Lisa notes

Day 23: Notice the light {Tools for memorizing}

By LisaNotes October 23, 2015 31 Days Memorize Bible Chapter 6 Comments

isaiah-12-4-sunflowers

TO MEMORIZE

Repeat 3-5 times, twice a day.

4  And you will say in that day: “Give thanks to the LORD, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the peoples, proclaim that his name is exalted.
5  “Sing praises to the LORD, for he has done gloriously; let this be made known in all the earth.”
Isaiah 12:4-5 (ESV)

Practice using 1st letters, twice a day.

4  A y w s i t d: “G t t t L, c u h n, m k h d a t p, p t h n i e.
5  “S p t t L, f h h d g; l t b m k i a t e.”

TO REVIEW

1  You will say in that day: “I will give thanks to you, O LORD, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away, that you might comfort me.
2  “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.”
3  With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.
Isaiah 12:1-3 (ESV)

1  Y w s i t d: “I w g t t y, O L, f t y w a w m, y a t a, t y m c m.
2  “B, G i m s; I w t, a w n b a; f t L G i m s a m s, a h h b m s.”
3  W j y w d w f t w o s.

TO DO

1. Bless someone else.

The words we learn aren’t just for us; they’re for all. Find a way today to bless someone in your community with the beautiful truths you’re uncovering in your memory verses.

Whether it be in conversation or in writing or in prayer, send God’s love back into the world to bless others in the way he is blessing you. 

With this chapter, I’ve been sharing a picture on Instagram each week.

isaiah-12-5-pumpkins

In our Hide His Word Facebook group, Marilyn shared this idea that I love:

“I have copied scriptures on my phone and printed a 4×6 photo at Walmart and this has helped me memorize. Then I always make extras to give away.”

2. Practice in Scripture Typer.

Tomorrow you’ll take a break, so give your all today to type in Scripture Typer all the verses you’ve learned so far. It shouldn’t take long to do.

TODAY’S TIP

* Use light as a prompt

Notice today where you see light coming in, and use that as a prompt to think about the light of God in your memory verse. An overhead light in your kitchen; a table lamp in your bedroom; the small bulb in the back of your refrigerator; the huge sun lighting up half the world at a time.

Just as there are many types of light, so there are many ways that God will use these words in your life to spotlight what you need to see and share.

FINAL WORD OF ENCOURAGEMENT

Be patient if the truth of a passage is slow to sink in. Sometimes God turns the light on like the flip of a switch, but other times he lets it creep in slowly like the sunrise in the morning.

But both are lights that will illuminate our day. He will always give us the right amount of light we need to get through the day at hand.

Be grateful for the insights you are receiving, and look forward to the extra light he’ll continue to shine on your days in the future.

LINKS

* * *

What light are you seeing by right now? Please share in the comments.

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Day 22: Take it personally {Tools for memorizing}

By LisaNotes October 22, 2015 31 Days Memorize Bible Chapter 6 Comments

Invite-God-in

TO MEMORIZE

Repeat 3-5 times, twice a day.

4  And you will say in that day: “Give thanks to the LORD, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the peoples, proclaim that his name is exalted.
5  “Sing praises to the LORD, for he has done gloriously; let this be made known in all the earth.”
Isaiah 12:4-5 (ESV)

Practice using 1st letters, twice a day.

4  A y w s i t d: “G t t t L, c u h n, m k h d a t p, p t h n i e.
5  “S p t t L, f h h d g; l t b m k i a t e.”

TO REVIEW

1  You will say in that day: “I will give thanks to you, O LORD, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away, that you might comfort me.
2  “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.”
3  With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.
Isaiah 12:1-3 (ESV)

1  Y w s i t d: “I w g t t y, O L, f t y w a w m, y a t a, t y m c m.
2  “B, G i m s; I w t, a w n b a; f t L G i m s a m s, a h h b m s.”
3  W j y w d w f t w o s.

TO DO

1. Write in your journal.

What do this week’s words mean to you? How have you seen the Lord moving through them in your own life? What songs of praise can you sing to the Lord for what he’s done?

2. Review all the verses in Scripture Typer.

TODAY’S TIP

* Take it personally.

For the words to take root, view them as personal. Consciously think about how they not only applied to their original audience, but also how they can apply to you. The more connections you make with your own life, the better.

FINAL WORD OF ENCOURAGEMENT

It’s easy to get in the mindset that we are working the words. But in reality, it’s the Word working us.

While we struggle (and hopefully delight, too!) over each word, there’s a greater transformation happening that we can’t see.

The Lord is moving through our efforts, renewing our spirit to match his own Spirit.

That metamorphosis is not one we can force to happen, but we can lay ourselves open to it, inviting God in, to shift our hearts to receive more joy, more peace, more love.

Memorizing scripture is so much more than increasing vocabulary; it’s remodeling our hearts. 

LINKS

* * *

Is there a scripture that you take very personally? Please share in the comments.

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What does God want from us? – 6 ways to hear from God

By LisaNotes October 21, 2015 Knowing God, Knowing God_J.I.Packer 11 Comments

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We often ask ourselves:

  • What does God want me to do?
  • Which way is best?
  • Which choice should I make?

Discerning God’s will is not always easy.

First, we have to believe God does have plans for us. Then, we have to believe we can find out what they are.

But as J. I. Packer points out in Knowing God, even when we believe the former, that God does want to guide us, we often have trouble believing the latter, that we’re capable of receiving the message.

Why? Packer gives 6 reasons why we may miss hearing from God. I’m flipping them onto their positive side for . . .

 6 ways we can hear from God:

  1. Think it through
    “God made us thinking beings, and He guides our minds as in His presence we think things out.”
  2. Think ahead
    “Weigh the long-term consequences of alternative courses of action. ‘Think ahead’ is part of the divine rule of life no less than of the human rule of the road.”
  3. Listen to advice
    “There are always people who know the Bible, human nature, and our own gifts and limitations, better than we do, and even if we cannot finally accept their advice, nothing but good will come to us from carefully weighing what they say.”
  4. Question yourself
    “We need to ask ourselves why we ‘feel’ a particular course to be right, and make ourselves give reasons. . . . We also need to keep praying, ‘Search me, O God, and know my heart.”
  5. Use caution with others
    “Outstanding men are not, indeed, necessarily wrong, but they are not necessarily right, either! They, and their views, must be respected, but may not be idolised.”
  6. Be willing to wait
    “God is not in such a hurry as we are, and it is not His way to give more light on the future than we need for action in the present, or to guide us more than one step at a time. When in doubt, do nothing, but continue to wait on God. When action is needed, light will come.”

But even if we do these things, will we always know the exact decisions to make? Of course not.

I agree with Elisabeth Ellliot,

“If you are thinking that you know the will of God for your life and you are anxious to do that, you are probably in for a very rude awakening because nobody knows the will of God for his entire life.”

But along with Packer, I do believe that even though we won’t hear every little answer (go right, turn left), God does bring us out of darkness into light despite ourselves.

And even when we get off track (which we all do), we can trust that God will not only get us back on course, but that he will take our mess-ups and weave them into a greater plan.

So ultimately, what does God want from us?

Not to frantically think we have to find the correct answer to everything, or to have total assurance for every decision we make.

But to believe that he has it all under control.

Trust him for whatever comes.

That’s what he wants. Trust him.

“Whatever happens, whatever mistakes we may make, we shall come safe home.

Slipping and strayings there will be, no doubt, but the everlasting arms are beneath us; we shall be caught, rescued, restored. This is God’s promise; this is how good He is.”

* * *

Do you have trouble making decisions? What helps you finally decide? Please share in the comments.

This is Week 10 of 11 of Knowing God together with Tim Challies.

Knowing-God-Packer-summary

Previous chapters:

Next (and LAST) week:

  • Chapter 21 and 22, “These Inward Trials” and “The Adequacy of God”

Day 21: Plan to review {Tools for memorizing}

By LisaNotes October 21, 2015 31 Days Memorize Bible Chapter No Comments

TO MEMORIZE

Repeat 3-5 times, twice a day.

4  And you will say in that day: “Give thanks to the LORD, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the peoples, proclaim that his name is exalted.
5  “Sing praises to the LORD, for he has done gloriously; let this be made known in all the earth.”
Isaiah 12:4-5 (ESV)

Practice using 1st letters, twice a day.

4  A y w s i t d: “G t t t L, c u h n, m k h d a t p, p t h n i e.
5  “S p t t L, f h h d g; l t b m k i a t e.”

TO REVIEW

1  You will say in that day: “I will give thanks to you, O LORD, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away, that you might comfort me.
2  “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.”
3  With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.
Isaiah 12:1-3 (ESV)

1  Y w s i t d: “I w g t t y, O L, f t y w a w m, y a t a, t y m c m.
2  “B, G i m s; I w t, a w n b a; f t L G i m s a m s, a h h b m s.”
3  W j y w d w f t w o s.

TO DO

1. Box the nouns; circle the verbs.

This is for us grammarians. If that’s not you, skip down to #2. But it’s helpful to me to notice the sentence structure, particularly when a verse is heavy with an element.

Isaiah 12:4 is heavy with verbs, so by memorizing these 4 words, you’ve almost memorized the whole verse along with them:

Give – call – make – proclaim

isaiah-12-4-nouns-verbs

2. Look for other word patterns.

As mentioned yesterday, notice how the second half of this chapter (Isaiah 12:4) begins much like the beginning of the chapter (Isaiah 12:1): “[And] you will say in that day: [I will] give thanks. . .”

Singing is also repeated from Isaiah 12:2, “God is…my song” to Isaiah 12:5, “Sing praises to the Lord” (and we’ll see it again in verse 6).

3. Make a review plan.

The best way to retain what you’ve learned is to review it periodically. I *try* to review a chapter twice a week after I complete it, then move it to once a week for a month, then put it on the rotation to review one chapter a week in a list with other chapters I’ve learned.

4. Practice all verses in Scripture Typer.

TODAY’S TIP

* Keep your memory verses together.

Once you start learning verses, it’s helpful to gather them together in a notebook or folder or box. You can then flip through them in order to ensure that everything gets reviewed periodically instead of forgotten. I keep mine in a binder specifically for Bible verses.

FINAL WORD OF ENCOURAGEMENT

I’m sure you already know this, but: You won’t retain every word you’re memorizing. Don’t let that discourage you though. Because remember, it’s not about the word-for-word learning anyway; it’s about the heart. By planting these words into your heart through memorization, the message will sink even deeper. And by God’s grace, the message will stay, even if the words fade.

However, most of the words don’t have to fade away if you’ll continue to review periodically. You won’t have to review daily, but do make it a practice to return to them now and again to keep what you worked to gain.

LINKS

* * *

What word patterns have you noticed so far in the verses you’re memorizing? Do you have a plan for review? Please share in the comments.

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Day 20: Don’t give up {Tools for memorizing}

By LisaNotes October 20, 2015 31 Days Memorize Bible Chapter 16 Comments

(If you’ve become discouraged in your efforts to memorize, be sure to read “5 reasons to not give up” at the end of this post.)

5-reasons-not-to-give-up

TO MEMORIZE

Repeat 3-5 times, twice a day.

4  And you will say in that day: “Give thanks to the LORD, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the peoples, proclaim that his name is exalted.
5  “Sing praises to the LORD, for he has done gloriously; let this be made known in all the earth.”
Isaiah 12:4-5 (ESV)

Practice using 1st letters, twice a day.

4  A y w s i t d: “G t t t L, c u h n, m k h d a t p, p t h n i e.
5  “S p t t L, f h h d g; l t b m k i a t e.”

TO REVIEW

1  You will say in that day: “I will give thanks to you, O LORD, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away, that you might comfort me.
2  “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.”
3  With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.
Isaiah 12:1-3 (ESV)

1  Y w s i t d: “I w g t t y, O L, f t y w a w m, y a t a, t y m c m.
2  “B, G i m s; I w t, a w n b a; f t L G i m s a m s, a h h b m s.”
3  W j y w d w f t w o s.

TO DO

1. Add in this week’s 1st letters.

Say this week’s verses once in the morning and once in the afternoon by looking at 1st letters. See 1st letters cards here and 1st letters one-page here.

2. Add newest verses to Scripture Typer.

Begin today with the Type It step for Isaiah 12:4-5. Review older verses.

3. Dig into background information on the new verses.

A great  online study guide is here from David Guzik. Add any interesting findings in your journal.

These are some thoughts I jotted down from Isaiah 12:4-5:

The second half of this psalm starts like the first half (except for “And”) . . . “you will say in that day.”

It’s a hymn of praise—proclaim and celebrate!—not just a private prayer.

God’s goodness and works are to be the subject of these praises.

TODAY’S TIP

* At least do a little

Do you know FlyLady’s philosophy? “A little housework done imperfectly is better than no housework done at all.”

The same applies to us as we memorize scripture. Learning a verse halfway is better than not learning it at all. God works through our imperfections if we make the effort to give them to him.

FINAL WORD OF ENCOURAGEMENT

Five reasons why you should not give up now (and these apply to more than scripture memory):

  1. Because if you give up, you definitely won’t finish. If you keep going, you just might make it.
  2. Because you’re learning patience.
  3. Because a little is better than none at all.
  4. Because success may be just around the corner.
  5. Because God can do the impossible.

LINKS

* * *

What are you trying to not give up on? What keeps you moving on? Please share in the comments.

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Day 19: Sing it {Tools for memorizing}

By LisaNotes October 19, 2015 31 Days Memorize Bible Chapter 7 Comments

keep-moving

Today we add 2 more verses: Isaiah 12:4-5. 

TO MEMORIZE

4  And you will say in that day: “Give thanks to the LORD, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the peoples, proclaim that his name is exalted.

5  “Sing praises to the LORD, for he has done gloriously; let this be made known in all the earth.”
Isaiah 12:4-5 (ESV)

TO REVIEW

1  You will say in that day: “I will give thanks to you, O LORD, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away, that you might comfort me.

2  “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.”

3  With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.
Isaiah 12:1-3 (ESV)

TO DO

1. Review Isaiah 12:1-3, twice each day, using 1st letters.
Say Isaiah 12:4-5, three to five times, twice each day.

Where can you put your 3×5 cards for Isaiah 12:4-5 so you will see them often this week?

The more you see them, even casually, the more likely you’ll be to memorize these verses (and they are good ones!).

2. Discover the root words for your new verses.

Take a few minutes to dig deeper into the individual words of your new verses. It’ll make the words more meaningful to you all week long as you memorize them.

You can use e-Sword. Or scroll and click over each word in Isaiah 12:4-5 online at StudyLight.

A few words of interest to me from Isaiah 12:4-5 . . .

  • (same as vs 1) “Give thanks” = yadah (H3034) = to use the hand; to revere; to worship with hands
  • “name” = shem (H8034) = a mark of individuality
  • “make known” = yada (H3045) = to know, to find out, to see, to know by experience
  • “proclaim” = dakar (H2142) = to mark, to remember, to mention

3. Download desktop wallpaper

Isaiah 12:4

Isaiah-12-4-wallpaper

[click here then download]

Isaiah 12:5

Isaiah-12-5-wallpaper

[click here then download]

TODAY’S TIPS

* Sing it.

Set your words to music for a more sure way of memorizing them. We all know song lyrics from years ago; music makes words sticky.

You can create your own song with your verses or find one already written. Seeds Family Worship is a recommended source for family scripture memory in music. Search around for other options.

FINAL WORD OF ENCOURAGEMENT

Don’t stop.

Really. I know what you’re thinking . . . I’m behind; I haven’t learned last week’s verses yet. I need to learn those better before I move on.

But honestly, if you wait until you have previous verses down, you may never move on. It’s better to keep going. You can always go back later and better learn the older verses. Every time you review, they’ll solidify more and more in your mind anyway.

Accept new words in a new week. Receive what God wants to give you this week as fresh manna prepared especially for you.

LINKS

* * *

Do you have a favorite song in scripture? Please share in the comments.

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