Step 4--Index Card Notebook

When memorizing Bible verses, try writing them in a 3" x 5" spiral-bound, index-card notebook. They stay together and are handy for review. It will give you a real sense of accomplishment to see your memory verse library building up on the bookshelf.

Jesus said, "It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God." Luke 4:4

Procrastinate No Longer!

Whatever your age, you can benefit from memorizing scripture. It may take a bit longer to learn and retain a verse if you´re older, but with steady effort you will have several verses in just a few weeks that you can recall on demand. For us seniors, an added benefit is that our memory verses can also serve as a sleep aid. Much better than counting sheep!

"I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches." Psalm 63:6

Downloadable Online Studies

"Back To The Bible" offers five downloadable Bible studies online. Each guide is free; all you have to do is spend time in the Word: 1."Getting to Heaven From Here"; 2."Making the Most of Your Christian Life"; 3.A Life That´s Real"; 4."Understanding Your Bible"; and 5."Galatians: Experiencing Freedom" The web address is https://www.backtothebible.org/knowgod.

Radio Ministry No. 1

There are several Bible studies available through radio programs. One is "Turning Point." Listen to Dr. David Jeremiah via daily radio broadcasts or online. Dr. David Jeremiah is the senior pastor of Shadow Mountain Community Church in El Cajon, California, and Chancellor of Christian Heritage College. He has authored many books, including Christians Have Stress Too, Prayer - The Great Adventure, Facing the Giants of Your Life, and Invasions of Other Gods. His radio broadcast, “Turning Point,” is heard on more than 900 radio outlets. The current radio broadcast series and several weeks of archived broadcasts are available to listen to online at https://www.turningpointonline.net (Spanish at www.momentodecisivo.org)

Plan Outline

Here´s a good Bible Memorization Plan: 1.Choose a topic; 2. Find a verse and write it on a card; 3. Read the verse several times for meaning; 4. Set the verse aside until tomorrow; 5. Read the verse phrase by phrase, looking away from it as you begin to remember the words. Repeat several times; 6. Do this for five days in a row, or until you can remember the whole verse and its "address" (reference) without a prompt; 7. Use weekends to review memorized verses.

Knowledge Is Power

Memorizing scripture is the best defense/offence plan for spiritual warfare. When tempted by the devil in the wilderness, Jesus answered three times with, "It is written…." (Matt. 4:1-11) Satan also quoted scripture, but Jesus knew it was quoted out of context and gave the correct response. If we know the Bible well, we are less likely to yield to temptations.

"Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee." Psalm 119:11

Step 2--Choose a Topic

When memorizing scripture, choose Bible verses that will help you. If you worry, try Isaiah 26:3, "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee." To find a verse, first think of a key word. For example, for verses relating to mental or emotional stress, look up "mind" or "heart" in a concordance. Many Bibles include a concordance, though not all have good ones. Also, some Christian web sites, like www.Crosswalk.com and www.ChristiansUnite.com, have excellent concordances and other online resource materials.

Review To Retain

When memorizing scripture, you´ll need a review plan. This is vital in retaining what you have learned. At the beginning you will have only a few verses to review. In six months you will have many. If you use index cards, divide them into sections, about 5 in each. To keep the retention process ongoing, aggressively review one section per weekend, reading through the remaining ones only once or twice.

Step 3--Write It Down

Write a Bible verse you want to memorize on an index card, but don´t try to memorize it yet. Just enjoy it as a message from God to strengthen you at this time. Put it aside, perhaps in your Bible. Or tape it to the refrigerator or whereever you will see it often. By just reading it often, you will soon have it memorized!

"...I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches." Psalm 63:6

Step 5--Refresh Your Memory

Read daily the Bible verse you are memorizing; first, just to receive new strength for the day. Next, read it phrase-by-phrase several times until you can repeat some of it by memory when you look away from it. You will have it mostly memorized in a week or less!

"For precept must be upon precept...line upon line; here a little, and there a little: Isaiah 28:10

Step 6--Repeat the Process

One of the easiest ways to memorize scripture is to simply read it! Read it 25 times the first day, 20 the second, etc. Then review until you can recall it at will. I like to make a mark for each time read as I enjoy measuring my progress visually.

"...whatsoever things are true...honest...just...pure...lovely...of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." Phil.4:8

Useful Illustration on Why Memorize?

"There was a farmer, had a dog, and Bingo was" NOT "his name, oh!" It was Buttermilk. He also had another named Midnight. The cruel farmer would stage dog fights every few weeks and take bets on which would win, and he always came out with the highest winnings.

Many years later, the aged farmer expressed regret to a friend at how he had treated his dogs. When the friend asked how he´d always known which dog would win, he replied, "No mystery ´bout it. The winner was always the one I´d fed that morning. I´d let the other one do without a day before the fight."

The moral? Your spiritual battles will be won or lost today, depending on what you have been feeding your soul up until now.

"Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee." Psalm 119:11

Radio Ministry No. 2

An easy Bible study via radio is a program founded by the late Dr. J. Vernon McGee. "Thru The Bible" takes the listener through the entire Bible in 5 years. Notes and outlines are available without cost. This classic Bible study program has aired on stations in the U.S. since 1967. It´s now produced in over 80 languages around the world! Check the following website for a station near you that carries the program. You can also listen online: http://www.ttb.org.

Telling Truth From Error

Bank tellers are taught to discern counterfeit money by handling real money. It is the same with God´s word. Read it regularly, study it, and memorize it. You will able to discern spiritual error because you are familiar with the truth.

"Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." 2 Tim. 2:15

Correspondence

You can earn a seminary degree at home, Associate through Ph.D, through several Christian colleges that offer correspondence courses. One of these is Christian Bible College, Rocky Mount, NC. The curriculum is designed to train men and women for Christian service. Pastors, Educators, Evangelists, Missionaries, Sunday School Teachers, as well as all adult born-again believers, (regardless of denominational affiliation) are welcome to enroll with C.B.C. Go to the web address to read CBC´s Statement of Faith, Boards and Associates. The web address is http://www.christianbiblecollege.org

Rotation Review

As you memorize scripture and your Bible verse cache increases, you may want to review the older ones less often, maybe monthly instead of weekly. As more accumulate, move those over to a three-month review plan. Put newer ones in the monthly cache. All this review is well worth the work! There is nothing more valuable than the peace of mind the Lord gives us through his Word.

Psalm 119:15-16, "I will meditate in thy precepts...I will delight myself in thy statutes: I will not forget thy word."

Local Church

A good Bible-believing church will offer Bible study classes for its members. Many local churches now offer one or two nights a week of Bible college classes. Smaller churches may not have such classes, but will have studies in Sunday School classes and mid-week Bible studies. Contact local churches to find out what they offer. Check newspapers, community bulletin boards, radio stations, etc. to learn of special seminars and retreats of interest within driving distance of your church.

Strength and Comfort

Memorizing scripture will help you through emotional hurdles. When emotional problems threatened to overwhelm me about 25 years ago, I looked to the Bible for help. I located several verses on the mind and emotions and began to learn them one by one. In a year, I had about 100 I could recall almost word perfect! Those verses have carried me through many troubled waters." -- Louise

"For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." 2 Tim. 1:7