god’s word in my heart - the purposeful mom for using god’s word in my heart my goal in creating...
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Copyright 2012 Jennifer Thorson ThePurposefulMom.com All Rights Reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the author. Please contact me at thepurposefulmom at live dot com with any questions or for permission to use in your church or school. All Scriptures taken from The Holy Bible, King James Version. Public domain.
God’s Word in My Heart A Scripture Learning Guide with Memory Verses
King James Version
By Jennifer Thorson
thepurposefulmom.com
Thank you for choosing God’s Word in My Heart, a Scripture
Learning Guide with Memory Verses!
Learning Scripture and hiding it in our hearts (Psalm 119:11) is much more than
just memorization! Knowing what God’s Word says shows us the depths of our
sin, God’s deep mercy in giving us salvation through Jesus and teaches us how
God desires us to live as Christians.
It’s never too early to start teaching your children Bible verses! When the Apostle
Paul shares encouragement with Timothy, he reminds him that “from childhood
you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for
salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” (2 Timothy 3:15)
Where did Timothy initially hear and learn from Scripture? We see in 2
Timothy 1 that his mother, Lois, and grandmother, Eunice, both had a genuine
faith. Chances are that Timothy was first taught God’s Word by his family when
he was young!
As Christian parents, our responsibility is great, but we don’t have to go it alone!
God promises to give us wisdom when we ask for it (James 1:5), and also tells
us He will instruct us and teach us in the way we should go (Psalm 32:8). This is
His promise for our children also, because God’s Word will always accomplish its
purpose (Isaiah 55:11).
Instructions for Using God’s Word in My Heart
My goal in creating this “Scripture learning guide” is to give you a tool for
teaching the Bible to your children as well as some methods for teaching the
verses.
Be as creative or as straightforward as you desire! There is no “right way” to
teach your child God’s Word. I am not a naturally crafty or imaginative person;
many times I take a very simple approach to life. Many of my friends are very
creative and so I’ve provided Scripture memory ideas that suit a wide range of
personalities, all with the same end goal of helping your children learn and hide
in their heart these wonderful words of life!
I hope that this guide will be helpful for you as well. As an adult, I’ve found that I
need to meditate on Scripture more than ever!
Included in this packet are:
Instructions for Using God’s Word in My Heart
Ideas for Teaching Scripture to Your Children, from the Baby on Up
List of Songs and other Go-Alongs for Learning Scripture
Specific Songs for Verses from God’s Word in My Heart
Printable Scripture Memory Verses for Use at Home and at Church
o ABC Memory Verses (KJV)
o Verses on Our Sin and God’s Grace (Salvation) in KJV
About the Layout
As you look through the printable verses in God’s Word in My Heart (found after
the Acknowledgements) you may notice braces around parts of some verses. It
may be useful for very young children to have just a portion of the verse to
memorize at first. This is a helpful method we use for my little ones! The words in
braces include the remainder of the verse or verses, which can be used with
older children or younger ones who can easily learn them.
You may desire to print out the memory verse pages to use as you go. They can
be stored in a folder or binder for easy access.
You will also see three boxes under each Scripture. These can be used for
memory work at home or church***. As our children memorize one verse each
week, they recite it for us up to three times. We add a sticker to each box and
give a small reward {or just a big hug!}. You can build on this by having them
recite the current verse as well as past verses to keep those in their memory!
It’s also helpful to take the opportunity to read each of the Scriptures in the
context of the passage of the Bible in which they are contained. This is a great
way to grasp the deep meaning of the verse and hopefully promote further
discussion with your kids!
I pray that you and your children will take joy in hiding God’s Word in your
hearts!
***If you would like to use this Scripture learning guide at your church or school, please contact
me at thepurposefulmom {at} live {dot} com for prior approval. Thank you!
Ideas for Teaching Scripture to Your Children
Children of all ages can benefit from hearing and learning Scripture! Here are
some age-based ideas that we have used in our family as well as some we’d like
to try!
Babies and Toddlers
Read Scripture to your baby in the bathtub or during playtime
Listen to God’s Word set to music (see “List of Songs and Go-Alongs” for
our favorites!)
Display Bible verses where your baby or toddler spends lots of time, such
as:
o Above the changing table
o In picture frames in the bedroom
o On the wall in the nursery or playroom
Read books with Bible stories and Scripture (see “List of Songs and Go-
Alongs”).
Pray Scripture over your children. Work through the Psalms or use any of
the verses included in this packet.
Include them in family devotions.
Preschool and Grade-School
All the ideas listed above!
Talk about the Scripture that you are learning: what it means and how it
applies to life. Use a good reference Bible to help get you started.
Read a Bible passage together throughout the week, perhaps the passage
that surrounds one of the memory verses so you can read it in context.
Make a Scripture caterpillar!
Sit in a circle with a ball. The first person says the first word or phrase of
the verse, then tosses the ball to another person who says the next
word/phrase, continuing a few times until the verse is learned.
Hide words of Scripture printed out on pieces of paper around the house
and have them find each word and then put it in the right order.
Repeat the verse in different voices – high, low, loud, soft, etc.
Write a verse on post-it notes and remove one word at a time for
memorization.
Print out Bible Verse Coloring Pages and color during a lesson time.
Create a Bible Verse puzzle, mix up the words and have your child put
them in order.
Use hand motions as you say the verse.
Put Scripture to song. You can find some of our favorite Scripture songs
and CDs in the “List of Songs and Go-Alongs”.
Replace some of the words with pictures that represent the word (e.g.
picture of the sun in “from the rising of the sun to its setting…”)
Write the current verse you are learning up on a white board or index
cards, placing them in strategic places around your house so you can say
it throughout the day (this works well for moms and dads too! ).
Make a link chain with pieces of construction paper and write a couple of
words from the verse on each piece. Remove one link at a time and see if
you can remember the Scripture!
Junior High and High School
God’s Word in My Heart is written primarily for preschool and grade school age
children, but it can also be used as a springboard for Scripture learning with
junior high and high school age young men and women.
By this point, some Scripture memory work will be self-directed. But that doesn’t
mean you can’t join your child in learning God’s Word! Use this opportunity,
whether it’s during family devotions, your homeschool day or any other time, to
have a discussion with your children about how to apply the Word to their lives
and to talk to them about the richness of God’s mercy and grace!
My friend Kasey Norton from Walking Redeemed has kindly agreed to share her
tips on learning the Bible with her junior high and high school age children.
“We mostly do Scripture memory as a family. Our approach is roughly a verse a
week. We review it at meals and worship. We select pretty long, meaty verses for
memory and typically choose texts that apply to situations in our lives currently.
We review it at meals and worship. When our youngest kids were still small, we'd
just have them memorize a key part of what the rest of us were working on.
For our older children, teen and pre-teen, we sometimes have them dig deeper
into the verses. We use the KJV but sometimes we'll ask them to re-write it in
their own words. They also may pick a key point from the verse and do brief topic
studies. It is amazing how much more solid the memorization is when it truly
carries a message that they grasp.
We keep all the verses we've worked on in a box and review them on occasion.
The ones that we really dug into always are the ones that have stuck in their
minds.”
List of Songs and Go-Alongs
Listening to Scripture put to music has made it very easy for our children to learn
Bible verses (and actually remember them!). And it’s worked for the grown-ups
too! There are also many books with beautiful illustrations and helpful stories that
contain Scripture.
Scripture Music
Here are a list of some of our favorite Scripture CDs and books. Most of the CDs
are available on Amazon as MP3 downloads as well. I’m sure there are many
more that I haven’t yet read or heard of, but I’m sure you will enjoy what we’ve
found so far!
Hide ‘Em in Your Heart, Vols. 1 and 2 – by Steve Green
Songs for Saplings, ABC – by Dana Dirksen
Seeds Family Worship – by Seeds Family Worship (there are several CDs in
this collection)
Hidden in My Heart - Scripture Lullabies – from BreakAway Music (they
donate 1 out of every 10 CDs to Pregnancy Resource Centers)
Other Resources
Bible Melody.com – This website has a good list of free Scripture music that
you can search by verse.
Wise Words for Moms – A calendar style pamphlet of Scriptures that help you
address heart issues like arguing, discontent, selfishness and more. Ages 2 and
up will benefit from this resource.
The Story Bible –Contrary to its name, this isn’t your typical “storybook” style
Bible. Its text is relatively close to the actual Scriptures (it’s based on the ESV)
and it contains beautiful illustrations as well as questions, a prayer and activities
you can complete with each passage. This is the Bible we presently use for our
family devotions.
What is God Like? (and other books in the Little Blessings series) - What we
like about these books is that they have Scripture put to rhyme and at the end of
the book, it gives the Scripture references for each page as well as the full Bible
verse. These books are great for kids 18 months and up.
The Memory Bible – This Bible storybook lets kids sing, read, apply and
remember 52 key Bible verses from Genesis to Revelation. It contains two CDs
with sing-along music and stories. While we haven’t yet used this resource, it has
high reviews on Amazon.
Scripture Songs for God’s Word in My Heart
In ESV, NIV and NKJV
As our family has been learning the verses in this Scripture memory program, we
have found that songs from the albums Hide Em in Your Heart, Songs for
Saplings: ABC and Seeds Family Worship help us with many of the verses. They
are listed alphabetically below (if one is missing, it doesn’t have a song go-along
that I’ve found). You may wish to use these songs as a teaching tool!
A – A – Apple - Songs for Saplings
B – Behold, Behold
C – Children Obey Your Parents – Hide Em in Your Heart, Vol. 1
D – Mighty to Save – Seeds of Praise (Seeds Family Worship)
F & G – For All Have Sinned/For God So Loved – Hide Em in Your Heart, Vol. 1
H – Honor Your Father and Your Mother – Hide Em in Your Heart, Vol. 2
I – I Can Do All Things – Hide Em in Your Heart, Vol. 1
J – J – Joy - Songs for Saplings
K – Keep Your Tongue from Evil – Hide Em in Your Heart, Vol. 1
N – New Creation – Seeds of Faith (Seeds Family Worship)
P – Just sing any praise song!
R – Rejoice in the Lord Always
S – Ask, Seek, Knock – Seeds of Courage (Seeds Family Worship)
T – Trust in the Lord - Hide Em in Your Heart, Vol. 1
W – When I Am Afraid – Hide Em in Your Heart, Vol. 1
X – X – Exalt - Songs for Saplings ABC
Y – You Are the Light of the World – Hide Em in Your Heart, Vol. 1
Z – Z – Zealous – Songs for Saplings ABC
Some of the songs listed here may not align specifically with the KJV version, but
they are certainly enjoyable to listen to either way!
One last thought…
When I consider how precious the Word of God is to me, I reflect on these verses
from Deuteronomy 6:6-9: “These words, which I am commanding you today,
shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk
of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you
lie down and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and
they shall be as frontals on your forehead. You shall write them on the doorposts
of your house and on your gates.”
Some links contained in this book are affiliate links. If you click through and make a purchase, I receive a small
portion of the sale.
Acknowledgements
I’m the type who seeks lots of advice before I launch into anything big. There are
several people I want to thank for giving me the inspiration and honest feedback
that helped turn this eBook into something better than I could have made it
myself.
My husband is always the first to lend an ear to hear about my visionary ideas
and I’m so thankful he still takes me seriously! My children were my inspiration
for this Scripture learning guide and I love to see them learn and grow in their
faith.
I’m so grateful that Stacie, Kasey, Anna and my dear friend Monica took the time
out of their busy days to contribute their expertise and encouragement. Thanks
also to my friend Rebekah of abooboo designs for her beautiful cover design!
The original inspiration for this eBook came from a lovely Christian woman and
friend named Rebecca who created short Scripture memory verses as an
extension of our church association’s Sunday School curriculum. When I saw
how much my son loved learning in this way, I knew what I wanted to do!
Most of all, it was the Lord who planted this idea that just wouldn’t let go. I’m
thankful for the grace He gives me every day.
If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact me at
thepurposefulmom {at} live {dot} com.
~~Jenn
Copyright 2012, Jennifer Thorson, thepurposefulmom.com
ABC BIBLE VERSES – KJV
A - Keep me as the apple of the eye, {hide me under the shadow of thy wings}.
Psalm 17:8
B - Behold, I stand at the door and knock: {if any man hear my voice, and open
the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.}
Revelation 3:20
C – Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. Ephesians 6:1
D – Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine
heart. Psalms 37:4
E – In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus
concerning you. I Thessalonians 5:18
Copyright 2012, Jennifer Thorson, thepurposefulmom.com
ABC BIBLE VERSES – KJV
F - For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23
G – For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, {that
whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life}. John
3:16
H – Honour thy father and thy mother, {that thy days may be long upon the land
which the Lord thy God giveth thee.} Exodus 20:12
I – I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. Philippians 4:13
J – Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.
Habakkuk 3:18
K – Keep thy tongue from evil and thy lips from speaking guile. Psalms 34:13
Copyright 2012, Jennifer Thorson, thepurposefulmom.com
ABC BIBLE VERSES – KJV
L – Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; {teaching and
admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with
grace in your hearts to the Lord}. Colossians 3:16
M – Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable
in thy sight, {O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer}. Psalms 19:14
N – Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: {old things are
passed away; behold, all things are become new.} 2 Corinthians 5:17
O – O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive; O Lord, hearken and do; {defer not, for thine
own sake, O my God: for thy city and thy people are called by thy name.} Daniel
9:19
P – Praise ye the Lord: {for it is good to sing praises unto our God; for it is
pleasant; and praise is comely.} Psalms 147:1
Copyright 2012, Jennifer Thorson, thepurposefulmom.com
ABC BIBLE VERSES – KJV
Q – Quench not the Spirit. 1 Thessalonians 5:19
R – Rejoice in the Lord always: {and again I say, Rejoice.} Philippians 4:4
S – {Ask and it shall be given you;} seek, and ye shall find; {knock and it shall be
opened unto you}. Matthew 7:7
T – Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; {and lean not unto thine own
understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths.}
Proverbs 3:5-6
U – Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation, and uphold me with thy free spirit.
Psalms 51:12
Copyright 2012, Jennifer Thorson, thepurposefulmom.com
ABC BIBLE VERSES – KJV
V – But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus
Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:57
W – What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. {In God I will praise his word, in
God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.} Psalms 56:3-4
X – O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together. Psalms
34:3
Y – Ye are the light of the world. {A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid.}
Matthew 5:14
Z – As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.
Revelation 3:19
Copyright 2012, Jennifer Thorson, thepurposefulmom.com
Verses About Sin and God’s Grace – KJV
For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Romans 3:23
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23
{But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners,}
Christ died for us. Romans 5:8
Being justified freely by his grace {through the redemption that is in Christ
Jesus:} Romans 3:24
Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under
heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. Acts 4:12
Copyright 2012, Jennifer Thorson, thepurposefulmom.com
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, and the truth, and the life: {no man cometh
unto the Father, but by me}. John 14:6
For by grace are ye saved through faith; {and that not of yourselves, it is the gift
of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.} Ephesians 2:8-9
Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy
he saved us, {by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;
Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; That being
justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal
life.} Titus 3:5-7
Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. Psalm 119:105
BONUS - You may enjoy reading and committing to memory Romans 10. There are
many verses within this chapter that speak boldly of how the word of faith brings
salvation that I couldn’t choose just one to highlight in this memory program!