How to Memorize Scripture for Life by Andrew M. Davis

I have been diving into strengthening some spiritual disciplines in the past few months. One of those disciplines is scripture memory and meditation. This little book came along at just the right time for me. How to Memorize Scripture for Life is just over 70 pages in length. It is concise but it is very specific, practical, and detailed. Davis has laid out a plan for memorizing whole books of the Bible that actually feel doable.

He has been memorizing the Bible for years with great success. He lives out what he teaches on a daily basis. Toward the end of the book he adds some charts and a helpful plan to gauge where you should start. He has very practical advice for how to spend time each day meditating on what you have already learned and memorizing new passages.

Whether you are a beginner or you have been memorizing scripture for years I think this book can be of great benefit to you. I encourage you to also check out the podcast interview with him I heard recently on the Crossway Podcast. He talks more about his book and how God has used scripture memory to really build his knowledge and familiarity with scripture and grow in his personal relationship with Christ.

I was delighted to be able to review this book. I received a free copy from the publisher and was not required to read or review the book. I had to share this one with you all. It is a really great resource.

I recognized his name and decided to check my shelf to see if I had anything else from him. I did and I reviewed the book back in 2019. The Power of Christian Contentment was important enough for me to still have it on my shelf after several book clear outs. I highly recommend that one, too. If you are interested in more from Andrew M. Davis he has written several articles for Crossway on the topic of scripture memory.

March Reading Summary

After an informal observation of the people around me and in my life I have come to the conclusion that this “shelter-in-place” is far more taxing on extroverts than it is on introverts. I know it is hard on everyone but it is worse for those who need to be with others and have an active social life. Online social media is just not going to cut it for those who need people around them. I just finished several books this month that talked about the importance of eye to eye contact, physical touch, and “in real life” conversations. All of us need this. We also need sunlight on our eyeballs so go outside and when you are outside notice how many people are working in their yards, riding their bicycles and walking up and down the street. Don’t get too close but stand outside and have a conversation with someone over a fence or meet those neighbors for the first time. It is important… don’t lock yourself away for however long this “lockdown/quarantine” lasts with no contact.

With that being said, I am an introvert and I tend to be far less inclined to need constant company. I do have a house full of people right now but in the midst of that I have retreated to my “private office space and reading chair” to enjoy more books this month. I have actually read more books in March than I have ever read in one month. I dare say that being off of social media has been part of this reading success, too. I am not missing the constant scrolling but I am thrilled with all the reading I have been able to do.

Here are the books I have finished in March 2020…

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I have rated all of these on my goodreads account and written reviews for books from companies I review for. This has been a super productive reading month and I am not sad about that. I will continue to “marathon” as we are locked down. When Lent comes to an end in about a week and a half I will be revamping how I do social media. I love the results and want more reading and far less scrolling in my days going forward.

I have also read more in God’s word and loved this time each morning. I have had more time to focus on reading and writing and studying His word. It is a huge reason I have been focused and unshaken by this whole plague mode we have been forced to push through. I am reminded daily of His promises to care for His own through all of it. I have been sharing a scripture each day on my Instagram each day to encourage others. If you don’t follow me there I invite you to. The link is at the bottom of this page. I want this place (and all my social media) to be a place of encouragement.

There is hope… this won’t last forever and in the meantime let’s take time to sit with family and have real conversations, eat meals together around our tables, call those who are not with you that you miss, check on our neighbors, read lots and lots of books, play games with your kids, watch movies together, and anything else that brings you joy at this time. For me that means adding some crochet projects and maybe some sewing projects back into my days.

Be good to those in your circumference and I pray that you turn to the One who was never surprised by this. He is in control and He is our hope and peace. I am praying for all of you who read this or connect with me on other social media platforms. Feel free to reach out through comments or if you are on FB or IG with me send a private message. It will hit my radar even though I am still fasting from those places. Hang in there! This is just a momentary light affliction. It is not forever.

Still Lenting Along…

I have actually discovered that giving up social media for Lent was about the best thing I could have done during this time of social media and news media insanity. I am not hearing the lies and the meanness that some have told me is happening out there. I get on and check for updates so I know what my husband and kids need to do for their jobs and school and for our church services but otherwise… I am not missing the chaos that is the outside world.

I am glad to report that I have not experienced some of the crazy that I heard Dave Ramsey talking about today. I have only experienced kindness and cooperation here in our little community. People are stressed but most mature/self controlled people are being rational.

I think you could call what I am doing more of a “social distancing” practice than most because I am not even on social media. LOL I am more in line with the idea of “self sequestering.” That term describes our family more because we are also avoiding excessive media and news except for local information.

I have noticed something really cool in the midst of all the world’s insanity right now. I hear people outside my open windows walking and talking. I see people hiking up and down the mountains behind our house much more than usual. I have seen my neighbors more in the last two weeks than I have the entire time we have lived on this block. People are coming out of their homes and walking or playing with their kids. It really is fascinating how this is affecting people around us.

Our church situation is rather different from many of these larger churches that are shutting their doors right now. We are a small congregation and most of them are stuck in their homes all day every day lately and they long to reach out… they are mostly retired or empty nesters. We asked them what they wanted to do and they all agreed that, if they are well and able, they want to meet.

Our building allows for them to spread out and “distance” enough and since they are a small congregation this works for us. The building is cleaned weekly and the people want to be together so we met again this Sunday. We had a sweet time of prayer and an encouraging message and music. Dan challenged them to read Psalm 31 through the week after we read it together. We also made a small groups-in-homes plan if that has to stop and Dan is making a plan to record sermons if people are ordered to shelter-in-place.

Our college children have come home and they started online classes this morning. Our daughter had a trumpet lesson by video at 7:30am. Her school is in a different time zone so it was 8:30am there. LOL We didn’t mind the trumpet that early because Dan and I are up before dawn every day anyway. Our local school district is preparing to go online, too. Dan had an online district video update he attended in order to plan for students to begin next Monday the 30th.

We are trying to build a good routine that keeps us sane in the midst of this. It feels more like summer vacation but the kids have much more responsibility with online school. Kids are practicing horns and working on spring break assignments. They are keeping up with their laundry and such. It makes the day feel a little more “normal.”

Some things that have helped me the most are…

1. Get up early every morning
2. Read my Bible first every single day
3. Make my bed
4. Get a shower and get dressed – no sloppy PJs all day
5. Keep a chore routine going… laundry, cleaning, cooking, etc…
6. We eat one meal a day all together and that is usually dinner
7. Step outside into the sunshine at some point during the day
8. Zero television until after dinner in the evening. We are watching intentionally with a movie or television show
9. Spend time reading and keep up with my book reviews
10. Shut the computer down after business is done and leave the phone in a stationary place for the majority of the day.

I think the most important thing to do at a time like this is to trust God in all things and then keep some sort of routine to your day. Habits and routines can be our best friend in times like these.

Other things to remember is to be kind to those around you, check on your neighbors, thank those who are serving such as medical staff, store checkers and stockers, food service people, maintenance and emergency workers and our local police, fire, and other people who are on duty around the clock for our protection. Remember that you are not the center of the universe and you being inconvenienced is so not important. Extend grace, people. If you belong to God then that is a command… act like you belong to the King and be the good in your community.

How are you coping right now?

What, besides God, is saving your life right now?

How are you making your neighborhood and community better right now?

Feel free to leave a comment below and if you need prayer do not hesitate to share that with me, too. I am honored to pray for you!

Social Media Fast: Week 1

Happy Wednesday to you all! It has been a whole week since my social media fast began. I cannot say I have been 100% offline but I have not checked any social media on my phone with the exception of something someone sent me and a photo of a grandboy. LOL I deleted IG and FB from my phone last Tuesday evening before bed and have not put them back. I read a book that helped a great deal.

The book is entitled How to Break Up with Your Phone and it is written by Catherine Price. I had picked it up on a sale on my NOOK some time ago. I know I didn’t pay much for it then but I don’t know how much it is now. I worked through her four week break up in about 5 days. It really helped me to gain control over it quickly. I highly recommend her method.

I found that it took a few days to settle on what I wanted to keep on my phone and what was just not necessary. I currently have…

• a YouVersion Bible app
• email app (because I cannot stop checking my email if I want books to review)
• Goodreads app to log what I am reading
• banking app
• weather app
• and two folders with listening and reading apps for books and podcasts
• The Later app was added to upload to IG without actually being on IG
• Messenger Lite stayed so people could reach me in a pinch

Everything else is nonessential so it either went away or went to the bulk app section. I don’t see them unless I intentionally go digging and so far I have not.

A funny thing happened five days in. Facebook noticed I wasn’t logging on and they pretty much sent me a “we miss you” email. I laughed as I deleted the email. LOL

Some pretty cool things have happened. I am reading a ton more. I have banned phones in the bedroom and in the dining room now. We are having conversations more than we used to. That is not revolutionary in this house because we do converse a great deal but now we are more intentional with where phones are allowed. Dan is putting his phone down more without me even saying a word. He does have instructions to show me baby pictures of grandboys, though. I don’t want to miss those.

My house is cleaner and I am getting some stuff cleared out instead of scrolling on IG. I still find myself jonesing for the phone out of habit. I am not sure when that begins to really go away but I am totally aware of when it happens and have been noting what was happening when I start craving it. I tend to reach for it when I am waiting on something to happen. I have started keeping a book by my chair and reading a few pages when I am waiting instead of scrolling.

I am focusing more on the little stuff like dinner prep, folding towels, collecting trash to go to the curb, sorting things, grocery shopping or just being in public and looking around me instead of sticking my head in my phone. It really is freeing and I notice so much I never did before… like people and how much they are all on their phones ALL THE DANG TIME!

Here is the best thing, though. I am reading and developing a really consistent morning Bible reading and study time. I wake up and grab my NOOK for the YouVersion reading instead of my phone. I get coffee and head to my reading chair for study, devotional, and scripture writing and memory work now instead of groping for the phone and scrolling. It is a game changer, folks. I love it!

I am not done reading on this topic. I have a few more books in the stack to go through. Here is the lineup…

This book is available in audiobook from Christian Audio… I got it back in January. They offer a freebie every month. If you don’t have the Christian Audio app this is a good one to have.

So, a week in that is where I am. You might have also noticed I am blogging more and about more than reviews. I am hoping to keep doing this. My brain is less foggy and I can think past five minutes from now. It is amazing how technology blocks creativity especially in the form of social media. I am thinking to make some permanent changes to the way I do social media. I am not sure I want to go back to hours a day doing nothing but scrolling. There is so much more to life than social apps. I am glad I took this step. It has been good for me so far.

Are you fasting from social media for Lent? I would love to hear your experiences in the comments. Please feel free to open that dialog and share.

Goals for Lent: An Adjustable Plan

First and foremost I want to clarify that fasting is only for spiritual purposes. The world distorts fasting for diet and health reasons. This is not why fasting exists. It is only intended to be used for growing in our relationship with Christ in some way. Can you benefit in ways through health or weight loss? I am sure many have but that is not the purpose. I just wanted to say that up front. God ordained it… it is for HIS purposes.

Second, fasting is a command. God does not say IF you fast… He says WHEN you fast. We are expected to engage in fasting throughout our lives to draw closer to Him in certain times and seasons and for specific purposes. Since this is not a Bible study on fasting I won’t go into depth on it but just know that Matthew 6:16-18 will show you that it is a command and you can also see some basic guidelines in this passage.

Third, fasting is for a season and not for everyday. There will be periods of times in our lives where we need answers and focus and God might call you to fast and pray. It is not a lifestyle nor for everyday for your entire life thing. God will show you when and why. Trust Him. Lent was ordained by human endeavor and can be a great time to fast but it is not mandatory in God’s word that we observe “Lent.” It is mandatory to fast, though. It can be a cooperate endeavor, too, for a church to fast together to pray for their impact in their community or for church needs and direction. It can also be an individual choice but just because it is “Lent” does not mean you have to fast. God, again, will show you what He desires for you and your time. Don’t let this be source of guilt if you do not feel led to fast for Lent.

Fourth, it is important to be flexible. God will teach you and direct you and you need to be pliable. Many times I start with a tentative direction and halfway through, or sooner, God says, nope… I need you to obey me and go this direction. Obedience is the most important thing here. Stay teachable and don’t push your goals and plans when God says no.

Ok, with those four things said here is what I am doing this season so far.

• I have felt prompted since the first of the year to step away from Social Media completely for a period of time. This might become a permanent thing but for now I am stepping away for 40 days. I joined a group of ladies through an email response and downloaded a few resources from the group to help in this. The challenge comes from Wendy Speake. She is the author of a book I am also reading called The 40 Day Sugar Fast (which I reviewed a few weeks ago). I downloaded phone screen wallpaper to remind me to step away, 40 scripture memory cards, and am journaling each day in a personal notebook based on her template she shares. What is hilarious about this group is that you commit, download resources and then don’t see each other online again until day 41. LOL I loved the idea so here I am. You can find this group and resources here. It is not too late to sign up for your free resources. Check her out!
• Since I am reading through The 40 Day Sugar Fast I am also doing that. I am not doing a Whole30 or a Paleo diet or anything for weight loss. I am merely paying attention to my cravings and if it involves sweets and junk I am turning to my Bible and prayer instead. My goal for eating is to be a as nutritionally dense as possible with meals but only truly abstaining from sugar. I thought I would keep this one super simple since social media fasting is in the plan for me, too. I will try to share a few recipes along the way with you that fit this goal.
• I work outside the home 2 mornings per week but the rest of the week, unless there are errands and such, I am a true homebody. I love being at home. The problem with being at home all day is the temptation to turn a television or radio on and just veg. I am not turning the television or radio on during the day for this 40 day period. I will watch some specific things with my husband in the evenings when he is home. I will be intentional about choosing and watching a movie on weekends with my family, too. Outside of that I am turning it off and choosing other things to feed my spirit. I will do a post with some alternatives I am using in a few days.

When we cut something out it is best to replace it rather than leave a big gaping hole. We see a story about this very thing in Luke 11. We see that a demon is chased out and the house is swept clean but nothing filled the space at that point. Once the demon realized it was empty he brought 7 of his friends back with him and it was so much worse than before. When we clear out the junk in our lives we need to replace it with something valuable and tangible to shape us in the likeness of Jesus. Here are two major areas where I am going to focus on filling my spaces so that good things come from the removal of less than good or downright bad things in my days.

• Spiritual Input – When the noise of social media and television are silenced what do I want to put into my day? I have decided that things that bring me closer to Christ can come in the form of daily Bible reading, spiritually uplifting books, music, sermons, scripture writing, podcasts, and prayer journaling. I will elaborate more on these things as the series continues but this should get the thoughts flowing on how to focus on more valuable things in our days.
• Routines – When I grab my phone first thing in the morning and start scrolling through the social noise I find that I get behind or neglect other things that I once found valuable and beneficial. For one, I don’t clean the house like I should. I also find myself being reactionary instead of intentional. Some of the things I want to add back to my days more consistently are the habits of daily reading, chores and clearing clutter, menu planning and intentional meal preparation, working through a monthly budget, working in my bullet journal to organize my days and thoughts better, hobbies I once enjoyed such as playing music, crocheting, sewing, photography, and so forth. I also want to get outside for some fresh air, a walk and maybe some gardening as the season permits.

We were created for so much more than scrolling on a device. I want the routines of my life to reflect my purpose and mission. I want to be able to be creative like our Creative Father. I recently read a great book on this topic if you want to check out the review here.

Are you observing Lent?

Do you have a focus or some special resources you can share?

Please feel free to leave me a comment below and share what you are doing and how God is working through your time of fasting. Leave a link to your blog if you are posting on these things over the next 40 days. I love hearing from you!

Lenten Thoughts for Ash Wednesday

We sat down last night for some great seasonal coffee and a plate of crepes with fruit and whipped cream. I added a little bacon and sausage to the mix, too. We are not the “Fat Tuesday” types so we call it Shrove Tuesday around here. This year it felt like an intentional time to kind of prepare me for today. We ate together, which is one of my favorite times each day. I love sitting down at a table and just enjoying food and fellowship together. Yummy food helps that process to be a little more enjoyable, I think. My family tends to agree. My children have the habit of eating meals with family and I am glad that we practiced that daily when they were little.

A side story… my daughter spent last summer house sitting at her grandmother’s home while she was on summer break. She would often wander in for dinner over at our home each night because she wanted that connection. She would get up early on Sunday morning every week to come and eat breakfast with us before going to church together. Her father, for many years, has made pancakes for the kids every Sunday morning and she just found comfort in that ritual while she could do that. When she and our middle boy left for college that was one of the things they said that they really missed… meals with family and Sunday morning pancakes. I am grateful that they feel this way. I hope they keep these traditions with their own families. These rituals and practices are far more important than many families understand. If you don’t practice this add a few nights a week you can start gathering around that table… even if it’s pizza and soda to get you started.

So, as we begin this Lenten season I wanted to share a bit about what I have planned. I will spend a few days just sharing some things with you. I don’t want to overwhelm you in one giant post so I will just share a quick picture and a little background for today.

I began this week writing some things about what I wanted to accomplish… goals and purpose statements to keep me on track during Lent this year. I did not grow up celebrating Lent. I am from a protestant background and my husband is a protestant pastor. Lent, for me, does not always look like the traditional Catholic Lent. Over the years, as an adult, I have had years when I fast from something or focus on something specific in my spiritual life and it is never the same for me from year to year. It tends to be a way of taking time to just focus on my walk with Christ and reorder my days to spend time putting Christ at the forefront of my life again. For me, the building of daily habits and disciplines really helps me more than anything else.

I shared a quick overview on my Instagram before I walked away for 40 days. I will elaborate on this more tomorrow. In the meantime, I would love to hear if you are doing Lent and books and resources that help you bring focus to this season. Our ultimate goal is to know Christ more deeply and to look more like Him in the way we live our lives. Please feel free to share in the comments with me. I will be here even though I won’t be on FB and IG.

Happy Lent to you all and stay tuned for more of what I am doing, listening to, reading, and focusing on for the next 40 days. Blessings to you and your family during this Lenten season.