Scripture memory is very powerful

 May 2008 

The month of May has been another wonderful month for our family. Grandma (Kathy's Mother) who is 93, stayed with us for about a week. It was wonderful having her share from her Quiet Time each day what she felt the Lord was saying to her.

A major blessing over the years for both Kathy and I has been Scripture memory. There are so many things in life that can grab our attention, taking first place in our lives. We have both come to realize just how idolatrous we are. Such things as financial security, good health and the esteem of people have been a snare in our lives. It says "They worshipped worthless idols and became worthless themselves." Idolatrous things leave us with an emptiness in our lives, but knowing Jesus fills us with joy.

We constantly struggle to make Jesus the centre of our family life. Having a daily Quiet Time where we share and pray together, without doubt, is the major way that we are seeking to make Jesus real in our lives.

But Scripture memory is also a very powerful thing. Often during the day, Scriptures come to our minds which help us to hear the Lord's voice. When we want guidance, we pray and ask God to speak to us and invariably Scriptures come to our minds which we are convinced are from the Holy Spirit.

For many years, as a family, we have been trying to make Scripture memory a key part of our family life, but it has not really happened, but that is changing. We have had good intentions of making Scripture memory a key part of our family life. Over the years, we have gone in "fits and starts" but haven't been consistent.

About 3 weeks ago, we decided as a family, that we will learn a verse a day and after we have shared our Quiet Times, we share the latest verse or verses we have memorised. Our children are very positive about this and while we haven't all achieved a verse a day, this practice is already being a blessing to us.

We would caution families to not attempt this until the Quiet Time/Sharing Time is established and is a blessing. Scripture Memory can easily be a legalistic thing and not a joy and a delight. It becomes a great joy when you hear the Lord's voice speaking to you from his Word. A couple of good passages to start with would be Psalm 1 or John 10 : 1 - 10.

Nana (Colin's Mum) who is 91, is continuing to deteriorate. It seems likely that she is having mini strokes as sometimes she wakes up and can't even remember who we are, although most of the time her memory is quite good. Being nearly blind doesn't help as she has to recognize our voices. Most days I pray with her and pray the Lord's prayer with her or we recite the 23rd Psalm together. Sometimes I pray for her various children and their families and this seems to encourage her.

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