Scripture's Dwelling
by Xan Proctor
"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God" -Colossians 3:16
One of my favorite parts of growing up was when I would go to church for C-MENT practice. I would look forward to the shows, all the rehearsals, learning new musical parts, and acting as hilarious characters. But I especially loved memorizing lines for some reason. It seems quite contrary to a lot of other theater folks, but there was something so fun about it. Sometimes during conversations with people in the play, they would say something that reminded me of a line from the show. And sometimes it would slip out into the conversation. It always fascinated me how well it would stick in my mind.
In the past couple years a new practice has become part of my life: Bible memorization. This might remind you of your times in VBS with the magic screen; trying to remember what words mysteriously disappeared, or learning John 3:16 in Sunday School. As a kid it can seem like such a minor practice as part of the Christian life, but now as an adult, I recognize the deep importance of funneling the Word of God into our hearts.
Take a look at the verse above. "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly..." A dwelling is a place where someone lives. What would it look like if Scripture were to have our hearts as a dwelling? To truly abide in us, filling our speech with life, our words with kindness, our dialogue with truth. Another part in Scripture tells us, "Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it" (Prov. 4:23). What a great way to guard our hearts! I don't know about you, but if everything I do flows from my heart, I want my heart to be full of the Word of God. How about you?
The first piece of the Bible I started to memorize was the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7; a foundational teaching from the Lord of glory, Jesus Christ. It was quite daunting the first couple of weeks, but I already started to see fruit in just the first month. I was often reminded of different verses from it in everyday conversations, and I was also gaining a deeper understanding of these words that I had heard many times before. It slowly crept its way into the way I spoke, providing encouragement for myself and others, daily reminders of God's character, and hope for my journey of sanctification.
You may be curious about how to do this practically. Well, the best way is to start small. Try just one verse a day. Maybe even one verse a week. Open up to a place in Scripture that you want to internalize, and read it thoroughly multiple times. You might learn better with audio; take a voice message of yourself reading the passage, and listen to it while doing something else. There are lots of fun and creative ways to engage with God's Word in this way.
Either you are like me and enjoy memorizing, or you despise it and never want to try it, or you’re somewhere in between. Whichever one you are, the Lord still invites us to cling tightly to His Word. How great would it be if, similar to those conversations I had during C-MENT practice, God's Word would find its way into our speech? I wonder how radically our community would change, let alone the world, if Scripture truly dwelt in our hearts richly...
Lord, I pray for revelation of Your Word to our hearts. Let it not be something we miss, but instead be like a pearl beyond price. May You encourage us and others around us with the memorization of Scripture, and help us to find ways to practice this spiritual discipline well. Thank You, Lord so much for the ways You have blessed us with the Bible. I pray this in Jesus' name, Amen.