by I have heard multitudes over the years declare, “I just cannot memorize Bible verses.” After years of hearing some of the same folks saying this and observing their life, I just do not think they are even trying. Now, we all give up sometimes and if this is an area that one has given up on, prayerfully this beam of light will be an encouragement to get memorizing again.
God’s Word says in Phil. 4:8 “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”
The Lord says to “think on these things.” How can the mind think on these things if God’s Word is not in the mind? We cannot have the Bible open in front of us all day long; so, we have to memorize it and put it into our minds. It would be marvelous to think all day long on “these things” which are in the Bible. Amid a world of evil, wickedness, sin, and constant problems, it would be awesome to think on these wonderful things mentioned above. But how?
Here is the answer.
Further down in Philippians is verse 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”
A lot of people tend to think this verse means we literally can do anything; but, that is not how this verse is supposed to be interpreted. I challenge one to read the whole chapter 4 in Philippians. Phil. 4:8 above mentions the things God wants us to “think on”; so, if we are going to be obedient to God and “think on these things,” we have to hide his Word in our hearts. So, just how does one hide God’s word in their heart?
Anyone can do it. Unless you were born with a brain disorder that prevents you from memorizing; but, I have only met a hand-full of people in my life that would fall into this special group of people. The remainder of us, God blessed with a functional, operational brain fully capable of memorizing. Without realizing it, we cram things all the time. We remember addresses, phone numbers, bill due dates, appointments, favorite TV show times, grandchildren birthdates, the way home, and the list could go on and on. I have yet to see a senior person who does not remember, somehow, all the grandchildren birthdates and their ages. Now, all of us have things we do to help us remember things. A lot of us make lists. We write things down. We put our lists where we will see them each day. Through doing the same things, Bible verses can be hid in our heart as well.
Ps. 119:11 “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.”
Memorizing may not come easy as we age; but, not much of anything comes easy as we age? Still we keep going. We just slow down a bit. Adapt this same principle to memorizing; take it slower. Memorize one verse at a time. If it takes two weeks or more to memorize one verse, oh well. God does not say to hide his Word within our hearts immediately. He just says to do it. So, do it, even if it takes a while.
Also, do not quit. No matter what happens. Even if one forgets to work on Bible memory each day, just pick back up where one left off and keep going.
Write verses down. We all make lists, hang sticky notes, and put reminders all over the place to help us remember birthdates, etc. Why not do the same to remember Bible verses? Write them on a sticky note or a 3×5 card and put it somewhere to be see every day.
Make the verse the last thing seen at night before going to bed and the first thing seen in the morning when getting up. Back several years ago, when I started having problems memorizing, I started taking my Bible verse card to bed. Right before I get into bed, I look at the verse or one small part of the verse. I say it a few times and I keep saying it as I lay my head on the pillow. It is the last thing I quote in my mind as I am drifting off to sleep. When I wake in the morning, I see if I can remember it before I look at my card. Many times, I cannot, but with patience, there comes a morning when I can. I get so excited, and then I start adding onto it another phrase until the whole verse is memorized. Most of the time, I can get a whole verse memorize in one week, but sometimes I have to go an extra day or two, but I keep at it knowing God does not want me to quit.
In summary, anyone can memorize Bible verses. A few tips to help:
- Take it slow.
- Do one verse at a time.
- Write the verse down, look at it before bed and the first thing in the morning.
- Do not quit.
Try these tips and see. Anyone can be on their way to hiding God’s Word in their heart.
Ps. 119:11 “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.”
I guess I am one of the brain-deads! Thankful that I learned many verses as a child and they have been hid in my heart! (But sometimes hid TOO well!). Actually, I used to beat myself up for not being good at memorizing verses until I purposely applied myself to another memory project that I gave 110% to and still couldn’t learn! I still have to work hard at verses–at least enough to get the gist of them! SO important to learn when you are young!
Yes, it is important to learn while young. I’m glad I learned many verses while young. I have a hard time memorizing anything. Years ago I even started with Brain Fog as a result of health issues. Now the brain fog is worse and remembering things is hard. So, I decided to ask the Lord for help. He made me, he gave me the brain fog issues but I wanted to memorize Bible verses. He tells us to. He doesn’t say hide God’s Word in your heart only while young. So, I started asking him to help me each day and not let me miss my verse for the week and for the past few years now, I haven’t missed a weekly Bible verse. Yes, I’ve said them late to Lewis, but I haven’t missed it. I give the Lord all the glory because I do not think I’d be able to do if I hadn’t asked for help.