It's Monday. Time to memorize and meditate

For the full context of this post read Isaiah 55.

As a young child I went to Super Church every Sunday. Super Church was basically Sunday School for kids, but rather than calling it school, which some might not like, it was called Super Church. Every kid loves Super and in Super Church I had to memorize a Bible verse a week. As I got older I joined the Bible Quiz team. Bible quizzers didn’t just memorize a verse a week, but we memorized entire books of the Bible word for word. That’s a lot of memory verses!

The older I became, the less important Scripture memorization became to me. Mobile applications have made it possible to carry a Bible in my back pocket, and Google can locate just about anything no matter how vague the search criteria. Life is busy, memorization takes effort, and I know the Bible well enough to make decent choices, or so I thought.

I am currently re-learning the value of memorizing Scripture. It’s not just for kids! Memorizing Scripture is key to aligning my thoughts with God’s thoughts.

8“For My thoughts are not your thoughts,

Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.

11 So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth;

It shall not return to Me void,

But it shall accomplish what I please,

And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it. (Isaiah 55:8&11)

I can no longer commit a verse to memory in the car ride on the way to church. It takes me longer to memorize verses now, so I choose a passage and meditate on it for days as I learn it. I no longer earn Super Church points or Bible Quiz ribbons for memorizing Scripture. Those external motivators were not what I needed anyway. Instead, I am motivated by a desire to know the heartbeat of God. I may not always memorize passages word for word perfect anymore, but I have learned that God’s word does not return void.

If you haven’t memorized a Bible verse recently, I challenge you to do so. It’s Monday. Let’s make Monday a day for meditating and memorizing. Select a passage a week and commit it to memory. If you need help selecting a verse, consider starting with Isaiah 55: 8 and 11. God’s thoughts aren’t our thoughts; his ways are not our ways, and his word will not return void!