Why People Have Stopped Memorizing
Scripture
By Pastor David W. Daniels, author
of "The
King James Bible Companion."
Scripture
memorization is a lost art. I found out why. I spent over six months asking
people the following questions. "Would you tell me from memory John 3:16?"
"Could you quote the Lord's Prayer?" "Can you tell me some or all of the
23rd (shepherd's) Psalm?"
Over the
months I made an amazing discovery. I spoke to people from all walks of
life, from non-Christians to Christian bookstore employees, who handle every
kind of Bible imaginable. Nearly every person did the same thing: they
quoted the King James.
But many
of these people do not read the King James. They read other Bible versions.
Why then are they quoting the King James Bible?
It's an
established fact: people quote the last version they memorized. These people
stopped memorizing when they switched Bibles!
Why did
they stop memorizing? About every two years the modern translations change.
(The NIV is notorious for this.) And in the churches, pastors regularly
switch Bible versions when they preach. Since they don't have anything clear
and consistent to memorize, they stop trying.
But
there is a translation that stays the same: the King James Bible! And it is
more than consistent: it is the preserved words of God in English.
It is so easy to memorize the King James. Just read your Bible out loud each day and write down your favorite verses. You will begin to notice how much scripture you are remembering. It's important how much you are getting into the Word. Even more important - how much of the Word is getting into you!
