My friend Heather is a Word girl!! When she was in college she performed in over 14 plays and memorized hundreds of lines, so I’ve asked her to share some tips to help us hide God’s Word in our hearts this week. Here are a few she shared. I’ll post more each week.
Ideas for Memorizing Scripture
- Write the scripture on several index cards or post-it notes and place them in areas where you will see them frequently throughout the day. Examples: on the bathroom mirror, refrigerator door, in the car, at work, etc…
- Get a stack of index cards and on each one write one or two words from the verse, including the reference. Shuffle them up and see if you can put them in the correct order again. Save the cards and reuse common words found in other verses.
- Send the verse to friends and family by typing, texting, or writing it out by hand. You can look at the verse, but do not copy and paste! Try writing it at least once a day.
- Study with a friend, your spouse, or teach it to your kids! Quiz each other and keep each other on track. What a great way for families to spend time in the Word together!
- Change the wall paper on your computer to an image that has your Bible verse.
Word for the week: SATISFIED (Download in a PDF or download in MSWord). Please print it and post it everywhere so you can remember that God’s love can satisfy the thirst of your soul!
Verse for the week: “Satisfy [me] in the morning with your unfailing love, that [I] may sing for joy and be glad all [my] days…for I have put my trust in you.” Psalm 90:14, 143:8b, NIV
Today’s Assignment: Start or continue reading chapter 3. Remember, take your time and highlight or underline sentences that resonate in your heart.
Personal Update: Thank you for praying for my mom. She has a small fracture under her eye but no internal bleeding. Her face looks horrible so I am praising God she didn’t have more damage. Also, thank you for your sweet and fun comments about my silly Saturday video. I love sharing real life with you and wouldn’t want it any other way. Speaking of real life, I’m getting sick and this is the week we release my first teaching segment in the series of six videos we spent months filming and editing. I’m so eager to share this message with you! I just need to finish the handout and we’ll be ready to go. Please pray I’ll feel good enough to get ‘er done Tuesday so we can launch it Weds as planned. :-). (All things are possible for she who believes!)
Connecting in Community: Let’s commit to memorize this week’s verse together! If you are in, leave a comment by clicking on “share your thoughts” and tell us how you plan to memorize it. Also, if you have any other creative ways to memorize scripture please share that too! Lord willing, I’ll be back Weds with our video that Im so excited to share with you!!
Renee, I started to read chapter 4 last night and noticed i had already read it however, when i started re-reading it i was writing “Me Too” in places that you shared that were similar to what i had gone thru or am going thru. Like, trying to make my “happily ever after” come true for me. My husband was fine BEFORE we got married. However, i have realized that i needed to “fine tune” some areas of him that i didnot like. Because after all he would not fit my “happily ever after” story that i was making for myself. Some would call that controlling and they are probably right because when WE try to make things to turn out the way we want them to we are trying to CONTROL the matter. I kinda have to chuckle here because as i am writing this i am also thinking of my 22yr old son who so desparately had to move back to Florida. He had a great reason however, his timing was a bit off. Anyway, we got him to Florida and nothing seem to go the way he wanted them to go. So he keeps trying other things now he is working day labor so he can come back up here. While he is down there we find out that he got excepted into “Job Corp.” The purpose for his journey to Tampa, Florida was so he could attend a particular bible institute. Someone that went to that institute is training him. So in a years time my son will have his papers to be an Evangilist. and he will be close to finishing his studies in Job Corp. I said all this to say that my son watched me try to control different situations of my life and now he is doing it! However, now i can help him to see that the only one that has control over everything is Jesus! and when we allow him to handle life’s journey we will have peace.
Satisfied! I already shared on another blog that I have been freeting, wanting, whining, and asked God for guidance. He sent me “Jehovah Jireh, My Provider! Satisfaction soon came after I settled down and remembered that I have no plans. I only have directions. I can only lfollow. I cannot lead! Hallelujah!!!!!
I used to love to memorize and remembering His Word in my Mind helps to keep me on track. I understand your week. My grandson broke his leg, foreclosure in in the horizon, a court case in which someone lied on our family, and God is leading the charge.
I also wanted to make a comment on the Samaritan Woman. I have always loved that story. The first thing I loved was that God “had” to go by Samaria. He never does anything by coincidence. He does things with intentions. There was a woman who needed Him and He was there. I have needed Him and He has been there. I will never forget when I decided to leave a relationship and I was going down the highway wondering why I would not just go back. Back to that person who I loved so much. Back to the comfort of physical needs. I kept on going and I to this day remember that I could not go back. I was in the presence of the Almighty God and His Will Be Done, forever. Please, women of God. God never forgets us. He never leaves us alone!
Greetings Sisters,
I pray all you ladies are doing well. This book has been a tremendous blessing to me, however I must admit I still find a few areas in my life where I need a confident heart. The biggest area right now is my job. I’m a new registered nurse recent grad and unfortunately within my 8mos on the job I am making several mistakes. I don’t have anyone to confide in and I began the orientation with 9 other young ladies… I feel as if I’m alone and constantly being criticized. I have heard in nursing school that Nursing is a profession where “They eat their young” but I never imagined it would be this bad. Please if you can pray that I would not dread coming to work and God instills in me a confident heart, I would really appreciate it. Thank you.
Natalie, I just wanted you to know that I will keep you up lifted in prayer. I am sorry Natalie that you feel alone in this matter. Proverbs 3:5-8 says: “Lean on, trust in and be confident in the Lord with all your heart and mind and do not rely on your own insight or understanding. In all your ways know, recognize, and acknowledge Him, and He will direct and make straight and plain your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; reverently fear and worship the Lord and turn [entirely] away from evil. It shall be health to your nerves and sinews, and marrow and moistening to your bones” (AMP)
Have a Great day at work!
Natalie…. It is a bad feeling to feel like everyone is against you on your job. I had a job one time – (many, many, many years ago) and I was surrounded by people who were so un-Godly and not Christians. They seemed to be all against me – my bosses boss in particular was really a problem – I think it was a lightness/darkness kind of spiritual thing. I felt so alone and miserable. I prayed one day in the restroom, “Lord, if there are any Christians here, please bring them across my path”. And, yes, God did bring a very sweet girl to me who was a Christian and helped me through the awfulness of the experience. I would encourage you to do the same and pray for God to bring you friendships in your work environment from other Christians for support. “Divine relationships”!
Re: Video…Well said. As I watch and listen to your videos my husband wants everyone in the room to be quiet so he can hear too. :>)
This week has been a blur. My home life is unsettled with 3 teens and my marriage has some large holes. I really tracked with this weeks study illustration with the vase and all our stuff/people in our lives leaving holes. Since I can’t just dump all the stuff/people in a box and close the lid, I pray that the Lord will fill the holes in my life with His presence.
My oldest daughter was forced to move out of the house, not my choice, but God’s plan. I am able to meet with her on Thursday night and Friday mornings I have a sense of the emptiness left from her not being able to live with us. If she had left with everyone happy it would not seem to be so hard. Giving God all our hurt as Wendy talked about in her Devotion today… http://devotions.proverbs31.org/
It seems all week all the Proverbs 31 blogs have had the same theme, tracking with this chapter.
Right now I think I could live off of Proverbs 31 and Starbucks. Reading my Proverbs 31 ministries blogs and sitting in Starbucks is my safe place right now. Thank you sisters.
Shalom~
I love the teaching, but I can’t trace Chapter 3. Please assist, Thank you.
I loved your video message Renee. I liked the demonstration you showed with the jar and how we try to find unconditional love in people and things rather than in god, you find yourself empty when you try finding love and fulfillment anywhere other than god. On the other hand when you let god’s promises fill you, there are no empty spaces to be found. Wecneed to come and fill our lives with the living water of god’s unconditional love and forgiveness. Only god is meant to fiil and fulfill you
I just thought of another way to keep our memory verse in front of us. we could put the memory verse as our profile picture. I just did it with the picture you shared with us about “Blessed” Jeremiah 17:7″ and it worked. (I’m a bit computer knowledge challenged however, i am learning something new everyday)
Renee, So glad to read that your mom is doing well. In regards to the memorization i find that interesting and am excited to do it. When i use to memorize scripture i would write it on 3×5 (or bigger) cards and stick them everywhere! However, i have never thought to put it on my computer so when i turn it on it will be there. So i will be doing that too.
(side note: just wanted you to know that i had been w/o a computer until just recently so am playing catch up. Before this study i was already on ch 4 so going back is a good thing i see things that i am re-reading even more.)
Wow Renee! Chapter 3 was so interesting to read because I could hear myself through your words. Throughout college I always felt I didn’t come close to measuring up to other students in my major. I would call mom crying for her to let me quit college and do something else. I toughed it out and during my senior year in student teaching, I was paired with a mentor that told me I didn’t know what I was doing and would never be any good! I went to the Dean and got my teaching assignment changed to a much better one, but I always remembered the words of that woman and that allowed me to wallow in my already present self-doubts. I graduated but never pursued a career in my major.
Also, during college I started to have doubts about my religious beliefs and fell further and further from God. I met and married a man who was the opposite of anyone I ever dated. He was fun and exciting and showed me a side of life I didn’t know existed. Problem was he was not a God-fearing man and that became one of many problems between us. He was a pessimist and I an optomist. I always had hope in situations where he could only see darkness. And that angered him terribly. He was depressed and self medicating with drugs and alcohol which made him verbally abusive. Things continued to decline and one day he wanted me to watch him commit suicide with a shotgun. When I refused to watch and walked away, he shot at me from behind. I heard the bullet whiz past my ear!!! Later, I felt God was telling me it was okay to leave, that I had done all I could to keep the marriage going (13 years of abuse). I stayed one more week, because my daughter had a big 7th birthday party planned and I didn’t want to disappoint her. That decision almost cost me my life as two days after the party, he shot at me again infront of our 3 1/2 year old daughter! I did finally leave and for the last 6 years I have struggled with self worth and insecurities. I believe God allowed me to go through this experience because it drew me back to him. I realized how close I came to dying and that he let me live for a reason. I am still working on what that reason is, but I have come a long way. I prayed and cried for a better job for years, and I just got one a few months ago. I realize now that I wouldn’t have been ready sooner. I have really learned to count on him to give me the strength and courage I need to stop doubting myself and give it my all.
I was so excited when I heard about your book this summer and I am really enjoying reading it. I wish I had more time to reflect on it and read the posts on the site, but I am still benefiting greatly from being a part of this study. Thank you so much for sharing your story of self-doubt and insecurity with all of us. It takes a lot of courage to put it out there, but it will help sooo many.
Thank you for sharing, Kim. You have an amazing story and are a very strong person. Congrats on your new job and on your reunion with our amazing God. Rest assured that you have a significant purpose and can make a large impact on the body of Christ.
Where is the Chapter 3?
I love the different ways everyone memorizes the Word! How exciting!
<3 Heather
I read this today by Holley Gerth: They are true!! I am learning to Believe
Coming face-to-face with a God who loves us unconditionally sets us off balance.
It’s much easier to believe, “If I go to church and read my Bible, God will love me.” That makes us feel safe because it seems we can control God’s love. It’s scary to believe in God’s unconditional love.
I POSTED THIS JUST A MINUTE AGO WOULDN’T GO BECAUSE I PUT IN WRONG E-MAIL ADDRESS. SO I KNOW I NEED TO POST THIS.
PRAISE GOD FOR A GOOD REPORT FOR YOUR MOM. BY JESUS STRIPES YOU ARE HEALED!!!!!!!GOD’S WORD SAYS SO!!!!!!!
THANK YOU FOR YOUR KIND AND ENCOURAGING WORDS ABOUT SON’S FAMILY CRISIS. IT HAS PASSED . PRAISE GOD. I STILL HAVE TO LEARN HOW TO DEAL WITH THE ON GOING THING IN HIS FAMILY SO IT WON’T AFFECT ME IN THE WRONG WAY. THRU THIS STUDY I AM LEARING THAT . NOW TO DAY WE ARE TAKING OUR 47 YEAR YOUNG DAUGHTER TO OUT PATIENT SURGERY . APIMPLE CAME IN HER NOSE OVER THE WEEK-END AND BECAME VERY PAINFUL. SHE SEEN ENT DR YESTERDAY AND HE SAID IT HAS TO BE CUT IN 3 DIFFENT PLACES TO DRAIN. IT HAS BECOME ABCESSED. IT IS TOO PAINFUL TO BE DONE IN OFFICE. SHE HAS TO BE IN HOSPITAL. WE ARE NOW JUST WAITING ON HER CALL TO KNOW WHAT TIME. THE DEVIL HAS NO PLACE IN OUR FAMILY. I AM DOING THIS BIBLE STUDY AND MADE TO CRAVE . ROGER & I ARE READING THE BIBLE AND PRAYING TOGETHER EVERY DAY. SO I SHOULDN’T BE SURPRISED AT WHAT IS HAPPENING IN OUR FAMILY. I HAVE MADE THE DEVIL MAD. BUT GUESS WHAT I HAVE THE VICTORY BECAUSE GOD’E WORD SAYS I HAVE. THANK YOU FOR THIS STUDY GOD BLESS YOU AND YOURS KAY IN INDIANA YOUR 67 YEAR YOUNG STUDENT.
I found with me and my girls for us to learn verses we find a beat within the words and we sing it. Because we all know we find a song we love, we hear it just a few times and it becomes permanent. I started sharing this trick with my AWANA kids who absolutely thought I was crazy, but it helped them to remember the books of the Bible and some other verses they’ve been studying. God is so good, He fills our cups and surely satisfies us! Thanks Renee for today’s encouraging words. I love new tips/tricks as my tip doesn’t always work for everyone. Blessings!
That is a great idea Marsha!
A friend has passed this on to me. Please send to me aswell. Thanks
..praying for you Renee and those of you dealing with health issues.
Please pray for me. I have had a rough week with my health since the end of last week. Just feeling really bad. I haven’t even started reading our chapter yet or my other class. I need prayers to get to feeling better and learning to handle the hypoglycemia I have. Friday I was at the gym and I almost passed out. Got home and my blood sugar was low even after eating. Still trying to recover from this and went to dialysis really sick. Thank you for your prayers.
Kimberly, I am praying for you right now, “Lord Jesus, I pray for my sister Kimberly. You have a plan in all of our lives and I pray for her health and healing. I pray for the people she will come in contact through her journey that will encourage her and that she will have the opportunity to encourage. Let her see Your hand in her life and that you are ALL satisfying. You have all our answer even if we don’t get them right now. Thank you Lord. ~Amen”
I am really hearing God in this study. I have been struggling with insecurity my entire adult life, really it started as a teen, when all the other girls seemed to have everything together and in sports or a cheerleader, I felt I was never good enough. I struggled after my high school years, not knowing what to do with my life, never had any big dreams, I felt I was not the type of person that would succeed at any of them. I was married at age 20 and pregnant with our first daughter at age 21, I decided not to continue with my community college, so I could devote all my time to our daughter. Many times I have felt beneath those who have great exciting careers, and successful in life. We had a second child, and I have enjoyed every minute of being with my children and would not change a thing, my oldest is graduating this year, and I still find myself asking is this all I am to be, is it enough, am I good enough, will people want to be around me or think less of me, because I have not been as successful as them? I know God is speaking to me, and I am praying that through this study and spending time with him, and all of you, God will settle my doubt my worthiness
Dear Wendy, God didn’t give each of us the same gifts. Romans 12:6 “God has given each of us the ability to do certain things well.” He blessed you with a home and children and the time to be with them. He loves you and wants you to be yourself not like others. As Renee wrote in A Confident Heart on Page 22 “Self-doubt blocks the promise of God’s power and truth to change us from the inside out so that we can live with a confident heart.”
Thank You Becci, I appreciate your words of encouragement. This is an amazing study, and has spoke to me in so many ways. I really enjoy being with all of you ladies, in heart!
When I taught Sunday School and when I taught at a Christian school I used this method for memorizing: wrote the verse and where it is found in the Bible in its entirety. After this start erasing one word and then read it with the word missing and then erase another word and read it with two missing words and continue this until ALL the words/numbers have been erased. This has been VERY successful in my lifetime. I have used paper/pencil/eraser OR chalkboard/chalk/eraser OR dry erase board/dry erase marker/dry erase board eraser.
I just got a cute little pack of posted-notes with a little bird on the corner. I know what I will be doing with them.
Sharing verses.
I talked to a friend who is hungry for a Bible Study. I told her about The book and group. I am so glad that we can do this and now I have a local ‘study buddy’ to encourage. (we can’t meet together much, but in will be putting posted-notes in her box regularly) B)
Plan to read it in different translations, write it on index card and keep it on my desk. I also like a previous idea of including it as a signature.
Praying that the Lord would make you well, Renee. I love the idea of writing a couple of words of the verse on different index cards. This is a clever way to unscramble the scripture and my brain!!
So very glad to hear your mother is not seriously ill, Renee. This is so much a God thing, memorizing Scripture, and I had to share this. Before I got started with Renee’s online study several weeks ago, I had already started a book called, “Gratitude” by Heather Bixler. It’s a Scripture memory plan and teaches you how to memorize Scripture, one each week. I had completed the first 3 weeks when I started Renee’s study. I believe Heather’s is an 8 week Scripture plan. You take an assigned Scripture and study it for one week, a different way each day. Some of her suggestions are to write the verse on 4 different sticky notes and post them at various places you spend time at each day. Look up 3 different versions of the Scripture and write in your journal, Read the entire chapter that contains that scripture, write it by memory 3-4 times in your journal, share it with a friend, etc. I’ve always had a hard time memorizing Scripture (and anything else for that matter), but this has proven to be successful for me. And just so I don’t forget what I’ve memorized, I continue to repeat the previous verses already learned as I’m learning each new one each new week.
I look to many things to satisfy me, but they don’t last…that bag of chips, a scoop of ice cream, a new pair of shoes. While pleasurable for a while (or moment) the enjoyment doesn’t last long before I want something else, but God’s love does satisfy. It is new every morning. I am so grateful for a Father who loves me so much. I am definitely writing this verse down and memorizing it! I memorize verses by making up a tune, or fitting the verse into a familiar song, and then I sing it throughout the day, week, or year. This has really helped me to secure them in my mind, heart and soul. By the way, I am not in any way musically talented. My last verse was put to a Star Wars theme song and the one before that was to “Silent Night.” 🙂
I finished reading our next chapter and so much information to take in. I think I will reread it again becuase I always get more out of reading it a second time. Renee I love your honesty in the studies in the book. I don’t feel so alone anymore either. I feel like since I have joined this online bible study I am not alone in my everyday problems I face as well as the feelings of loneliness and worthiness. God talks about how we look for others to be worthy for when in fact he himself sees us as all worthy no matter what we have done in our lives. That all we need to do is in fact is to give our lives to Jesus and believe in him. In God’s eyes we are worthy. We can only serve one God and for me growing up in Satanic Ritual Abuse family you are taught to much differently and as I have become an adult I have had to learn that there is one true God to worship. I am fighting my hardest to get out of the circle of abuse and with the help of my christian therapist I am learning that I have to totally rely on one God and one God only. Sometimes I get so angry at myself because I feel like I am turning back to the old ways . In the SRA world there is what we call a black bible that is what I grew up with so this study is so important as a part of my life. I have to remind myself that the black bible is satans bible. … Anyway I probably will write more later for now I will stop here. Thanks Renee for all you do for this bible study.
I just want to say that I am really enjoying this study. I have felt God move in me in many ways already so far! Thank you Renee and thank you to all other women doing this study now too. “Where two or more are gathered, there He is also!”
Renee I wanted to thank you for the way you word your daily assignments. As I looked at this post today (knowing I haven’t started the chapter yet, although each day I have been reading the prayer at the end of the chapter) I was so relieved to see the words, “Today’s Assignment….Finish reading or BEGIN reading Chapter 3…” I felt a big sigh of relief and no condemnation that I had not started reading it yet!! I felt like, “It’s ok that you haven’t started yet.” I needed that. Thank you for giving us a guideline to give us order and keep us accountable but also being tender and understanding of schedules etc.
Praise God. In Him is freedom!
Dear Renee and bible study girlfriends, I am feeling the prayers being said, the Lord has been showing me lots of encouragement and confidence. I have been thru a very bumpy time in the last few years and am trusting the Lord more now than ever before. I too have been praying for the Lord to help me find my satisfaction in Him alone. Not my marriage (has been rough), people, alcohol, food or work. I also for years have prayed Psalm 90:17 NKJV And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands for us; Yes, establish the work of our hands. Just 1 tiny prayer request, might seem silly to some, but I am a Nail Tech and nail art has always been hard for me, I don’t want to fear it anymore. Thank you, love you all out there.