TODAY’S SIGNATURE VERSE ••• My son, if you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you, making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding; if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. (Proverbs 2:1-2,4-5 ESV)
PRAISE & PRAYER PROMPT ••• Remember how I told y’all that I stink at memorizing? A couple of weeks ago, my friend challenged me to start working with her on a verse a week. Unfortunately, before we got started, she had an unexpected death in her family and we haven’t revisited the topic. I’ve thought about it a few times but haven’t brought it up because mentally, I have set myself up to believe I won’t be good at it.
And then, yesterday, I had an ah-ha moment. I was typing a document and as I watched the letters on the monitor turn into words that turned into sentences that turned into paragraphs, I realized that I have memorized the whole keyboard. My fingers have long-since grown familiar with the placement of every letter and I rarely look at my hands when I type.
One could say it’s muscle memory. Maybe. At this point, that is pretty fair because honestly, if you handed me a blank keyboard and told me to place the letters, I’d struggle (except for QWERTY). But it wasn’t always muscle memory. At one time, I had to learn it.
And it finally clicked with me. It’s not that I’m bad at memorizing. I’ve convinced myself I can’t do it. And that attitude is holding me back.
Along with my ah-ha moment, I realized what a hypocrite I’ve been in using the “I stink at memorizing” excuse. After all, I’ve memorized locations without maps. I’ve memorized recipes. I’ve memorized song lyrics though I admit, I can’t sing along well or without the tune to get me going… I’ve even memorized lines of dialogue from “The Office” because my husband and I speak to each other in “Office” quotes sometimes…
I’ve sold myself short. Can you relate?
So why, when I love God’s Word, would I hesitate to try to memorize it? That’s the work of the enemy, plain and simple. Subtle and crafty, he put me in the “I can’t” mindset and he created doubt in my mind. He won for a while, but this war ain’t over…
(For those who’ve heard my lecture on “ain’t,” I concede that sometimes, it serves a purpose. Go back and re-read it in a sassy Southern accent so you’ll get the full impact of my rare use of this slang…)
This Carolina gal is ready to start memorizing! It may take me three times longer than most people, but if I can learn all this other stuff by heart, I can do this.
Amy and I had already agreed to start with Proverbs 2:1-2 and 4-5 which says, “My son, if you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you, making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding; if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.”
But before I search for it like silver, I need to find some Index cards and a Sharpie.
Today, as you pray, thank God for the ah-ha moments that give you fresh insight and perspective. Thank Him for the ways He reveals truth to you. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you believe that with Him—all things are possible… even the little things you’ve doubted about yourself.
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