For the past several weeks I’ve been posting our family’s verse of the week. I was asked yesterday on Facebook whether we memorized it or talked about it during the week. The answer is both. We memorize it, talk about it, and engage in other Bible reading that is related to the verse. We are using a book called Sword Fighting by Karyn Henly. Her approach to scripture memorization for kids has been great for our family.
Rather than focusing only on memorizing a verse, the book encourages children and families to memorize scripture as a “sword” to fight against particular temptations. For instance, this week our verse is 1 Thessalonians 5:18, “Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” In addition to memorizing the verse, Henly shows how the verse can be used in spiritual warfare by asking a sort of catechism question, “How should you respond when you feel ungrateful?”
We also are working to incorporate this verse into all aspects of our week. We recite it at meals, in the car, and write it on our chalk board in the kitchen and on the marker board in my office. Angela and I challenge each other to memorize it and the kids compete with one-another. Sometimes we chant, sometimes they even make up songs. On the way to school, the memory verse gets recited repeatedly. Sometimes I have a hard time memorizing verses quickly, so I take pictures of the verse (like the on on the side) and will allow Wyatt to read them off my phone so that we can work on them in the truck even if I can’t remember the verse.
This approach is exciting for our kids as they are able to memorize God’s word and make direct application to the word in their lives. This approach has been very beneficial for our parenting as well because by asking the questions and then responding with Scripture, we are laying a foundation for corrective discipline in the future.
I wish that Henly would be consistent with her use of translations (she uses several throughout the book). Other than her lack of consistency there, I find the book to be very helpful in our family devotions and in character formation for our kids. In fact, this approach has been so great for our family, I am planning to change the way that my sermon outline focuses on a verse of the week for families by incorporating a “sword fighting question” to accompany the verse. Memorization is possible if we will stick with it, and for my kids at least, immediate application helps them see greater value in memorizing God’s word. You can find a sample of the book here. Go check it out.
