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 Devotional:
October 2007
Hiding God’s Word
As a child I memorized Scripture like crazy in
children’s programs and Christian school. As I got
older, I sort of dropped that habit, because there was
no prize for saying the most verses and no demerits for
not learning them! In recent years, though, I have
realized it is more important than ever to learn
Scripture. It is a key to victory in my life!
David said in Psalm 119:11, “Thy word have I hid in mine
heart, that I might not sin against thee.” But how in
the world can memorizing Scripture prevent sin in our
lives? That sounds way too simple.
Here’s how it works. We are born with a strong sin
nature in us. Romans 12:2 states that we are to be
transformed by the renewing of our minds. We need to
have our minds reprogrammed to God’s way of thinking.
How do we do that? By the Word of God!
It may seem like an impossibility to add memorizing
Scripture to your already busy schedule. But you can
start with one verse. Just pick a verse that applies to
your situation right now, work on memorizing it, and
then choose a time that you will quote it. It may be
while you are on your way to work, exercising, cooking
dinner, on your way to school or any time you think
about it. Before you know it, you will have several
verses memorized and they will cross your mind as
situations come up that those verses apply to. And it
will encourage you to learn more.
Let me share with you one way that I have applied this
in my life. Awhile back, I was getting ready to work
out and I was dreading it. So I decided to kill two
birds with one stone. I could renew my mind while
exercising my body. So as I kicked and punched my way
through the next half-hour, I quoted Scripture the
entire time! Actually I shouted it a lot of the time.
It’s a good thing Matthew wasn’t home; he would have
thought I was nuts! But that time went by so fast,
because God’s Word began to encourage and energize me
and before I knew it, my half-hour was up. I had not
only exercised, but I felt much better about the day
ahead of me.
There may not be prizes for me as I memorize Scripture
as an adult, but the rewards in my life are great. The
Word of God is the answer to every question and the
solution to every problem we face. I challenge you to
try it and watch it begin to work in your life.
In Christ,
Sonya
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