“I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” (Psalm 199:11)
If someone were to ask me to memorize scripture, I would immediately think, “Oh, no! That sounds boring and I don’t think I could do it.” But, before you discount the thought, bear with me for a moment or two.
I purposely titled this Mission: Assimilation because that is what the goal is. Encarta Dictionary defines assimilation as “the process of becoming part of or more like something greater”. Now I like the sound of that. We want to assimilate the information, the scriptures, until God’s word becomes a part of us. Don’t we all want to become more like Jesus?
When Jesus faced Satan’s temptation in the desert, what did he do? He used scripture to refute Satan’s lies. He didn’t have a concordance, or a search engine like biblegateway.com (both of which I love and use regularly!) Jesus referred back to the teachings he had learned as a child in Jewish temple, the studies that he had done with his family, and the scriptures that he knew from heart.
We can’t always have our Bible handy but if we hide God’s word in our hearts, then “out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.” (Luke 5:45b) As we move from an infant Christian to a more mature Christian, God’s word must become a part of who we are. Sermons, small group studies, devotions will feed us as we grow, but we also need to commit to personal study, Bible reading and meditation as well. We don’t want to be like the Hebrew people who were scolded, “In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food!” (Hebrews 5:12)
As we study and commit to memory these precious words, I pray that “the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” (John 14:26)
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,” (2 Tim 3:16)
“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.” (Psalm 19:14)
“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:13)
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.” (Psalm 119:105)
Spend this week studying these passages and committing them to memory. Assimilate them into your heart and mind, so that you can draw on them when needed. May the living, breathing Word of God be a lamp for your feet and light for your path!
If someone were to ask me to memorize scripture, I would immediately think, “Oh, no! That sounds boring and I don’t think I could do it.” But, before you discount the thought, bear with me for a moment or two.
I purposely titled this Mission: Assimilation because that is what the goal is. Encarta Dictionary defines assimilation as “the process of becoming part of or more like something greater”. Now I like the sound of that. We want to assimilate the information, the scriptures, until God’s word becomes a part of us. Don’t we all want to become more like Jesus?
When Jesus faced Satan’s temptation in the desert, what did he do? He used scripture to refute Satan’s lies. He didn’t have a concordance, or a search engine like biblegateway.com (both of which I love and use regularly!) Jesus referred back to the teachings he had learned as a child in Jewish temple, the studies that he had done with his family, and the scriptures that he knew from heart.
We can’t always have our Bible handy but if we hide God’s word in our hearts, then “out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.” (Luke 5:45b) As we move from an infant Christian to a more mature Christian, God’s word must become a part of who we are. Sermons, small group studies, devotions will feed us as we grow, but we also need to commit to personal study, Bible reading and meditation as well. We don’t want to be like the Hebrew people who were scolded, “In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food!” (Hebrews 5:12)
As we study and commit to memory these precious words, I pray that “the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” (John 14:26)
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,” (2 Tim 3:16)
“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.” (Psalm 19:14)
“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:13)
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.” (Psalm 119:105)
Spend this week studying these passages and committing them to memory. Assimilate them into your heart and mind, so that you can draw on them when needed. May the living, breathing Word of God be a lamp for your feet and light for your path!
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