This blog article is written by a guest: the wonderful writer Cindy Matson. I came across Cindy’s blog, Bible Study Nerd, and found her articles on Scripture memory to be especially insightful. To my delight, when I reached out to see if she would write a guest post for Scripture Speakers, she said yes! And here is the fantastic article below. Thank you, Cindy!
What Good Is Memorizing Scripture Anyway?
Two things you need to know about me up front. First, as a kid I loved going to camp. It was the highlight of my year for more than a decade. Second, I’m as competitive as they come. So, when, as a teenager, I heard that if I memorized the whole book of James I could go to camp for free and earn $100, you can see how these two facts collided. Over the course of a few months, I sat on my bed, committing to memory all 108 verses of James. At camp that summer, I recited them all to my counselor and won the prize.
Though my motives were hardly pure as the driven snow, I learned that year that I could memorize a whole entire book of the Bible. It actually was possible! It would be several years before Scripture memory became a significant part of my everyday life; but that summer, the seed was planted.
Since then, I have memorized many more books and chapters of Scripture, and I have learned that hiding God’s Word in my heart has much more value than just a scholarship to camp or a cash prize.
Maybe you’re wondering what the big deal is about Scripture memory. It’s something great for kids, but why bother as an adult when your memory isn’t as keen as it used to be? Here are four reasons from my own experience that hiding God’s Word in your heart is well worth the effort.
Reason #1: Memorizing Scripture Changes Your Prayers
As Jesus addressed His disciples in the Upper Room, just a few hours before His arrest, He made this promise:
“If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. (Jhn 15:7)
Let’s not misunderstand this promise. Jesus is not telling us that if we memorize verses, He will reward us by giving us whatever we want. However, He is explaining the connection between Bible memory and our prayers. But it’s not a points/reward system.
Along with being competitive and loving camp, here’s a third fact about me. I’m a movie quoter. In fact, I have quoted certain lines from particular movies so many times that I’ve stopped thinking about them as movie quotes; they’ve just been assimilated into my personal lexicon.
Something similar happens when you hide God’s Word in your heart. The verses go in, and they begin to inform your words, just like movie quotes. Not only do they change your everyday speech, but they’ll also mold your prayers. And as your prayers are molded by Scripture, you will be praying according to God’s will. Here in John 15, Jesus promises that God answers prayers that are according to His will.
If your prayers are stuck at requests that all begin with “be with so-and-so,” try praying Scripture. As I have hidden God’s Word in my heart, I find it coming out more often in what I pray. Christ’s promise in John 15 gives me confidence that these prayers are the ones that God delights to answer.
Reason #2: Memorizing Scripture Helps You Interpret the Text
My favorite part of each day involves coffee, peanut butter toast, my open Bible, and colored pens. I love inductive Bible study, marking key words, asking questions, observing, interpreting, and applying. However, the books of the Bible that I understand the very best are the ones that I have taken time to memorize. While I realize that committing some books to memory may not be feasible, I contend that there is really no better way to get to know a passage than to memorize it.
This ought to make sense. What is memorization but just careful meditation? I have yet to hear of a memory strategy that doesn’t, in some way, involve repetition, whether you repeat the passage out loud in the shower or on a walk; or you repeat it by writing it out longhand or by typing it. In order to memorize, you have to repeat and review. Which means more repetition. Going over and over—and over and over—a passage of Scripture: that’s the definition of meditation.
This repeated wrestling with large chunks of Scripture will open your eyes to connections, themes, flow of thought, and meaning that you’d likely miss otherwise. Hiding God’s Word in your heart isn’t about passing a verse quiz or getting a prize. God’s Word itself is the prize; and, I promise, the deeper you go, the more delightful it will become.
Reason #3: Memorizing Scripture Helps You Take Your Thoughts Captive
I don’t know about yours, but my mind can be a terrifying place. My thoughts sometimes act like a runaway train, my emotions as the engine, barreling down the tracks headed straight for Crazy Town. In 2 Corinthians 10, Paul admonishes believers to “take every thought captive to obey Christ” (v. 5). This means we have to grab every thought by the collar and make it toe the line.
Did you catch that?
Every. Single. Thought.
Yikes.
How in the world could we possibly do that?
The short answer is by the grace of God through the power of the Holy Spirit. And one of the agents of the Holy Spirit is His Word.
I now live in Minnesota, and have for all of my adult life. However, I didn’t grow up in the upper-Midwest. I’m a born-and-bred western girl. So, when I came to the North, I often giggled to myself at the regional dialect of Minnesotans. While I still don’t make “hot dish” (it’s casserole!), and I certainly will never play “duck, duck, gray duck” (It’s duck, duck goose!), I have found myself sounding more and more like the people in the region where I now live. I’ve heard on more than one occasion that I “sound Minnesotan.” That’s how accents work. When you’re around one long enough, it will become part of your speech without your even realizing it.
The same is true when we allow God’s Word to abide in our hearts.
As we meditate on/memorize Scripture, our thoughts begin to have the “accent” of Scripture. Perhaps this is what the second half of Psalm 119:11 means:
Your word I have treasured in my heart,
That I may not sin against You.
Instead of dwelling on the thoughts of the world, take your thoughts captive by dwelling on the words of God Himself.
Reason #4: Memorizing Scripture Will Help You Grow Spiritually
Let’s go back to Jesus’ monologue in the Upper Room. As the disciples are slowly getting the picture that Jesus might not be with them much longer, the Teacher tells them this:
“But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and remind you of everything I have told you. (Jhn 14:26)
If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, you have been indwelt by the Holy Spirit, the fulfillment of Jesus’ promise not only to the disciples in the Upper Room that night, but to you and me as well. Certainly, this ministry of God is not limited only to people dedicated to Scripture memory. Thankfully, God’s grace is greater than that. The Holy Spirit may use any truth of His Word, whether through a podcast, sermon, book, or daily devotional time. However, I believe that as we memorize and meditate on God’s Word, we pour fuel on the Holy Spirit’s fire, giving more material for Him to work with. Who knows how a verse you memorize today could be used by the Spirit five, ten, or even fifty years from now. Memorizing Scripture creates conditions ripe for spiritual growth.
What started in my life as a way to get a monetary reward and a free week of camp, God has worked for His glory to change the way I think, pray, and even live. It’s not about getting a merit badge, impressing others, acing a test, or some other type of earthly recognition. All such incentives pale in comparison to the rewards God offers those who hide His Word in their hearts. Memorizing Scripture is worth the effort because it helps change your heart from the inside out.
But don’t take my word for it.
Try it for yourself.
Cindy Matson lives in a small Minnesota town with her husband, two children, and rambunctious black dog. In addition to writing, she enjoys teaching the Bible, coaching basketball, reading good books, and drinking coffee. You can find more of her writing at biblestudynerd.com.