This is my first attempt at this. I have no idea who, if anyone, will ever read this, so I am going to write this as much as possible in a way I would approach my friends or ladies in one of our Bible study groups. Here goes!

The Siesta Fiesta weekend...so anticipated...so stressful just to get ready to be gone the weekend before school started...so didn't have the money to go...so needed to be at church with my Sunday School class...so needed to be at home helping my baby girl get ready for junior high...so needed to be with my man workin' with the youth on Sunday night. So hard to be gone that weekend...SO WORTH IT!!!

I was able to attend a Beth Moore Living Proof Live event in San Antonio this past weekend. As you can see above, the enemy really didn't want me to go. And if he couldn't keep me from going, he wanted to steal the Word God had for me. But, praise the Lord, he failed miserably! Once again my Jesus prevailed!

So many wonderful things came from this weekend. I was able to travel with four of the most precious women. My older sister and my niece have both done a couple of Beth's Bible studies in the past. My cousin had heard of Beth Moore, but not done any of her studies, and my very special friend who is my fellow road warrior in Bible study...she organizes and plans them, I teach/facilitate. We make a great team if I do say so myself! ;) We've been called Beth Moore groupies, but just so you know, we HAVE done a few other studies NOT written by Beth.

Back to the weekend...Casey, my friend, and I are part of a blog community known as Siesta's, who all LOVE Beth, her work, and her family. As part of that community, we were able to be a part of some special events, like some a reserved seating section and a question and answer session with Beth and her daughters...more on that later.

The weekend was filled with lots of laughter and fun, but the most amazing thing about the time was the time spent with the Father. There were approximately 9,995 women and 5 poor guys in the Alamodome, but the place was completely filled with the Holy Spirit. I'm still wowed by it. I always want to be wowed by Him. Don't you?

Here is a thought that I briefly posted on the Siesta Fiesta blog about the weekend. I still want more time to reflect and roll it over in my heart and mind, so I will try to post more at a later time, but I want to talk about one thing in particular.

In her teaching, Beth referenced the fact that Joshua was David's hero. I love that. I thought about how Beth seems to be a hero so many of us have (besides our Jesus, of course! - And I think another Siesta was so right to say that we need to be careful not to worship our teacher-as precious as she is-but to allow her to point us to THE Teacher!) Sorry. Back to the David thought.

I just have really been mulling that over. Joshua being a hero to David. Beth being a hero to me & to so many of us. So, who am I a hero to? Who are you a hero to? Overwhelming, humbling, and inspiring thought, huh? You may think, "Not me. I'm not anyone's hero." Are you absolutely for sure?

I teach ladies Bible studies and high school girls Sunday School and lead a creative movement praise and worship team - have done those things for years, so in all likelihood, I am some one's hero. In fact I've had a unique opportunity on a couple of occasions to have one of my girls write about me in their "required for English" hero essay. Usually it is their sweet mothers who have shared the essays with me. Let me say that you pretty much have had to mop me off the floor when I read them. On other occasions I've had some sweet lady share her admiration. Whoa! Hold the phone. Are you talking about me?

So what about you? What roles do you play? Maybe you have some of the same roles as I do, maybe not. Maybe you teach in a public school...maybe you coach one of your kids' ball teams...or help with Scouts...or maybe you are "just" (I hate that connotation) a Mom. Uh-oh. Guess what? I'm fairly certain YOU are some one's hero! Pretty scary, huh? And if you are like me I really don't want to be on a pedestal. Only One deserves such a lofty place.

I know the blackness of my heart, the harsh words spoken, the thoughts too awful to even give words to. Hero? ME? Surely you have mistaken me for someone else...someone who has it all together, someone who is doing great things for the Lord, someone, well, admirable. But I also know that most of those who may call me hero, know I'm not perfect...and all of them who have shared such sentiment with me always talk about Him...Him in me. So somehow, even with my huge human failures, perhaps I'm pointing them to Him. Please, God, let it be said of me. What about you? Are you, ever-so-humbly and ever-so-shaky at times, pointing those looking up to you to One much loftier? Asking them to look past you to see Him. I bet you are. I pray you are.

And when the thought seems too much - picture yours truly face down on the floor!- remember that Joshua is the one who had to be told REPEATEDLY - "Be strong and courageous." So David, the greatest King of Israel, a man after God's own heart, looked up to that guy? What kind of hero has fear?

Hmmm. Joshua, didn't he do some pretty amazing things? Didn't he become a mighty fighting warrior? Didn't he conquer enemy after enemy? Wasn't he in a tremendous battle when he asked the Lord for help in a pretty unusual way...like the sun standing still!?! Hmmm...and he started that whole being used by God thing with some fear, huh? "Be strong and courageous...Be very strong and courageous." Not bad advice for us hero types.