Bible intake is a very important part of Spiritual Discipline. We know that hearing, reading, and studying God’s Word strengthens our pursuit of godliness. This week, let us focus on the importance of memorizing God’s Word.
Many Christians look at the Spiritual Discipline of memorizing God’s Word as something tantamount to modern-day martyrdom. Ask them to memorize Bible verses and they react with about as much eagerness as a request for volunteers to face Nero’s lions. Why? To memorize requires work, and often we say that we simply have a bad memory. But what if I offered you $1,000 for every verse you memorized this week? Do you think your attitude toward Scripture memory and your ability to memorize would improve? Yes, I suspect we would be highly motivated then to memorize Bible verses. Yet, scripture memorization accumulates an eternal value of the treasured Word of God in our lives that far exceeds any monetary wealth.
Consider these benefits of memorizing Scripture.
- Memorization Supplies Spiritual Power (Psalm 119:11; Col 3:2; Eph 6:17)
- Memorization Strengthens Your Faith (Proverbs 22:17-19)
- Memorization and Witnessing and Counseling (Acts 2:14-40)
- A Means of God’s Guidance (Psalm 119:24)
- Memorization Stimulates Meditation (Psalm 119:97)
- You Can Memorize Scripture
Here is a list of ways you can begin memorizing Scripture.
- Have a Plan
- Write Out the Verses
- Draw Picture Reminders
- Memorize the Verses Word-Perfectly
- Find a Method of Accountability
- Review and Meditate Every Day
No principle of Scripture memory is more important than the principle of review. Without adequate review, we will eventually lose most of what we have memorized.
Remember this: The goal is to memorize the Word of God so that it can transform our minds and our lives. Scripture memorization is a disciplined way to have Bible intake in our lives.
Blessings, Bill Duke
