When I was growing up, every Wednesday night was Pioneer Girls. My sisters and I would load up in the station wagon and off to church we would go. While my mom was upstairs at choir practice, we girls headed downstairs to our Pioneer Girls groups. We would spend the evening singing goofy songs, playing games, eating snacks, and working through a workbook of Bible lessons. But one of the main points of emphasis of the program was scripture memory. I was super motivated to memorize as many verses as possible, because for every verse you memorized, you got points. And every few months we had “Store Night.” We could use the points we earned to buy all kinds of things, and I just couldn’t wait until I saved up enough points to earn another music box for my collection. Those were just the best nights ever!

I’m so grateful for those Pioneer Girls days, because thanks to them I became familiar with God’s Word. But what about now? Now nobody is handing out prizes. Do I just stop worrying about memorizing Scripture? 

In this day and age when we have access to the Bible at our fingertips all the time, I wonder if we have gotten a little nonchalant about committing to knowing it. I can just look up a verse anytime I want – why bother to memorize it? Though technology is great, I miss the feeling of having to actually make an effort to get out my Bible and look up a passage. It feels like the easy accessibility has caused it to lose a bit of its specialness. I want to push against that!

In Deuteronomy 6, among other places, God commands us to commit His Word to memory.

 “Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds…” (verse 6). This alone should motivate me to work to memorize it. In his book The Blessings of Obedience, Jason Dexter gives more reasons why memorization of the Bible is important. 

• Jesus memorized it
• It equips us against temptation
• It helps us quickly identify false teaching
• It renews our minds and transforms our behavior
• It prepares us to give a defense of our beliefs
• It strengthens and encourages us during times of testing
• We can use it to help comfort others

I want all these things! No, nobody is rewarding me with toys and trinkets, but shouldn’t these things be an even better reward?

How often do I come across a verse or passage and think to myself, Wow, that’s really good. I should remember that, and then I go on and forget all about it? How many times does a verse from a sermon impact me and I think, That’s really helpful, and then I turn around and never think of it again?

What if I would take the time to write verses down, put them somewhere I can see them, and work on locking them into my brain? What if I would make use of my time when I am driving or trying to fall asleep or getting ready in the morning, by repeating verses until they stick in my head? This is something I want to work on this summer. 

God, your Word is such a gift. Help me to appreciate it by fixing it in my heart and mind.