Page 37 - Hoodview News January 2024

HOODVIEW NEWS FAITH
Wisdom from the saints
Charles Finney on prayer and revival
“Nothing tends more to cement the hearts of Christians than praying together. Never do they love one another so well as when they witness the outpouring of each other’s hearts in prayer.”
“Revival is a renewed conviction of sin and repentance, fol- lowed by an intense desire to live in obedience to God. It is giving up one’s will to God in deep humility.”
“If the presence of God is in the church, the church will draw the world in. If the presence of God is not in the church, the world will draw the church away.”
—Charles G. Finney
DISCIPLESHIP TOOLS
Why I memorize scripture
By DEE DUKE
IPastor, Jefferson Baptist Church
spend 30 to 45 minutes almost every day work- ing on memorizing Bible
verses.
One of my goals this year
is to spend one hour a day, seven days a week, working on memorizing new Bible verses and reviewing the old verses I have already memorized. I currently have 700 verses memorized well; my goal is to up that to 800 in the next year. I am pres- ently 248th among about 100,000 people with this same memory app that I have. The app ranks every person in the memory pro- gram, giving points for each verse reviewed successfully. My goal is to be higher than 200th place by the end of the year.
My motivation
So, what motivates me to pursue such a goal? Memorizing Bible verses is the most mentally fatiguing exercise that I do. It takes a great deal of self-motivation and self-control to keep this commitment every day, and I wouldn’t be able to do it if there wasn’t some very compelling reason motivat- ing me. Let me mention five reasons;
Keeps mental sharpness
Lately, I have noticed that I forget things, mainly the names of people. We all forget things, but the problem has been grow- ing noticeably. I also have had several friends my age who have been diagnosed with the beginning stages of dementia. In all of my stud- ies, memorizing is the best therapy and prevention that there is for mental problems, so I am going to work hard on this so that the typical losses in mental sharpness that come with growing old aren’t part of my life.
Getting the mind of Christ
A second blessing of Bible memorization is that God’s living, active, supernatural Word will give me a healthy, growing soul and heart. Psalms 19:7 says, “The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul.”
The verses I am memo- rizing are the Word of God, the Mind of Christ, and the
Sword of the Spirit. The Word of God is living, active, supernatural, and works in the core of my being, spirit, and soul. I desire to become like Jesus in character, think like Him, feel like Him, and act like Him in every way. I believe the Word of God in my heart will transform me into the Image and likeness of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior.
Growth in wisdom
A third benefit is that I will become increasingly more wise. Wisdom is knowing the best thing to do and say in any circumstance God sovereignly puts me in. I need much wisdom as a pastor, as a husband, as a father, and as a grandfather. Psalms 119:98-100 “Your commandments make me wiser than my enemies, For they are ever mine. I have more insight than all my teachers, For Your testimonies are my medita- tion. I understand more than the aged, Because I have observed Your precepts.”
Sin less
A fourth reason to spend an hour every day working on memorizing the Bible is that I will sin less and less as God’s supernatural words work in my heart. Psalms 119:11 says, “Your Word I have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against You.”
Knowing God more
A fifth powerful motiva- tor for me to work hard at memorizing the Word of God is that I will know God inti- mately. The Apostle Paul declared that everything in life was garbage compared to knowing Jesus Christ. The command to seek the Lord is given in the Bible over a hundred times. Most of the commands to seek God have a blessing attached, such as in Psalms 34:10, “The young lions do lack and suffer hunger, but they who seek the Lord shall not be in want of any good thing.” The best blessing is that if we seek the Lord, we will find Him, and if we draw near to Him, He will draw near to us (2 Chronicles 15:2). James 4:8 says, “Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.”
The best way to seek the Lord is in His Word, to mem- orize it, meditate on it, and hide it in my heart is a very effective way to seek Him with all of my heart, soul, mind, and heart.”n
Dee Duke has been the senior pastor of Jefferson Baptist Church in Jefferson, Oregon for over 40 years. He is in demand as
a speaker for men’s events. Read his excellent daily blog at deefduke.me.
Read through the Bible
By following the daily reading schedule below, in a year you will read through the Old Testament once, the New Testament, Psalms, and Proverbs twice.
JANUARY
BE CHRIST’S DISCIPLE: Separate from the world
MONTHLY
1 John 2:15–16
“Do not love the world nor the things in the
world. If anyone loves the world, the love of
MEMORY
the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.”
VERSES
D-3
1 John 2:15–16
NASB 95
Few things will help you grow in the Christian life like Bible memorization. Cut out the verses to the left and keep them with you. Say the reference before and after each verse. There will be two new verses each month. Memorize the new ones, review the old. The series will follow the well-known Navigators Topical Memory System.
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BE CHRIST’S DISCIPLE: Separate from the world
Romans 12:2
“And do not be conformed to this world,
but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”
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D-4
Romans 12:2
NASB 95
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January, 2024
HOODVIEWNEWS 37