TO CHEW ON: "But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night." Psalm 1:2
Have you ever read accounts of people who have had experiences or visions of heaven? I know of several. One, Flight to Heaven
, is the story of Captain Dale Black and his visit to heaven as he lay comatose in a hospital bed near death after a plane crash.Here is his account of the perspective he got on God's Word:
"I understood in my heart that God's will was perfection and His Word was the source of all creation. As I considered all that I had seen, I understood that the Word of God was and is the foundation for everything. God was the heart of heaven, His love, His will, His order.
Somehow I recognized that Jesus, the Word, was the structure that held it all together. Like the rib cage around the heart, He was the creative power that brought everything that I saw into place and stabilized it" - Flight to Heaven, p. 104.
David (or whoever wrote Psalm 1) didn't need to go to heaven to learn the value of God's Word (law). Here he describes the blessed man as one who meditates on that word day and night.
[Meditates - hagah, means to reflect, to moan, to mutter, to ponder, to make a quiet sound such as sighing; to meditate or contemplate something as one repeats the words.]
A Word Wealth article in my Bible describes Hebrew meditation:
"In Hebrew thought to meditate upon the Scriptures is to quietly repeat them in a soft droning sound while utterly abandoning outside distractions. From this tradition comes a specialized type of prayer called "davening" that is, reciting texts, praying intense prayers, or getting lost in communion with God while bowing or rocking back and forth" - New Spirit-Filled Life Bible, p. 687.
I'm not sure I could get into that kind of meditation but I can do the meditation practice that works for me: memorization.
When I memorize a piece of Scripture it becomes mine in a unique way. Memorization forces me to think about all the details—the specific words used, the order of the ideas, even the punctuation. And what a blessing later, when I'm anxious (Philippians 4:6-7), or tempted (1 Corinthians 10:13), or feeling old and useless (Isaiah 58:11), to have that Word ready, like an unsheathed sword, prepared to do battle with my thoughts and circumstances.
PRAYER: Dear God, help me to love Your word as much as the psalmist did. Please give me Your perspective on its importance. May it be on my mind continually. Amen.
MORE: More about memorization
Are you interested in improving your ability and success with memorizing? Here are a few links to check out.
- Memorize Bible Verses as a Family (includes games you can play with your kids)
- How to Memorize Scripture (an article from the Navigators)
- How to Memorize Scripture (from the Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry)
Violet, you wrote, "When I memorize a piece of Scripture it becomes mine in a unique way. Memorization forces me to think about all the details—the specific words used, the order of the ideas, even the punctuation."
ReplyDeleteI'm learning that in a whole new way. Mark Buchanan's book, Spiritual Rhythm, challenged me to do more than memorize a verse or two... so I'm working on the Suffering Servant passage in Isaiah 52-53. Suddenly there's so much attention to the order of thoughts and yes, the punctuation.
My mind wanders while I'm reading, but memorization requires absolute focus. That's got to be good for us too!
Good for you, Janet! Mark's sounds like a great book. And I think it's a fabulous idea to memorize longer sections too. What a great passage you've chosen. We'll never get dementia, will we!!?
ReplyDeleteIf we do get dementia, I'd rather have my uncontrolled mind spilling scripture than some of the foolishness or filth it's picked up over the years. :)
ReplyDelete