My brain feels constantly overloaded, so the thought of memorizing anything feels impossible to me on most day! Anyone else feel that way? Even though it feels challenging, I know it’s important. Especially as I have shared with you guys about my desire to grow in prayer and using scripture to pray. What better way to pray scripture than memorizing it?
But back to the fact that it feels hard. We can do hard things, right? I have done some research and tested out some different ways to help with memorizing scripture. Some of these tips worked better for me than others, but I thought all of them were great ideas that lend themselves to different learning styles.
But First, Why Memorize Scripture?
There are plenty of great reasons to commit the word of God to memory, but I want to share a couple that resonate with me.
First, I want to hide the word of God in my heart because I don’t want to sin against him. (Psalm 119:11) If I have his promises and the knowledge of his character in my head and heart I am more likely to be obedient to what he asks of me. When I’m not *which is going to happen* I am quicker to come to him in confession and repentance, receive forgiveness, and move closer to a heart that looks like his.
Secondly, the word of God is powerful. It offers people hope and peace and I want to have it ready to share with others and offer the encouragement it has offered me when I feel disheartened by life. His word is light that shines in the darkness (John 1:1-6) and I can shine that light on the darkness for myself as well as others.
10 Tips To Help With Memorizing Scripture
Choose key sections to memorize
Some people like to memorize whole books or chapters, but when starting out I have found memorizing key sections of scripture to be effective. These are usually sections of scripture that I have found myself wanting to camp out in and meditate on as I make my way through a specific book of the Bible. A few great places to start are Psalm 46:1-22, Romans 8:28-39, Colossians 1:15-20, and Psalm 23:1-6.
Stick to a schedule
Consistency is key when it comes to memorization. Creating a memorization schedule and building time into your day will help you make memorization part of your daily routine.
Read through it several times before you start to memorize
Before setting out to memorize a passage, familiarize yourself with it by reading through it several times. Anywhere from 10-50 times will help you internalizing and retaining a passage.
Say it out loud
Talking out loud helps memory retention. Our brain forms auditory links to our memory pathways and helps you retain the information. You may look crazy, but it definitely helps!
Write it down
Grab a notebook you can write verses down in multiple times. Handwriting helps cement information into your brain. You can also type it into a word document if that is more your style. The Write the Word journal by Cultivate What Matters is a beautiful journal specifically designed for this very thing!
Engage the text
Think about the context of what you are reading and what is being said. What does it say about God? What promises, commandments, or instruction does it communicate? Discuss it with other people and meditate on it in your own personal time with God. Engaging the text and moving beyond rote memorization will definitely help solidify it into your long-term memory.
Pray the text
Turning the passage you are trying to memorize into a prayer is another great way of internalizing the text. Praying the text is powerful and the Holy Spirit will use it to transform you. As we pray scripture, it becomes more personal and meaningful to us as well.
Use a Bible Memory app
There are several apps you can download right to your phone that will help you with scripture memory. Scripture Typer and BibleMe are both great options to try!
Review
If you spend time putting something to memory, you don’t want to forget it. Having a system that works for you to review what you have committed to memory is an important part of keeping it in your memory. One way is after you have reviewed a passage of scripture daily and memorized it, revisit it once a week for about a month, then begin to revisit it once a month to make sure it sticks!
Ask the Holy Spirit for help
These tips can be really helpful, but the best tip I can give you as you work on memorization is to ask the Holy Spirit to let the word of God dwell deep inside of you. Ask for the labor of memorization to create a deep love for Him in your heart that will guide you into all truth.
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I hope you enjoyed this post! I’ve been pushing myself to publish more faith-based content despite the 78 different reasons my brain and fear tries to hold me back from doing so. I shared a little bit of that fear in last week’s instagram caption (introducing last week’s post on prayer) but the gist of it is that I feel unqualified. But I feel just as passionate – as I do unqualified – about sharing and continuing to talk about my faith because I think it’s important. I’m sure it might seem strange to occasionally stumble upon faith content on a lifestyle blog, but I feel like I’d be keeping the “good stuff” from a good friend if I didn’t share or talk about these things.
I’m in such a unique job where my personal and professional life are so intertwined that I would feel amiss if I didn’t use my platform to talk about what matters most. My mission is to “Brighton” your life (or day) by helping you feel better about yourself so that you can in turn be empowered to go out into the world and share your gifts and love and passions with others. But the truth is, we can’t live from one “bright” (inspired) moment to the next, can we? There must be something stronger that sustains us – a foundation that keeps us grounded. And I believe the only foundation we can rely on is that of the gospel of Jesus Christ – the true source of the BRIGHTEST light.
I have no intention of becoming a bible teacher or turning BTD into a ministry, but like I said, I’ve been more intentional about *consistently* weaving faith into my content. It just feels *right* (or honest, rather) to use this platform to talk about the thing that keeps me going when everything else in the world lets me down. Because that’s the thing, everything else WILL let you down – it’s only a matter of time. I don’t mean to be negative – it’s just the hard truth.
Anyway, I’m thankful for those of you that encourage me in this endeavor, but I also know that it’s not for everyone – and that’s okay! I hope you’ll stick around regardless. Have a blessed day, team BTD!
