I hope you’ll join us!
Having memorized 1 John 1:1-14 and 1
Peter 1 with the great ladies at Do Not Depart, I know first-hand what a
blessing it is to memorize a passage with a group of sisters in Christ who are
committed to Hiding God’s Word in their hearts. I encourage you to join us! The
accountability and fellowship along the way are priceless! You will be
inspired, encouraged, and strengthened both by the verses we’ll memorize as
well as by the other godly women who are dedicated to hide Isaiah 55 in their
hearts these next several weeks.
You can memorize Isaiah 55!
1. I can do ALL THINGS through Christ who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:13)
2. With man this is impossible, but not with God. With God ALL THINGS are possible! (Matthew 19:26)
Both these verses prove that you can memorize Scripture, even all of Isaiah 55, regardless of your memory. For more great reasons to join us in memorizing Scripture, check out 10 reasons why I memorize Scripture, John Piper’s 6 Great Reason’s to Memorize Scripture, as well as the benefits of memorizing passages over individual verses. So if you desire to join me in memorizing Isaiah 55, I encourage you to head over to Do Not Depart and register for the Isaiah 55 memory challenge. After that grab your favorite Bible translation to memorize from and join in the fun!
2. With man this is impossible, but not with God. With God ALL THINGS are possible! (Matthew 19:26)
Both these verses prove that you can memorize Scripture, even all of Isaiah 55, regardless of your memory. For more great reasons to join us in memorizing Scripture, check out 10 reasons why I memorize Scripture, John Piper’s 6 Great Reason’s to Memorize Scripture, as well as the benefits of memorizing passages over individual verses. So if you desire to join me in memorizing Isaiah 55, I encourage you to head over to Do Not Depart and register for the Isaiah 55 memory challenge. After that grab your favorite Bible translation to memorize from and join in the fun!
What Works For Me
Before the challenge begins, I’m gearing up to memorize Isaiah 55 by reading it aloud,
all the way through, each morning and night. I plan on continuing this when the
challenge starts because it
- helps me grasp the psalm as a whole
- familiarizes me with the verses I have left to memorize
- and enables me to recognize repeated words and phrases within the passage.
Additionally, since I memorize from the NKJV I am daily
using my Word of Promise app
to listen to Isaiah 55 as I read along (for both auditory and visual learning).
That is great when I can sit still for a minute. But if I’m cleaning my house, cooking, cleaning, ironing, doing yardwork
outside, or running errands in the car I can listen along. I’ve created an
Isaiah 55 playlist that plays the chapter for me five times so I can listen
while I work. I also have a previously memorized playlist for easy review of
previous chapters I’ve memorized because I don’t want to forget.
When the challenge begins,
each morning I read out loud and recite my verses for the week a total of 10
times each. So I don’t lose count, and to make things easy for me, to keep
track how many times I’ve read a verse out loud or how many times I have
recited it, I will write on any slip of paper something like this, and use tick
marks to keep track of what I’ve done so far, so I know when I reach 10 times:
Isaiah 55:1
Read out loud: |||| ||||
Recite: |||| ||||
Isaiah 55:2
Read out loud: |||| ||||
Recite: |||| ||||
After I finish this I’ll write my verses on a 3 x 5 note
card and bring my verses wherever I am to review throughout my day in those
down times when my hands are busy but my mind is free. (i.e. Brushing teeth,
styling hair, putting on makeup, cooking, folding laundry, going on a walk
waiting in line at the store or in traffic at a stop light, etc.) I actually
memorized the majority of 1 John 1:1-14 simply in the 15
minutes it takes me to take a shower each day. By posting my verses
in the shower, memorizing John
1:1-14 while I was already in there anyway meant the 15 minutes I worked on
my memory verses did not take any extra time out my busy day. Rather I just
redeemed the time when my hands were busy but my mind was free, just as Janet
Pope recommends in her fantastic book His
Word in My Heart: Memorizing Scripture for a Closer Walk with God
.

Because posting my verses in the shower has proven so
effective in helping me learn my verses, I’ve since also posted my memory
verses on my refrigerator for easy review while I cook, and next to my mirror
in the bathroom to review while I brush my teeth, put on my makeup, and style
my hair. I also reference these verses by the mirror when I get out of the
shower to run through my verses again one last time while I’m finishing up in
the bathroom.
Think about your day and what moments you can redeem for hiding His Word in your heart. Maybe it’s when your kids are napping or playing independently. Or when you are waiting at the doctor’s office, in the checkout line, in traffic. Perhaps it is when you are folding laundry or going on your morning walk. If you know you are going to be facing those times, why not bring your 3 x 5 card with your verses on it and have them handy to review during those down times that can be expected in our day-to-day life?
Think about your day and what moments you can redeem for hiding His Word in your heart. Maybe it’s when your kids are napping or playing independently. Or when you are waiting at the doctor’s office, in the checkout line, in traffic. Perhaps it is when you are folding laundry or going on your morning walk. If you know you are going to be facing those times, why not bring your 3 x 5 card with your verses on it and have them handy to review during those down times that can be expected in our day-to-day life?
Tip if you learn well with the flashcard method like me, you’d
like the ScriptureTyper app that enables you
to easily quiz yourself on your verses in flashcard fashion.
Moving From Being Familiar To Being
Certain Of What The Bible Says
I want to leave you with one last thing. When I was in high
school and I had a test coming up, I would study until I got it right. Now
looking back, I can see I was doing the bare minimum in preparing for a test.
Because God’s Word is life-changing I do not study my memory verses until I
finally get it right. Instead, I practice until I can’t get it wrong. After
much practice, I experience the joy of being familiar with a passage to
actually knowing exactly what a passage says. So when the Isaiah 55 memory
challenge begins, my goal is to practice my memory verses until I can’t get
them wrong, so by April 20th, I‘ll be able to rejoice that I’ve moved from
simply being familiar with Isaiah 55 to actually knowing what it says. I hope
you’ll join me in this! God bless you richly as you seek to hide His Word in
your heart!
My Memorization Plan for Isaiah 55
Week
|
Dates
|
Verses to Memorize
|
Daily Memorization Plan
|
1
|
January 20-26
|
Isaiah 55:1
|
1. Read Isaiah 55:1 out loud 10 times, then recite the
verse 10 times.
|
2
|
January 27-February 2
|
Isaiah 55:2
|
1. Review last week’s verse first (Isaiah 55:1) by
reciting them 10 times (look at your Bible if you need to.)
2. Read Isaiah 55:2 out loud 10 times, then recite the
verse 10 times.
|
3
|
February 3-9
|
Isaiah 55:3
|
1. Review last week’s verse first (Isaiah 55:2) by
reciting them 10 times (look at your Bible if you need to.)
2. Review old verses altogether (Isaiah 55:1-2) by
reciting it once through.
3. Read Isaiah 55:3 out loud 10 times, then recite the
verse 10 times.
|
4
|
February 10-16
|
Isaiah 55:4
|
1. Review last week’s verse first (Isaiah 55:3) by
reciting them 10 times (look at your Bible if you need to.)
2. Review old verses altogether (Isaiah 55:1-3) by reciting
it once through.
3. Read Isaiah 55:4 out loud 10 times, then recite the
verse 10 times.
|
5
|
February 17-February 23
|
Isaiah 55:5
|
1. Review last week’s verse first (Isaiah 55:4) by
reciting them 10 times (look at your Bible if you need to.)
2. Review old verses altogether (Isaiah 55:1-4) by
reciting it once through.
3. Read Isaiah 55:5 out loud 10 times, then recite the
verse 10 times.
|
6
|
February 24-March 2
|
Isaiah 55:6
|
1. Review last week’s verse first (Isaiah 55:5) by
reciting them 10 times (look at your Bible if you need to.)
2. Review old verses altogether (Isaiah 55:1-5) by
reciting it once through.
3. Read Isaiah 55:6 out loud 10 times, then recite the
verse 10 times.
|
7
|
March 3-9
|
Isaiah 55:7
|
1. Review last week’s verse first (Isaiah 55:6) by
reciting them 10 times (look at your Bible if you need to.)
2. Review old verses altogether (Isaiah 55:1-6) by reciting
it once through.
3. Read Isaiah 55:7 out loud 10 times, then recite the
verse 10 times.
|
8
|
March 10- March 16
|
Isaiah 55:8
|
1. Review last week’s verse first (Isaiah 55:7) by
reciting them 10 times (look at your Bible if you need to.)
2. Review old verses altogether (Isaiah 55:1-7) by
reciting it once through.
3. Read Isaiah 55:8 out loud 10 times, then recite the
verse 10 times.
|
9
|
March 17- March 23
|
Isaiah 55:9
|
1. Review last week’s verse first (Isaiah 55:8) by
reciting them 10 times (look at your Bible if you need to.)
2. Review old verses altogether (Isaiah 55:1-8) by
reciting it once through.
3. Read Isaiah 55:9 out loud 10 times, then recite the
verse 10 times.
|
10
|
March 24- March 30
|
Isaiah 55:10
|
1. Review last week’s verse first (Isaiah 55:9) by
reciting them 10 times (look at your Bible if you need to.)
2. Review old verses altogether (Isaiah 55:1-9) by
reciting it once through.
3. Read Isaiah 55:10 out loud 10 times, then recite the
verse 10 times.
|
11
|
March 31- April 6
|
Isaiah 55:11
|
1. Review last week’s verse first (Isaiah 55:10) by
reciting them 10 times (look at your Bible if you need to.)
2. Review old verses altogether (Isaiah 55:1-10) by
reciting it once through.
3. Read Isaiah 55:11 out loud 10 times, then recite the
verse 10 times.
|
12
|
April 7-
April 13
|
Isaiah 55:12
|
1. Review last week’s verse first (Isaiah 55:11) by reciting
them 10 times (look at your Bible if you need to.)
2. Review old verses altogether (Isaiah 55:1-11) by
reciting it once through.
3. Read Isaiah 55:12 out loud 10 times, then recite the
verse 10 times.
|
13
|
April 14-April
20
|
Isaiah 55:13
Review
|
1. Review last week’s verse first (Isaiah 55:12) by
reciting them 10 times (look at your Bible if you need to.)
2. Review old verses altogether (Isaiah 55:1-12) by
reciting it once through.
3. Read Isaiah 55:13 out loud 10 times, then recite the
verse 10 times.
4. At the end of the week begin review program. Recite Isaiah
55:1-24 once through every day for the next 100 days (during downtime—i.e. In
the car, in the shower, while folding laundry, etc.)
|
* My plan for memorizing Isaiah 55 was adapted
from “An
Approach to Extended Memorization” by Dr. Andrew M. Davis, Pastor at First
Baptist Church in Durham, N.C.
Planning Your Strategy of Attack
Whenever
I seek to better my life by making positive changes, whether it’s to lose
weight, get
organized, or memorize
Scripture, I like to list
my reasons for why I want to make these changes. This way, when my
motivation starts to fade, I can be reminded, and encouraged, of the blessings
that await me if I just press on and don’t give up.
But if I think all I need to do is make
a list of reasons for pursuing a goal, without also considering the foreseeable
roadblocks that are sure to come up along the way, it will only be a matter of
time before I’m discouraged by an obstacle, and tempted to fall back on my old,
comfortable ways. So, it’s essential to not only know why I’m pursing a
goal, but also to identify what
potential roadblocks I am sure to face, and what to do when those likely
obstacles appear.
So here is my Scripture Memory goal
for Isaiah 55 as well as my potential roadblocks and strategies for overcoming
those obstacles. Hopefully this will give you some good ideas for creating your
own Scripture Memory goal and help you identify your own roadblocks and
strategies for overcoming them.
Goal:
Hide Isaiah 55 in my heart by April 20, 2014
Anticipated obstacles and strategies for overcoming them:
Obstacle #1: Other activities of the day distract me from practicing my verses well.
Strategy: Schedule time on my calendar each day to practice and review my verses. Know when will I practice my verses: While cooking? While folding laundry? While in the shower? With ScriptureTyper? (Additionally schedule reminders to pop on my phone throughout each day to stop what I’m doing and read or recite my verses.)
Obstacle #2: Focusing only on the current verses I’m memorizing while neglecting to review previously memorized verses.
Strategy: Schedule time each day to review previously memorized verses so they stay fresh in my mind, and are not easily forgotten. Again, knowing when during the day I will review. Schedule a nighttime reminder to prompt me to review specific passages.
Obstacle #3: Practicing only in the shower, and not disciplining myself to practice during other times throughout my day.
Strategy: If my day is flying by, and I haven't revisited my verses other than time in the shower, I can get in some extra practice time saying my current memory verses before each meal. By the day’s end I could have potentially read or recited my verses three times. This would also be great to do with my little girl before meals to practice her weekly memory verse, too.
Obstacle #4: Not being held accountable to someone to finish memorizing the passage.
Strategy: Recite my memory verses for at least one person during the week. Additionally find a friend who'd like to memorize with me. This is one reason why I love memorizing with the great community of believers, at Do Not Depart, who are dedicated to hiding God's Word in their hearts. If you're on Facebook, they have an awesome Facebook group, Hide His Word, that I just love.
So why bother strategizing? As Michael Hyatt suggested in his fantastic post, 5 Steps to Developing More Discipline, “Intentionally plan your strategy ahead rather than deciding it in the moment because it is too easy to give over to your default response, to give in to the impulse of the moment.”
I hope this has equipped you with a plan to memorize Isaiah
55 as well a plan of attack for overcoming any potential roadblocks to
memorizing Scripture. God bless you richly as you seek to
hide Isaiah 55 in your heart.
Question for you: Will you join me in memorizing Isaiah 55?
If you haven’t yet, visit my archives, follow me on Twitter or drop by my Facebook page and click “Like.”
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I'm linked up at these great blogs this week. Check 'em out!
Copyright © 2014 Brooke Espinoza.
This is awesome! I used to memorize scripture but have gotten away from it. Your post is so thorough!!! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Nannette! If the Lord leads you, this is a great challenge too for those who have gotten away from memorizing Scripture because it is one verse a week. And because it is 13 related verses that go together, rather than 13 random, unrelated verses, it makes for easier memorizing because there is a flow of thought within a passage. For me though, what really keeps me fired up is the fellowship and accountability online at Do Not Depart and the Facebook group HiseHisWord. I hope you'll join us if the Lord leads you to do so. God bless you tremendously!
DeleteOpps! Typo. I meant to say the Facebook group HideHisWord.
DeleteWonderful! I'll share this with our FB group too. Your self-discipline and devotion are always inspiring, Brooke.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Lisa! You're so sweet! God bless you abundantly!
DeleteI'm also going to include a link to this in our next eNewsletter. It's just too good not to keep passing along. :)
DeleteFantastic, Lisa! Praying God uses it to help many hide Isaiah 55 in their hearts. God bless you completely!
DeleteThis is lovely! John Piper has another sermon called "If My Words Abide In You" that really convicted me a couple of years ago to begin intentionally letting the Word abide in my heart. What a blessing to have such a community of ladies to memorize these passages with.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing this! I'm blessed to be visiting from the Teaching What Is Good link-up!
Thank you, Lisha! I'll have to check that out! God bless you significantly!
DeleteLove this! I'm working on memorizing Scripture using a calendar I recently got- it's one or two verses a week, and the topic is the Proverbs 31 Woman.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing. I found you through the Woman to Woman link up.
Have a good day,
Libby
Thanks, Libby! That sounds like a great Scripture memory project! I love Proverbs 31. My favorite book on that passage is "Beautiful in God's Eyes" by Elizabeth George. It's awesome! God bless you richly!
DeleteI find memorizing Scripture difficult, but you lay out a clear plan. Thanks for the encouragement.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Julie! So glad this helps! God bless you mightily as you press on to hide even more of His Word in your heart.
DeleteI love memorizing Scripture but have to admit I am not always the best at it. I tend to get the references mixed up. Something I am continually working on.
ReplyDeleteThank you for linking up with Woman to Woman's Word Filled Wednesday! God bless!
Thanks, Jenifer! One tip that might help get the addresses straight is to say out loud the address, then the verse, and the address again until you know the address by heart. When I memorize a chunk of Scripture I write the verses out in list format so each verse starts with its corresponding number so I can visualize the verses in number order as I memorize. For instance if I were memorizing the famous love verses from 1 Corinthians 13 I'd write it:
Delete4 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up;
5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil;
6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth;
7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
8 Love never fails.
As a visual person, this helps me keep the verses order and flow of thought straight. Hope that helps! God bless you tremendously!