Every Tuesday, we get our verse of the week to meditate and memorize. I want to encourage you to keep trying to focus on just one verse for the week. If you stay determined, the Word will take root in your heart. If you have failed with some of the previous verses, don’t get discouraged and quit, but continue to press on. This spiritual discipline is worth pressing through our failure! So free yourself of guilt and let’s go!
“And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.”
Hebrews 11:6 (NASB)
I’ve been thinking about this verse for a long time. This verse simply says without faith there is no way that we will ever please God. It’s impossible. Our unbelief will make it impossible to please God. Now isn’t that something? I might guess that it would be my continuous acts of sin, my inability to focus on eternal things, or the time that I waste. But these things are not what make it impossible to please Him. It’s my lack of faith. It’s your lack of faith.
Unbelief really gets to God. He has given us every reason to trust Him. He has created this world with its beauty and its order. Creation testifies that He is who He says He is and of His character. He has saved us from the lake of fire. He revealed Himself to the people of Israel and the prophets so we could know Him. Yet, we still don’t believe Him. He has given us great assurance of His loving care and intricate plan, but many of us don’t believe.
What should we believe? I specifically chose this Scripture from NASB because it translates the Greek more accurately. Our usual version is NIV. In the NIV, it says, “because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists.” This word “exists” is not an accurate translation. The more accurate translation is that we must believe that He is, not that He exists. It is one thing to believe there is a God. It is another thing to believe the God of the Bible and to believe that He wants to be involved in Your life. Do you believe Him enough to trust Him with your life? Do you believe God?
For those of us who believe Him enough to seek Him, our belief pleases Him. He is thrilled that we believe Him against all odds, against all our senses, or maybe even against all logic. He rewards us for seeking Him. Honestly, no one can give a reward like He does. He created and owns it all. He knows the end from the beginning. He knows you and me inside and out for He created us. So His rewards are not dollar store trinkets. His rewards are eternal treasures personalized for our needs or maybe even for our enjoyment.
If there is one thing I think I can do well, it’s believing Him. Every day I study His Word, and I believe Him more. Every day, I seek Him because He is the truest desire of my heart. Is this true for you, too? Carry this verse with you wherever you go this week – be it written on an index card, recorded on your smartphone, or imprinted in your heart. Study it, pulverize it, and memorize it!
Memorization Reminders:
We are blessed to live in a time where we can have the Bible at our fingertips even through the internet or an actual Bible in our hands. Yet, this blessing can become a curse if we do not treat the Bible with such honor to savor every word of it as those through the centuries who have longed to have His Word so much. They had to memorize every Scripture they had ever been given because their own copy of the Scripture was not possible.
Most of us probably don’t memorize Scripture because we think that we do not have the time. However, our minds have a lot of wasted space that can be given to God. We have to redeem the time. For women, we can use the time while putting on our make-up or blow drying our hair. For men, use the time while shaving. For both genders, we can use the time while we shower, stop at red lights, do the laundry, wash the dishes, and mow the lawn. Let’s face it: our minds are thinking about something during this time. Instead of being focused on our obsessions, worries, cares, to-do’s, and problems, give this time to God.
Take your verse(s) with you wherever you go. You can type your verse out and put it on beautiful sheets of your choice. You can write it out on index cards. Many people prefer index cards spiral bound to keep them together. For iphone users, I’m sure there is an app. You can write it on your iphone notepad or record your voice speaking it and replay it throughout the day.
Now that we have the verse and we have found the time, let’s focus on the method. We don’t just memorize it by saying it over and over; we meditate on it. We spend time thinking about what each word means and what it doesn’t mean.
Then one of my favorite techniques as taught by Waylon Moore is to pulverize the verse. Say the verse over and over each time focusing on a different word in the verse to emphasize. For example, say Hebrews 11:6 (today’s verse) aloud and say with more umph the underlined and bolded word:
“And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.”
Hebrews 11:6 (NASB)
“And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.”
Hebrews 11:6 (NASB)
“And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.”
Hebrews 11:6 (NASB)
“And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.”
Hebrews 11:6 (NASB)
Repeat this process until each word in the verse has been emphasized.
After meditating and pulverizing the verse continuously for a week, the seed planted in our hearts will begin to germinate. You and I will no longer be merely short-term memorizing, but the Word will dwell within us. When God’s Word dwells within us, something miraculous happens. Our minds are renewed and transformed into the mind of Christ. We worry and fret less. We are armed for the attacks of the enemy. Our lips will be full of praise for our God. My friend, I’m ready for that kind of transformation!
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