september: reciting scripture
Psalm 119 Many of us have “church baggage” that includes memorizing Bible passages for prizes. I remember quickly cramming a scripture passage in my head, then sprinting to the church basement, spitting out the passage, collecting my Snickers bar, and scampering off. I do not remember a single scripture that I learned for Snickers bars. But I do remember the passages that became part of our family or worship life. There’s a difference between memorizing scripture and writing it on our hearts.
The Bible is full of exhortations to “meditate on God’s instructions” and to “write these words on your heart.” We aren’t told to do that to win a prize or a contest. Rather, the purpose is to form us. When we say these words over and over, when we mull them over and live them out and sing them, they begin to shape what we understand about who we are and who God is. They become words that resurface at key moments in our lives, drawing us back to God.
This month’s habit is meditating on scripture. For a young child, that really just means saying/singing it over and over and over! As your household says the scripture in different contexts, the passage will begin to take meaningful shape. And it will mean different things for each of you in your own journeys - scripture has a unique ability to meet us where we are!
The Bible is full of exhortations to “meditate on God’s instructions” and to “write these words on your heart.” We aren’t told to do that to win a prize or a contest. Rather, the purpose is to form us. When we say these words over and over, when we mull them over and live them out and sing them, they begin to shape what we understand about who we are and who God is. They become words that resurface at key moments in our lives, drawing us back to God.
This month’s habit is meditating on scripture. For a young child, that really just means saying/singing it over and over and over! As your household says the scripture in different contexts, the passage will begin to take meaningful shape. And it will mean different things for each of you in your own journeys - scripture has a unique ability to meet us where we are!
Read It Psalm 119:105
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.
Pray It
God, your word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. Thank you for the Bible. We want to be formed by your word. Amen
God, your word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. Thank you for the Bible. We want to be formed by your word. Amen
Do It - Psalm 119. This forever-long psalm is an acrostic!
Each of the 22 stanzas begins with the next letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Each stanza has eight different synonyms for God’s word - everything from “instructions” to “law” to “love.” So...do your own scripture acrostic. Beginning with the letter A, learn scripture passages that begin with each letter of the alphabet.
Each of the 22 stanzas begins with the next letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Each stanza has eight different synonyms for God’s word - everything from “instructions” to “law” to “love.” So...do your own scripture acrostic. Beginning with the letter A, learn scripture passages that begin with each letter of the alphabet.
- Choose your scripture. If you want a starting place, see the attached list - this is what our family used our first time through the alphabet. scripture_acrostic.docx
- Begin with “A.” Make a letter “A” and write the passage on it, and hang it somewhere prominent (our alphabet is in our dining room).
- Look at the context (the scripture that surrounds the passage). It’s important to know where this falls in scripture so that you don’t misuse it.
- If you’re inspired, do an activity with your new passage! We often read the story the passage came from, or practiced what it told us to do (“Make a joyful noise!”).
- Start saying the passage. Say it over and over, in different contexts and different ways. Sing it. Chant it. Pray it. Say it while playing and working. Say it until your household has it memorized. You may settle on a way of saying it - we ended up with chants, tunes, and dramatic readings.
- When your “A” verse is written on your hearts, move on to “B.” And so on… Some letters may take a week, and some may take a month - that’s okay!
- Review - at least once a week, go back over the alphabet so far.
Explore it: A Note from Tami
Sometimes I am amazed when I hear children saying or singing jingles and advertisements. How are they able to repeat them so expertly?! It most likely is because they have heard them repeated so many times. And they are presented in such a catchy manner. Our take-away is that we need to present scripture in a way that captures their attention and interest. Beyond that, we need to present scripture in meaningful ways if we expect children to imprint it in their hearts and minds for future use.
Following are a few sources you may find interesting:
8 Ways to Boost Memorization Skills While this focuses more on older children, some of the same principles apply to helping young children memorize.
Talashia and Daniel's family Acrostic verses
Sometimes ads for various things show up on links. We are not promoting these items. However, we’ve chosen to include these websites and blogs simply because finding sites without any links is difficult and the sites we select do have valuable content. Feel free to ignore the ads!
Sometimes I am amazed when I hear children saying or singing jingles and advertisements. How are they able to repeat them so expertly?! It most likely is because they have heard them repeated so many times. And they are presented in such a catchy manner. Our take-away is that we need to present scripture in a way that captures their attention and interest. Beyond that, we need to present scripture in meaningful ways if we expect children to imprint it in their hearts and minds for future use.
Following are a few sources you may find interesting:
8 Ways to Boost Memorization Skills While this focuses more on older children, some of the same principles apply to helping young children memorize.
Talashia and Daniel's family Acrostic verses
Sometimes ads for various things show up on links. We are not promoting these items. However, we’ve chosen to include these websites and blogs simply because finding sites without any links is difficult and the sites we select do have valuable content. Feel free to ignore the ads!
