I've always wanted to be the girl who had a million verses memorized and could whip them out at anytime. At one point, I wanted to have a whole book of the Bible memorized, but let's just say I never accomplished that goal. Because the truth is, it's hard! Memorizing anything at all is difficult, and the Bible especially.
But the thing is, when we have Scripture planted in our minds, easy to recall, our hearts begin to change. We are filled with so much peace and joy, because we are living our lives rooted in the ultimate truth. We find a new strength because we can lean on Scripture at any moment, especially when we're struggling the most. And we grow closer to the Father, because we learn to "tap into" His presence through Scripture. You see, memorizing Scripture can be so helpful in our faith and walk with the Lord, but we often get discouraged and overwhelmed by the idea of it.
Y'all, it doesn't have to be that way.
Recently, I've almost accidentally begun memorizing a few verses. I learned firsthand that memorizing Scripture doesn't have to be hard or complicated, especially when we go at it with a desire to truly know the Bible and "write it on your heart" (Proverbs 3:3-6).
The other day, the Lord placed Psalms 29:11 on my heart, and man, He spoke so clearly to me through that verse. It says,
"The Lord gives strength to His people; the Lord blesses His people with peace."
When I first read this verse, I instantly felt comforted. At the time, I was feeling incredibly overwhelmed with school and my busy schedule, but it was as if the Lord wanted to remind me that He will enable me to thrive and get everything done. Time and time again, this verse has encouraged me, and I want to carry that truth with me throughout each day.
So, I came back to this verse often. After a hard day at school, I'd head down to my room looking for this Scripture and the peace it brought to me. I began writing "29:11" on my thumb as a reminder of the truth God spoke to me. And before I knew it, I repeated and reread it so many times that I had the verse memorized.
Repetition, friends, is what I believe is the key to memorizing Scripture.
If you want to memorize Scripture, my biggest advice to you is to repeat it as many times as possible in multiple different ways. Speak it out loud over yourself and in prayer. Read it over and over again. Highlight it. Read different versions of it. Write it out for you to see throughout your day (or maybe on your finger, like I did!). The more times you repeat it, the easier it is to remember it, and then you'll quickly be able to memorize it.
I memorized that verse by accident simply because I was trying to fill my mind with Scripture. It wasn't complicated, difficult, or overwhelming. And it doesn't have to be for you either.
Step 1: Pick a verse.
As you pick a verse to memorize, here are a few tips I would recommend:
Keep it short. Especially if you're just beginning, pick a verse that's short and sweet. Don't immediately try to memorize an entire chapter of the Bible; just start small and you will be way less overwhelmed.
Find a connection with that verse. As you're picking a verse, it may be helpful for you to choose one that relates to whatever you're currently going through or a lesson that God has taught you recently. For me, this encouraged me to engage with the verse and made it easier for me to spend more time thinking about it.
Step 2: Fill your mind with it.
There's no special formula to memorizing a verse - just repetition, like I mentioned earlier! Here are a few practical ways to practice repeating the verse to memorize it:
Write it out on your mirror or somewhere you'll see it often.
Make it your lock screen.
Write the "verse coordinates" on your hand (ie: 29:11 for Psalms 29:11, 3:16 for John 3:16, etc).
Read it over and over again.
Tell a friend about it and how it encouraged you.
Talk to the Lord about it.
Find a song that references this verse or paraphrases it. (Or create a song yourself!)
No matter your background with the Bible, you can memorize Scripture! Each and every one of us can memorize Scripture, and when we do, we will see the incredible effects of filling our mind with the Word. If you've experienced a positive change in your mind or heart because of memorizing Scripture, let me know down in the comments below! I'd love to hear from you! Or, if you have a different tip for how to memorize a verse, drop that in the comments as well!
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