The word “remember”
is found 168 times in the New American Standard Bible translation. One of the
first times is in reference to the rainbow that God put in the sky after Noah,
his family and all the animals left the ark. No more floods covering the entire
earth. What a promise! God wouldn’t wipe mankind off the face of the earth
again with a flood. We’ve had plenty of floods around the world—but none
totally encompassing the world at one time.
God wants us to
REMEMBER. To remember Him, His Laws, and His promises. When we study His Word
we need to remember what He has done. Is there any value in studying the Bible
if we don’t remember what we have studied? If we can’t apply it to our lives?
One way to remember
God’s Word is to memorize it. Your word I
have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against You. Psalm 119:11
NASB What does it mean to “treasure” God’s Word in my heart? One thought is to
keep it in your heart—to memorize it. That actually goes along with Matthew
6:21 …for where your treasure is, there
your heart will be also. NASB If you hold something dear, or treasure it,
that is where your focus will be. Is your focus on a sports game, on a novel,
on a TV show or old movie rerun, or on God’s Word? Consider where your time is
spent.
You may think that
memorizing is hard work—it is for me. As we get older it may seem harder to
memorize, but how many phone numbers and addresses have you memorized? Just
think of the “address” of a verse as the book and number reference. Memorize
that as well as the verse. Take just a few words at a time…and add to those
words every day until you have the entire verse memorized. I know people who
memorize entire chapters. Psalms are particularly beautiful when they are
memorized and recited. Very comforting and encouraging to those who hear them.
Psalms are also the basis for many songs. Committing scripture to music is a
great way to memorize it—sing it to the Lord, for He is worthy of your praise.
I think I’ll try that myself. How about you?
Lord, help us to hide Your word in our hearts
that we would remember it and use it to Your glory.
© 2012 by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved.
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