“I can’t memorize scripture!”
“I don’t have time!”
“Isn’t scripture memory just for the kids?”
These were my excuses…and many more for a long time!
I dabbled a bit in scripture memory. I memorized passages of scripture along with my kids. Our family had been working through our church catechism. But, scripture memory wasn’t something that I thought much about for myself or other adults. I knew it was necessary, but had never made it a priority in my own life.
At the end of 2020 I had a strong desire to memorize more scripture. I couldn’t ignore all of the mention in scripture about meditating on the Word (Psalm 119:15, Joshua 1:8, Psalm 1:1-6, Psalm 63:6, and so many more), eating the Word (Jeremiah 15:16, Ezekiel 3:1-3, & Revelation 10:8-11) , and allowing God’s Word to renew my mind (Romans 12:2, Colossians 3:10, Philippians 4:8, Isaiah 26:3, and John 8:31-32).
How could I be faithful to these commands in scripture if the Word of God was only available to me when I had my YouVersion App open on my cell phone or my Bible in hand?
This I know- if it is a command in scripture then I already have the resources I need through the power of the Holy Spirit (Hebrews 13:21).
I said yes to the call to be more intentional about memorizing scripture. That same week my friend, Mary, told me that she was going to be reciting the book of Titus on Facebook. She invited me to join in. It was so beautiful and inspiring to see a woman put time and effort into memorizing an entire book of scripture. I prayed about what book to memorize and decided on Colossians. I set a goal to memorize it within the year.
Each morning I sat down to “work” on memorizing one verse at a time. There were many mornings when things clicked, and I enjoyed that time. But, there were many more days when it was very hard, nothing seemed to stick, and it was very dry. Then, later in the day, I would go for a walk or be at the grocery store and the verse I had memorized that morning came back to me. It became a time of worship where I was being ministered to by the Word of God.
Colossians became a favorite book of mine, my prayer for our church and for those on my prayer list. I started making connections that I never would have seen if I hadn’t applied myself to that book. It became my daily habit to think about the Word any time I had a free moment. When I was tempted to doubt, or fear would start to grip me, I’d quote scripture. My mind and my heart were being renewed. My thought life, my attitude, my actions & my words were changing.
Now, I’m committed. I want to be a woman of the Word whose “Delight is in the Law of the Lord and on His Law she (me) meditates day and night. She is like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, whose leaves do not wither. Whatever she does prospers!” Psalm 1:1-3
If this is your desire, too, would you jump in & get started? It is ALL the Word of God, so any verse you choose is “living and active, sharper than a double-edged sword” (Hebrews 4:12)! There are no wrong choices!
If it isn’t your desire, would you pray that it would become a desire? I can promise that this is a commitment that will change your life!
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