Then came college. In Bible school, writing down memorized verses was a part of just about every test. You lost points on your test for every mistake you made. Memorizing became very stressful! One time I even started crying during a test because I couldn't remember what I had perfectly memorized a few minutes before.
So when I was done with school and got married and started popping out kids, memorizing Scripture wasn't a high priority. I knew how much I would benefit from memorized Scripture. Memorizing the Bible gives you the weapons to defeat sin, and keep your mind focus on what is true. It's the simplest way to meditate on Scripture, and you need to have it memorized to have the right things to share with your children, and your friends, believers or unbelievers. But I just couldn't seem to be disciplined enough to memorize very much.
A few weeks ago I was listening to Nancy Leigh DeMoss's program ”Revive Our Hearts” on WRVM (Which I HIGHLY recommend by the way). Her guest, Janet Pope, has memorized 14 books and 121 chapters of the Bible. Crazy, right? As Janet talked about how God had taught her through Scripture memory and how it had become a great joy for her, I felt very inspired to put forth more of an effort, but kept thinking,”how can I make that happen? I'm too busy! Then Janet shared that she doesn't just sit and memorize every day. She does it while she is cooking or driving or getting ready in the morning. Just as all of my excuses were vanishing, I heard this:
Janet: Well, if I might share this story. I want to share it in the most loving way that I possibly can. Recently I was teaching a conference to a small group of women, a group of friends. They actually call themselves “The Bible Girls.” I’ve been speaking to them for the last three years.
On the final night of the conference, one of the girls said in front of the group, “My problem is I’m just not disciplined.”
And I said, “Penny, can I say this to you in the most loving way? And I mean it with all my heart. What if I said to you, 'You’re so disciplined in eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner every single day. You rarely miss a day.'"
Nancy: Most of us could say that.
Janet: But you would say, “No, it’s not discipline. I’m hungry.” And so I would say to you, it’s not that you are lacking discipline. It’s that you are not hungry.
And in that moment God gave her a teachable heart, and she said, “You’re right. Thank you.” And so what we all decided as a group was that our prayer would not be “God make me disciplined,” it would be “God make me hungry. Make me so hungry for God’s Word that discipline is not the issue.”
Wow! That really hit me! How often do I think that, that I just need to be more disciplined, when the root of the issue is my heart. I'm not hungry, or should I say, I'm plenty hungry – just for a so many things besides God and His Word.
So I'm trying to put into practice what I've learned. I'm working on memorizing the book of Phillipians. I'm finding that memorizing whole passages instead of just verses here and there is so rich. I'm getting the big picture of God's Word, instead of just bits and pieces. I know I'm in this for the long haul, so if you think of it, ask me how I'm doing and encourage me to keep going!
How about you, have you ever memorized the Bible? It's never too late to start, and even if you never memorize chapters or books, every verse is priceless and will reap a harvest in your life. Please feel free to share what you would like to memorize, and I'll be praying for you, and I may even ask you how it's going!
And if you see a puff of flour go up in the air when I open my Bible on Sunday, you'll know I've been multitasking!
To read or listen to these programs about Scripture Memory go to: http://www.reviveourhearts.com/radio/roh/past_programs.php?topic_name=Scripture+Memory
To find out how you can listen to WRVM go to www.wrvmradio.org/translators/ to find the best frequency for you to listen at.
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