Bible Memory
What is this all about?
Bible Memory is about so much more than just learning a bunch of words.
It is about getting to know God – and love Him, and be like Him – by hearing what He is saying to us through the Bible. Then it is letting what he know about Him affect the way we live. Anyone can learn words...just ask any singer who is trying to make a million dollars...but not everyone is willing to take the time to let the most important words in the world change their lives.
So how does it work?
Each week, we will focus on memorizing a verse of Scripture. Each verse is an answer to a question designed to help you remember the verse and understand how it can help your life. For example, the first week is:
We'll talk about it before Bible Fellowship classes each Sunday, it'll be on screens everywhere, you'll see them in the halls, we'll give you cards to take home, you can even buy a book about them! These verses will be everywhere! I double dog dare you to be able to say every one of them in your sleep!
There is a simple process to help you do that. It is as simple as: read, think, pray, live.
Those 4 steps don't really have to go in order. They actually happen all at the same time as you do them. There's nothing "magical" about memorizing Scripture this way, it is just one way to help you go deeper into what God is saying.
Read
Get God's words inside of you. Deuteronomy 11:19-20 talk about "talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up"...basically ALL THE TIME.
Read the verses. Re-read them. RE-re-read them....you get the idea. It may help to write the verse on a small piece of paper that you can keep with you and look at during the day. Feel free to doodle the verse during study hall (just not on the table, okay?) ...whatever it takes!
This kind of reading is harder than it sounds, so don't pretend that you can read a verse once and "get it."
Imagine a pig in a big mud puddle. He's perfectly happy to sit there all day just rolling around in it. That's the attitude we need to have when we read God's Word.
Think
As you read, think about what you're looking at. Ask: what do these words mean? Think of it like a really really expensive meal and you are going to slowly chew and get the flavor out of every single bite.
The verses we will be memorizing are all part of a bigger story. Look at the verses before and after each one to see how they fit.
Imagine yourself as one of the characters in the story. What would that be like?
And if something isn't totally clear the first time through, feel free to ask God (the One who wrote it in the first place) what He meant!
Pray
God wrote it. We can talk to Him. It's that easy.
Have an honest conversation with God about what you are memorizing. Does it make sense? Is he showing you something you've never seen before? Or maybe the verse is one you've read 1,000 times and you need some help to not be bored with it. Is God asking you to DO something about what it is you've been reading?
Whatever it is, talk to Him as you learn these verses. And just like any good conversation...don't hog it. Every once in a while, stop talking and give God a chance to speak to you. You'll be amazed.
Live
This is where it gets good!
God's Word will change us to make us more like Christ. You can read, think, and pray all day long, but if you don't allow what God has said to change you...then you're really wasting your time.
Let what He is saying become a part of you. A baseball player doesn't think about the dozens of things his body is doing every time he swings a bat. A piano player doesn't have to think about every single finger. Those things are completely natural because of all the time they have put into training.
It's the same way with God's Word. Pretty soon reading, thinking, and praying as you memorize all come together and begin to make a difference in the way we live.
So dig in, roll around, and get ready to see what all God will do through His Word in you!
