By the time you read this, there will be just a few short days of registration time left. But I strongly urge you to check out www.biblebee.org. For the first time ever, there will be a national Bible bee, on par with the national spelling bee or other national bees. It is sponsored by the Shelby Kennedy Foundation, named for a young Christian woman who died of cancer. Her devotion to the Word of God and Scripture memorization provided the inspiration for the Bible Bee.

I first read about the Bible Bee in a catalog, and I remember thinking, “What a great idea! It’s about time!” I went immediately to the web site and began reading about it. The more I read, the more excited I got.

Divided into age groups, children study God’s Word over the summer. The local contests will be held on September 12th, and the national contest on November 5-6 in Washington, D.C. I can’t think of a better way to redeem those lazy, hazy summer days than by studying the Word of God!

There are tons of Scriptures that exhort us to study and memorize the Bible. In researching for this article, I found a couple of excellent web sites that list many reasons, plus Scriptural proofs, for why we should memorize the Bible. Unlike many top 10 lists each item on this list is just as important as the previous one. (From www.threethirtyclub.com.)

1. We are commanded to: "These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts" (Deut. 6:6). "Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads" (Deut. 11:18).
2. Storing the Word of God in our hearts and minds helps us to obey it: "...the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it" (Deut. 30:14); "The law of God is in his heart; his feet do not slip" (Ps. 37:31); "I have hidden Your word in my heart that I might not sin against You" (Ps. 119:11).
3. It will make us prosperous (because of our increased obedience): "Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful" (Josh. 1:8).
4. It prevents vain and evil thoughts. When memorizing scripture, one must necessarily dwell on the Word of God during one's spare time. This will crowd out less edifying thoughts. Through Scripture memorization one can easily obey Paul's exhortation: "...whatever is true, whatever noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things" (Phil. 4:8).
5. It is a battle against temptation. Christ is our example on this point. In Matthew 4 and Luke 4, He resisted Satan's temptations each time by citing Scripture. Paul states that the Word of God is a weapon in spiritual warfare: "Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God" (Eph. 6:17).
6. It increases our understanding of the verses that are memorized. To memorize, one must know every single word and dwell on every single word. While doing this, one naturally asks oneself, "why this word?" Meditation on each word will, through the Spirit, give one a deep understanding of the verse and reveal meanings that are hidden to a cursory reading. "I have more insight than all my teachers, for I meditate on Your statutes" (Ps. 119:99).
7.  It aids in witnessing and teaching. If the Word is in your heart, the Holy Spirit will bring it to mind at the appropriate time. "Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom" (Col. 3:16).
8. When without a Bible, one can still meditate, counsel, comfort and reprove from the Word of God. "Even at night my heart instructs me" (Ps. 16:7).
9. It aids us in our prayers. What better way to talk to God than to be familiar with the language of God through His Word. Note Paul says: "Take ... the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God" and then "And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests" (Eph. 6:17,18).
10.  It improves our everyday conversation. What we say reflects what we meditate on and store in our hearts. "For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks" (Matt. 12:34).

I really like the prayer included at this web site: Now, Heavenly Father, give us the desire and the means to store Your perfect Word in our hearts; direct the time and the circumstances to accomplish this; give us diligence to be faithful in this; give us the opportunity to make fruitful use of the Word that we store in our hearts. We ask these things in the name of and for the glory of Jesus Christ, Amen.

For a more in-depth discussion of why one should memorize Scripture, see http://www.memoryverses.org.

The Bible Bee has been getting quite a bit of media attention, and rightly so! You can listen to several different radio broadcasts about the Bible Bee. These links can be found at http://www.biblebee.org.

I like that the Bible Bee not only encourages Scripture memorization, but changed lives as well. All my parenting is focused on helping my daughters to become more like Jesus. I like the “Bee-Attitudes” that they desire contestants to memorize, develop and exhibit:

Behold the glory of Jesus Christ (John 17:24).

Believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, who came into the world (John 11:27).

Be transformed into the image of Christ (2 Corinthians 3:18).

Become an ambassador for Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20).

Boldly preach the Gospel of Christ to the world (1 Thessalonians 2:2).

Be a contender for the faith (Jude 1:3).

Build a Christian foundation for the next generation (Psalm 78:6).

Instead of wondering what to do with your kids this summer, spend the time in the Word of God. Such time spent will reap eternal rewards, plus build parent-child memories that will last a lifetime. Won’t you join us?

Copyright © 2009 by Anni Welborne Share