Do you have trouble memorizing Scripture?

If you attend a Bible-believing church, you have probably heard many times how important it is to memorize God's Holy Word, and you may be like many believers who have tried but have eventually given up and now say that they are just not able to memorize. The fact is if you know your address and telephone number, you are able to memorize.

What factors can hinder us from memorizing?

First, we tend to focus more on the results than we do on the process. In this regard realize that God does not intend for scripture memory to be either easy or difficult; He only intends for it to be time consuming. We are encouraged to meditate therein day and night. The implication is that every spare moment should be spent in prayerfully pondering God's Holy Word. Don't focus on how quickly you can commit scripture to memory or how much you can recite. This will only lead to pride which is at cross purposes with the goal of scripture memory and meditation. The goal is that we be conformed to the image of Christ who is meek and lowly in heart. Someone may be able to memorize and recall scripture with impressive facility, but this does not necessarily produce godliness, unless that person consistently lets the word of Christ dwell in him richly in all wisdom as he goes about his daily walk. Another person may spend hours memorizing apparently without much to show for it, but if he delights in the little that he retains and meditates therein day and night, then he will have good success (Psalm 1 and Joshua 1:8.) One saint once complained that he tries to memorize scripture, but it is like water going through a sieve. The reply was made, that after a while, you are going to have a very clean sieve.

The second factor that hinders us is that we fail to provide enough variety in our memory projects. In this regard consider that the Bible is compared to food.

How is the Bible like food?

The Bible is compared to food in many passages. "Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O Lord God of Hosts." (Jer 15:16.) We like variety when we eat physical food and will generally have three or four or even more items at a single meal. Why do we then try to memorize a single passage at a time? We frequently start memorizing a passage and then get tired of it before we finish the project. In the meantime we notice another passage that we would like to work on, but we feel that for the sake of discipline, we must wait until we have finished the first passage before we can start another one. At this point we often get discouraged and conclude that we are just not able to memorize. However, if we were to put several passages on our plate at the same time, then we are far more likely to make scripture memory and meditation time consuming to the extent that God intended it to be. I recommend that you have four or more memory projects going simultaneously. That way a passage you are working on is less likely to become "stale", but if it does, don't give up, just give it a rest for a week or more, and it will have renewed "flavor" when you return to it, and in the mean time you can add other passages in its place. With this approach you may not get much scripture down in the first few days, but in the long run you will accomplish more. And don't forget, our goal is to have constant fellowship with Christ through his word, not merely to have a lot of chapters checked off of a list.

We should also use variety in the method and motivation for memorizing.

What is the best way to memorize scripture?

There are actually several good approaches. The best way is what works for you, but don't limit yourself, keep your interest up by varying your approach. Here are a few ideas. Use any or all of these, and be creative and come with your own also.

1. Write out the passage, leaving a wide margin on the left.

     (a) Put pictures in the margin to help spark your memory, or

     (b) Put the first letter of each word in the margin to help spark your memory.

2. If it is passage that you once knew but have forgotten, try writing just the first word of each verse or phrase as needed.

3. Another way to deal with a previously memorized but forgotten passage would be to begin reciting and only write the words or phrase at which you hesitate or stumble. Then try to recite it, using your sheet of paper. If you still have trouble, add more help to the paper. With further repetitions, gradually decrease your reliance on the paper until you can recite it from memory.

4. Always try to carry a memory project with you, and whenever you have a spare moment, work on it. This can turn the worst parts of the day (waiting in line at the grocery store, sitting and waiting the doctor's office...) into the best part of the day. You may even get a witnessing opportunity if someone asks what you are doing.

5. When working with children, a variety of sizes, shapes, and colors of paper can also help to gain and maintain their interest in a memory project.

6. Use forward Chain:

Memorize the first segment. Then memorize the second segment. Then recite the first and second segments together. Then add the third and so on.

7. Try "Reverse Chain" (Pairs or groups):

One person reads the entire verse over and over again. The listener(s) jump in and finish the verse whenever they are able. They are progressively able to jump in sooner and sooner until they can recite the verse from beginning to end.

8. Memorize using hand and body motions.

9. Put the passage to music.

10. Read a passage over and over again until you know it, or as preparation to memorizing it.

11. Use the passage for penmanship and/or typing practice. Repetition of the same words is a good technique for building fast and neat handwriting and fast accurate typing. In both cases the passage used will be memorized if enough repetitions are used while building these academic skills.

12. Analyze the passage, there may be a flow of thought, that once recognized, will aid in the memory process.

13. Text elimination:

Put the text on a dry erase or chalk board or on a computer screen. Read the passage, then erase a word. Read it again, this time filling in from memory the missing part. Keep reading and eliminating until the surface is blank and you can recite the whole passage without help.

14. Record the passage on audio tape, and listen to it while driving or doing household chores. This also works well for children who have not learned to read yet.

15. Non readers can also memorize using pictures and diagrams to remind them of the words.

What is the third reason we get discouraged from memorizing?

We also tend to get discourage because we get tired of the beginning of a passage before are able to complete the whole project. Many of us memorize verse one, then verse two, and then we add them together. Next we memorize verse three and add it to the first two and so on until the passage is completed. This often results in boredom with the first few verses before we are able to complete the task, and we may also get discouraged and give up. If we do hang in there and complete the passage, when go to recite it at a later date, we often find that we remember only the first few verses. The way to avoid this is to memorize evenly. Memorize the first verse, then the second, and third, and so on without combining them. Then go back to the first verse. You will probably have forgotten it, but when you rememorize it, it should come back quicker. On subsequent passes through the passage, you can try different methods of combining the verses, like one and two together, and three and four together, but still make sure that you keep even, so that the final verses get as much attention as the initial ones. Paragraphs five to eight verses long work the best with this approach.

How can I motivate my children to memorize?

1. Motivate by example: "A good man walketh in his integrity, and his children are blessed after him."

2. Use positive motivation:

Offer rewards and extra privileges for their efforts.
Have games and contests, but always set the child or group against a goal, not against each other. You want to build family harmony, not tear it down.

3. Use negative motivation: (Use sparingly)

One way we have done this is what I call the breakfast club. A passage of scripture is selected at the beginning of the week, and the child is not allowed to eat breakfast on Saturday morning until he recites the passage. Dad must also recite the passage before he eats, and dad should not eat until all children in the family have recited. This causes him to remain a protagonist throughout the project.
Negative motivation can also include punishment and withholding of privileges when a child does not honor his parents by memorizing scripture. One father asked his children to memorize a chapter of scripture as a present for the father's upcoming birthday. The children did not feel inclined to honor their father in this manner. The children's mother informed them, that they were grounded until the project was complete. Under these conditions one child memorized an entire chapter of scripture on the same day that the warning was given. Use negative motivation sparingly, but do remember that it is available if needed.

4. Combination of Positive and Negative Motivation:

Offer a reward, but also explain the consequences of disobedience.

5. Internal motivation:

This is the goal. You know that you have arrived at the desired result, when the child is memorizing on his own initiative with no promise of reward or threat of punishment from the parents.

One way to encourage this is to allow the child to pick his own passages of scripture to memorize. You could assign a project as follows:

Provide the child with a Bible, 3/5 cards, and a pen or pencil. Tell him to read the book of Romans and to write on the 3/5 cards any verse that he would like to memorize.

God also provides positive and negative motivation. He promises success to those meditate in scripture in Psalm 1 and Joshua 1:8, and He warns that His people "are destroyed for lack of knowledge" in Hosea 4:6.

Should I memorize alone or in groups?

Yes.

When is the best time to memorize?

Now! But why not also plan a Home Vacation Bible School. Declare a vacation from academic subjects for a specific period of time. Select several passages of varying lengths for the family to work on. Choose a variety of methods and motivational techniques. Spend the entire school day memorizing, reciting, discussing, and praying over the scripture.

"Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper." Psalm 1:1-3.