15th Scripture Memory

In seeking God's direction for what word should become the next inhabitant of my mental battlefield, He reminded me of a passage from Ezekiel that I found on a fellow siesta's blog. It caught my attention initially because the author is the namesake of our oldest son, then because it speaks of something we all need--to be cleansed from worldliness and clothed with holiness, setting us apart for the work of the kingdom of God.

I included the NIV because that is the version that first piqued my curiosity, but I will memorize it in the CEV.


Ezekiel 36:25-27 (NIV)

“I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean;
I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols.
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you;
I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.
And I will put my Spirit in you
and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.”



Ezekiel 36:25-27 (Contemporary English Version)

I will sprinkle you with clean water, and you will be clean and acceptable to me. I will wash away everything that makes you unclean, and I will remove your disgusting idols. I will take away your stubborn heart and give you a new heart and a desire to be faithful. You will have only pure thoughts, because I will put my Spirit in you and make you eager to obey my laws and teachings.


I pray you have had many opportunities to be encouraged, encourage someone, or help someone know God's love more fully because of the Words you have been planting in your mind and heart. Don't quit! I know the enemy's been trying to slow me down lately, and there have been times when I have been slowed, but I will continue to persevere. If you feel like you've fallen behind or don't feel like you've tried as hard as you wanted to, take that as a lesson to learn from. Begin again, work harder today--don't feel like you need to "catch up," just recommit today. This race is not easy, but we have a God who is mighty to save us and who delights in our choosing Him!

1st Scripture Memory

I'm definitely a few days late--sorry about that! We had a fabulous time with our youth leaders and high schoolers (and our family!) at our Winter Retreat this last weekend. So Monday we recouped and the fact that it was March 1st completely slipped by me. I'm in the middle of two open houses where I'm sharing about my recent trip to Cambodia--one was last night, the other will be tomorrow. Hopefully I'll get a chance in the next week to post some pictures. But until then, here's one pic of our group on our last night :)



In the midst of our busyness, I don't feel like I have a good enough handle on my memory verse from last time, so I'm going to continue working on it. Here it is again:

Matthew 11:28-30 Message

"Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me--watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly."

This verse sounds good to me, but it also calms my soul. I want to get it, really get it. I'm constantly putting unnecessary pressure on myself, so it may take me a while, but I'm pretty sure it could change my life.