Okay, let's do some pretending for a second. You are told that in one year you will have your Bible taken from you and you won't have one for the following year. What chapters or books of the Bible would you memorize? Notice I didn't say verses, but what chapters or books would you memorize? I think if I were in that situation I would probably spend some time in prayer and ask God what scripture He would have me memorize based on what issues of sin he was showing me and convicting me of. This is essentially what happened with my decision to memorize 1 Peter. I felt God leading me to and it began making more sense as the book seems to focus on instructing Christians how to live amongst unbelievers. Now, I have been trying to memorize 1 Peter for quite a while now, probably for almost a year, and God has put other scriptures on my heart along the way but I have learned so much through it. I have seen the depth of my own laziness and in contrast seen the abundance of God's grace in my weakness. You see, to actually memorize scripture and get it to stay you have to wrap your heart around it and meditate on it word by word. The labor of memorization forces you to and so it all seems perfectly designed for having the Word penetrate and change your heart.
And it is labor. I must stress that point. Yes, my motivation is love for Jesus but true love inevitably involves labor. I would encourage you in that the labor of memorizing scripture is made lighter, more enjoyable, and more focused by a companion. Many times on long trips in the car me and a friend will pick a section of scripture and recite it back and forth to one another, taking it in sections, until we both have it memorized. Often we both find ourselves talking about how it is already affecting out heart in that moment. Whenever I see the person from then on there is a bond of joy at having shared in seeing and savoring Christ together through His Word that is wonderful.
One of the reasons I have grown in love for memorizing scripture is that so many times my heart feels dead and lifeless. It is during these times that it longs most for the words of life to fill its' dry walls with water. Be encouraged to pick a section of scripture to memorize, whether it's a chapter or one of the smaller letters of the apostles, whatever God is leading you to do. May your heart be filled with the living water of Christ by His Spirit through His Word. May you see and savor Christ and as you behold His glory may you be transformed into the image of the One you behold.
"And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed in to the same image from on degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit."
2 Corinthians 3:18
3 comments:
wow. thanks for that encouragement and challenge!
so true..."to actually memorize scripture and get it to stay you have to wrap your heart around it and meditate on it word by word. The labor of memorization forces you to and so it all seems perfectly designed for having the Word penetrate and change your heart."
My wife and I memorized 1 Peter about two years ago. It was the 3rd book for me and the 1st one for her. she swore up and down that she would not be able to do it, but in the end I had to tell her to slow down because she was going faster than me! Right now we are working on our biggest project...Hebrews! Hope all is going well in the memorization front.
Christopher!
Thanks for your encouragement! It makes me want to memorize scripture more especially with other people. You and your wife must be an encouragement to a lot of people. Take care and thank you so so much for sharing!!
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