...And Into The Word

Part 2: Ways to Memorize

Now that we've come to an understanding about reasons memorizing scripture comes highly recommended (and proves to be even more vital than chocolate post-toddler trauma) let's talk about some different moving parts to make it happen! Of all the different strategies to make memorization fun or interesting, I've noticed that nine times out of ten the memory tricks tend to be really short lived. What makes a good memorization strategy that has more lasting results? I have three key ingredients I mix together in all of my memorizing attempts that, when balanced correctly, give quite the kick to your study! You probably know the first two, but stick with me, once you know the ingredients it's finding the right recipe that really makes the difference.

Keep in mind, different people will memorize differently and some will have to work at it more than others. Often a highly effective method for your friend may not work as effectively for you, but don't give up! You just have to find the way that works best for you! However, while each individual is different, these three things are, across the board, necessary to the best and longest lasting memorization strategies.

1. Time

The number one way I've noticed to memorize ANYTHING is to spend large amounts of time steeped in it. Ever wonder how your husband can remember so many sports names and statistics you'd never care about in a million years? Yeah. Time. How much time has he spent hearing sports commentators rehashing so-and-so's stats this season or watched highlight reels of his favorite players best moments?

[Please note: this is NOT an excuse to go nag or lecture your husbands, fathers, or any other sports fans! I'm sure you have had plenty of 'useless' trivia memorized at one point or another on fashion, artists, history, movie stars, best buttercream recipes, pinterest decorations, princess movies, or even the latest local gossip. I certainly have had my side interests I have spent far too much time with, not that I'm proud of that. The point of this is that lots of time with something leads to greater knowledge of that something.]

All that aside, how much time have we spent surrounding ourselves with the eternally useless rather than the currently AND eternally relevant?

All that aside, how much time have we spent surrounding ourselves with the eternally useless rather than the currently AND eternally relevant? More than we realize. Even if we only spend two minutes on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest every hour from 8am-8pm only six days a week, that's nearly two and a half hours in that week that we could have spent on so much else! And, though we may not like to admit it, many of us spend much more time than that online reading about cousin Judy's house plants, or watching that super cute cat jump in and out of the box…for two minutes.

Here's a thought, if we spent those two minutes on scripture…could you imagine how quickly you could have that verse you've had posted on your wall memorized? Or how solidly you could remember that verse highlighted twice over in your favorite bible (you know, the verse with three sticky notes by it saying "MEMORIZE THIS ONE!"). Some will call this time meditation, others will call it bible study, but in the end time spent in scripture is just time with God. If using a certain word or phrase like meditation bothers you, then talk to your pastor, but don't stop trying to spend time in God's word because of it. Spend the time in scripture consistently (in small pieces or large chunks), and the results will speak for themselves.

2. Repetition

Remember that thing your mom used to tell you over and over and over again when you were a kid? "Don't wear jeans to bed. Don't wear jeans to bed. Don't..." The reason you still remember it (...and still hear it in her voice in your head...) is repetition. Sometimes it comes in the form of a rhyme or a song (think "Hot Cross Buns", or "Are You Sleeping Brother John?") and sometimes a phrase that is repeated so many times you can't get it out of your head even if you wanted to (Think "Hello, my name is Inigo Montoya…" and you know the rest auto-plays through your mind. If not, watch or read The Princess Bride you poor unfortunate soul!) ;)

Repeating something over and over again in the same way (eg. Quotes from movies seen many times) can often stick something in our mind more effectively than repeating it casually in different ways, (hearing a quote from a book from three different people, in different places, or repeated in slightly different intonations). But when memorizing scripture, repetition and variety can go hand in hand. Sometimes emphasizing different words or phrases while you read can be extremely helpful and enlightening while trying to remember how the different pieces of a verse or chapter fit together. God's Word is pretty amazing at that. No matter how many times I read the same scripture passage, there's always something different ready to jump out at me if I'm looking at it. This varying emphasis can also be lumped in with the third vital element for long lasting memorization which is…

3. Memorable Association

Yeah, so this is my own term for something most of you already do when you're trying to remember something. The idea behind memorable association is to come up with a related item for each thing you need to remember: in this case, the words or phrases in your current verse in their correct order. This is useful to the extent that remembering the order of related items (words) will help you remember the progression of the verse. I know that sounds convoluted, but hopefully I'll clear it up in a minute.

This Memorable Association aspect has a much broader variety than the other two in how you can apply it to your study and I find it works differently for different learning styles. If you've heard of the VARK learning styles (Visual, Aural, Read/Write, Kinesthetic) or even if you haven't, chances are one or two of these M.A. themes will resonate with you more than another.

If you're a Visual Learner, associating an image picture, color, shape, or other visual concept to each word or phrase is extremely effective in recalling the overall meaning of the verse. [Note: This is my favorite way by far! This is also the focus of the coloring pages we make.] Coming up with associative images (a snake for evil, a heart for love, or maybe a lettuce for Let Us, etc.) can imprint the order, meanings, and/or themes of the verse into your brain much longer than just letters on a page ordinarily would. Finding some way to put meaningful color around or in your verse can provide such an advantage to your memorizing time!

If you're an Auditory Learner, associating an accent, sound effect, familiar recording, or a person's specific mispronunciation of a specific piece can help (for example, everytime I hear the words 'yellow' and 'blue' I think of the way a dear friend of mine adopts a southern drawl when she says it). Anything you hear that is a distinctive representation of a word or phrase can help connect the entirety of the verse as a whole into your psyche for easier recollection later. (Eg. Thinking of the fruit of the spirit in "Gal"atians [5:22-23] in a Valley "Gal" accent might help you to remember "like, against such things there is, like, totally no law, ya knoww?") If you know a song that contains part of the verse, use it! If you don't know one, ask a worship leader or another auditory learner you know, they are great resources! If you still can't find a song to put the verse to, make one up! It can be as simple as adopting a children's nursery song like the Alphabet Song or 'Frére Jaque' ("A-B-C-D-E-F-G" could become "if it is serving, let him serve!" from Romans 12:7, or )

If you're a Kinesthetic Learner, Sign language and interpretive dance might be your best friends! (Then again, if you're my husband, they might not.) If assigning a specific hand motion or movement with the different parts of your verse doesn't jive with you (or you don't like to jive in general), maybe imagining or acting out something that a person living out that verse might do will help you to remember what it says. (eg. Romans 12:13 Give to those who are in need [imagine someone kneeling down to give a hand to someone on the side of the road] practice hospitality [imagine leading them into your house and set a kitchen table with a huge feast for them while repeating your verse out loud. If it helps, really set your kitchen table while repeating your verse picturing your husband and kids as the ones in need and for whom you're practicing hospitality])

If you're a Read/Write Learner, you may find reading and writing the verse over and over to be one of your best friends, though if you want to use some of the other methods for the types above, you may find one of those enhances your efforts more than the others. For other read/write types, try writing the verse in different fonts or styles including (but not limited to) ALL CAPS, italics, something fancy, something fun, maybe something bold, or whatever suits you!!! If you feel like cutting words or letters out of a magazine and pasting them together, that also is reinforcing the words and order in a legible/readable form. You can also write the verse in shorthand or with abbreviations (eg. For God so loved the World might become Fr G s lvd + wld) try to summarize it in as few words as possible, (eg. God loved earthlings, gave only child, every believer lives forever, no dying), or try to think of every synonym or way to stretch the verse so it takes up a whole page with your commentary on each of the words and what they remind you of or phrases to help you remember what comes next.

In whatever case, the idea is that for most of us, simply reading words on a page isn't an ideal way to memorize something long term and easily. Memorable association finds something that sticks more readily in your mind than just words on your bible page and by utilizing different combinations of the above learning categories that work best for you, you can recall a greater amount of information more quickly and accurately while ideally needing less time and repetition to do so.

If you can't choose between the different styles above, try them all! See how long it takes you to memorize a verse using images, sound cues, writing it down, reading it over and over, or acting it out.

Let me know which ones you've tried in the comments below or message me! I'd love to hear from you!!!

If you find one that works really well or you have another favorite way to memorize, be sure to send it to me and I'll include as many as I can in the list of ideas in Part 3 next week!

Thanks all, and God Bless you this coming week.

Happy Mother's Day!