Genesis 1:1, John 1:1, Acts 4:12 and John 3:16 were some of the first Bible verses I was given to memorize in Sunday school, four and a half decades ago. Ever since then Bible memorization has been my favorite spiritual discipline.
Through the years of memorizing Scripture, I have experienced my share of spiritual highs and lows. Usually the lows were caused by some kind of sin issue. The most difficult of these spiritual lows was about four years ago when my wife suffered a stroke, and in an instant she lost all of her short term memory, and a lot of her long term memory. Pretty much every Bible verse she had memorized was gone in the blink of an eye. God wiped her hard drive.
At that time, I thought, “what’s the point.” I too lost most of the Bible verses I had memorized, but by choice. Slowly day after day, this period lasted about two years. By God’s grace he drew me back to memorizing his word again when I was driving back home alone from Texas to New Mexico. As I drove down the road I asked God to help me to start re-memorizing the book of Colossians and he did. God led us to start a Bible memory group at our church, for accountability and to encourage other believers to memorize the Bible. Since then I have memorized the book of Romans, and am currently re-memorizing 1 Peter, and memorizing Psalm 119.
God showed me through my wife’s stroke that the most important part of memorizing Scripture is the process. It’s the seconds, the minutes, and the hours of each day that I spend in fellowship with him, delighting in his word. As I run the words of each verse into my mind, God’s truths seep into my heart, transforming me by renewing my mind, and making my thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ.
I am able to think God-breathed thoughts from his word instead of my own sinful thoughts. I thank God for the gift of desiring to memorize the Bible. There is nothing like the feeling of being able to drive down the road, or sit in a waiting room or lay in bed on a sleepless night and commune with God by meditating on his word. I pray all believers will experience the joy of hiding God’s word in their heart.
Wow, how inspiring! Thanks for sharing your story!
God bless,
Chris
Thanks Chris
My goal in sharing my story is to encourage other believers to keep running the race. Hebrews 12: 1-2
Mickey
Mickey,
Your post is most inspirational. Your last paragraph brought a deep sigh from my heart-thank you for sharing.
Maureen
Thanks Maureen
I do believe that spending time pouring over God’s word is what’s important. As we delight in the Lord, he gives us the desires of our heart, because our desires become his desires. Psalm 37:4
Mickey
Loved being reminded of the blessing of the process!! It’s not about the checklist of what we have memorized but the sweetness of abiding in Him when we pursue him through memorizing His amazing word! Thank you!! Great reminder!
I so agree, Micky. God-breathed thoughts are indeed better than my own sinful thoughts. “My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.” Isaiah 55
I use to be frustrated on sleepless nights and now I delight in them and consider it a gift when I lie in bed awake at night. Thank you, Micky, for sharing your story.
I would love to hear more about your Bible memory group.
Susan
Praise God he turned your frustration into delight, what a Great God he is. The name of our memory group is Living Word Initiative (LWI), we meet once a month. We start with a potluck, then a short devotional, then everyone is welcome to quote any verses or passages they are working on. We have a 2yr. old working on Psalm 23 all the way through to senior citizens Here is a link for our blog, we have a introduction video, which is pretty good.http://coglivingwordinitiative.blogspot.com/
That is so awesome, Micky! Amazing actually. I went to your LWI blog. It sounds like your whole church is memorizing the Bible collectively. That is beautiful.
Susan
Elizabeth
I agree, that is so true God’s word is amazing.A great gift from the one and only God.
Mickey
I love your statement about thinking “God-breathed thoughts rather than my own sinful thoughts.” I have called it “the great exchange” my sin for his forgiveness, my thoughts for his thoughts – but you have just given me a fresh motivational angle – thinking about his word in my mind and heart as “God-breathed.” Hmmm……..that is really a great image.
Thanks!
Karen
This is so cool, that God has given us the desire to think and talk about him. God is changing our minds to be God centered instead of self centered. I thank God for this forum, and for giving Janet the desire and drive to start this OC. This back and forth of ideas and fellowship with other believers who share our interest in memorizing the Bible is such a blessing
Mickey
The idea for the online community of memorizers belongs to Moody Publishers. With the release of my new book they asked if I would be willing to start an OC. I agreed to it, not realizing that I was getting in over my head. But it has been a huge blessing to me as well. I have received many emails thanking me and saying how much they are benefitting. I appreciate so much everyone’s input and comments. The SYS Fridays has been the favorite day and I agree. We’re all broken people who are inspired by real stories of life change through God’s Word. For his glory. Janet
It’s amazing that in our lowest times that scripture is what holds us up. If you didn’t have The Word in there to begin with, then you don’t have anything to retrieve. I too have had to go back and re-memorize, but so glad that I’m taking the time to do it.
Carmen
The great thing about the bible is that it is inexhaustible, and no matter how many times we go over a passage it is always fresh.
Mickey
Mickey, thanks for sharing your story. I liked your story about talking with God on your drive from TX to NM. I recently drove for eight hours and spent the entire time praying, meditating on God’s Word and processing life. I did not turn on the radio – just me and God. Loved it. I am thankful you called out to God during your long drive in the car. Press on brother. Thankful for your story.
Ethan
Thanks for your encouragement, spending time with God while driving is always better than listening to the radio or anything else.
Mickey
Thanks Mickey! I know I’ve said it before but I am so very thankful to the Lord for the way he uses you and your family. I have loved memorizing Scripture alongside of you. I love hearing you recite God’s Word! I never would have thought that I could memorize long passages of Scripture – especially after 7 children! 🙂 Your example and encouragement have been blessings. Thank you for pointing me to Christ and to His Word! Thank you too for the reminder that the process is the most important part of memorizing – that our relationship with Jesus, through the discipline of memorization, is the goal, not the means.
Kelly
You and your family are such a blessing to me. I praise God for yours and Dan’s Godly example to your kids and to us your brothers and sisters in Christ. God is truly doing a work in you and through you, I see it every time you get up and quote a passage, or when you help Ruthie or one of your other 6 kids with a verse. Thank you for your faithfulness to God.
Mickey,
Thank you for your post and for the encouragement it gave me this morning. Sometimes I get discouraged because my memory fails me, or because I start to recite a verse in front of others and my mind goes blank. I especially appreciated your reminder that it is the process, the sweet time spent with our Lord that is most important. Sara B.
Sara
you’re amazing! I just love your attitude and perseverance, keep up the hard work, looking forward to hearing you quote at the next LWI.
Every story is an encouragement to me and I also love to wake up in the night with Scripture on my mind. I have that mind going black discouragement too, even if I am by myself. It’s like my shoulders slump and I think “why even try?” Then I remember just who sent me that message and I multiply my effort not to give up. May God bless your efforts as well.
Susan
Thank you, I think we all need to encourage one another, spur each other on to good works. I know God wants us to cast our anxieties on him, because he cares for us 1 Peter 5:7
Mickey
I enjoy attending Living Word Initiative it is something I look foward to every month. As you know I used to be in Bible drill when I was younger. Since I have been coming to LWI, I have started memorizing scripture again. My favorite part of LWI is waatching the little children quote the Bible.
Beka
Thanks for being a part of LWI, it is exciting to see you start memorizing the Bible again, keep up the good work.
Thanks Uncle Mickey for your story! You have certainly been an encouragement to me as you have memorized the Bible. Through your example I have been inspired and challenged to hide God’s Word in my heart without giving up. Even though I cannot attend Living Word Initiative because of where I live, I love being apart of it via youtube. So keep up the memorizing and thanks for sharing what God has been doing in your life with all of us!
Very well put “little brother”. Your story not only blesses me, it challenges me to pursue my joy in God even more by recommitting myself to a renewed thrust at relearning those passages once committed to this frail memory and learning a whole bunch of new ones. You are doing a good work–keep it up and thanks for sharing it with others!
Thanks for sharing Mickey. I know for a while I felt like I had “stalled” in the area of memorizing, but your encouragement has been wonderful in spurring me on to keep hiding God’s Word in my heart. And I love what you said about the process. Thanks so much
Mickey,
Thanks for the encouragement through this post! It has been through the meditating on the word of God that I have memorized that my delight in our great God has grown. I praise God for the ministry of The Living Word Initiative group as it has been a great encouragement to me. It has “initiated” anew my desire to memorize and meditate on Gods word.
mickey,
Thank you for your reminder it is about the process not just the product. I love Living Word initive It has been a source of great encouragment to me & my family. Thank you Keep up the “the Good Work”.
Thank you for sharing your story and reminding us of how true it is that God’s Word does a work in our hearts. It is “living and active!” May the Lord bless you as you let the process go on!