Memory Verse 2.0

We were newly commissioned for a memory verse. The funny part is that when we asked what our new one would be this Thursday our Pastor hadn't thought of a new one. He even thought some of us wouldn't attempt it. Well shoot. I'm all about the memory verse. Hiding the Word in your heart is MAMMOTHLY good idea. Just knowing it alone serves you quite well. A lady in our group, responding to the question "Why do you memorize verses?", said "Because you may not always have this" (holding up her Bible.) Yikes! Imagine being in a place where you can't even have your Bible on hand for fear of retribution or persecution. Imagine being in a place where you Bible has to be hidden such that NO ONE will find it. Even in that instance, you basically don't have a Bible. Wow! That one blew me away. God even says:

Proverbs 4:20-23(NIV)

20 My son, pay attention to what I say;
listen closely to my words.

21 Do not let them out of your sight,
keep them within your heart;

22 for they are life to those who find them
and health to a man's whole body.

23 Above all else, guard your heart,
for it is the wellspring of life.

Alright, this is just me, but I find that "do not let them out of your sight" means "keep them within your heart" since you never know in what instance you won't ACTUALLY be able to see them on paper. I guess you could take that one further and practice writing your memory verse down when you think you've got it. You could (with years and years of work) manage to recreate in writing (if you had to) a fairly complete biblical account. Messiaen knew enough scripture(Revelation 10:1-2, 5-7) to write to "Quartet for the End of Time" That'd be nice if you lived or worked in some spiritually barren place where heaven only knows what happens to Christians. Yeah, I gotta start doing that. BTW - Here it is:

2 Corinthians 5:14-21 (NIV)

14For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.

16So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! 18All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21God made him who had no sin to be sin[a] for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Off to some private time to try and write this thing down.

Peace