We’re off and running, Sweet Things! And 11,000 strong!!! Oh, how I pray that God will grant us the divine favor and indwelling power to keep it up month after month and finish 2013 in the multiple thousands. What joy He and we would have! For now, we take it step by step, one verse at a time. Don’t get caught up wondering how in the world you’re going to memorize 24 verses when you’re having a hard time memorizing the first one. That will sink your Scripture memory boat for sure.
I make you this promise based on my experience and the experience of many others: the more you memorize, the more you’ll get the hang of it. I was going to say that the more you memorize, the easier it gets but it’s not easy and that’s part of what makes it such a victory to celebrate with Jesus. I do believe I can tell you with confidence, however, that your tenth verse will very likely be easier to memorize than your first one. By that time, you’ve quit letting your nay-whining old nature tell you that you can’t do it and you shouldn’t have even tried. A big part of the battle in the first month is simply telling that self-destructive echo in our heads to shut its mouth. It’s replacing “I knew I couldn’t do it” with “Oh, yes I can. I can do all things through Christ.”
Persevere! Let’s not be quitters! God would rather us make it to the end of the year still stumbling over some words than throwing our hands up and quitting at the first imperfect recitation. Even if we don’t get our verses down perfectly, the pursuit itself is the very art of meditation. Nothing about it is a waste of time. Just think of how it helps to break the mental loop of rehearsed offenses. We’re going to be fixated on something. That’s how our minds often work. But we get to choose what.
So, right now say verse 1 out loud the very best you can.
Tremendous job. Now, let’s add our second one to it.
I totally love my verse this time around! It came up in my Scripture reading during my quiet time early Sunday morning. Here it goes:
Beth, Houston. All your children shall be taught by the LORD, and great shall be the peace of your children.” Isaiah 54:13 ESV
Isn’t that fabulous? I’m choosing this verse specifically so that I can turn it into intercessory prayer. Mind you, I’m not “claiming” it like I’d be apt to do with a promise more clearly obvious under the New Covenant. I’m reluctant to claim the fulfillment of a promise made straight to Israel for myself or people in my world unless I know that we have a coinciding New Covenant promise. I’d have to see consistency to pray it as one fervently counting on it. Isaiah 54:13 carries obvious elements that are very consistent with the promises of Christ to us. He promised that the Holy Spirit will teach us all things and He blatantly gave us His peace but where I’m asking God to do an Isaiah 54:13 work in my family is the emphasis on ALL my children. I want every single one of them to be students of Christ Jesus, to love His Word and His ways with a passion beyond the natural realm, and for His peace to be great upon them and contagious. If you’ll look in the Scripture’s context in Isaiah 54, especially in verses 11-17, you’ll see that V.13 is within the promises God made specifically to Israel and scheduled for fulfillment in a time yet to come. So, no, I’m not claiming it, so to speak, BUT, I am indeed asking for it. That’s fair game.
God is not obligated to say yes to promises like those in Isaiah 54 this side of His Kingdom’s full revelation but, as I persevere in prayer and faith, He will indeed hear me and I believe be pleased that I had the boldness to pray it. He is not blessed by our small, vision-bare petitions anyway. I’ve thought for a long time that God would rather hear His children voice outrageously large prayers of faith even if He has to say no on occasion than hear our pale, timid, tepid requests for things He’s already given us anyway. For instance, if we belong to Him in Christ, He is indeed going to “bless us” and “keep us.” So, I’m adding Isaiah 54:13 to my spiral and planning to reword it often into a request. I’m going to take the risk that He may indeed perform generational miracles with a family tree sprouted from the soil of disease and brokenness. Make us oaks of righteousness, Lord, for the display of Your splendor. (Isaiah 61:3)
This I know for sure: we often have not because we ask not. (James 4:2)
I love something else about Isaiah 54:13. I love that the word translated peace in English is the word “shalom” in Hebrew. The Hebrew word blows the doors off of our usual concept of peace. When I ask God for great peace to be upon my children, I have no interest in a trance-like state of passionless nirvana. I want God’s brand of peace: lively, vivacious. Here’s what the Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament has to say about it:
“The general meaning behind the root š-l-m is of completion and fulfillment—of entering into a state of wholeness and unity, a restored relationship.”
It means to be intact, healthy, sound. It means wellness of soul. It conveys the idea of God prospering His child. He describes His peace like a river: moving and running. His peace is no pond. I read the verse first out of The NET Bible that sits open on my desk at home. Isaiah 54:13 is worded this way on its pages: “All your children will be followers of the LORD, and your children will enjoy great prosperity.” Right that moment I jotted the verse down in my journal and, under it, asked the Lord (with enough zeal to imprint it on the next page) to prosper my children and their children and their children and their children in the way that really matters: grant them lives that bear much fruit – I said MUCH FRUIT –Â for THIS is to our Father’s great glory. May they blatantly show themselves to be Christ’s disciples. (That’s John 15:8 and, if you haven’t memorized it yet, it is a must! Prioritize it early on in your year if God causes it to leap off the page with you.)Â With all my heart, I want God to use this lineage He is redeeming to prosper His Kingdom.
So I am really fired up about my verse for our next two weeks and hope to still be saying it and praying it for the next generations of this family line when I’m about to see Jesus. If you don’t already have a verse selected, you are welcome to share it and make it your own with Jesus. Choose any verse that He’s using to speak to you right now. Remember, that’s what will make it stick to your ribs. It needs to mean something to you!
Hit it, Girls! Remember! Only your names, cities, verses, references, and translations! You are stellar, Sisters. I love you so much.
Edited to add: Information on how to download your Android or iPhone application!
I know many of you have been asking if we are going to have an app this year for your smart phones, and we have both good news and bad news. The good news is YES, we ARE! We have created an app for both Android and iPhones. The bad news is, the Android app is ready for you, but if you would be so patient with us, we’ll have the iPhone app ready for you in about five or six days. Does that sound good?
So, excuse me while I get technical for just a minute!
For those of you that still have the old application on your phone (and this goes for both Android and iPhone users), you would most likely have received a notification about the availability of this new one, but if not, and you are currently using an android, simply click here to download the app. (This link is for Android users only.) Android users, if you’re having issues with this link (and it’s currently working fine on this end), you can search “Living Proof Ministries – Scripture Memory Team – 2013” in your phone under applications. (I have very little knowledge about Android phones, so forgive me if my wording is wrong.)
When the iPhone app is ready, I’ll update this post for those of you who would like to download it with all the instructions you’ll need. However, I do know upfront you’ll be able to find the app in the iTunes store via your phone or computer.
Once you have the application, it is very user friendly. You’ll be notified the 1st and 15th of every month with the new blog post that will land in your application (you will only be notified if you have turned on notifications for this specific app), you can share the post, and then you can also store your memory work in there. It will also act like your spiral. You may want to use both your spiral and the app to have on hand in case you lose one or the other!
I hope that helps! Doesn’t this make it so much more fun?
Tags: Scripture Memory 2013
Jen
Woodbury, CT
The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.
Isaiah 58:11 NIV
Miriam, Columbia, SC
“Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God- ” Romans 1:1 (NIV)
Linda…Omaha, Ne.
Ephesians 5:1-2
NAS
Be imitators of God and walk in love as dearly beloved children…
1Peter 3:15 NIV
But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.
Donna
Ponder, TX
You shall walk in all the way which the Lord your God has commanded you, that you may live and that it may be well with you, and that you may prolong your days in the land which you will possess.
Deuteronomy 5:33 NASB
Susan, Tallahassee, Fla.
I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:20 NIV
Kristine from Cincinnati. “Now the Lord is Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into His likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is Spirit.” 2 Cor. 3:17-18 NIV
Tiffany Fling Kansas City, KS
Matt 6:33 NIV Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
Karen, Norfolk, VA: You know when I sit and when I rise, you perceive my thoughts from afar. Psalm 139:2 (NIV)
Sharon in Hamburg, NY
“I am the Lord who opened a way through the waters, making a dry path through the sea…But forget all that – it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.”
Isaiah 43:16,18-19 (NLT)
The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence.
2 Samuel 22:3 KJV
Connelly Springs, NC
The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence.
2 Samuel 22:3 KJV
Angie-Rossville, GA
Then they asked Him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?” Jesus answers,”The work of God is this: to believe in the one He has sent.”
John 6:29-30
2 Timothy 1:7 AMP. For God did not give us a spirit of timidity (of cowardice, of craven and cringing and fawning fear) but [He has given us a spirit] of power and of love and of a calm and well-balanced mind and discipline and self-control.
Heather, Lagrange/Louisvile, KY
11 You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
Psalm 16:11 NIV84
Rachel, Springdale, AR, “Do not fear, I am with you. Do not look anxiously about you for I am your God. I will help you, surely I will strengthen you, surely I will uphold you with my righteous right hand”! Hallelujah!(I added the ‘Hallelujah’!) Isaiah 41:10 NAS
Jamie Honeycutt from Knoxville, TN
For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a random for many. Mark 10:45 NASB
2 Corinthians 10:5 NIV
We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
Megan Kennedy — Bangor, Maine
Palatine, Illinois
Acknowledge and take to heart this day that the LORD is God in heaven above and on earth below. There is no other.
Deuteronomy 4:39
Jill, DeLand, FL. But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. 2 Corinthians 4:7 NIV84
Kristin Evans, from Durban, South Africa
To rescue us from the hand of our enemies and to enable us to serve Him without fear in holiness and righteousness before Him all our days. Luke 1: 74-75 NIV
Cindy from Pitsburg, Ohio – The spirit of the sovereign Lord is upon me because The Lord has anointed me to preach the good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. Isaiah 66:1-2 (NIV)
Annette Kristynik in Fort Worth, Tx
“For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”
John 3:17 NKJV
Jackie from Athens, Ohio
“And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.”
1 Pet. 5:10, ESV
Anne
Lorton, VA
“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.
See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.”
Isaiah 43:18-19
NIV
Emily, Cullman, AL
But the Comforter, even the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.
John 14:26 ASV
Charmaine, Miami, FL – “Don’t get lost in despair; believe in God and keep on believing in Me.” John 14:1 (The Voice)
Marcy in Bentonville, AR
The good news shows how God makes people right with himself. From beginning to end, becoming right with God depends on a person’s faith. It is written, “Those who are right with God will live by faith.” (Habakkuk 2:4)
(Romans 1:17 NIRV)
Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Savior and my God. Psalm 42:5 (NIV84)
Denise from Charleston SC
Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Eph 4:32
High point NC
(1 Peter 5:6-10 NIV)
6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.
7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
8 Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
9 Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.
10 And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.
Tiffany Olson,
Coos Bay, Oregon
1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18
Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. NLT
Soozi, Lexington, “He is before all in things, and in Him all things hold together.” Col.1:17 (NIV)
Stacey, from Madison, GA
Ephesians 3:20- Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us NIV
Sheila – Guyton, GA
“Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13 NASB
Angela from Louisville, KY
As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, & at the last He will take His stand on the earth.
Job 19:25 NASB
“But it is the spirit in a person, the breath of the Almighty that gives them understanding.” Job 32:8 NIV
Proverbs 3:5-6 RSV
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways, acknowledge Him and he will make straight your paths.
Jennifer- Savannah, Missouri
Humble yourselves, therefore under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. I Peter 5:6-7 NIV
Kim, Huntsville, AL: Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. James 1:2-3 NIV
Sherri York But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control against such things there is no law. Galations 5:16, 22-23 ESV
Matthew 10:16
“Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.”
ESV
Cyndi, Lexington KY,
I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:14 NIV
Angie, Markham, Ontario
Now the believer of humble means should take pride in his high position.
But the rich person’s pride should be in his humiliation, because he will
pass away like a wildflower in the meadow. For the sun rises with its heat
and dries up the meadow: the petal of the flower falls off and its beauty is
lost forever. So also the rich person in the midst of his pursuits will wither
away.
James 1:9-12 NET
Heather O’Toole
flower mound Texas
Trust in him at all times, O people; Pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us.
Psalm 62:8 ESV
Angie, Highland Ar.
Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people I would not be a servant of Christ.
Galatians 1:10 NIV
Jan, Troy, Albama: All your children shall be taught by the LORD, and great shall be the peace of your children.” Isaiah 54:13 ESV
Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful.
Hebrews 10:23 (NIV)
There is therefore, now, no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. Romans 8:1 NKJV
Roxanne – New York, NY
“You can make many plans, but the Lord’s purpose will prevail.”
Proverbs 19:21 – NLT
Becky
Willowick, OH
‘Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.’
1John 4:7 NIV