Do you agree that physical exercise is extremely vital to living? We don’t have to be experts to know that when we don’t use our muscles, which make up a major part of our bodies, we will deteriorate fast. Some of us have jobs that make us exercise naturally and some of us have jobs that make us seek opportunities to exercise.
Do you agree that our brain is a muscle that also needs exercise? The human brain is one of the most fascinating things in all of creation. Even though much can be said about exercising a human brain, and I have touched on this subject a little bit in Is Memorizing Poetry Good for the Brain?, today I would like to focus on one type of exercise, and that is Bible memorization.
Why is Bible memorization so important?
In addition to being a good brain exercise, the Word of God carries in itself the power of God to keep us from evil and to change our nature from the human one to the divine. How else do we become more caring, more loving, more of all we are not, but by learning the Word of God and applying it to our life circumstances? It has been proven over and over again that the more we meditate upon God’s Word and allow Him to work within our lives, the more His Word becomes a part of our own nature.
Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.
Psalm 119:11
If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, you have, without a doubt, memorized some Bible verses in your lifetime. However, not many of us dedicate every day to meditating upon the Word of God through memorization. Nevertheless, there have been many people who have learned large passages of Bible by heart. My favorite of them all is Fanny Crosby.
Fanny Crosby (1820-1915), who became blind very shortly after she was born, developed a phenomenal memory. Assisted by her grandmother, she memorized whole books of the Bible. She had diligently worked on five chapters each week. The Scriptures became a foundation for over 9,000 hymns that she wrote during her lifetime and that strengthened believers in the ages to come all over the world.
How do I memorize the Bible?
There are many ways and methods to memorize the Scriptures and your personal learning style will determine the best way for you. However, it is highly recommended to provide yourself with as many sensory inputs as possible:
- Read aloud: This will give you an opportunity to both SEE and HEAR the words.
- Listen to the Word of God: This will help you to VIZULIZE the stories and concepts.
- Write your memory verses down: The CONNECTION between your hand, eye, and the brain will reinforce the memory.
- Meditate upon the meaning of the words you memorize: Just like the clean animals chew their cud in order to absorb it completely into their system, our meditation upon the Word of God allows it to become a PART OF OUR BEING.
- Review it regularly: Distribute your learned memory verses/chapters/books throughout the week and review them on regular basis. This will ensure that what you have memorized will REMAIN in your heart forever.
Would your family join us in our Bible memorization challenge?
We have created a little book for you and your children to encourage you to memorize 10 Psalms in the King James Version of the Bible. Some of these Psalms are short, some are longer. Do not underestimate how much your children can keep in their minds and hearts. It has been reported that in some Jewish communities the children at the age of 8 have already memorized the entire Book of Psalms, all 150 of them.
Feel free to download our book, learn the Psalms, and let us know when you complete the task. There are prizes awaiting those who persevere!