I have been meaning to write about memorization for a long time but I keep forgetting when I actually have time.
One thing that weighs strongly on my mind is those who have negative feelings associated with memorizing because it doesn't come easily to them. That bothers me a lot because it is VERY CLEAR that memorizing easily is one of those things that you don't have power over! Your brain is what it is. It is not the same as being lazy.
That said, if you have decided that you want to memorize parts of the Bible then there are lots of ways to make things easier for yourself no matter what kind of brain you have. I'm sure you guys have all experienced trying to memorize things for school or work and have good ideas to share.
I can easily memorize things set to music. Though a melody can be helpful, it seems that the rhythm lasts the longest in my brain.
I have also associated visual imagery with a chapter of the Bible to memorize it. I made a collage that represented the first 3 chapters of the book of John. That worked pretty well but in my long term memory I kept mainly the ideas and events associated with the images rather than verbatim word recall. That's OK for me, though, because I never need to recall something verbatim without the option of grabbing a Bible or pulling up one on the net.
There are lots of good ideas for memorizing things on the internet. If you are looking for verbatim recall here is one I found:
http://www.productivity501.com/how-to-memorize-verbatim-text/294/
When I was young I memorized with various goals in mind including, pleasing the adults, getting a prize, competing with fellow students, and not getting in trouble. I still carry some of those verses in my head. I don't have a clear sense that they have meant much to me personally but perhaps they have had good effects that I am just not aware of.
As I got older and developed my own interest in studying the Bible I moved away from verbatim memorizing and more towards what I call "knowing". That, to me, is a kind of memorizing. Its just the kind we use for something too big to hold in our verbatim recall memory banks. For example, getting to know a person is a long process of memorizing things about them. We just don't think of it that way.
When I realized that my desire was to really know over-all patterns of God I changed my study methods to fit. I try to take in scripture in long stretches like reading a novel. I also read it over and over and over and over. Patterns emerge. It works for me.
I think most importantly, its sustainable for me. There are ways of studying that I can do for a little while but then I just can't keep it up. I either get bored, or discouraged, or the time it takes just doesn't seem worth the effort. It seems then that my choices are either to quit and feel ashamed or doggedly pursue something that is fast becoming the worst part of my day.
I'm just here to say: there are other options out there! Look for creative ways to memorize scripture - who cares if you have to sing the song to remember it. Most of us remember the alphabet that way! Or if you are going to memorize big pieces...look over hints on the internet. Take a class...teach a class. All good ways to study/memorize. And don't forget to change your method if you get bored.
EmilyMc |