"I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you." (Psalm 119:11, ESV)

"The law of his God is in his heart; his steps do not slip." (Psalm 37:31, ESV)

Internalizing Scripture and locking it into your memory is one of the surest ways to grow in holiness and in one’s capacity for a conversational relationship with God. If you want to consistently hear God’s voice in your life, memorize Scripture. Those who meditate on his law day and night, and delight in His word are promised blessing, wisdom, and fruitfulness (Psalm 1; Psalm 119:1, 97; Joshua 1:8). Memorizing Scripture is one of the greatest and most fruitful disciplines you can give yourself to. In particular, memorizing large sections of scripture, even entire chapters and books.

You might not think you can memorize large pieces of Scriptures. I want to remind you that Buddhists, Muslims, and Jews all memorize large amounts of their sacred texts, some even the entirety of their sacred texts. And, we believe we have the true Word of God, the authoritative and life-giving words of God. We believe the text we have been given is living and active and able to renew our minds and transform our lives. Our Lord Jesus memorized the Hebrew Scripture and has left us an example that we should as well. God’s Spirit will assist us in that endeavor, but we need a method that will help us get started and persevere in it.

Andrew Davis, in his booklet, “An Approach to Extended Memorization of Scripture,” gives a wonderful and helpful method that I am currently using to memorize a book in the New Testament. The method is simple and requires a few minutes a day.

THE METHOD

Day One: Memorize a verse (1:1)

Day Two: Recite yesterday’s verse (1:1) and learn the next verse (1:2)

Day Three: Recite yesterday's verse (1:2), recite all previous verses (1:1-2), and learn the next verse (1:3)

I encourage you to read this little booklet, which will give you a broader explanation of and motivation for the method. Then put this method into practice. Maybe even commit to memorizing a chapter or two from the book of Ephesians as we begin this next series, “Alive Together.”