There are hundreds of pages in the Bible, and a devout person doesn’t want to miss any one of them. But how are some people able to retain so much of the scriptures? It is not easy, and even the smartest and most intent person will have a difficult time retaining so much.
Psalms Chapter 1 says that the person who meditates on scripture in will prosper in whatever that they do. Memory improvement techniques can be used to memorize scripture
What can you do to retain the inspirations psalms and passages that you have read? There is no simple way. It will require a great deal of concentration, focus, and practice, practice, practice.
One big memory tip is to do things in the right spirit. Scriptures are intense, and many people who want to remember them are passionate about learning them. That is the right frame of mind. Memorizing is much easier when you have an emotional attachment. Attacking any task that requires remembering a great deal of information is best done with a positive attitude. Don’t look at it as a chore, getting closer to the Lord is an act of love, not a job. Open your heart and you will have an easier time recalling what you are reading.
Don’t start out reading the passages with the intent to memorize them. It is important that you relax and not begin to tackle it as soon as you get home, while you are on the job, or immediately after a hard day’s work. Your brain will not be open to receive the message and you will not be able to retain what you have learned.
Read slowly, breaking down the paragraphs into small and manageable syllables. For example, take a look at this sentence: “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.”
Why don’t you read it this way? “I – have – been – cru-si-fied – with – Christ – and – I – no – lon-ger – live, – but – Christ – lives – in – me.”
Memorizing is all about relating what you are learning to your life. If you are not able to see a relationship between what you are reading and anything in your life, chances are you will not be successful because the task will seem too much to handle.
Understand what you are reading. Don’t just read words, read meaning. Mull the passage over, one by one, and lean back and absorb it. Don’t try to remember anything in the Bible if you are not inspired. If you are questioning your faith, memorizing scripture will not help you. Inspiration gives you your greatest strength, and you are emotionally and spiritually invested in learning the message and keeping it in your long-term memory.
Make up easy reference acronyms or stories that you can relate to. Visualize the words or stories in your head and associate them to things you know (mnemonics). An acronym, such as WWJD (What Would Jesus Do) is one example.
Here is another, from Revelations 5:9:
And they sung a new song, saying, “Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;…
Scripture teacher, Kevin Jay North, used the acronym KTPN and pictured the words,” in his mind to the last part of the verse. Upon recall, if I can think of “Kate Pin” and thence “KTPN”, it’s suddenly very easy to roll out “kindred, tongue, people, nation” because I’ve deliberately memorized the ordering.
Just remember, memorizing scripture is no different than trying to remember any other data, you need to be consistent, repeat over and over until you get it down, and be patient all good things do not always happen overnight.
Sources:
Articlesbase.com Five Easy Tips On How to Memorize Bible Scriptures, by Paulo Anaro: http://www.articlesbase.com/religion-articles/five-easy-tips-on-how-to-memorize-bible-scriptures-1279931.html
Paulo Anaro – http://www.supremememorybook.com
Revelife – http://www.revelife.com/663426547/christian-acronyms/
Kevin Jay North – http://www.thememorypage.net/bible2.htm
