Willard

Memorizing Scripture used to be a staple of the Christian community. It used to be essential to teaching curriculum. It used to be a recognized mark of spiritual maturity. But I now see little evidence that adults are memorizing Scripture with any sort of regularity or urgency. Why is this? A few reasons come to my mind that are simply based on my own observations:

The Childhood Fallacy

My guess is that the vast majority of Christ followers committed verses to memory early on in their Christian walk (when they were a child or at a time close to their conversion). But this practice has a way of fading as the years go on. The sad reality is that memorizing verses is seen as a chore for children and not an essential practice for all believers. It is quite common for a church to give an ovation after a young person publicly recites a verse aloud. But it is extremely uncommon to find adults challenging other adults to memorize Scripture, even though they tell their children it’s an important exercise. 

The Psalmist teaches that blessing comes to the person who delights and meditates on the law of the Lord (Ps 1:1-3). He says that God’s Word keeps people from committing sin (Ps 119:11). And while the young are specifically addressed at times (Ps 119:9), there is no indication that this activity should be reserved for the young minded.

Categorizing Bible memorization as a childish practice is bad theology. Even worse, it devalues God’s Word. 

The Cost Is More Than We Want to Pay

Committing anything to memory requires two things: time and effort. Most people think they suffer from a lack of time, but a more truthful statement is that most people are unwilling to invest the necessary time to memorize Scripture. While God has entrusted each person with a diversity of gifts and resources, He has chosen to give all of us the same amount of time. Our lifespans will vary, but all of us are given 24 hours each day and 168 hours per week. How we use the time He entrusts to us is a stewardship issue.

I have vivid memories of fasting when I was a kid. I remember the odd sensation of my stomach doing backflips in the early afternoon. I remember the newfound awkwardness that lunchtime presented in the public school cafeteria. I remember thinking that ingesting any sort of calorie might undo all of the spiritual collateral I had stored up to that point. And I remember not understanding how any of this was convincing God to respond more favourably to my prayer request.

This might be why I came to the point of choosing to use one spiritual discipline against another: I took a Sabbath from fasting for about 15 years. And I didn’t think I was missing anything until I realized that my full stomach was numbing an absent hunger that I no longer felt. I finally realized that if I truly wanted to hunger for God it might make sense to make my physical body hungry.

Fasting is regarded as a spiritual practice. These practices are healthy habits that bring us closer to God. Dallas Willard described these as activities within our power that enable us to accomplish what we cannot do by direct effort. They are training tools that enhance our spiritual lives. After all, star performers or athletes didn’t achieve their excellence by trying to behave a certain way only when they’re performing a concert or playing a game.* Their excellence came from a devoted commitment to practice.

What then are Christians practicing for? What is our “performance”? I have made the mistake of thinking our performance is similar to the stage or the field – the place where the crowd is watching and critiquing. But this ignores the importance of our inner life.

I believe we’re practicing for the field the Apostle Paul describes in Ephesians 6:12 – “Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realm.” The intensity of this battle reminds me of the need to be prepared.

Our spiritual habits prepare us for the moments when we’re not at our best. For the moments when sin is crouching at our door (Genesis 4:7), be it a public or private moment.

My high school tennis coach used to tell me that practice doesn’t make perfect, it makes permanent.

When we’re out of shape, practice feels anything but pleasant. But when a practice turns into a lifestyle, it leaves us hungering for more.

I would love to hear your thoughts about spiritual habits. Please leave a comment below. 

- Keith Reed