My oldest kid thinks I’m ancient. She asked me today if bikes were invented when I was a child, and if my older brothers and I all clumped together in one room for school, just like Anne of Green Gables. Next thing I know, she’s gonna ask me if I met Adam and Eve.
I don’t feel prehistoric, but I struggle memorizing Bible verses. Even if my body may go downhill, my soul should be flourishing. “Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.” (3 John 2:2 NKJV)
Each January I tell myself ‘This year I will memorize one verse a week.’ As I evaluate myself, I’m lucky if I learned one verse a month. It’s not too late to fix this problem mid-year. I was never a fan of I’ll-start-on-Monday mentality.
Why should I memorize verses when Google has my back?
Let’s TEST ourselves. Imagine we’re in the following circumstances, what verses come to mind… not to Google, but to mind?
… when I get bad news at the Doctors.
… when I’m tempted by my most-feared weakness.
… when my worst nightmare becomes reality.
… when I have an opportunity to share the Gospel.
… when suddenly I’m deprived of freedom to worship, or own a Bible
The day Richard Wurmbrand was picked up to be tortured in the communist prisons of Romania, they took everything from him except the-fear-not verses he had memorized for each day of the year (including for leap year).
Memorized Bible and prayer is all he had to sustain himself for more than 14 years while tortured for Christ. (***Highly recommend reading his book, and watching his movie, both with the same title Tortured For Christ, by Richard Wurmbrand)
When David Mathis talks about memorizing Scripture, He uses the term memorizing the Mind of God.
Who knows best how our life is supposed to work than the Mind of God? “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.” 2 Peter 1:3
Who can keep us away from sin, if not the Mind of God? “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” Psalm 119:11
Who can bring hope if not the Mind of God? “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.” Romans 15:4
Practical Tips
Here are some practical tips of how we can plant the Mind of God in ours, spoon-sizes at the time:
- Keep track of verses you memorize (notebook, or device).
- Review verses weekly.
- Use the verse as a backdrop on your phone, or computer.
- Post the verse by your nightstand, or put it in your pocket.
- Text it to someone.
- Pray that truth into your life and make it your focus that week.
- Use it in your daily vocabulary.
- Put music to the verse and sing out the Mind of God
If we struggle with our memory, let’s leverage our creativity. The sky’s the limit.
In our home, we write all verses in a notebook, then we review them weekly. We create motions for some, we create art for others. Most times we add our own music and hum it throughout the day. We also record each song-verse to remember it, since it’s new. If you can’t create a new tune, borrow one from a nursery rhyme, or a song that fits.
(By God’s grace, I’m starting a Youtube Channel to share our verse-to-music resources with you and create a community of believers willing to thrive spiritually.)
Before the Romanian Revolution of ’89 took communism down, you’d see this question graffiti-ed on the walls of Bucharest: “If not me, then who? If not now, then when?”
That same question should trigger a soul revolution. If I don’t memorize the mind of God, then who? If I don’t start it now, then when?