One of the best ways to grow spiritually is to memorize Scripture.
The Lord encouraged His people in Deuteronomy 11:18-20, Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.
This was followed by a promise: So that your days and the days of your children may be many in the land that the Lord swore to give your forefathers, as many as the days that the heavens are above the earth. (v. 21)
God wants us to enjoy a long a prosperous life. Knowing and following His Word are key means to achieving this.
In his book, Faith Set Free, Pastor Will Davis Jr. shares the following tips for Scripture memorization:
1. Use flash cards. Write down the verse in an index card and go over it until you’ve memorized it. I really like something I saw Mario Fernandez (one of the pastors at our church) do: He laminates a set of small flash cards with different Bible verses; he punches a hole on one end of each card and then holds them together with a key ring. This allows him to carry along his Bible verses and work on memorizing them whenever he has some spare time.
2. Write them out. “Pick two or three verses you want to learn each week, then write them out every day,” says Pastor Davis, “before the week is over, you’ll be able to write them from memory.”
3. Sing them. Pastor Davis suggests making up tunes or using tunes we already know to sing passages of Scripture. I have to confess, I’d feel silly doing this, but that might work for you! (And you’d probably sound much better.)
4. Post them. This tip is actually not in the book, but it’s worked great for my family. I copy a Bible verse in an index card and “post” it on my refrigerator – one of the most popular and visible places in my home. Some people post their memory verses on their desk, computer, or bathroom mirror. Just make sure to change your cards on a regular basis.
5. Learn them with a friend. Pastor Davis suggests finding a friend that would commit to learning a weekly Bible verse with you. You could agree to call or e-mail each other to recite your weekly memory verse. Something I did (that I need to get back into) is read our weekly verse to my family before thanking God for our dinner. Back when my kids were little, I would have them repeat this verse back to me. They would participate enthusiastically, but now they’re too cool for that. I guess the trick is to adjust this practice to your family’s growing needs.
I hope these tips will encourage you to pursue the practice of Scripture memorization, so that — like Job — you may say, I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread. (Job 23:12)
Ana
Good advice! Thank you Ana. I use a dry erase marker on my bathroom and bedroom mirrors. This way I have a place for my personal application as well as family application.
Great advice! I write mine out in word doc (my handwriting does not motivate me to read LOL
, then I print them out on pretty colorful, girly paper and place in my decorated notebook. It is very aesthetically pleasing. Therefore, it is a nice resource for someone like me, who is a visual learner, to use to read/memorize scriptures. I too, have posted scriptures around my home, and how many of us have had children learn all 66 books of the bible from that old Stephen Wiley “Bible Break” song. LOL. Great post Sister!
Those are excellent ideas, girls!