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
Shellie, Modesto “And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” Ecclesiastes 4:12 KJV
Steph Scottsdale, az “I led them with cords of human kindness, with ties of lov. To them I was like one who lifts a little child to the cheek, and I bent down to feed them.” Hosea 11:4 niv
Jenn, Mansfield, “23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.” Psalm 139:23-24 (NLT)
Leslie, Houston.
“You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me.” Psalm 139:5 ESV
Tanya, Rapid City, SD:
“He calmed the storm to a whisper and stilled the waves. What a blessing was that stillness as He brought them safely into harbor!” Psalm 107:29-30 NLT
Sonia, Edmonton Alberta.
“My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him.” Psalm 62-1 NIV
Merissa, Calgary, AB: ” When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.” Isaiah 43:2. NIV
Christa
Katy, TX.
Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them. Ephesians 4:29. NLT
Beth, Ocala Fl
But you, Lord, are a shield around me, my glory, the one who lifts my head high!
Psalm 3:3
Hannah, Eagle River.
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of God. Consider him who endured such oppisition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” ~Hebrews 12:1-3 NIV84
Tammy Mashburn from Spartanburg SC “He will lead His flock like a shepherd: He will gather His lambs in His arms. He will carry them in His bosom and gently lead those that have their young.” Isaiah 40:11 AMP
Amy
Walnut Cove, NC
Philippians 4:6 NIV
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
Angie
Matthews, Nc
“All your life no one will be able to hold out against you. In the same way I was with Moses, I will be with you. I won’t give up on you; I won’t leave you.” Joshua 1:5 The Message
Andrea
Chester, VA
Galations 5:1 NIV
“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.”
Doing Breaking Free!!!
Emily, Ocala, FL
For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will fill you with joy. Wise choices will watch over you. Understanding will keep you safe. Proverbs 2:10-11 NLT
Karen, Cumming, GA
“All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1 Corinthians 6:12
Amy from Victoria, Texas
John 10:27-30 NIV
My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.
Ginger, Ellijay, GA
Jeremiah 17:8 (NLT)
“They are like trees planted along a riverbank,
with roots that reach deep into the water.
Such trees are not bothered by the heat
or worried by long months of drought.
Their leaves stay green,
and they never stop producing fruit.”
Angela from Florence, SC
Psalm 40:16 (ESV)
But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you;
may those who love your salvation say continually, “Great is the Lord!”
Joy in Bethlehem, GA
Be joyful always, pray continuously, give thanks in all circumstances for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NIV
Commit to The Lord whatever you do and your plans will succeed. Proverbs 16:3
Carolyn, Bellbrook, Ohio
“He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished u according to our iniquities.” Psalms 103: 10.
“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.”
Galatians 5:22-23 NIV
Jean, Palm Bay ” to proclaim the year of the Lord ’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn”, (Isaiah 61:2 NIV)
Debbie from fairmont, WV
Romans 5:3-5. Nkjv
“…..but we also glory in tribulation,knowing that tribulation produces perseverance and perseverance ,character and character , hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”
Johnnie, Wake Forest, NC
Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you. Luke 6:38 ESV
NIV
Revelations 4:11
You are worthy, O Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power.
For you created all things and they exist because you created what you pleased.
Melanie, Odessa FL
“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, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen. Ephesians 3:20-21 NIV
Gena , Elgin, Texaa
But I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble. (Psalm 59:16 NIV)
Rachel from Soddy-Daisy, TN
Philippians 1:6 NLT
And I am certain that God who began the good work within you will continue the work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.
James 2:2-4 (NIV)
Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old rags also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,” have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?”
“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” Galatians 6:9-10
Jane from Jackson, MO
Whatever you do, do it enthusiastically, as something done for the Lord and not for men
Colossians 3:23 HCSB
Isaiah 42:8 NIV
I am the Lord; that is my name. I will not yeild my glory to another or my praise to others.
Amy, Albemarle, NC
For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, -Romans 8:3 NIV
Phil. 2:3b-4 NLT
Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out for only your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.
Barb, Philadelphia: “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” Psalm 139:23-24 (NIV)
Sara, Greenville, SC – For God did not give us a Spirit of fear but of power and love and self-control. 2 Timothy 1:7 (NET)
Emma, Gainesville
“Give to the one who ask you and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.” (Matthew 5:42 NIV)
Heather, Leawood, Kansas. He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken. Psalm 62:2 (NIV).
Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God ~
the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures.
Romans 1:1-2 ESV
Big Lake, MN
Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
And in Your book they all were written,The days fashioned for me,When as yet there were none of them. Psalm 139:16 (NKJV)
I may become a grandmother today! 1st time!
Laura, Hudson, IL
Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and His understanding no one can fathom.
Isaiah 40:28 NIV
Traci
Vadnais Heights, MN.
Matthew 11:28-30 (NIV)
“Come to me, all you who are weary and heavy burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Darlene, Mt. Airy, MD. Consider it all joy my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. James 1: 2-4, NASB
Cynthia, Missouri
For you were called to freedom, brothers, only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. Galations 5:13 ESV
Mark 10:9 NKJV
“Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.”
All things were made through Him and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life and the life was the light of men. (John 1:3-4 NKJV)
Katherine, Atlanta,
Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always. Psalm 105:4 NIV
“Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness: according to the multitude of Your tender mercies, blot out my transgressions, wash me thouroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sins.” (Psalm 51:1-2 NKJV)