A Memory Verse Plan for Toddlers

In August I told you about how we have begun doing memory verses with our two-year-old son Joshua.  In a post titled Toilet Training and Memory Verses I relayed the story of how our church's VBS taught us that he wasn't too young to memorize verses.  At just two-years-two months-old our little Joshua had memorized a verse.

It was after that experience that we decided to do a memory verse for the month.  So far, he's memorized three verses and hasn't forgotten the prior verses each month.  Doing this takes repetition and a mild amount of creativity, but it doesn't take an extraordinarily great teacher to do it.  We try to have some sort of arm movements involved to get him excited about the verse if he's not into it at the start, but other than that it's simple repetition.  Also, we do a sort of fill in the blank approach so he doesn't have to memorize the whole thing right away.

That all being said, we need a plan for our verses.  We want a plan that covers a wide range of verses and a plan that gives him lifelong truths in twelve verses.  The plan below is for us but we encourage you to steal it.  This plan doesn't have to start in January, though it can.  As I write this it's September 30th, so if you're reading it tonight then start the first verse in October or whatever month you happen to be in.  The bottom line is that this is about hiding God's Word in your child's heart, so there's no bad time to start.

Month 1- "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." Genesis 1:1

Month 2- "The LORD bless you and keep you." Numbers 6:24

Month 3- "Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid." Isaiah 12:2a

Month 4-"Love the LORD your God with all your heart." Deuteronomy 6:5a

Month 4- "Trust in the LORD with all your heart." Proverbs 3:5a

Month 5- "Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good.  His love endures forever." Psalm 136:1

Month 6- "Your Word is a lamp for my feet.  A light for my path." Psalm 119:105

Month 7- "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." John 1:1

Month 8- "Love your neighbor as yourself." Matthew 22:39b

Month 9- "I am the way and the truth and the life." John 14:6a

Month 10- Rejoice in the Lord always.  I will say it again: Rejoice!" Philippians 4:4

Month 11- "We love because He first loved us." 1 John 4:19

Month 12- "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved." Acts 16:31a

Most of these verses are in the NIV so feel free to use your translation of choice.  But no matter the translation, whether you are using the King James or The Message, just remember that you are loading your child with truth that they can use today and for the rest of their lives.  Don't doubt that your child can learn this even as a toddler. 

Remember the best day to start teaching your child to the Bible and hiding it in their hearts is... today!

Use This Story to Teach

My home state of Iowa is all abuzz about Carson King, Busch beer and the Des Moines Register.  You can read this article to see some of the details.

I have an opinion on this debate as a father and as a member of the media.  I shared more than enough of my opinions on my show today.  I don't agree with how the story was written and researched.  I don't like the idea that a newspaper feels like its job is to find dirt on people doing good.  I also don't like what King said when he was a 16 year-old boy; it was racist.  I don't like the fact that Daniel Tosh (the man who originally said what King tweeted) and Comedy Central (the network that aired the original "jokes") have been widely ignored in this whole discussion.  I'm afraid of the ramifications of a "cancel culture" that proclaims the internet to be its modern Salem for hunting witches. 

That all being said, I believe this is a great teaching moment for parents.

When I read the news I immediately talked with our 14 year-old foster son.  We had a brief discussion about how the internet is forever and it is more public than he might think. 

Parents must explain to their children about the impact of words.  We must explain how powerful our words are.  We must tell them as a general rule to let their words be fewer and more thoughtful.  Share some of these verses with them and let them know that tweeting is talking, snapping is talking, our fingers can be our lips in this day and age.

"Wise men store up knowledge,
but the mouth of a fool invites ruin." Proverbs 10:14

"When words are many, sin is not absent,
but he who holds his tongue is wise." Proverbs 10:19

"Reckless words pierce like a sword,
but the tongue of the wise brings healing." Proverbs 12:16

"A gentle answer turns away wrath,
but a harsh word stirs up anger." Provers 15:1

"The tongue of the wise commends knowledge,
but the mouth of the fool gushes folly." Proverbs 15:2

"A man finds joy in an apt reply
and how good is a timely word." Proverbs 15:23

"Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent,
and discerning if he holds his tongue." Proverbs 17:28

"A fool finds no pleasure in understanding
but delights in airing his own opinions." Proverbs 18:2

"A fool's mouth is his undoing,
and his lips a snare to his soul." Proverbs 18:7

"For lack of wood the fire goes out,
and where there is no whispering, quarreling ceases." Proverbs 26:20

"Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen." Ephesians 4:29

"If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless." James 1:26

Don't let this news story simply work us up into a frenzy.  Don't let this be another teachable moment for us that goes unlearned from.  The media has lessons to learn and so do all of us.  Teach your children and yourself to watch your words today.

Can You Handle Wealth?

Sometimes you may wonder if you could handle poverty.  You look at people less fortunate and wonder about the faith it would take to trust God in dire economic circumstances.  No doubt, it takes faith to trust God when you're living paycheck to paycheck or when there isn't food on the table every night.

Can I handle wealth?

When I read my Bible it seems to scream that this is the better question.  I've been reading through the life of Solomon.  When you read about Solomon you're left wondering who can handle wealth.

Solomon was the wisest man who ever lived.  God appeared to Solomon twice.  Solomon saw the glory of the LORD fill the temple.  And Solomon was taken down by the unholy trinity of money, power and sex.

If Solomon can fall, we all can fall.

"The weight of the gold that Solomon received yearly was 666 talents, not including the revenues from merchants and traders and from all the Arabian kings and the governors of the land." 1 Kings 10:14

"Solomon accumulated chariots and horses; he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses... Solomon's horses were imported from Egypt..." 1 Kings 10:26a & 28a

"King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh's daughter... Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites.  They were from nations about which the LORD had told the Israelites, 'You must not intermarry with them, because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods.' Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love.  He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines, and his wives led him astray." 1 Kings 11:1-3

666.  The weight in gold was listed as "evil, evil, evil".   His horses and chariots were from Egypt.  His unequally yoked sexual partners numbered a thousand. Solomon was in direct disobedience to what Moses commanded.

"The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them, for the LORD has told you, 'You are not to go back that way again.' He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray.  He must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold." Deuteronomy 17:16-17

Solomon was famous for his immense wisdom.  He had access to Yahweh Himself, and yet he sinned and led the nation into sin.  Money, power and sex ruined him and wisdom alone couldn't stop it.

Money, power and sex seep into the heart like no other drugs.

No wonder Jesus warned the rich (Luke 6:24) and the powerful (Matthew 23:13-39) so much.  While we are so busy wondering if we could handle poverty, Satan is sedating us with wealth.  You and I are part of the most wealthy group of human beings in the history of the world and we tell ourselves we aren't.  We live pampered, unsatisfied lives.

You and I may not be like Solomon in as much as we get 666 talents (25 tons) of gold a year, but we are wealthy beyond the wildest dreams of most humans who have ever walked this planet.

"Then Jesus said to His disciples, 'I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.  Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God.'

When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, 'Who then can be saved?

Jesus looked at them and said, 'With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." Matthew 19:23-26

We are wealthy and it is hard for us to enter the Kingdom.  If Solomon, the wisest man to ever live, could fail so miserably then we are hopeless.  Except we aren't hopeless.  We have the Living Hope.  We have the One who enables us to enter the Kingdom whether rich or poor.

"I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty.  I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.  I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:12-13

Christ is our only hope.  Praying "Be Thou My Vision" is the only hope we have.  Christ gives us the strength to do the improbable and the impossible.

My fellow rich friends, recognize the comforts that want to strangle you to death.  These things can either be a tool for spreading the Gospel or a designer noose we bought for ourselves.  The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil (1 Timothy 6:10).  Fight the urge to love money, power and sex.  Fight the urge to trust in your bank account instead of Christ.  Ask God to give you the power to handle wealth today.

What God Thinks About Interracial Marriage

A Mississippi event hall recently made international news by refusing to host a wedding of an interracial couple.  The black man and white woman were told they couldn't use the Boone's Camp Event Hall in Booneville, Mississippi because interracial marriage was against the owners' "christian" beliefs.  In fact, they said it was against the teachings of the Bible.  The video of their ridiculous claims has gone viral.

Now the owners have since consulted with a pastor who informed them that they were dead wrong.  They have apologized as of today for their stupidity (my words not theirs).  I sure hope the couple still doesn't give them a dime after this, but that's up to them.

I'm saddened that this sentence is even relevant to type today, "A theology in opposition to interracial marriage is an abominable theology from the pits of Hell."

People sadly have missed this and it has made Christ look less beautiful to the world.  Bob Jones University didn't end its ban on interracial dating until George W. Bush's campaign visit ignited public attention that shamed them into doing so in the year 2000.  Bob Jones University's thinking propagated blatant racism under the banner of Jesus.  What an absolute shame.

The Bible has always stood against this garbage theology.  Remember the story of Miriam and Aaron criticizing Moses for his black wife?  Moses was married to a Cushite woman.  Cush was a region south of modern Ethiopia and there is no doubt she had black skin and God's response to Miriam and Aaron shows that the blackness of her skin was their complaint.

"Miriam and Aaron began to talk against Moses because of his Cushite wife, for he had married a Cushite." Numbers 12:1

Miriam and Aaron resented Moses because he married a black woman.  Pay attention to God's response.

"The anger of the LORD burned against them, and he left them.
When the cloud lifted from the Tent, there stood Miriam... leprous, like snow." Numbers 12:9-10a

Pastor John Piper says it's as if God said, "You like being light skinned, Miriam?  I'll make you light skinned." He adds that if anyone were "to think that black skin were a symbol of Biblical uncleanness, be careful; a worse white uncleanness could come upon you."

Most of you don't need this reminder but I'm giving it anyway.  If you are one who believes this lie from Satan: repent immediately.  Interracial marriage is not against Biblical teaching; in fact, any marriage covenant under the direction of the Holy Scriptures is beautiful because it points to the coming marriage between Christ and the Church. 

I'm saddened by this story this week.  I'm saddened that this sort of thinking still exists and stains the reputation of my Savior and wrecks the hearts of my brothers and sisters of various hues.  Christians, let's stand for a more beautiful thing.  Let's not let racist thinking turn our eyes away from what the Bible actually says today.