Sisters in Scripture Verse Twenty

Woo hoo!  You did it!  We did it!  Hallelujah!  Sisters, let's take a moment and thank our loving Father for helping us on this journey.

Father, we praise you Lord for Your love, Your care, and for Your Word.  We thank you for calling us to this challenge and walking with us on this journey.  We know it is Your equipping and Your Spirit that has kept us faithful.  We pray that all of our efforts have been to Your Glory!  We love You and pray always through Jesus.  Amen.

Sisters, it's time to celebrate!  I know that there are some of you that have been memorizing but not registering your verses on the blog each month.  That's okay - it counts too.  My hope is that you're reading this though...need to reach those Sisters somehow.  So, whether or not you've registered your verses each month or not, please plan to join us for a reception in January to commemorate this fantastic journey.  The details of that reception will be finalized in the next few weeks so come back to the blog on January 1 for an announcement with all the information.

But, wait...still need to post our 20th verse!  Here's mine.

Julie, "The Lord will protect your coming and going both now and forever." Psalm 121:8

Merry Christmas Sisters!

Sisters in Scripture Verse Nineteen

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!  As we approach our goal, I have a brief article to share from Rick Warren on the importance of memorizing Scripture.  It's a convicting article that stresses this spiritual discipline as necessary for spiritual maturity.  I've included it below.

Sisters, we are so close to the finish line!  I know you've worked so hard on this thing and we can be assured that God will bless your efforts.  Give yourself a smile :)  You've done good!

Here's my 19th (wow!!!) verse:

Julie, "The Lord will protect you from all harm; He will protect your life."  Psalm 121:7

Now, it's your turn!

“Whoever looks intently into the perfect law … and continues in it — not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it — they will be blessed in what they do.” (James 1:25 NIV)

If you’re serious about being spiritually strong and mature, the greatest habit you can develop is memorizing Scripture. In fact, the Bible says in James 1:25 that it’s one of four habits that leads to a blessed life: “Whoever looks intently into the perfect law … and continues in it — not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it — they will be blessed in what they do” (NIV).

• Read your Bible. “Whoever looks intently …”
• Review the Bible. “… continues in it …”
• Remember the Bible. “… not forgetting what they have heard …”
• Respond to the Bible. “ … but doing it …”

You don’t want to be a spiritual baby anymore. It’s time to grow up and live the blessed life you’re meant to live. Hiding God’s Word in your heart is an important way to start.

You may not think you have a good memory, but you remember what’s important to you. You remember the phone numbers and dates that you care about. I’ve heard people say they can’t memorize anything, but they can quote songs from the 1960s and rattle off the statistics of their favorite baseball players.

Memory is a skill you can learn. It’s a muscle you can strengthen. In fact, memorizing Scripture will cause your brain to have a stronger memory in other areas. I guarantee it. Study after study has shown this.

Why is it important to memorize Scripture?

• You’ll always have God’s Word with you. When you’re tempted, you don’t have a Bible open or by your side. When you’re witnessing to someone who doesn’t know Jesus, is under stress, needs comfort, or is in a crisis, there’s usually not a Bible around. You need God’s Word in your mind so you can remember it and review it right when you need it.

• You can meditate on Scripture wherever you go. You can’t review God’s Word unless you remember it. If you’ve memorized Scripture, you can think about it when you get into bed at night or as you drive to an appointment. You can think about the Bible because you’ve memorized it. That’s called meditation. The only promise of prosperity and success that God gives us in the Bible says that meditating on his Word is the key (Joshua 1:8).

Start memorizing Scripture today. Pick a verse a week. In a year, you’ll have memorized 52 verses. In two years, you’ll have memorized more than 100 verses.

Talk It Over

• What changes do you need to make so that you are regularly reading and studying the Bible?
• You already know the ways you learn and memorize best. What tools, tactics, or people can help you memorize Scripture?
• How do you respond when God brings Scripture to mind in certain situations? How should you respond?

Sisters in Scripture Verse Eighteen

I did it again.  Sorry for the delay in getting my post up.  I am so excited to reach this number...we are so close to 20 Scriptures in 2014!  Praise God for His faithfulness in seeing us this far.  He will take us to the finish if we just lean on Him.  I'm praying that He helps us all find time in our busy lives to practice our verses and then to provide ways for us to share them.  Praying we follow Psalm 96:3,  "Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples."

Julie, "The sun will not strike you by day or the moon at night."  Psalm 121:6  HCSB

Happy Thanksgiving Sisters!

Sisters in Scripture Verse Seventeen

Only three more scriptures and we will have met our goal!  However, if you're like me, anticipating the quickened pace of the holiday season gives me reason to be concerned about staying on track with this challenge and making sure I make the time to practice.

Sisters, we can be sure that our Heavenly Father is rooting for us to have a strong finish and will give us exactly what we need to stay strong with this challenge.  "And my God will supply your every need according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus."

I hope this video testimony brings you encouragement!

My seventeenth verse:

Julie, "The Lord protects you; the Lord is a shelter right by your side."  Psalms 121:5

Your turn!

Sisters in Scripture Verse Sixteen

Sisters, my apologies!  If you came to the blog yesterday to post, you noticed that I hadn't blogged yet.  I thought about it several times yesterday, but was not able to carve out enough time to get over here.  Again, I'm sorry.  

It's the middle of the month though so let's proceed with our next verse.

Julie, "Indeed, the Protector of Israel does not slumber or sleep."  Psalm 121:4 HCSB

Keep at this Sisters!  I know how tough it is to fit in practice time each day or even a couple times a week, but we're so close to a very worthwhile goal.  Within a very short amount of time, we will be equipped with 20 Scriptures from God's Word - embedded, stored, and rooted down deep in our hearts.  No one can take that from us!  Keep on!

Sisters in Scripture Verse Fifteen

Good morning Sisters!  

Yesterday in the women's Bible study I'm participating in, Beth Moore spoke to the issue of spiritual maturity and shared a verse from Colossians. Paul is encouraging the Colossians and letting them know that he has been praying for them to, "be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God."  Colossians 1:9-10

Convicting! Aren't these the very reasons why we're participating in this challenge? Seeking God's will, seeking spiritual wisdom and understanding, seeking to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, seeking to please Him fully, seeking to bear fruit in every good work, and seeking to increase in the knowledge of God. Yes! Not on our own effort but through the strength, power, and leading of the Holy Spirit. Praise God for what's possible through Him!

So, onward we go! Here's my 15th scripture:

Julie, "He will not allow your foot to slip; your Protector will not slumber." Psalm 121:3

Your turn - see you back here on October 15.  

Sisters in Scripture Verse Fourteen

God is good! I have a testimony from one of the Sisters in Scripture that I am so excited to share with you about how God is using this memorization challenge to touch other people's lives. This is from Nancy B. and I hope this encourages you, as it did me, to keep working on those verses!

"I do want to share how Sisters in Scripture has been an incredible blessing in my life.  I always have had a few "go to" scriptures that helped me in personal struggles and even had little prayer cards in my purse to access.  I would occasionally give copies of those cards to family, friends, or clients (in my work as a psychotherapist) when the scripture seemed applicable to their struggles. 

With our Sisters in Scripture practice, I feel God has led me to the scriptures I need to rely on now and that will be a blessing to others in my life. 

I do know that God is source of all my earthly work, but with the new scriptures, I feel that God has led me to share, more frequently, directly from his word, especially with my therapy clients. I do not work for an organization that directly offers Christian based counseling but God quickly shows me which are Christians and/or which are open to faith-based supports - and that sure makes my work easier knowing what foundation they are working from.

My practice with the scripture verses is to keep a running Word document that I add each verse to and print out several copies.  I keep a copy or two in my purse and others elsewhere to help with memorization. However, I have been freely giving these away to my clients in certain situations when a verse is just what was needed.  For example, I had one client struggle with resentments toward an individual and planned to approach them in anger.  We looked at Peter 3: 9-10 about "do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult ..."  She immediately felt a great sense of peace about the situation and planned to stay quiet or approach the individual with love and compassion.  Over the phone I was able to support one client, through God's word, "Wait for The Lord, be strong and take heart and wait for The Lord." (Psalm 27:14)  Several clients expressed a desire to strengthen their daily spirituality and connection to their faith and I suggested memorization of Bible verses and gave them copies of my list as a starter. One young man has it posted on his computer at work!  How awesome is that!"

If you have a testimony you'd like to share, email it to me and I would be happy to post it. It's a blessing to read of how God is working in all of our lives.  

My 14th verse (wow!)

Julie, "My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth."  Psalm 121:2 HCSB

See you back here on October 1st!

Sisters in Scripture Verse Thirteen

I am linking another blog post about the value of memorizing scripture - read it here.  This guy is a bit edgier with his approach but is he very passionate about memorizing scripture!  I found this part to be especially convicting.

Wisdom

Since the Word is a “lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105), it contains the precepts for wise living and is capable of directing one’s decisions. People make decisions every day, often with little time to contemplate various choices. The Word in one’s heart can be used by God to more easily direct those decisions so he does not lean on his own understanding (Proverbs 3:5-6)

I often pray for wisdom and as I read that paragraph, it was a great reminder that I have a book of wisdom always available to me.  How helpful it will be to have more of it stored in my mind and heart!  

Here's my 13th verse.  I've decided to memorize Psalm 121.

Julie, "I lift my eyes towards the mountains.  Where will my help come from?"  Psalms 121:1 HCSB

Now it's your turn.  See you on September 15.

Sisters in Scripture Verse Twelve

Hello Sisters. What a beautiful morning...even though it was pretty chilly for this wimpy girl when I first woke up. Tonight is supposed to be even colder - a low of 47. Fall is coming but we still have plenty sunshine to enjoy in these last few weeks of summer.

I read this article recently on the benefits of memorizing passages rather than individual Scriptures.  It's given me something to consider going forward. Maybe for next year's challenge, instead of 20 or 24 verses in 2015, we'll aim for memorizing five of the Psalms, or chapters 1, 8 and 12 in Romans, or something similar to that. What do you think? I'd love your feedback. Please include your comments at the end of your post after your verse.

My verse #12:

Julie, "For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked leads to ruin."  Psalms 1:6 HCSB

See you back here on September 1. Stay strong with this challenge - you're doing great!

Sisters in Scripture Verse Eleven

This summer, I'm doing Priscilla Shirer's study, "Discerning the Voice of God." It's fantastic and I've been led to many new truths about the work of the Holy Spirit in my life. So, while doing last week's homework, something Priscilla said struck a cord with me regarding this blog. For those of you also doing this study, I'm pulling from the bottom of page 59.

She writes, "The more Scripture you have hidden in your heart, the more opportunity He will have to bring it to your mind and direct you. Our goal should be to saturate ourselves in His Word."

There is nothing but blessing attached to what we are doing! Yes, it's hard work. Memorizing Scripture is so easy....said no one...ever. But, keep at it. He will use our effort to reward us beyond what we can imagine.

Here's my eleven verse.

Julie, "Therefore the wicked will not survive the judgement, and sinners will not be in the community of the righteous."  Psalms 1:5  HCSB

Your turn. See you back on August 15th!

Sisters in Scripture Verse Ten (yes, 10!!!)

We're doing this thing!  We're halfway there.  Woo hoo!  Take a moment and appreciate the time and energy you've put into this worthy effort.  Let's all thank the Lord for seeing us this far and trust Him to see us all the way to the finish line!

I came across this list of tips from a blog post on the internet:

10 Practical tips to Help You Memorize Scripture:

1. Memorize the Word of God in community.

With a small group or with the larger congregation, memorizing scripture as a community is a powerful way to learn the Bible together through purusing mutual goals with accountability. Push each other to memorize  the Word of God more.  This is one way to live out Proverbs 27:17, “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.”

I couldn't help but think about the Sisters in Scripture :)  We do have a mutual goal - more of God's Word in our hearts and minds.  Ladies, keep it up.  You're doing great!

Click here if you want to read the entire blog post with all the tips.

I'm continuing on with memorizing Psalms 1 for my tenth verse.

Julie, "The wicked are not like this; instead, they are like chaff that the wind blows away."  Psalms 1:4 HCSB

I'll see you back on August 1st. 

Sisters in Scripture Verse Nine

Well, this hasn't happened before!  Blew right past the first of the month without even a thought to my next blog post.  I even had a conversation about the blog at Bible study on the evening before the post was due.  My apologies Sisters!  I guess the busyness of summer is my only excuse...but not a good one.  Again, sorry!

I do want to share something important.  The conversation I had at Bible study Tuesday night, referenced above, confirmed to me, once again, why memorizing scripture is so important.  Several of the Sisters in Scripture also participate in this Bible study and one of them told us of a time in which she was able to share one of her memorized verses with someone as a source of comfort.  Then, a bit later in the night during the small group discussion, she was able to refer to a different verse to answer a question that came up.

Sisters, what we're doing here will certainly bless us . . . but not only us.  With God's help, we are equipping ourselves to be prepared to serve and support those we come in contact with.  This is a mighty thing we're doing here.  The hard work you're putting into memorizing these verses will bear fruit!  Stay committed and transform your life and the lives of others!

Okay, time for our verses.  I'm continuing on with memorizing Psalm 1

Julie, "He is like a tree planted beside streams of water that bears its fruit in season and whose leaf does not whither.  Whatever he does prospers."  Psalm 1:3  HCSB

Your turn!  Stay with this . . . don't even think about quitting.  You've got this!

Sisters in Scripture Verse Eight

Happy Father's Day to the fathers in your lives!  My own dad has been gone for 10 years and yet, there are still times that I suddenly move to pick up the phone to call him to share some experience that I know he'd enjoy hearing about.  I miss him.  He's gone but his influence in my life has had an eternal impact as he raised me to know and love God.  I am so thankful!

Here's my eighth verse (wow, almost half way there ladies!)  I'm continuing on with memorizing Psalm 1.

Julie, "Instead, his delight is in the Lord's instruction, and he meditates on it day and night." Psalm 1:2 HCSB

Keep praying for God's help with this and keep pressing on!

Sisters in Scripture Verse Seven


Welcome everyone!  My goal for this post is to inspire and encourage.  The best way I can think to do that is to share some videos of women, just like you and I, accomplishing the same goals we're working towards.

The first one is from a someone who took part in Beth Moore's memorization challenge in 2011.  Beth calls the women who follow her blog, "Siestas" so the name of her challenge is the Siesta Scripture Memorization.  In 2011, they committed to memorize 24 verses - two a month.  You'll hear this gal report that at the beginning of 2011, there were 10,000 women signed up to be a part of the challenge.  However by the end of the year, there were only 1,000 still doing it.  Wow!  That's quite a drop off and just supports what we already know...memorization is a tough task.  But, Sisters, there were 1,000 who did it and let's focus on that.

Another gal took part in Beth Moore's Bible study, "James," and took on the challenge of memorizing the entire book!  That's five chapters and 108 verses!  Sure helps to make our goal of 20 this year seem doable, doesn't it?!  Here she is, reciting the entire book.

Sisters, we can do this!  Pray for God's help.  Get specific - ask Him to help you find the 10 minutes each day you need to review them.  Ask Him to help you commit these verses to your heart.  Ask Him to give you the power to remember them.  He desires for us to know His Word and promises to bless us when we obey Him.  Stay determined Sisters in Scriptures!

And now, onto my seventh verse.  I've decided to memorize Psalm 1 this summer along with my children so I'm kicking that off with the first verse.

Julie, "How happy is the man who does not follow the advice of the wicked or take the path of sinners or join a group of mockers."  Psalms 1:1  HCSB

Sisters, now it's your turn.  See you back on the 15th!

Sisters in Scripture Verse Six

I came across this quote by author David Murray I'd like to share.

"If we could memorize Scripture better, we would be able to recall God's Word to help us in our trials, we would be able to counsel and comfort others better, we would be able to pray more in line with God's revealed will, and we would be more effective witnesses and evangelists.  We're not short of motivation, are we!"

No, we aren't.  Yet, we struggle with memorizing Scripture because it's just plain hard to do.

I've done quite of bit of searching, as research for this blog, looking for tools that will help make this challenge as accessible as possible for all of us.  Here's a great list of how to incorporate memorization into our daily lives.  It's from a website called Fighter Verses.

Take advantage of already established routines.

1. Use meal times as a time to memorize.
2. Memorize while exercising—e.g., while riding a stationary bike, running, walking on a treadmill, etc.
3. While washing dishes, folding clothes, dusting, snow shoveling, mowing the lawn, or performing various other household chores, you can be memorizing.
4. Memorize while walking the dog.
5. How about memorizing while showering? Write the verses on a piece of plastic (an old tablecloth, or clear plastic from the hardware store) using a permanent marker. If people can sing in the shower, why not say verses aloud in the shower?
6. Work memorizing into your profession. For example:
   

   —We know a person who hangs sheetrock for his profession. He tapes the verses on the wall and memorizes as he works.
   
   —A painter can put the verse card by his paint tray. Every time he puts paint on his roller, he can say the verse.
   
   —A mail carrier can carry the verses in a pocket or attach them to the mail bag and memorize while walking.
   
   —_______________ (Fill in the blank. How will it work in your profession?)

7. Memorize while driving—by listening to the Fighter Verses songs, or using the Review CDs.
8. If you ride the bus to work, memorize on the bus.
9. Memorize each morning while you shave or brush your teeth.
10. Use your break times or lunch time to memorize at work.
11. Memorize in your small group.

Keep the verses handy.

If your verses “travel with you,” you will discover all kinds of opportunities to memorize. One of the easiest ways to memorize is to say the verses repeatedly OUT LOUD.
1. Families can use time in the car to memorize. Keep a verse set in your car so it is always available.
2. We all spend a fair amount of time in the bathroom—have a set of verses handy.
3. Keep your verses with you (in your purse, briefcase, pocket, etc.) so you can take advantage of
   unexpected moments such as: waiting for an appointment, at a red light, waiting in a store
   checkout line, pumping gas, waiting for the bus, etc.

Now, onto my sixth verse.

Julie, "Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins." I Peter 4:8 NASB

Now it's your turn.  Keep on with this!  Don't even think about quitting - you can do it.  We can do it together.  

Sister in Scripture Verse Five

My apologies for posting so late in the day! I try to post nice and early to allow you early birds to get your verse posted before getting busy with your day. . . well, I got busy with my day right from the start and almost forgot to post. Sorry about that.

We have four verses behind us and I hope you've found a way to spend a bit of time each day reviewing your verses. It's tough to form new habits, isn't it?! Here's a great video from John Piper about how NOT to forget Scripture you've memorized. Check it out here.

I want to share some non-blog related news too. Beth Moore just released her newest Bible study called, "Children of the Day." It's a study of 1st and 2nd Thessalonians. This fall, we'll be offering this study to the women in our community on both Tuesday mornings and Sunday evenings at New Community Church. We're so excited about this! To learn more about this study, you can view her promotional videos found here. 

Ladies, without further ado, let's get to our verses. I've chosen another Scripture from Romans and one I admit to already having partially memorized.

Julie, "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by His grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus."  Romans 3:23-24  ESV

I'm choosing it because though I know the first half well, it's the second half that holds all the joy we have in Christ Jesus! I need verse 24!

So, now Ladies, it's your turn. Keep up the hard work - it's worth it!

Sisters in Scripture Verse Four

Time for verse four - wow! We're zooming along with this. Keep up the good work, Sisters!

This is the second time the blog post for our Scriptures has fallen on my morning Bible study day...makes my morning rather busy. So, I need to be brief. 

My prayers leading up to this week have been for God to help me reflect on the events of Holy Week or Passion Week as some churches refer to it. All the events, not just Sunday.

I want to share with you some of the resources I found to help me reflect on this most important week.  

http://www.willowcreek.org/holy-week-devotionals

http://www.aholyexperience.com

http://www.lifeway.com/Article/devotionals-easter-2012-only-through-jesus

Now, onto my fourth verse. One day, I hope to memorize several chapters of the book of Romans as it’s my favorite book in the New Testament. But for now, I’ll just be memorizing one verse.

Romans 5:8 “but God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Ladies, keep up the memorizing and meditating on God’s Word. It will produce a rich harvest! 

Looking ahead - a treat for you here for Resurrection Sunday. I love this video!

Okay Sisters, let’s have it….your fourth verse!

Happy Easter!

Sisters in Scripture Verse Three

Happy April 1^st (or April Fool’s Day)!  It’s no joke…it’s time to post another Scripture in our challenge.

This past Sunday, Pastor Hollis, while speaking on 1st Peter, spoke directly to the importance of knowing God’s Word.  He said that in order to prevent sin from taking root in our lives, we need a buffer.  God gives us two resources to use as that buffer – His Spirit and His Word. 

Ladies, if you’re a believer, you have His Spirit.  Now, we need to fill up our hearts with His Word so there’s room for nothing else  - memorizing Scripture does just that. 

This challenge is worth our time and effort!  We need God’s Word available to us to help us battle anything that comes our way.  These verses speak about the importance and value of filling our hearts will His Word. 

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

Colossians 3:16 “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” ESV 

James 1:21 “So get rid of all uncleanness and the rampant growth of wickedness, and in a humble spirit, receive and welcome the Word which implanted and rooted contains the power to save your souls.” AB

If you are new to the blog, welcome!  Look back to the March 15^th post for instructions on how to join us.  We’d love to have you be a part of this challenge.

My verse for April 1^st is one that I used to have memorized several years ago but sadly, I didn’t retain it.  I needed it during a particularly dark period of my life and I’m excited to commit it to memory again...this time for good.

Julie, “Have I not commanded you?  Be strong and courageous.  Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”  Joshua 1:9 NIV

Sisters, keep up the good work! 

Sisters in Scripture Verse Two

Welcome back!  It's the 15th of the month so you know what that means. . . time to post your second verse!  Before I post mine, I thought it might be helpful to share more tips on memorizing scripture.  This article also has some great information on resources available to help with the process.  Read the article here.

Let's quickly review how you participate in this challenge:

1. Choose your Scripture to memorize.  If you're struggling with this, feel free to choose one from the verses posted by your Sisters in Scripture in the "comments" section of the March 1st post.

2. Go to the green bar at the bottom of this post and click on "comments."  A box should appear for you to write you verse in and then, click the blue "Publish" button.

3. You must comment from a computer as the blog does not currently accept comments from any mobile device, including tablets.  If you don't have access to a computer, email me your verse and I'd happy to post it for you.

If you are new to the blog and would like to be a part of this challenge, you'll need to post two verses in March to keep up with the commitment to memorize 20 verses in 2014.  So, all you need to do is go back to the March 1st post titled, "Sisters in Scripture Verse One" and add your first verse to the "comments" section there.  Then, add your second verse to the "comments" section at the end of this post.  We would recommend choosing two shorter verses for this month if you are just joining us.

Sisters, please know that we are praying for you to be successful at this.  We do not take your commitment lightly and we stand beside you in prayer trusting God to keep us strong in this endeavor.  There is power in God's Word and the more we have of it in our hearts and minds, the easier it will be to access that power when we need it.  And, we do need it!  

Okay, here's my second verse:

Julie, "You are My witnesses," declares the Lord, "And My servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe Me and understand that I am He.  Before Me there was no God formed, and there will be none after Me." Isaiah 43:10 NASB 

I love this verse and I'm excited to commit it to memory.  Isn't it a comfort to know that there is only one true God, and it is Him and only Him that is in control of everything?  There is nothing like the power of God!

Okay Sisters, it's your turn.  Share your Scripture and get busy memorizing!  See you again on April 1.

Sisters in Scripture Verse One

Welcome Sisters!  We are so glad you’re here.  Let’s get this challenge started. 

There are many wonderful resources on the web that provide encouragement and also solid advice for memorizing scripture.  Before I share my verse, I want to offer two different posts that I hope you’ll find helpful. 

The first is list of six tips from someone who participated in Beth Moore’s scripture memorization last year.  Read it here.

The second is a rather lengthy interview with Janet Pope on the Revive our Hearts website.  While it is long, it is well worth your time.  This inspirational woman found a way to incorporate scripture memorization into her busy life in practical ways.  Read about Janet here.

Okay, here we go.  I’ll share my first verse and how I chose it.  Last year, I participated in Beth Moore’s Bible study on the Book of James.  Beth challenged each person in the study to consider memorizing the entire book - all five chapters.  I only got as far as verse seven in the second chapter.  I’ve decided to pick back up where I stopped and begin our 2014 challenge there.  So, here’s my entry:

Julie Boynton, “If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right.” James 2:8 NIV

Now, it’s your turn.  Please post your name, verse, and translation by clicking on "Comments" below in the green bar at the end of this post.  Then, start memorizing. 

Check back periodically for updates and to read the verses your fellow Sisters are meditating on.  What a source of inspiration that will be!

I’ll see you back here on March 15^th  for our second verse.

Ladies, we stand shoulder-to-shoulder as Sisters who hope to saturate our lives with the living Word of God.  May God bless you and your commitment to seek Him through His Word.

Welcome!

We are so excited that you’re here and interested in taking on this challenge!  Scripture memorization is an important spiritual discipline yet so many of us struggle to incorporate it into our lives.  Women’s Ministry at New Community Church (NCC) wants to help make it a priority for this year.  Here are some things for you to consider as we move toward the kickoff of this challenge!

We’re doing this as a team! We are Sisters in Scripture after all!  That’s the point of this blog . . . to create a community that exists to support and inspire one another and hold each other accountable during this challenge. 

We’re going to do everything we can to help you be successful at this.  Each month we will be posting various articles and videos from trusted Bible teachers, from “How to choose a verse to memorize” to “How not to forget what you’ve already memorized.”  We’ll also give you as many memory tips as we can!  Most importantly, we’ll be praying for each one of you who signs up.  You won’t be alone in this endeavor.

Know someone who needs God’s word in their hearts?  We do too!  Consider inviting your friends and family to join us.  This challenge is for all women who want more of God’s word in their hearts and minds.

We sure hope you’ll give it a try even if you’re worried about not being able to stick with it.  Each one of us can probably admit to starting some new wonderful resolution or habit and not following through with it—the busyness of life happens to all of us!  Don’t allow the past to stop you.

So, what exactly is the challenge?

We are committing to memorize two scripture verses every month.  Each one of you will choose your own verse and the translation you use.  You’re welcome to use the verse we post or one of the verses the other women choose.

How exactly do you participate?

Beginning on March 1, visit the blog on the 1^st and 15^th of every month through December 2014 and post in the comments section: your name, scripture, and translation.  

For example, your post may look like this:  Julie, “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer,”  English Standard Version (ESV)

That’s all you need to do to be a part of this challenge. 

We’ll post a link to this blog on the Women’s Ministry page on the NCC church website.  We’ll also post links to all updates on the New Community Church Women's Ministries page on Facebook.  

Look for a new blog post on February 15 with suggestions about choosing verses to memorize.

Still unsure whether or not you should participate in this challenge?  
Well, consider some thoughts compiled by pastor and author John Piper in this excellent blog post on scripture memorization here.

Ladies, we know that God wants us all meditating on His word.  He is so faithful too and will give us what we need to get this done!  Won’t you join us in committing to 20 verses in 2014?

Coming soon…check back on Sunday, February 9th, for more information about the scripture memorization challenge!