Hey, you Scripture memory fiends! I am so proud of you guys for keeping your numbers up with your second verses! There can be a really big drop out between the hype surrounding the first verse and the discipline that starts kicking in with the second verse. Stay at it, you guys. Not one of you will be sorry you did. No one is going to get to the finish line next December 15th and say it wasn’t worth the work. God is far more faithful than that. He rewards those who seek Him (Hebrews 11:6) and diligently uses His Word to equip us in our callings (2 Timothy 3:16-17). He uses His Word to make us wiser, more aware of His will, more fortified against temptation, and more alive in His Spirit. He uses His Word to make us less gullible when our hearts are trying to deceive us, when someone we love is trying to mislead us or when Satan himself is trying to seduce us. Be encouraged. Not one ounce of your effort is wasted.
Here is the biggest key to accomplishing this task: throughout the entire process, continually ask God to enable you to memorize. In John 14:26, Christ tells His followers that the Holy Spirit is the one who will “bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” Proactively taking Him up on this assurance has been strategic through the years I’ve memorized Scripture. Over and over I convey to God that I know only He can empower those inspired words on the page to find a permanent place in my memory and a home in the marrow of my bones. I call upon His Spirit in Jesus’ Name to stir up those verses in me and remind me of every word and phrase.
When you’re able to say your verse with any accuracy at all, start thanking Him. Do it right then. Completely engage in the relational side of your memory work. That will be by far the biggest success in this endeavor. God is after your heart, not just your mind. He’s not just looking for your discipline. He wants to be your desire. His aim is relationship. Ask Him to help you then thank Him when He does it. When you’re working on a beautiful verse, tell Him you think it’s beautiful. When you keep stumbling over one particular word, ask Him right then to help you get that phrase straight. His Word is God speaking to you so speak back. Use it as an invitation to dialogue. Is the verse really hard? Say to Him, “This verse is killing me here, Lord. I can’t seem to get it. Grant it to me. Help me with it.” Get what I’m saying? This way He gets all the glory in every success and we get immeasurable gain.
This I promise you: God’s objective for you and me in 2015 is not for us to memorize 24 verses. It’s for us to draw nearer and nearer to Him, love Him more, know Him more, trust Him more, and believe Him more. To let His Word go down deep where He wants it. To invite it fervently and proactively to abide in us and bring vivacious life to us. To meditate on His words and to prize them more than our daily bread. Job said it this way: “I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my portion of food.” (Job 23:12b) That’s what these 24 verses are about. So, let’s engage with Jesus throughout the entire process. THAT, at the end of our journey, is what will determine our success.
I think I just changed my mind on what I want to present you for my 3rd verse. I am doing memory work out of the Book of Ephesians right now but I don’t happen to be on a verse that stands alone in a comprehensive enough way to offer it to someone to share. Mentioning Job in the previous paragraph stirred up in my memory how much I love that 23rd chapter. Savor the gorgeousness of verses 8-12. (ESV)
8 “Behold, I go forward, but He is not there,
and backward, but I do not perceive Him;
9 on the left hand when He is working, I do not behold Him;
He turns to the right hand, but I do not see Him.
10 But He knows the way that I take;
when He has tried me, I shall come out as gold.
11 My foot has held fast to his steps;
I have kept his way and have not turned aside.
12 I have not departed from the commandment of his lips;
I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my portion of food.
Translation of verses 8-10??? I may not know where God is right now in my situation but of this I’m sure: He knows where I am. Isn’t that powerful? Then, behold the faith and steadfastness of Job in that 10th verse: because God is at work and is at the helm, “I will come forth as gold” (NIV). (If you get a chance, glance at how perfectly that concept corresponds with 1 Peter 1:7.) I believe Job 23:10 is the exact verse I want to choose this time around and I think I’ll use the NIV. So here goes:
Beth Moore, Houston, Texas. But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I will come forth as gold. Job 23:10 NIV
Hit it, Girls.
So honored to study and memorize Scripture with you. Much, much love to you.
As for me, I will continue beholding Your face in righteousness (rightness, justice, and right standing with You); I shall be fully satisfied, when I awake [to find myself] beholding Your form [and having sweet communion with You]. (Psalm 17:15 AMP)
Ashley, West Monroe, LA
So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 1 John 4:16 ESV
Christina Cole, Irvine, CA
“In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.”
Proverbs 16:9 NIV
Lisa
West Columbia,Texas
“Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence.” Psalm 91:3 (NIV)
Barbie, Lubbock, TX
Psalm 25:4 NLT
Show me the right path, O LORD; point out the road for me to follow.
Renee Hui, British Columbia, Canada
And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.
2 Corinthians 9:8
Oops forgot to say (NIV)
Rachel, Surprise, AZ
“My tears have been my food day and night, while men say to me all day long, ‘Where is your God?'” ~Psalm 42:3
Rhonda Marlow
Richland. Wa.
When my heart is overwhelmed lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
Psalm 61:2
Psalm 22:19
“But you, O LORD, be not far off; O my strength, come quickly to help me.
Elkhart, KS
Whatever work you do, do it with all your heart. Do it for the Lord and not for men.
Colossians 3:23 New Life Version
sorry, hit enter too fast. The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say ‘Lo here it is!’ or ‘There! for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.” Luke 20 thru 21, RSV
Deanna Crawford Springfield,TN “God is our refuge and strength an ever present help in trouble.” Ps 46:1 NIV
Kara Hodgkiss, from Frisco TX
Isaiah 40:31 (NIV)
…but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They wil soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.
Rolanda Hairston, Ft. worth, TX “May the God of all hope fill you with all joy & peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13 NLT
Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass thru the waters, I will be with you and when you pass thru the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk thru the fire you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.
Isaiah 43: 1-2. NIV
Lindsey, Scenery Hill, PA
Romans 8:28 ESV
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
Amalia Smith Lumberton Tx
And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Jesus Christ
Philippians 4:19 NIV
Cindy, San Diego, CA
When I am afraid, I will trust in you. Psalm 56:3 NIV
Ann Gardner, North Canton, OH. John 15:5 (ESV) “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding,
In all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your path.
Proverbs 3:5,6
Traci McNally, Evansdale, Iowa
He has saved us and called us to a holy life — not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,
II Timothy 1:9 NIV
Teach me good discernment and knowledge, For I believe in your commandments. Psalm 119:66
NASB
Natalie El Dorado, KS
“Send Your light and Your truth let them lead me. Let them bring me to Your holy mountain to Your dwelling place.” Psalm 43:3 (HCSB)
Holly Tabor
Nixa, Mo
But The Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one.
2 Thessalonians 3:3 NIV
Ruth Somers, Baton Rouge, LA
The Lord will command His loving kindness in the daytime;
And His song will be with me in the night,
A prayer to the God of my life. Psalm 42:8, NASB
Janis Slatter, Auckland New Zealand
There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor (trouble) a door of hope. There she will sing / respond as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt.
Hosea 2 v 15, NIV
Melissa G
Raymore Mo
But we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved. (NIV
Connie Dildine, Hiram, Missouri
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction. Proverbs 1:7 (KJV)
Audra Devine, Alma, MI
Now to Him who is able to do immesurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us. Ephesians 3:20 NIV
Karen T, Greensboro,NC
If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. (James 1:5-6 NLT)
ถ้าเราสาราภาพบาปของเราพระองค์ทรงซื่อสัตย์และเทียงธรรม ก็จะทรงโบรดยกบาปของเรา และจะทรงชําระเราให้พ้นจากการอธรรมทั้งสิ้น.
1ยอน 1:9 TSV11. 1 John 1:9
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Learning to share Jesus in Thai…
Proverbs 3: 5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. NKJV
Dayle Dygon Sheridan Wyoming Philippians 1:9-11 NIV
And this is my prayer:that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ.Filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God.
Mikayla Marler, Glenn Allen, Missouri
Pray without ceasing. I Thessalonians 5:16 (KJV)
Jennifer from Frisco, Texas
Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.
Psalm 143:8 (NIV)
Denise Cross
Rock Island, Illinois
NIV
Romans 15: 13
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
“And whatever you do,do it heartily, as to The Lord and not to men.”
Colossians 3:23
Stephanie Bryant, Charlotte, NC
Jeremiah 29:13 ESV
You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.
Norfolk,VA
Romans 8:15
This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It’s adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike “What’s next, Papa?”
The Message
Fenton, Ashburn, VA “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.” (John 14:26 NKJV)
Stephanie
Harrisonburg, LA
Without wavering, let us hold tightly to the hope we say we have, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.
Hebrews 10:23 (NLT)
Brianne Leonard, Greenwood, AR. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. Psalms 19:14 NLT
Kenna Davey, Overland Park, KS
2 Cor. 4:8&9
“We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed but not in despair; persecuted but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.” (NIV)
You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart
Jeremiah 29:13
Teri Heikkila, Grand Rapids MN
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
Christie P, Gadsden, AL There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.1 John 4:18 ESV
Debra H.
Dahlgren, IL
Let love and faithfulness never leave you;
bind them around your neck,
Write them on the tablet of your heart.
Proverbs 3:3 NIV
Susan, Wynne
“The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light.” Romans 13:12 ESV
Deb from Aledo, IL
Proverbs 30:5 Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him. KJV
NIV Colossians 3:23
Work hard & cheerfully at whatever you do as though you are working for The Lord, rather than for people.