Let the Little Children Memorize. Part 2

In part 1, I mentioned the goals for memorizing with your child:
• to inspire curiosity and a love for God’s Word
• to elevate your child’s understanding of God
• to foster meaningful family interaction about God and how he intersects with the world

Select 2 or 3 passages and let your children choose one they want to memorize. Short passages were given in part one. Here are other passages to choose from:

MEDIUM PASSAGES—10-20 verses
• Psalm 19, 27, 84, 91
• Luke 2: 1-20 Christmas story
• Luke 4:1-13 Temptation of Jesus
• Luke 7: 1-10 The Centurion’s faith
• Luke 10:25-37 Good Samaritan
• Luke 14:15-24 Parable of the great banquet
• John 1:1-18 The living Word
• 1 Corinthians 13:1-13 Love

LONGER PASSAGES—21–31 verses
• Psalm 103, 139
• Proverbs 4
• Isaiah 40:1-31 Comfort for God’s people
• Isaiah 52:13 – 53:12 The Suffering Servant
• Daniel 1 Daniel would not defile himself
• Daniel 3 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego
• Daniel 6 Daniel and the Lions Den
• John 3:1-21 Jesus and Nicodemus
• 2 Peter 1

Suggestion: Start with a short passage, then work up to longer passages as you build confidence. An example: Do these three stories in order and when you finish you will have an entire chapter.
• Luke 15:1-7 lost sheep
• Luke 15:8-10 lost coin
• Luke 15:11-32 lost (prodigal) son

Technology tips:
• Print out the story from the computer www.biblegateway.com in the same version as their own bible. Don’t choose a different version because when they open their bible they will want to see their story. (They will take ownership of whatever they memorize). Use the piece of paper to memorize from, not the Bible. Underline trouble spots, highlight and draw connections.
• Use free Bible apps to set your phones and tablets to the passage. Now you’ll always have the passage with you.
• Use the record feature on I-phones, found in Utilities. Record each person READING the passage and play back as a learning aid. This also helps on days when fatigue sets in (on the parent’s side) and hearing the words reinforces the passage.

A 4th grade class took on the book of James. With 108 verses and 36 weeks in the school year, these 9 and 10 year olds memorized three verses a week and finished James by the end of the year. Instead of memorizing random verses a wise teacher saw the value of learning an entire book.

Stretch yourself and your children. The greatest gift you can give them is a love for God’s Word.

We would all benefit from hearing your experiences. What has worked for you? Let’s help each other.