Is Scripture Memory Important?

Have you participated in a Spelling Bee? What about a Bible Bee?

As a teenager, Brittany was a national qualifier in the National Bible Bee for six years and won second place twice, an experience that helped her learn how to study Scripture and led her to memorize twenty-six books of the Bible.

Today, Brittany has a ministry for encouraging others in Bible memory/study and enjoys reciting Scripture for conferences and other events.

She has had the opportunity to be interviewed by or recite Scripture for organizations such as Revive Our Hearts, FamilyLife Today, and more.

Brittany’s desire is to encourage other women to study the Word of God and to know it deeply, so that it can transform every aspect of their lives.

When she is not working or pursuing certification as an ACBC biblical counselor, Brittany loves to sing, travel, and enjoy the great outdoors with her family in Deep East Texas.

Topics Mentioned

• Why Scripture Memory is Valuable

• How to Incorporate it Into Daily Life

• How to Find Motivation

“The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever.” (Is 40:8)

Recent Posts

Transcript

  📍Hi, everyone. Welcome back to Grace Notes. Today, I have Brittany with me. It's February now, and perhaps some of you made a goal of memorizing more or digging deeper into God's Word, and Brittany has fantastic experience with the Bible Bee that she'll be sharing with us today and some practical tips to memorize.

Welcome, Brittany.

Hi, Grace. Thank you so much for having me. I'm honored to be here. All right, so tell me a little bit about where you are in the US and maybe a little bit about your spiritual journey. So I live in deep East Texas, , in a rural area. It's a beautiful part of Texas and I really enjoy living there and being outdoors, that kind of thing.

And a little bit of my background, I was so blessed to grow up in a Christian home with parents who taught me God's word from an early age. And I came to accept Christ into my life when I was seven years old, a year before my parents had given me my own Bible, which I was so excited to have. So, I began reading the Bible, just learning more about scripture over the years, memorizing here and there, um, maybe a chapter here, a few verses there, which helped impact my spiritual walk. And, um, that really honestly gave me a great foundation to grow in the Lord and grow in God's Word. Amazing. Now, I know a big part of your story is Bible memory. What age did you start that at?

I started memorizing on my own, just A little bit here and there as I don't know, maybe eight years old or something. I'm not sure I would memorize a chapter or a few verses, but when I was 13 years old, I started competing in the first ever national Bible bee. And that just took scripture memory to an entire new level for me.

The national Bible bee is almost similar to the national. Spelling bee, except that instead of memorizing lawn words, how to spell lawn words, you're memorizing hundreds of Bible verses, studying the book of the Bible, inductively learning many, many Greek and Hebrew words. And, um, so when I was 13, that is really when I realized it's possible to memorize extensive portions of scripture.

I competed in the Bible bee for the next six years. And that whole process inspired me to, Lord willing, memorize the entire Bible. I don't know if I'll reach that goal. Up to this point, I've memorized 26 books by God's grace, but definitely have a long ways to go. And since aging out of the Bible Bee, I've continued to memorize, um, not in the same level of intensity I did during competing, but continuing to try to learn God's word.

Okay, so 26 books. Like, I struggle to memorize. 26 verses. That is amazing, and I love that you're hiding God's word in your heart. So give us some practical, like, are you putting these in the shower or in your car? How are you making the time, , to prioritize this? I would say that my first thought, and this is what I have been just kind of grappling with in this season, because it's been a very busy season.

I can't memorize. I was, when I competed in Bible Bee, I would study for eight to 10 hours a day, you know, um, and as a student, I was able to do that throughout the summer. But now as an adult, you know, I'm working, I'm in ministry, I have, you know, family commitments and, um, things I'm doing, and I don't have that schedule and same amount of time to invest in scripture. So I really think my first tip would be, do not let the amount of time that you're able to invest in scripture, deter you or discourage you, because I really think that God values quality over quantity. , he values just one Bible verse that we're able to hide in our hearts and that he is able to speak to us through, if we're applying that verse.

to our lives and we are being changed through it. That's something that God values and that will bear fruit for his kingdom. So as far as practical tips, I would say one thing that has helped me tremendously is to record myself reading the passage of scripture I want to memorize and then playing it back to myself.

And at first it seemed strange to like, you know, listen to my Self talking, but hearing it in my own voice with my own inflections and the way I emphasize certain words really helps me retain it. Something else that helps me is find an accountability partner, you know, memorize with a friend with a family member.

If you're a mom, maybe try memorizing with your kids. There are so many great resources to do that. Um, National Bible Bee, Scripture Memory Fellowship. So many great resources to help you memorize with children. Something else that I love to do is just try praying through the passage I'm memorizing. You know, cause it's not about just being able to, you know, rattle off a lawn words, right?

A bunch of words. It's about having a relationship with God. So praying through a passage of scripture. helps us build that relationship as God speaks to us through his word, and also gives us a way to interact with the passage that will help us retain it better. Those are just some practical tips, but going back to what I shared about quality over quantity, I would encourage anyone who might feel like I'm overwhelmed, I don't have time to memorize long portions of scripture, Just start with one verse and remember that if we are stewarding our time well and investing it for God's kingdom and building our relationship with him, he'll be honored by that.

I've been thinking about the parable of the 10 talents and where these, the master, you know, leaves his servants with different amounts. of talents to invest while he goes away on this trip. And what's interesting about that parable that Jesus shared is that the servant that invested five talents and doubled it into 10 is not praised any more than the servant that invested one talent and doubled it into two, because that is what his master gave him.

And he was faithful with that. And that encourages me be faithful with the time God's given us. , focus on being proactive, finding ways to build scripture memory into your daily life. And don't put pressure on yourself to be perfect or to memorize lawn portions at first. Be willing to start small and see how God leads.

Okay. Yeah. Lots of good things in there. I love your focus on the relational aspect. because anyone can memorize God's word, but it's also another step to apply it and have it changing in our lives. What about your parents? Were they encouraging you to help? What role did they play? My parents were a Just honestly, an immense blessing and support, especially during my years competing in Bible Bee.

My mom would quiz me on my Bible verses every day, and through that she memorized a lot of scripture herself. And even today, memorizing, she's memorized the book of 2nd Timothy, just as a mom with a busy life, but she recorded it on her smartphone. phone and would play it every day while she was exercising and memorize the entire book of Second Timothy that way.

So I know that both of my parents have been a big encouragement, even now as an adult, and especially growing up, like I said, being there to listen to me, recite verses to encourage me and also to encourage me to not stress over perfection, but to focus on the heart of hiding God's word in my heart and doing it to glorify him.

Excellent. Yeah, definitely the audience of one. I'm sure as you're competing, it can be a little bit nervous. I'd love to hear a little bit more about the Bible Bee. Is that only in the summer or are competitions year round? So the Bible Bee starts in the summertime with a local competition. The contestants complete a summer Bible study on a portion of Scripture, and they memorize about you know, a small, a small number of Bible passages, something very achievable for most kids that are just on their summer break from school.

That's what they focus on during the summer. But then there is a test, an online test in August that contestants from all over the nation will take. And from the highest scores, the top 120 scores from that test for three age divisions. will advance to a national level of competition, and the national competition takes place in November, and the contestants who are qualifiers for that have a lot more studying and memorizing to do.

They memorize many hundreds of Bible verses, study another book of the Bible, this time with no outside help, just their own, you know, study and resources. So it does take place for contestants that want to take it more seriously. It's about a six month commitment. But for those who just want to learn God's word in a fun way during the summer, it's really just on their summer break.

And it's a great way to stay active and learning and have something fun and profitable to do while you're off break from school. Definitely. I'm reminded of the verse to love the Lord with our heart, soul, mind, and strength. And I think that's a great way to do that. I'm curious about the Hebrew and Greek words.

Can you give me an example of that and what that memory process would look like? That's a great question. I, so during the summer study in Bible Bee, in that context of, for contestants in the Bible Bee, during the summer study, the It will contain, you know, Greek words taken from a Bible passage. And then for the national contestants, they'll have to find those on their own in the Bible passage they're studying.

But an example might be, if you look at first Corinthians 13, the love chapter. Right. And if we want to dig deeper into that chapter, then we'll want to know what is what. Is said in what word is used in the original language for love in this chapter, and that word is agape. And if you use online resources, blue Letter Bible's a great resource that will help you, , look back at the original language.

Then you can discover, okay, wow, this word agape, is referring to a little bit of a different idea than we think of love. It's talking about loving with our will and not just emotions. And there's just so much. Deeper meaning that we can discover from seeing what God was saying through his word in the original language, like I said, there's a lot of practical resources to do that but the Bible bee gives contestants some guide in that throughout their summer study and That's something that's a blessing to do on your own as an adult. I love resources like blue letter bible I know there's others that will help you study the original language and get a much deeper understanding of scripture that way I love that you're digging into the meaning, because it's one thing to memorize, but to go deeper and understand it and apply it is so important.

Now, you mentioned 26 books. Are any of those Old Testament? They are. So, from the Old Testament, I memorized Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Ruth, and a number of the Minor Prophets. And that's it. How do you retain that? Do you go back and review every so often?

If I'm going to be reciting a book of the Bible at an event, of course I'm spending a lot of extra time reviewing that. So at this point, it's kind of an informal method, I guess. of reviewing.

I know there's some great methods out there and I'm still working on getting those down. I agree. I know it's one thing for me to memorize and then often I forget, but, you know, I was reminded of the illustration of a well. Sometimes we need to put things in the well because we never know when we'll have to draw out of the well.

And so, as we're hiding these words in our heart, it's important to have that stored up because you never know, maybe there's a season of postpartum or stress, a time where you may need that, so even if we struggle with the memory component, just meditating on that can be such an encouragement. Can you tell us a favorite passage or book that you've memorized?

I think one of my favorite books that I've memorized is definitely First Peter. I did an inductive study on that, um, when I was competing in Bible Bee and just impacted my life in a lot of ways. And I think probably one of my favorite passages from that book would be First Peter 1:3-9. It's a really good passage.

Can you recite some of that for us? Sure. I'd love that. First Peter one, three through nine, blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead to one inheritance, incorruptible and undefiled, and that fadeth not away reserved in heaven for you who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time.

Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness their manifold temptations, that the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ, whom, having not seen, ye love.

In whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls. Wonderful. As we close, I'd love to hear a little bit more about your heart behind this, there's so many things out there that we could spend our time on.

What is motivating you to, to prioritize this in your life, still even in busy seasons? For me, it is, it is a challenge, right. You know, it is definitely a temptation sometimes to not spend time memorizing scripture. But I think what encourages me to continue on is just remembering what the word of God really means for us.

You know, it's as believers, we have This book that is unlike any other book. It's the living word. So every time we open our Bibles, we're encountering Jesus himself, and he wants to build a relationship with us. He wants to speak to us, and he wants to transform our lives. God says that his word contains all that pertains to life and godliness.

So why would we not want to spend time in this book? So as I reflect on what God's word means to me, it's a light for my path. It's a compass to guide me when I feel disoriented or confused and it's a storm shelter to run to when life is dangerous and I feel vulnerable. There is so much that God's word can do for me.

When I reflect on that, I am motivated to keep going and keep pressing toward that goal of knowing the Lord more. And I fall short so often, but God is faithful and he gives us the grace to press on. And you know, of, of so, of all the things that we could spend our time in, how much does he want to help us and give us the ability to spend time in the word that he wrote to us?

Definitely, yeah. Grass withers and flowers fade, but it's the Word of God that stands forever. I, um, can usually recall some verses. I struggle with the references, but I think that's such an encouragement. Have you found a time where, let's say, the first Peter passage or another passage has encouraged you practically as you are struggling through something?

Have you had a moment where all that investment of memory has really, strengthened you in that, in that day to day? Absolutely, like you mentioned, 1st Peter specifically, one of the moments that stands out to me is several years ago, I went through a very difficult trial. I was in a very traumatic situation that was unexpected and, , just in a really dangerous But God protected me, but there is still some really difficult consequences.

And in that moment, when I was like in this first wave of shock and confusion over this situation that I found myself in, honestly, I had no idea where to go. I had no idea where to turn and I had to make some very important decisions. Decisions in a very short amount of time, and I'll never forget how God brought to my mind.

Another verse from first Peter four 19. It says, wherefore, let them that suffer according to the will of God, commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing as into a faithful creator. So in that moment, in my greatest hour of need, God brought to my mind, something I had memorized many years ago, and it gave me A foundation to stand on and it gave me comfort that I could interest myself to him and that he would carry me through that time.

That's wonderful. Yeah. I love how, like you were saying earlier, the word of God is living and active. And so we never know how that's going to, , bless and encourage us when, when those tough seasons come. I would love for you to close in prayer and just encourage any women listening as they're contemplating this for themselves or their children, if you could just close with, a prayer and any final thoughts.

Dear Lord, thank you so much for this time that you've given us Lord to talk and thank you for grace and her ministry. I pray Lord that our conversation will be an encouragement to those who are listening. I pray Lord for every woman listening Lord, I pray that you will empower her.

And just give each lady a vision of how she can know you better of how she can make memorizing scripture a priority in her life, Lord, and pray that you'll enable each of us by your Holy Spirit to hide your word in our hearts and to live it out in our lives. Thank you so much in your name. Amen.

Just a few closing thoughts I would want to share is going back to what I said earlier about not placing on ourselves the expectation that we have to memorize large amounts of scripture, the final word I'd love to share is something that a friend of mine mentioned recently.

She said, focus on the process of memorizing scripture, not just the outcome. So I want to encourage you, we can get tunnel visioned, especially as ladies, we get fixated on the goal.

I have to reach this goal. I have to reach this deadline or I'm a failure. Instead, focus on the process of getting to know the God of the universe through hiding his word in your heart, interacting with his word, enjoy that time. And as you do that, you will find that it is that much easier to memorize because as we reflect on who God is through his word, and as we make his word big in our minds by just celebrating it and worshiping him through what he's spoken to us.

His word will naturally make its way deep into our hearts. So I encourage you, don't stress over the results. Leave that up to the Lord and instead just focus on how you can deepen your relationship with Him by hiding His word in your heart. Amen. Yes, definitely the process. There's so many things we can learn.

Thank you so much for your time today, Brittany. Where can people find you if they're interested in learning more? So I have a website for by ministry. It's let the word be heard. com. And I, like I mentioned earlier, I quote scripture word for word scripture at conferences and different events. So if anyone listening is interested in having me come to their then and quote scripture or speak about scripture memory, I would love to get in touch with them.

That's a great place to reach me. If you go to my website, you can email me through my website and also listen to some of my past podcast interviews as well as some of my recitations. Fantastic. Thank you so much for your time today, Brittany. Thank you, Grace. It was a joy to get to talk with you. 📍