Hey, Everybody! I am jotting this post several days in advance because I’ll be at a Living Proof Live in Atlanta, Georgia the day this goes up. In fact, if you read this before 11:15 CST (12:15 Atlanta time) on Saturday, we’d be incredibly blessed if you’d pray for our remaining time to be so flooded with the presence of God that we can hardly bear the glory.
I’m so proud of you for making it this far in our Scripture memory process! Sisters, you have worked hard. Let yourself feel the holy nod of God. He has tremendous joy in seeing His children esteem His Word highly enough to store it like treasures in the vault of their hearts. We’ve arrived at a milestone of sorts in this journey. June is tremendously significant for our team because this is the month we come to the halfway marker. Once we get into July and August we have less memorization in front of us than we have behind us. That’s a big deal.
This time around I’m choosing a verse that I’ll be challenging the attendees to memorize at the Atlanta Living Proof Live. I’m not sure a verse could be more fitting for the pure act of praise. I love Scriptures that not only speak about God but speak straight to God. Get a load of this one:
Beth, Houston. O Lord, You are great, mighty, majestic, magnificent, glorious, and sovereign over all the sky and earth! You have dominion and exalt Yourself as the ruler of all. 1 Chronicles 29:11 The NET Bible
Any of us who memorize a fair amount of Scripture have certain go-to approaches that have helped us along. If you’ve got a method that is working, by all means, go with it! But, if you’re interested in memorizing the same verse and would like some suggestions about how to tackle it, I’ll share what works for me. Keep in mind that the methods of Blonder Than She Pays To Be could be madness to someone else so take this or leave it depending on your learning style.
With any verse, I start looking almost immediately for how I can reason out the word order. The first thing I’m going to notice in 1 Chronicles 29:11 is that there are 6 rapid-fire descriptions of God in the first sentence. In this verse, I’d reason that it’s fitting for the word “great” to be first among the descriptions because many of us are accustomed to using the terminology that God (or the Lord, in this case) is great. It’s an easy, accessible word. The next three descriptions all begin with “M”: mighty, majestic, magnificent. As I prepare for Atlanta, I’ll be saying those three words over and over in that order so that they’ll get ingrained in my thinking. They have an amplifying rhythm to them, too, because the first one (mighty) is two syllables, the second one (majestic) is three syllables, and the third one (magnificent) is four syllables. Does that help at all with the word order and how they roll off your tongue? Say them until you feel the syllables build and you might latch onto them pretty quickly.
After the beginning “G” (great) and the 3 “M’s”, we have another “G.” This time it stands for “glorious.” That’s a word I love to say so I’m hoping I can remember it pretty easily. G-M-M-M-G. Are you beginning to catch on? (I think I just heard somebody yell “NO!” Was that you?? I tried to warn you that I can make things harder than they have to be. Laughing. You might need to be the one telling your sisters here how to tackle a wordy verse. Just give me an “E” for effort here and maybe an “A” for affection. I do so seriously love you.)
The last of the 6 descriptions is “sovereign.” To me, that’s always the final word on anything that has to do with God. If I’m confused or I can’t fit in my brain why this happened or why God approached a particular thing a particular way, I finally come to a measure of peace by stating this biblical truth: He is sovereign over all things. In the exact words of 1 Chronicles 29:11, “over all the sky and earth.” I love visual language and that, Sister, is plenty visual. Span the galaxies in the universe with your imagination then put your scope on our planet and zero in. (I know I’m really pushing it right now with some of you but the way I’d keep it straight that “sky” comes before “earth” is that it starts with an “S” like “sovereign” right before it. If I’m getting on your last nerve, never mind.)
Then put the finishing touches on the verse with this: You have dominion and exalt Yourself as the ruler of all!
Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m not expecting that we’d have it down pat in the brief amount of time it’s taken us to walk through those few paragraphs but what about 15 days? That’s how long we’d have to get those words steeped into our souls. Could we get them down over the course of two weeks? Yes, ma’am, I do believe we can! And, if not word-for-word, just think how much we’ve meditated on descriptions of our God! That is time NEVER wasted. Let’s ask God to give us the supernatural unction to accomplish this memorization and remind Him how much glory He could receive from our being able to extol His preeminence like that over and over while we’re…
praying…
driving…
walking through our neighborhoods…
on our treadmills…
rocking our babies…
getting chemotherapy…
getting physical therapy…
sitting with an elderly loved one…
healing from a heartbreak…
or so happy that we need some way to tell Him how marvelous we think He is before we burst.
Of course, most of you have your own Scripture selections and I have just put you through the wringer for nothing! So, whether you’re sharing 1 Chronicles 29:11 or bringing your own verse to the table, let’s see them! I’m blessed almost out of my bleached blond mind to get to do this with you, Sister. You are a tremendous joy to me.
Tags: Scripture Memory 2013
Ephesiand 6:10 NAS
Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might.
Sue~Hartland, MI
But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle,
reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering without hypocrisy.
James 3:17 NASB
Sarah, Christina and Esther May; Wenatchee, WA
“Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring?”
James 3:11 NIV
Peggy, Corpus Christi, TX
For me, living is Christ and dying is gain.
Philippians 1:21(HCSB)
“Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” (Psalms 46:10 ESV)
Maly Moseley, Marysville, OH. Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. 1 Peter 5:6 NIV
Stacey Gaines
Corpus Christi, TX
“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
(Isaiah 41:10, NIV)
Don’t worry about anything. Instead pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done.
Philippians 4:6. NLT
Diana, East Peoria, IL
Give your burdens to the Lord,
and he will take care of you.
Psalm 55:22 NLT
Brenda – Hendersonville TN
Mat 6:33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. NIV
Kina, Chicago
“O Lord, be gracious to us; we wait for you. Be our arm every morning,our salvation in the time of trouble.” Isaiah 33:2 (ESV)
Lynn in Frankfurt, Germany
In you, Lord my God, I put my trust. Psalm 25:1 (NIV)
Paula, O’Fallon, for we are His masterpiece, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand in order that we would walk in them. Ephesians 2:10 RcV
Elizabeth, Broomfield, CO
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. Galatians 5:1 (NIV)
Columbus Ohio
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11 NIV
Alyssa Mochen
Rio Rancho, NM
Teach me, Lord , the way of your decrees, that I may follow it to the end. Give me understanding, so that I may keep your law and obey it with all my heart.
Psalm 119:33-34 NIV
Nicole Turnquist – Selden, NY
You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you.
John 15:16 (NASB)
Kari, Frisco, TX
“Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from telling lies.”
Psalm 34:13
Ashley Sullens
Kings Mountain, NC
Psalm 27:8 (NASB)
When You said, seek My face, my heart said to You, Your face, O Lord, I shall seek.
Kim, Colonial Heights, VA
“O Lord, You are great, mighty, majestic, magnificent, glorious, and sovereign over all the sky and earth! You have dominion and exalt Yourself as the ruler of all.”
1 Chronicles 29:11 The NET Bible
Kim K., Columbus, OH area
“The Sovereign Lord is my strength;
He makes my feet like the feet of a deer.
He enables me to tread on the heights.”
Habakkuk 3:19
Lauren, Dedham, MA: “All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful toward those who keep the demands of his covenant.” Psalm 25:10 (NIV)
Susie H. McKinney, TX
“And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;”
Ephesians 6:17 NKJV
Rebecca, Louisa, VA:
For our offenses are many in Your sight, and our sins testify against us. Our offenses are ever with us, and we acknowledge our iniquities: rebellion and treachery against the LORD, turning our backs on our God, fomenting oppression and revolt, uttering lies our hearts have conceived. ~ Isaiah 59:12-13 (NIV)
Jami Valley Grande,AL . O Lord, You are great, mighty, majestic, magnificent, glorious, and sovereign over all the sky and earth! You have dominion and exalt Yourself as the ruler of all.
1 Chronicles 29:11 The NET Bible
Janice, Arkansas Psalm 103:8 NIV
The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.
“A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones.” Proverbs 14:30 NIV
Kay Martin
Tupelo, MS
Colette, Mesa, AZ.
“They are always generous and lend freely;
their children will be blessed.”
Psalm 37:26 NIV
Rachel, Mt. Carmel, PA
Matthew 6:33-34, NIV
“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
Anita, Lawrenceville ,
And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, “Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations!”
Revelation 15:3. ESV
Julie dk in Casper, WY
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
Romans 12:12 NIV
Betty Watson from Waveland, IN: “Follow God’s example in everything you do just as a much loved child imitates his father.” Ephesians 5:1 The Living Bible.
Kelly in Katy,
“For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.” Romans 14:17 (NIV)
Proverbs 19:21 NIV
Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.
Vicki Knott, Greenwood, S.C.
I sought The Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears. Psalm 34:4 (NIV)
Sabrina~Houston,TX
1 Chronicles 29:11
(ESV)
Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all.
Julie from Bristol, Tennessee
Proverbs 3:3-4 NIV
Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man.
Deborah from Hartsville, SC; “Thou, O LORD, wilt not withhold Thy compassion from me; Thy lovingkindness and Thy truth will continually preserve me.” Psalm 40:11 NASB
Sarah Miller, New Palestine, IN
for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things. (Psalm 107:9 NIV)
Julie from Menomonee Falls, WI
He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters.
Psalms 23:2 NASB
Tara G.
Sherwood, AR
Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.
Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Matthew 6:1-6 (ESV)
14) For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.
15) What then? Shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.
16) Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
Romans 6:14-16 KJV
Cheri
Louisville, KY
Laura, Englewood. Where can I go from you Spirit? Where can I flee from you presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. Psalm 139:7-8
isaiah 32:17 niv
the fruit of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidance forever.
Michele, Cumming GA
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33 NIV)
Carole, Imperial, CA: But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8 NIV
Bonnie B. from Florence, Colorado
“He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them His Way.”
Psalms 25:9 NIV
Michelle Baylerian, Waukesha, WI
So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 2Cor 4:18 HCSB
“If you remain in me and follow my teachings, you can ask anything you want, and it will be given to you.” John 15:7 NCV
Donna, Loganville, PA
O Lord, You are great, mighty, majestic, magnificent, glorious, and sovereign over all the sky and earth! You have dominion and exalt Yourself as the ruler of all. 1 Chronicles 29:11 The NET Bible