local Siesta Momma. Everyone very excited and motivated about study.Went over obstacles to overcome this summer. Eagerly anticipating God's Word and direction. Brainstormed about video. Be prepared to be blown away!!!!!!!; June 18, 2008 6:26 AM
Lisa said...: Lisa and Sue in Maine had a telephone conference, along with new members Cathy and Jackie. We discussed what would most hinder us this summer...Sue indicated that she needed to make time with God a habit, and place it in first priority. Similar with Cathy--she wants to put Faith, Family, and Work in the right order, instead of Work, Work, and Baseball. Lisa found herself in a pretty deep valley last spring, and then on a very high mountaintop during the summer. Her struggle is to stay up on the mountaintop so that she doesn't find herself back in the valley.; June 18, 2008 6:48 AM
Cindy in HP, NC said...: God is AMAZING !! I went to bed, got a good nights sleep. Woke this morning and reread the intro and lesson one. This Bible Study is just what God has been trying to say to me and I haven't been listening. Everything that is major in my life right now.. it's all functional gods. Every bit of it. Just the first 16 pages has opened my eyes to everything I've been doing wrong. THANK YOU GOD !!! P.S. The peanut butter pie for supper wasn't a bad substitute.; June 18, 2008 6:51 AM
HisTreasuredPossession said...: I'm soooo excited. Thrilled to hear about this worldwide group. What an honor and priviledge!
I think my biggest challenge is going to be making sure I let Him work in ALL my heart to get REAL change to happen, with a time concerns built in because of vacation and super young children.; June 18, 2008 7:11 AM
Michelle said...: Good Morning Siestas! Our small group met in north Texas last night
over Chicken Enchiladas, Chili Frito Corn Salad and Butter Finger Cake! It was a good time of fellowship and realizing that we all struggle to stay connected and yet what a joy and a privilege to realize that God is eager to spend time with us and is waiting with arms wide open. We each met new faces and look forward to a few more joining us in two weeks!
Blessings, Michelle Bengtson; June 18, 2008 7:15 AM
paige said...: Our group had a great showing! We had eight, with several others who plan to join us next time. Our common challenge will be finding time to devote to study, and moving beyond just checking it off the list to true intimacy with Jesus. Thanks so much for providing the first week's homework on the site. Half of the group is waiting on their books!!

paige
Winston Salem, NC; June 18, 2008 7:17 AM
Joani said...: Hi ladies! Here is a dramatization that reminded me of the topic of "no other gods".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRSavOMzhNU&feature=related

Enjoy!; June 18, 2008 7:22 AM
Cassandra said...: We had a great time last night. We had 18 women show up at the church and we know that 2 more will be there for the next one. I made the salsa and cheese dip but bowed out on the enchilada's (I still plan to make it for my family) and we really enjoyed the recipes. I handed out index cards so that people would be totally honest about what would hinder them this summer and was blown away. We have so many women in our group struggling. We had everything from dealing with children to dealing with a death. I was humbled. I re-distributed the cards at the end so that we could specifically pray for each other. We did a pretty good job memorizing our verse, but they weren't exactly up for showing you how. :) I think it's going to be great!; June 18, 2008 7:24 AM
The Hertels said...: Our group met last evening and I cannot wait to meet again. We had the Con Queso dip......wonderful!! We also discussed our "question" and I think the common denominator with our group and by reading many of the comments here is time......making time for the Lord....making it a habit and a priority. We all have so much on our plates and feel overwhelmed but need to make the Lord our 1st and foremost priority.; June 18, 2008 7:28 AM
screamofcontinuousness said...: The Snellville, GA Summer Siestas bible study met last night. We were short one person, but that turned out to be okay, because one of our members was in crisis and needed a lot of time to talk it out. We applied the verses from Jude to help her understand that god is able to help ALL of us. No matter how together we think we are, or how close we are to flying apart.

So while the session didn't really go as planned, I think it was a ministering moment that needed to happen.; June 18, 2008 7:49 AM
Anonymous said...: Our group met last night (6 of the 7). Had a great time sharing about our greatest challenge toward walking with God this summer. One of the most interesting ones was that God had removed some obstacles that she had thought were going to be her biggest challenges. Because her son had a serious accident, her focus is on his rehab and not these other things that had seemed so big. We had Chicken Enchiladas, Melissa's Salsa and Chile Con Queso, Chips, Fiesta Rice, Chocolate Sandwich Cookie Bars, and Iced Sugar Cookies. We are all excited about the study. We all love you and love the Lord.

Kay Martin
Tupelo, MS; June 18, 2008 7:50 AM
trainedbyhorses said...: WoW! Did you ever make the Siesta girls in Cool, California EXCITED when we heard your blurb about us on your intro video! WHOO HOO!

The Cool Contingent were *13* strong tonight (counting 3 month old, Grace) with *4* additional ladies not able to attend but who plan to--assuming we didn’t scare any of our teenagers away! HA! :-)

We enjoyed a meal and giggled together. In fact, I laughed so hard that I had to run my 46 year old bladder to the potty--in EARNEST! OH MY goodness!

As soon as our group heard about a *contest* of some sort, I saw a side of these ladies I have never seen before! Be watching for our video entry, Siesta Girls! :-)

I don’t know about the other Cool Siesta Girls, but I had an incredible time--never have I been so giddy for a gathering and God showed up in full measure!

I believe God used the silliness and joy to lay a very important groundwork for what He is doing and will be doing through our study this summer. Thank you, Beth and Living Proof Staff, for inviting us to step up into this God Thing! Love you!; June 18, 2008 8:06 AM
Traveling Fig said...: Our group met last night and we laughed a ton and shared a ton. We're a group of 10 and the primary obstacle for each of us is distraction (in the form of sick parents, crazy business, new season of life that requires adjustment in thinking and expectation) and busyness. We are all struggling with prioritizing and saying yes to too many things.

In light of that we are saying no to creating a video, but yes to memorizing :~)

And being from VA, we all LOVE LOVE LOVE flip flops.; June 18, 2008 8:22 AM
Deanna said...: The recipe wasn't ready when my friend Michelle arrived, so we talked about our challenges first. After praying for one another, we read over the intro and it was right on target with the challenges we had just discussed. We both want to be consistant in our walk and and to worship and serve Him. Not worship Him while serving other gods. I pray many lives will be changed through this study. Thanks Beth. And thank you Melissa for the chicken enchilada recipe. It was WONDERFUL!
Blessings,
Deanna; June 18, 2008 8:27 AM
Anonymous said...: Well, us Bible Bunnies in No MI met yesterday morning...Tues and did our victorious sharing. We also though about how to memorize our scripture verses. Probably won't do a video seeing as how no one had a camera capable of that.
We are a strong praying group and have had MANY answers to our prayers, so some of the thing shared for lacking victory are exactly what we have been praying for in each of our lives. Then we decided there was NO reason for not having VICTORY!!!!! We must just keep on keepin' on and pray, pray, pray. Be open to what God wants to do in each of us and welcome it with rejoicing. After all, isn't that what it's all about???
We are looking forward to the lessons for the next two weeks.
We couldn't and didn't try the recipes because we meet so early in the a.m. But everyone was excited about trying them and thought they looked absolutely delicious. Again, thank you Melissa.
Can't wait to hear about the other groups....
Bible Bunny in MI; June 18, 2008 8:36 AM
Kim said...: We had a wonderful meeting last pm full of food, fun, and fellowship. 5 out of the 9 were able to make it and we loved the chicken enchiladas! (Thanks Melissa!)

We can't wait to dive into this study!

Beth, we loved the flip flops!

"Yada Yadas" in Alpharetta, Ga; June 18, 2008 8:40 AM
Anonymous said...: Checking in from Missouri!
Happy birthday Siesta Mama! We had eight women signed up and added two more to our roster. All together we represent four different denominations. We are all pumped up and ready to start this new study.
Our biggest struggles this summer with walking in victory are procrastinating, dealing with physical problems, working relationships, wanting our own agenda and financial struggles. We are looking forward to working together and interceding for one another.
We love you and are so excited!
Anne in MO.
P.S. Totally digging the flip flops! :); June 18, 2008 8:52 AM
Anonymous said...: Kathy in Bradford, PA~reporting in.
We changed our meeting place from each others homes to our Church (where we usually meet). We were able to make it warm and cozy by utilizing a sitting area with couches, easy chairs, end tables....plus a candle and dessert. It was almost like being in one of our living rooms.
The common challenge for us was worry.......Surprise!
One woman shared this saying, "If you pray, why worry? And if you worry, why pray?" If we are truley trusting God, why are we worring?
This is going to be a great study!
Just one more thing...I had to explain to the whole group what "Siesta" was all about.
Beth, thank you so much for inviting us along.

Kathy in Bradford, PA; June 18, 2008 8:53 AM
Kathy said...: We had an amazing time last night! All of the women in our group are at different stages of life, yet all are struggling with something. Great time of encouragement and just good ol' girl bonding time! Didn't have enough prep time to make the enchiladas, so I just went with the queso & I did the Sopapilla Cheesecake - both majorly rocked!! Thanks for putting all this together!
Kathy - Arvada, CO; June 18, 2008 8:57 AM
Phyllis said...: Just the two of us, but, already in the word and Jude 1:24-25 is already a blessing. Right now, alot on both of our "plates", and we need this time to "crawl up in His arms" and lay all our Issacs down. Phyllis; June 18, 2008 9:06 AM
Mariel said...: Reporting in from our small group time:
Our main difficulties for trying to have victory in jesus this summer is the trails we are currently going through in each of our personal lives...family illness, financial struggles, moving, etc.

Jude's verses are great and I look forward to letting them abide within me this summer!!

(PS LOVE the shoes that match the cute shirt, Beth!!); June 18, 2008 9:13 AM
For His Name (Lora) said...: Oh my, we had so much fun making the recipes Melissa. My delightful 13 year old made the salsa, and dear 15 year old the queso and I made the enchiladas - De-li-cious!!! We had Raspberry Laced Vanilla Cake leftover from the dear 15 year olds birthday on Monday. We used the recipe on the back of the Softasilk cake flour box...Mmm...
We shared requests and prayed. Attitudes, actions and reactions top our list of challenges. The teens have great thoughts on memorizing the word! We read the intro and sesson 1 together - and leave it to teens to be able to pronounce Anadara correctly and know who she was! I'm so excited to be doing this with my girls! We really had fun time and are going to meet next Tuesday as well and try the black beans and rice recipe.
Praise You Lord for this awesome oppportunity!; June 18, 2008 9:14 AM
Brian and Nicole said...: Hey girls-

We had our first meeting last night and we did mexican dips for our snack, sorry Melissa it looked to intimadating to make plus with a two year old would have been a long day!

There were 5 of us and just a very sweet group. We all shared our challenges and relationships seemed to be a common theme among the group. Anywhere from spouse, children, friends, and beginning/ending relationships.

We are working on the verse, no big ideas yet, but hopefully one of us will get a breath of fresh air!

Nicole in Blue Springs, MO; June 18, 2008 9:16 AM
Anonymous said...: Another solo here. I love the way she writes,it seems like you are talking with a friend. I so needed this bible study. I have allowed so many things distract me and I am very thankful I found this online summer bible study.

Thanks for how all of you a LPM serve each of us!

Jen; June 18, 2008 9:18 AM
Melinda said...: Forgot to tell you this one thing:

Yesterday afternoon, I was up to my elbows in tortillas when my phone rang. It was my cousin, several states away, calling to see if maybe I was making enchiladas like her! We spent the next few minutes cooking "together" and sharing excitement over our groups. It was an awesome thing to know that there were 3000 other women all over the US and the world that were possibly doing the very same thing at the very same time.

How small our world...HOW BIG OUR GOD!; June 18, 2008 9:18 AM
Donna said...: Our group is off to a great start with 16 of the 18 registered participants meeting together. We looked at several translations of the memory verse and selected the one we liked best to memorize. Shared tips for memorizing as well. Enjoyed the food, fellowship, sharing, and prayer.; June 18, 2008 9:18 AM
N Luv W/ HIM said...: 8 "Unshackled Siestas" met last night in my home (Henderson TX) and I tell you the truth, GOD showed up & showed OFF! Loved it!

The first 1/2 of the evening we enjoyed some great ENCHILADAS (thanks Melissa)& of course chips, salsa, and avocado, while we talked about our summer, plans we had, things we dreaded, happenings we looked forward to!

Second 1/2- we watched your video and dove right into what GOD had brought us together for: Facing our idols and tearing them down!

Challenges: Such a vast group of women, all ages, all married...all struggling. Marriage, addictions, priorities, will-worship! Whooo, are we ready for this study? Amen-so be it!; June 18, 2008 9:21 AM
Love to 3rd Power said...: Wow! Five of us met and enjoyed the common meal. During our discussion we decided that this summer's study was going to be relaxed and real...we were real with each other and know that God will be real with us. The common thread in our challenge toward walking victoriously with God this summer seems to be a lack of purpose and sense of discontent in our lives. I'm looking forward to God's addressing this as we study His word this summer. Thanks Beth for getting us on the right track.

Sharon; June 18, 2008 9:22 AM
Mauimom1 said...: God is clearly up to something, and we are so excited! We enjoyed a wonderful dinner as well as prayer time and fellowship. We only completed the first question on walking victoriously with God. There were many tears in our little group last night. Some hearts are heavy...what a marvelous time for us to be able to help each other through these trials. We are going to have to meet again this week to work on the verse memorization!!!
Love to you Beth Moore!!
Melissa
Stillwater, OK; June 18, 2008 9:23 AM
Beth said...: Y'all, I've just brought in about a hundred more of your reports from Bible study and I'm so happy that I'm almost crying. (Only women get that.) Three thoughts come to me: One, I'm so proud of you for getting in there and trying something new in order to seek God through His Word. Two, I'm so blown away that this technology is even possible and that I feel this strange closeness to a community of people all over the world that I may never see till Heaven, and, Three...I think I forgot what three was.

I love Jesus. That's what. And I love loving Him with you. STUDY ON, YOU DARLING SIESTAS! Be workmen unashamed, rightly dividing the Word of Truth! Can't wait to see some of those videos!; June 18, 2008 9:38 AM
Amanda said...: Our group of 9 met together from about 6:15-9:00. The enchiladas were so good and the queso? I could just drink that stuff. We had a fun time getting to know each other and finding things we had in common. Can't wait to dive in to the homework!; June 18, 2008 9:40 AM
yellodaisy said...: Our group met last night and were excited to get together again. We have been meeting for almost 2 years, but have taken a break for the last couple of months for a couple of the girls to have babies. It was so good to be back together. We have renewed our commitment to God and to each other and agreed to hold each other accountable through this study. Looking forward to a new revelation of who God is and what He wants to do in each of us!; June 18, 2008 10:10 AM
KCarlson said...: I am on my own. I really found that I was amazed and the functional gods I have in my life that i never realized. I love the memory verse it is fabulous!; June 18, 2008 10:12 AM
Diana><> said...: Had our first night of study with 5 women last night and it was incrediable how God brought us to this study! The host came up with her own receipe to color coordinate with the book cover. She made an orange jello with pineapple and whip cream, it was yummy.
Some of our challenges for the summer: practicing rightousness, working on relationships, forgiveness, a change of attitude.; June 18, 2008 10:18 AM
3girlsmom said...: Cool story.
I was going solo on this study. Then a siesta in CO emailed me about joining her on this study. I live in AL, so I was a little confused. Turns out, her husband was just deployed for his 2nd tour in Iraq, and she and her kids are moving to Alabama to be closer to family while he's away. They are about to drive 3 days ALONE to get here. But now she has a Siesta in AL praying hedges of safety over her family during her travel and we both have made a new, amazing friend. And she'll be living about 7 miles from me, too! We've emailed several times and I think we were separated at birth. We have so much in common! Thanks for facilitating this study or we would never have known that each other existed!!!; June 18, 2008 10:20 AM
a cowgirl at heart said...: I just cracked up, out loud...you so remind me of one of my aunts! I wanted to tell you about our group...5 solo studiers have joined together. We are meeting through IM, but I also created a blog for us, so check it out. We will use this for discussion and such. Later I will make it by invite only so we can invite others to join our group if they wish. Here's the blog...www.siestasinstudy.blogspot.com.; June 18, 2008 10:22 AM
DigiNee said...: Solo here ---- thanks to Michelle for facilitating the solo forum via Lifeway - missed the "live" this week as I was not aware of it until late, but will join in two weeks for discussion time . . . family did have the queso (will be our new all the time recipe!) and the enchilidas - there was enough for a small army!!!!!

This is what I wrote after reading the intro and doing lesson one last night . . .

"Wow, don't know whether to laugh or cry or shout Yahoo-jah or scream. It's been that nagging the last few months "what has happend to me, to my life, to my heart?" While I was alone in this "living room" - I was also, I sensed, joined by hundreds, no thousands, of sisters this night in whom this simple introduction hit smack dab in the center of their being . . . I am not alone - it's not just me ----- I am going to the high places and I know I will be with others on this difficult, but necessary God journey. Give me revelation, wisdom, and strength to tear down the high places - once and for all."

Whoa - functional gods . . . LOTS to think and pray on.

Biggest challenge this summer - financial concerns . . . this is HUGE for me. Lots involved in this struggle - there is another major struggle and I need to flesh that one out with the Father . . . need some HELP on this one, but so fits the functional gods.

Peace Siestas.; June 18, 2008 10:32 AM
Kimberly said...: Beth,
I just so love you. I laughted out loud when you showed us your flip flop but the question that needs answering is "Where did you get them?!"

On a more serious note...can I ask a favor of all my siestas? Grace's bunny is ill. We took him to the vet on Monday and he said that Fluffy has a hairball. Unlike cats, though, bunny's can't "cough" them up. We've been giving him medicine and are just praying that it will "pass". We can't have cats and dogs as my sweet husband is allergic, so this is as close as we can get to having a "furry" pet. Please pray with me that he will recover. If not Grace will be devastated. I know if may seem trivial to some, but I truly believe God cares about even the smallest things in our life. Thank you!

Kimberly; June 18, 2008 10:33 AM
tami in la said...: Another soloist and I connected yesterday via email to share our personal testimonies. We have never met, but are going to join together in this study. Who would have thought? Looking forward to what He teaches us.

Thanks so much for leading us. What fun!; June 18, 2008 10:35 AM
Anonymous said...: Madelin and Lori started last night in Simi Valley/Moorpark. In honor of our city name we will be know as Hermanas de Parque Viento . We had a great time learning more about each other. We had a great time of food and fellowship and can't wait to continue this part of the journey. Hasta luego.; June 18, 2008 11:00 AM
Jolinda said...: Our first study was off to a wonderful start! We enjoyed Melissa's delicious recipe for Sour Cream and Chicken Enchiladas! Beings it is my daughters and myself I hate to admit I bought the Queso and Salsa . . . My husband said it was best enchiladas he has ever had . . .(he could not be left out of such a wonderful dish and will be enjoying Tuesdays nights to come!) We had such a blessed time together. This is such a fun way to study the precious word this summer!

God Bless you all!
The Drakes <><; June 18, 2008 11:08 AM
all4boys said...: Your video was precious, as are you. You are too funny and crazy. I feel like you're one of my best girlfriends that I can crack up with. God is bringing us together, and I am so thankful.

Oh my GOODNESS!!! I just printed out the pages Lifeway offered (Thank you, Lifeway, you are so gracious in doing that!), and started day one today. Let me tell you, I am already doing a Bible study this summer, and was not planning on participating in this one. Then I started reading the first page. And kept going.

God is so good, Siestas! Who would have ever thought that me, singer in choir, mommy of four, wifey of one, would be serving false gods???? But I was (am) and did not realize it. I am praying for God's supernatural strength for God to change me. It won't be easy, but I know that with HIM, all things are possible! Praise God!

My biggest challenge this summer is a house full to overflowing with boys. Did I mention I'm the mommy of four? Ages 9, 8 and 5 year old twins. They are keeping me on my toes this summer! When we get bored, the fighting starts, so we are trying to keep busy!

Love to all, Siestas, may God richly bless you through His word this summer!!!; June 18, 2008 11:21 AM
Anonymous said...: Wow! The enchiladas were fantastic! Luckily I didn't have to cook them because it was at my house and we're rotating duties. I was a little overwhelmed at the grocery list. We had a great mtg. 5 girls. 2 that found my name solo on the blog, 1 I invited and she brought a friend. Next week I cook. This is so much fun. I just can't stop smiling.; June 18, 2008 11:36 AM
Jabber Jaws said...: We are a Dallas based group. About ten of us from 82 years of age(pray for her - she fell yesterday) to 27 years of age. Some are married, single, divorced. Some are moms and some are not. We had a great time last night! One of our ladies is moving to Portland, Oregon on July 10th. Is there a group in Portland that she could join? She is married with two kids and is in her late twenties. Joy lives up to her name and is in love with Jesus and art. Please email me if you would welcome my precious friend. My email is jennyfergray@yahoo.com.
Thanks!; June 18, 2008 11:38 AM
Annalou said...: Hoping you had a lovely birthday!

Big hug to you!!

Anna; June 18, 2008 11:45 AM
TN Girl said...: 6 of our 7 met Tuesday for lunch at a local Mexican Restaurant (trying to keep with the fare). We are doing VBS at our church in the evenings this week so no way could we have dinner. We had a great time of fellowship.

Our biggest challenges this summer:
Change of Routine for summer (vacations etc)
Too many irons in the fire
Small children at home
Spouse difficulties

We challenged each other to be transparent and real with one another.

We were slayed by 2 Kings 17:33

And we can not wait to dig deeper in the Word....Love you siestas!!; June 18, 2008 11:57 AM
Cheryl said...: Good morning Beth. Our group from Everett WA. had an amazing Time last night. We started with dinner..though I cheated and made my super easy chicken enchilada recipe! I did make the chile con queso and wow is that delicious. After dinner we watched your video message and boy were we inspired. We spent most of the next 2 hours comming up with ideas for a video of our own. So be watching for it! We love you and each of us shared how this summer study is an answer to our prayers. We want to stay out of the pit too!; June 18, 2008 12:02 PM
Anonymous said...: silly question
but for those who made the butterfinger cake...
do you only put coke and egg white to the cake mix or do you also add the oil, water and eggs called for on the box?
I am cooking challenged sorry; June 18, 2008 12:05 PM
Fizz Fam said...: Okay, so after the first meeting, I think all we have to report is...OUCH!!!! I guess I thought "No Other Gods" would be the equivalent of an Intro. Theology class, where we'd conclude each lesson feeling maybe a bit superior to rest of the world b/c our knowledge of the one true God. Anyone need a recipe for humble pie? This bible study is gonna hurt, isn't it? We'll stick it out cuz we just love that Jesus guy, but again I say unto thee...OUCH!
Sam*; June 18, 2008 12:12 PM
Anonymous said...: we are a little ahead of you since we started before you made your big announcement, but i have to say the first couple of weeks were loved by the young women. it is hard to identify those gods and see them as such. but their eyes were opened. karen; June 18, 2008 12:16 PM
Anonymous said...: We had an awesome time last night as we got together for our first meeting. Across the board our toughest challenge will be priorities and making sure spending time with God an on the bible study will stay at the top and not get dragged under schedules, friends, vacations, etc. We are so looking forward to doing this together and we cannot wait to see what God has in store for us.; June 18, 2008 12:20 PM
Nicole said...: First meeting was great! Thank God I have a bunch of single girls! We didn't start til 10 last night...had my sister-in-law in from Germany and the kids were too excited to go down!! After the little ones were tucked in, we gathered together and watched your video!! So fun...all of us just love you and are so excited to be doing this with you and all of the Siestas!
So 3 out of the 5 of us consider managing our time/being disciplined as our biggest challenge this summer. Yea to Jesus for some small victories this morning!
Loving you all in SiestaLand!! :); June 18, 2008 12:28 PM
beyond this moment said...: Well, I'm solo afterall because the young woman I was going to do the study with has decided she just isn't ready for it. So I'm praying.

And boy... this is going to be one interesting summer. My biggest challege? Do I have to pick one? I spent the whole day yesterday thinking about it and I have to say that it would be my recurring doubt that God would actually want to walk with me. I know better, but sometimes I let it get the best of me, especially when life is in chaos.; June 18, 2008 12:33 PM
Emmab said...: Dear Beth: RE your comment this morning, yes the technology is amazing. What a blessing to be using it for God (we're have a blessed time over on the Lifeway forums thread and have room for more ladies....).
Now my only problem is, trying to explain what a blog is, and how this whole thing is coming together.......!; June 18, 2008 12:36 PM
Gaila said...: We thoroughly enjoyed the enchiladas,chips, queso, and fresh salsa for dinner. My 83 yo father in love blessed our dinner and our study and then we headed to the lake for discussion and prayer. As you can see my English bulldog was part of the festivities including foot soaking! We figured that we have 72 years of friendship between us, that is alot of loving God and loving each other!

share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0EbNWLVq3cMXLw

Gaila, Suzi, Ana, and April
Minneola, FL Sunset Siestas; June 18, 2008 12:43 PM
Anonymous said...: BETH, you are too cute...
Let me rephrase that,

YOU ARE DARLIN !!!

M in the OC; June 18, 2008 1:13 PM
Jaime said...: Study is online for us. Start was pretty iffy. Hoping the ladies will get more motivated and focused once we start the study. Thanks Beth.; June 18, 2008 1:23 PM

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