What Do I Memorize?

Welcome to Tribe’s podcast. Hey. We just wanna say thank you for making this message a part of your week. Our prayer is that these messages will inspire you to make the name of Jesus famous in your life and to the uttermost bounds of the earth. If you’re ever in Jackson Hole, we’d love for you to visit our Tribe fam in person.

To learn more about us, you can find us online or at Facebook by searching tribejh.com. So this week, we’re going to have a conversation about something that we touched on several weeks ago. And with the conversation that we’re gonna have this week, I think well, I I should know better than to say it’s only gonna last one week, but I only have planned for it to last one week. But there is there’s a story in the Old Testament. This is by way of introduction.

There’s a story in the Old Testament where God says, speak to the rock for water to come out, and he whacks the rock with a stick and water comes out. And God disciplined, chastised Moses. It feels a lit the night’s a little hot in here. Oh, that’s the knob. So I need less cowbell.

Oh, alright. And and as a shepherd of the people, depending on conversations that I have with you or the read that I get from you, the vibe that I pick up from you, there are times that I know that you are thirsty for living water. You need you need and you want, you desire truth and transformation. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be here. I mean, maybe you just want religiosity and to check the box.

But but there are a lot of other places that you could go to check that box that would cost you less than to be here in this upper room with all of us essentially sitting on the front row. And so having a desire to to want truth, and my job as a shepherd to help point you towards it, I am not the source of truth, but but I point you towards the truth found in God’s word. There are times when the invitation for me is to speak to the rock and I really just wanna whack you over the head. And over twenty plus years of doing pastoral ministry, I certainly haven’t batted a thousand. And any time, instead of speaking to the rock, there have been times where I’ve maybe like jabbed the rock.

The Lord’s like, hey, you cannot you cannot whack the sheep. And so weeks ago we were talking about something and I was like, alright, how many of you have any of these Bible verses memorized? And like not many hands went up and I was like, Oh, well no wonder. How about any Bible verses? Like how many of I’m saying this, you don’t need to raise your hand, but how many of you have like like more than five Bible verses memorized and maybe you were just like playing it shy, maybe you didn’t wanna participate in the poll, but not that many hands went up.

And the verse and and then, like, something rose up in me, and I was, like, grabbing the shepherd’s staff harder and harder, ready to strike out at you. And then the verse in James came bubbling up like, are any of you any among you sick or weak? Call the elders and have them lay hands on you, pray for you know. And what rose up inside of me is, well, no wonder the devil beat me up one side and down the other, and you’re falling for this, and you get drawn off on that because because there is an a nutritional deficiency, certainly no one in this room, but a nutritional deficiency of God’s word in your life and in your heart that you can live your life from. And so I’ve waited this many weeks.

I don’t know how long How many of you remember that conversation we had? Okay. How many of you remember what you had for breakfast? Alright. Okay.

Alright. Fair enough. Donut. So what we’re so I’ve waited this long to, like, cool down. Importance of God’s word.

Okay? And last week, we had Doctor. Laura here. It And last week, we had doctor Laura here. It was great.

As a result of her time being here, while Lisa and I and others have had to have had the opportunity to have a lot of great, exciting conversations, unpacking with folks some of the things that she talked about. If you’re there on Saturday as a smaller group and then on Sunday morning, and my door is always open for us to I really enjoy hearing your questions and talking about how that time went for you. And so just as a reminder, my door is always open. But if you have your Bible with you this morning, would you please turn to Proverbs chapter four. And we’re going to be reading right near where Lee shared his word from.

He shared his word from Proverbs chapter four verse 23. Guard your heart above all else for it’s the wellspring of life and it affects everything you do. You cannot be in youth ministry without having that verse, like, always like like right there. Right? Am I am I right back there, Connor?

Proverbs four twenty three. How many times did you serving with me, with us together in youth ministry back in the day? How many years how many decades ago? Pounding. Guard your heart above all else.

I know that was a good one. We’re not in Proverbs four twenty three today. We’re gonna be reading Proverbs chapter four verse twenty and twenty two. So scroll back up just two verses. Proverbs chapter four verse 20 through 22.

My child, pay attention to what I say. Listen carefully to my words. Do not lose sight of them. Let them penetrate deep into your heart for they bring life to those who find them and healing to the whole body. If you’re taking notes this morning, you can write the title of our conversation rooted in the word.

And what I’d like to do is take a few moments to unpack a few key words in this verse and then continue on with our discussion about the importance of burying God’s word deep into your heart. As we look at Proverbs chapter four verse 20 through 22, let me ask you this. What sort of observations do you notice about this passage? What stands out to you? What do you find interesting about this?

And again, like I always say, you don’t need to I’m not looking for, like, a deep theological connection yet. We’ll get to those. But just right now, what do you see about that passage? What stands out to you? Raise your hand and we have the mic in the room.

Oh, Kat’s got the mic. This is easier than the Virginian. We’re all right here. Yes. I always get so nervous to talk.

So I’m always like, in my head, it sounds good. And then I say it out loud and I’m like, that didn’t make any sense. So bear with me. Well, so far, you’re doing great. Thank you.

Okay. So the first thing I I see, listen carefully to my words. Although we’re reading it, I think that just shows how important it is to sit in those quiet times with, like the Holy Spirit and everything so that you can hear what he’s saying. Woah. That’s pretty cool.

It’s written out, but it says, listen. That that is a great observation. Katie. In 21, it says, keep them within your heart. And so that means like memorization to me, like memorizing it.

Oh. Memorizing it. That would be that would be worthy of underlining in your paper, message would be that there is no time, of underlining in your paper bible, and then drawing a line out into the margin and writing that word memorize. As a father, I guess my message would be that there is no time in a young man, older man, or somewhere in between where you stop teaching, where you stop loving and hugging. And you you know, we have this concept in our mind sometimes that, you know, 12 or 13, you know, become a man or whatever.

That that didn’t happen. And throughout your life, you will need the word of God and the wisdom of a father to keep you on the straight and narrow. Well that’s great and ties right into the first part of this verse, my child. So if you look at the beginning of Proverbs chapter four, sometimes it says, the wise sayings of Asaph or sometimes it’s Solomon. The the book is generally attributed to Solomon and the wisdom that he shares.

And what I love about the beginning of this verse is, my child. As soon as those words are said, several interesting things happen. Number one is there is a level of in a position of authority that is stated, my child. Because a father always has authority over a child and a child is honoring of and subservient to the father, my child. Something important is is about to happen.

These words were written down. Of all the things that a father could say in the course of his relationship with his son, some things were so important that they needed to be written down so they could be come back so they could come back and revisit them and pass them along so that there wouldn’t be any ambiguity or confusion. I’m gonna write this down. And you would write down only the most critical and the most important things. Remember that episode of, The Office when Michael Scott was like like making these like recordings of like, you know, like important things that a father should pass on to a son when he thought he was gonna have a son for like half an episode.

Okay. Or maybe or maybe there was a time, when in that TV show 30 Rock when Jack Donaghy was like like recording these little snippets to like pass on to his alright. So maybe only Lisa and I watched that show. But, well, here I go down this rabbit trail. So, the the the main character, Jack Donaghy, is recording these little tips and tricks for his son.

And the scene just opens with Jack Donaghy staring into his little VHS camera. And he’s like, you’re walking in the Japanese Highlands being stalked by two snow leopards, but the hilt of your katana sword is frosted into the scabbard. You know, like really important life lessons that just in case that scenario should ever play out, his son would know what to do. So in a similar way, the author of Proverbs chapter four says, what I’m about to tell you is of vital and critical importance. My son, pay attention to what I say and listen carefully.

So I wanna highlight a few words in Hebrew and then we’re gonna continue on. That word that says listen listen has with it I won’t tell you the Hebrew word because it doesn’t mean much to you. But the the definition of that word means two interesting things. Number one, it has with that when a Hebrew person would read that word. Pay attention.

The image that they would get in their mind is when a herd animal or a prey animal hears a sound that they don’t recognize and their ears prick up. The Hebrew word literally means to lift your ears and tune in to where the sound is coming from. So when he says listen, not just as in the background, but focus in on that with your ears to prick up your ears and to deeply consider. Not just disregard, but to prick up your ears and to listen. Another word in here says listen carefully.

That Hebrew word, carefully, is a great letter. And if you’ve ever made your bed, you know you know what this word means in Hebrew. The word in Hebrew means to spread out, to stretch out fully. Now this is pastor Brian’s analogy. Like putting a fitted sheet on a king-size mattress.

Is that easy or do you have to wrestle with that fitted sheet to get it over your mattress? And especially if your arms aren’t long enough, you put it on one corner and you try to go over another corner and that corner pops up and then then you go, okay, I’m gonna I’m gonna figure this out. And you try to go diagonally and then you’re like stretched out and then it pop Okay. That’s what that word means. When it says, listen carefully, that word carefully means to fully spread it out.

Lay it all out. Stretch it out as far as it will go. Lay it all out there. Lay it all out there. And then it says this, verse 21, the beginning of verse 21, and your translation may be a little bit different.

Don’t lose sight of them. Don’t lose sight of what? His words. Don’t lose sight. That Hebrew phrase means to go crooked.

So remember the instructions that were given to Bilbo Baggins before they went into Mirkwood Forest in Lord of the Rings. Don’t stray off the path. As long as you stay on the path, you’ll make it through Mirkwood Forest. What happened to Bilbo and the dwarves? They cut they got distracted a little bit.

They lost the path. And literally, the nature of Mirkwood Forest was to bring confusion because there was a spell cast over Mirkwood Forest. And they got tired, they they got confused, they started doubting each other, and it wasn’t until Bilbo was able to climb to the highest tree in Mirkwood Forest and lift his head above Mirkwood Forest that he could, oh, there it is. Misty Mountain. That’s where we’re going.

That’s where Smaug’s hoard was kept. And so, in a similar way, we are invited here to not lose sight of God’s word. Keep them ever in front of us because the negative of that Hebrew word when it says, don’t lose sight, if you do lose sight, it means to go crooked. It also is a warning to not twist God’s word. I have seen that a lot since however many years ago now, five years ago now, during COVID, where everybody was saying, love thy neighbor, love thy neighbor.

Heard that verse quoted a lot by people that weren’t even Christians. They twisted that word and it went crooked. So we have to be careful to stretch it out so that we don’t go crooked or to pervert God’s word and have it go crooked. Oh, this is one of my favorite words in this passage. To penetrate deep.

Here’s the idea behind that word penetrate. To watch and to guard. Years ago, Lyssa and I were in Egypt and we were while we were in Cairo, it was a monochromatic, very dusty, polluted, crowded city that was exciting. And this was like, I never really need to go back there. I like I liked I liked Cairo.

I mean, I wouldn’t wanna live there but it was an exciting time. Then we went up to Alexandria near the Mediterranean Coast and from there, we went out kind of into this rural rural agrarian landscape. And there were lots of, like, olive vineyards in different kind of like arid crop fields. And in every field, there was, the best way that I could describe it that you might understand would be like a deer stand. Like a hunting deer stand.

And it was in the corner of every field. And I asked one of our interpreters like, hey, why is there a hunting stand, a deer stand, just an elevated, you know, it’s like it’s got like four legs and a little ladder you climb up to it and then like a little clubhouse kind of looking thing that you look out of. And some of them kind of look like deer stands, some of them look like stone construction things, but it was in every field. And so like why why are there deer stands here? And he’s like, what are you talking about?

They’re not deer stands. They’re actually watchtowers. So they serve the purpose of like a scarecrow, so to speak, in a cornfield that keeps away that keeps away not only like wild birds and wild animals, but when somebody is in the watchtower, they get to keep an eye on the crops to chase away animals that would come and try to steal their crops and people that would try to come and illegally harvest the crops. All the fields out in this rural area had watchtowers. Study through your Bible of every time you see that word, watch tower.

And the idea is, when it says, let them penetrate, the Hebrew word is that of a watch tower. That is the great reaction. Galki, come on. I was in I was in Somalia years ago doing some agricultural work, and I saw the watchtower. They had them there too?

Oh, yeah. Well, same continent. So okay. And there were women standing on top, and they had these long outrageous whips. And they was I don’t know how they did it to get it, you know, ten, fifteen feet long, and snap.

It’s it sounded just like a Wow. A gun going off. Mhmm. And it was in vegetable and sorghum crops where the birds would come and literally destroy it. But what a sight to see all these watchtowers, and these women were strong.

I tried snapping one of those things, and I just gave up embarrassed. Wow. Well, that’s gonna preach great because when you bury God’s word deep into your heart, at times it acts like the crack of a whip to get your attention, to keep the enemy away, to keep you from going crooked. Hey, team effort. High five.

That Let them let them penetrate. So I understand that that the the English to Hebrew, like penetrate means to like sink deep, but the Hebrew understanding is to to guard. So just like, Kat, I can tell you’re looking at the word and you’re thinking. That’s perfect. Let his words penetrate deep.

Think of God’s word like that watch tower. Think of your life like that field. His word, when it is built up and placed in a position of high ground to survey every other aspect of your life, it is then it then has the ability to guard and to protect. You’re like, oh, I’m preaching to myself now. Yes, it is.

It’s a good picture, isn’t it? It also acts as like, what what kicked off what kicked off the whole the whole Star Wars series? In in episode one around the planet Naboo, there was a That’s right. There was a blockade. There was a blockade around there from the imperial from the, Trade Federation.

Right? And when you set up a blockade, it it strictly controls access. What gets in and what gets out. So you could you could When that word penetrate says there, you can think of that word blockade. It sets up a blockade not to keep everything out, but to strictly control and guard.

That’s why I love Proverbs four twenty three that says, above all else, guard your heart. How effective is a jail cell that has more than one door and none of them lock? Or no no enclosure at all? Guard your heart. Set up a blockade so that what gets in and what gets out can strictly be monitored and controlled.

Well, how do you decide what gets into your heart and what you allow out of your heart? Yes. Alright. It brings life. For they bring life.

His words bring life. If you’re an artist, underline that word, draw a line out into the margin and draw a picture of a pretty green leafy plant. When it says that it brings life, this is a term that if you were reading Hebrew in the days that it was written and you read that word, you would think agriculturally. You would think like planting a garden. This is plant language.

And the idea behind this word literally means green, thriving, reviving and springtime. So what is springtime? His words bring springtime and an abundant harvest in our heart. Last phrase, and then we’re gonna keep going. Whole body.

Now that word in Hebrew is very interesting. Your whole body. It means in Hebrew everything. Every single aspect of your life. There’s so many verses that we could have looked at and examined today that emphasize heart.

I asked Liz. I was like, should we rip through like like five verses or maybe just camp out on this one? And she says, babe, why don’t you do several weeks of conversations about this one? Alright. I wanna get really I wanna just like two two two additional things.

I I wanna I want us to get just really, really practical. And if this seems rudimentary, then you’re awesome. Let’s look at some practical ways for God’s Word to penetrate our heart. How we do it? What are some practical ways that God’s word that we can we can help facilitate the penetration of His word into our heart?

Stay Yeah. Let me hear let me hear from you. Study or stay? Stay in the word. Study the word.

Memorize the word. Oh, I love that. Listen. What did you say? Speak it.

Now, tell me a little bit more about that. I’m not picking on you, but like like I’d like to hear your thoughts on that. Speak it. Well, when the Bible says to meditate on God’s word, there’s a part of that definition is murmuring. Like it’s actually coming out of your mouth too.

It’s not just something that’s staying in your head. Yes. Joshua, do not let this book of the law depart from your mouth. Meditate on it night and day. That word meditate is the exact same word that animals with multiple stomachs use to chew the cud like cows.

Chomp chomp chomp, swallow, hour later burp, burp it back up, chomp chomp chomp, swallow, same grass, murmur it, speak on it, get the most out of it. I love it. I love it. The ninety day challenge. I don’t know if I’ve done anything for ninety days.

What tell me what what? I mean, but skiing, right, Connie? You got ninety days skiing, baby. So right before we moved here, I did the ninety day challenge of reading the Bible from cover to cover in ninety days. And so, and it was actually a really transformative experience.

It actually filled me with the joy of the Lord that I never felt before, and you’re having to read so many chapters a day that you don’t have time for all of the other nonsensical things that we tend to waste our time on. And so, yeah. There it is. I came out a happier person and I’m kind of melancholy, so you know the Lord’s doing something when he does that. It brings life.

That’s great. That’s great. So some of these were already covered, but I just wanted to share with you some of my personal tips and tricks on how do I allow God’s word to penetrate my heart. If it stays only up here, it has no capacity to change my life. It is only when it drops down here from my thinker down to my knower that it has the capacity to change my life.

Otherwise, the Pharisees would have been leading the parade for Jesus as he arrived on the world stage. The word of God stayed only in their mind and never penetrated their heart. Poo poo heads. Whitewashed tombs. John the Baptist called them a pit of vipers.

Yeah. So whitewashed tombs, that’s a great that’s beautiful because the outside of the sepulcher was painted in white and it looked really pretty. But on the inside, it was full of death. Alright. Here’s some of the things that that I do.

Number one, repetition. Repetition. Joy mentioned this. One of the two of you mentioned this with memorizing it. If you say it enough, you will memorize it eventually.

So repetition is so helpful. Now, how can we spend time repeating that passage or that verse or dare I say that chapter? I used to write things down on note cards, a verse or or two. And then I would put it in my pocket because there was no cell phone that took up all my pocket space. And then anytime I reach for my pocket or feel my pants, I’d find the note card.

I would pull the note card out and I would go over it one more time. I did try putting, like, taking a screenshot and putting it on the lock screen of my phone, but within like a day, it just like became minutiae. Like, I didn’t it that didn’t work for me, but maybe it would work for you. Now if there were an app that I had to, like, type in a verse in order to unlock my phone, Now we’re talking. I would memorize that thing so fast.

You know what I mean? So right now, if your phone is locked, you type in a number sequence, your passcode, if you have a locked screen on your phone. You type in a a a sequence of numbers. You know, mine’s 9100. Now you all have it.

Yeah. We’ll all go in on this. 51, 49%. Okay? You keep your Bible with you.

So you can because you can’t unlock your phone to look up the verse, then you gotta bring your your Bible with you and Oh, we’re on to something here. Alright, guys. Say it over and over and over again. This could be valuable. Same time every day.

So as a part of your morning routine, scripture memorization, Joy’s got something. Similarly, what I’ve been doing is, you read it, say it, write it. So, like, same time every day, you’re you read the verse, you say it out loud, and then you write it down. And I only do that once a day, like, write it down. And I’ve learned it so much faster than trying to do a bunch of other stuff.

Under repetition, I tend to think in outline form because it helps to organize my thought and that’s what I preach from. But under repetition, indent, read it. Next line, indent. Say it. Next line, indent, write it.

Oh, that’s so good. Alright. Here’s the next here’s the next one. Accountability. Nothing like a little little pressure to to help motivate you for God’s word.

Passage. And would you set an alarm on your phone and check-in with me in two weeks? And I gotta stand in front of you and say it. And you’re like, okay, I got you bro. Like accountability, at least for me, helps a lot.

Spouse, men’s group, women’s group, whatever. Well, well, well, well, well, well, well, well, well, well, now now now now now being at the ski season is winding down for the season. Okay. This one is really resonates with me. But this last one.

Teach someone. Hey, can can we go to can we go to coffee today? Can we hang out this afternoon? Can we like jump on a group text or something? And can I share with you what I’m learning about this verse?

Name? Sure it does. What? Kinesthetic? Kinesthetic would be you learn by doing.

Doing. Yeah. Yeah. Auditory, that would be learning by hearing it. Man, I’m definitely a visual learner, and looked at it because that’ll be stuck in my brain.

What is the what is the learning style when you learn by teaching? What if it was all what if it was all of Psalms 23 and you’re like in a hurry because your exit’s coming. I’m a little nervous, I’m a little nervous, I’m a little nervous, I’m a little nervous. I’m a little nervous. I’m a little nervous.

I’m a little nervous. I’m a little nervous. I’m a little nervous. I’m a little nervous. I’m a little nervous.

I’m a little nervous. I’m a little nervous. I All of this reminds me of going back to the verse. It’s just the whole body, getting your whole body involved in it, like you were talking about. So, like, we’re using our ears.

We’re using our mouth. We’re using our, you know, our minds and teaching it and using our eyes and seeing it. So, all of that just underlines that again. Yes. So when a young child would go in in, like like, Jesus’s day, school, when he was a little boy, he would go to like Hebrew school and they learn the Torah.

His first day in school, they would have a tablet with wax that had been melted and smoothed out over it and then allowed to harden. And then they were given a wooden stylus, and that’s how they practice making their Hebrew letters. And the rabbi would go around and and look at their letter, learning their ABCs. But on the first day of school, before the the little tablets were handed out, the rabbi would go around and what would he smear on that wax? A little glaze of honey.

Why? So that keep their attention so that they’re writing their letters and like, That smells kinda sweet. Oh. Thus, their very first lesson from the Torah was taste and see that the Lord is good. Okay, okay.

What should I memorize? What And you’ve got ninety days. What should I memorize? I think that is Oh, I like that. Like let’s let’s do a dive into your identity in Christ.

And and there’s there’s You can go on the Internet and look like my identity in Christ. First, you have to say Psalms 23 to unlock your phone. And then you can look up your identity. And each one of those those identity sayings are attached to reverse and you can begin to to bury those deep in your heart. But what what do I memorize?

I think many people are like, okay, I I am like reading God’s word like, okay. Like sometimes parts of it are interesting. For the most part, if I look from one leather bound cover to the other leather bound cover, there’s a lot of ground in there. Some of it’s confusing. Where do I even start?

I understand that you would feel that way. The protege effect. Protege effect. What should I memorize? Couple things.

What touches a pain point in your life right now? Where are you experiencing pain or heat or friction? God’s word has something to say about that. What is my area of greatest pain right now? God’s word has something to say about that.

Get on the Google. Look up Bible verses that relate to break up. And it will say Proverbs four twenty three. Guard your heart above all else. I was a youth pastor for a long time.

Yeah. That’s true. Financial troubles, guard your heart. What what what pain points are you experiencing right now? That is a great place because it’s meaningful to you.

What else should I memorize? Here’s another one. What touches your heart? Mean by that. What touches your heart?

As you’re reading along, you’re like, oh, oh my gosh. That’s so good. And it seems as though the words leap off of the page and everything else is kind of in black and white and then you read one verse and you’re like, oh, and it’s like, like a burst of fruit flavor or it just jumps off of you. It it just grabs your attention. Well, something’s happening there.

That is that is literally the word of God, the Greek word is logos, becoming the rhema alive and active word of God. Pay attention to that. So let me ask you this. And if you don’t raise I’d like everyone to participate. And if you don’t raise your hand, it’s okay.

You’re already off the hook before I ask the question. But how many of you have ever been reading God’s word and encountered something that just goes, what? And it appears to leap off the page to you. Yes. Isn’t that amazing?

The Bible says that the word of God is living and active. That is the living word of God coming alive for you in that moment. And sometimes, the rhema of God will will jump off the page at you for something. Maybe it is a pain point. Maybe it is, that touches your heart like, I just love that.

Sometimes you read God’s word and something will jump off the page at you and you’re like, that’s amazing. I’m not quite sure what it means or what it’s for, but that’s amazing. If you bury that word in your heart, I guarantee you within x amount of time, that word will come bubbling up in a time and an hour and a moment that it is most needed. And it was the Holy Spirit’s way of saying, I want you to put this deep in your heart because you’re gonna need it. We’re kind of on a Lord of the Rings theme here.

Okay. I am. But y’all are with me on this. When when, maybe it’s Galadriel, gives different members of the Fellowship of the Ring on their quest to Mordor to destroy the ring. You can’t be asking a question yet.

And Galadriel gives them like different little, like, little little things that they all end up needing later on on their journey. Yeah. Yeah. So God’s like, put this word in your heart now because you’re gonna need it. It may be an hour from now, it may be twenty years from now, but you’re gonna need it.

And here’s the great thing, once you have that memorized and buried deep in your heart, it’s you can pull it out again and again and again and again. So I apologize if this feels perfunctory and elementary and rudimentary. Logan, and then did you have something? I just got something for you. Okay.

This has been a topic in a lot of my conversations with friends and then even when doctor Sanger came, but she talked about the armory of God being at our convenience. And when I think of kind of what you’re saying about these favors that Galadriel gave the party, and then in other conversations, talked a lot about how in order to win that victory against sin or you know whatever else is coming after us spiritually, having the right tools is necessary. You can’t do it on your own, and oftentimes where we fall short is when we think that we can. And so using God’s word as that sword to battle away that sin or the armor to protect against temptation or the shield to block any sort of spiritual warfare that might be happening around us, is vital for our successes as Christians and for our thriving. Yes.

The Bible says in the New Testament, we have been given or equipped with everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Christ Jesus. We’ve been given everything we need. What were you gonna say? So this has been great, by the way. But I I think for me, like, over the course of the last three years, you know, my body has gone through a lot and healing is such a I mean, I guess for lack of a better term is just how to unlock that with what we’re talking about here.

There’s so many scriptures on healing in God’s word. What would be in your opinion, the methodology of of applying that to accept healing from from God? I’ve I’ve I don’t think I’m alone in that, but you know Ask your question one more time, a different way. The the memorization of scripture for healing. And I guess how how to release that?

How do how do how do you how do you apply that? I mean, I’ve I know what I’ve done. I know how I feel and I’m I’m I feel like I have taken many many steps. And and of course, since the prayer of this body, you know, the healing of my body has been miraculous. But there are still a few things that I don’t understand and would like more discussion or clarification when it comes to scripture and healing.

I hope that’s So in other words How do I unlock this Psalm? The the Psalm that that, Ryan was teaching from, let the words of God penetrate deep into your heart because they bring life and radiant health. So I’m your your question is, okay, I’ve done the best that I can with letting those words penetrate, but where is the radiant life and and health is Is that what you’re saying? Talking about the the healing of diseases and things like that. So, you know, How do you go from memorization to repeat?

Yes. From memorization to actualization? Act Yes. Alright. How do you how do you make a seed turn into an oak tree?

So first of all, the seed has to be planted, which you’re you’re doing. You’re memorizing it. You’re saying that’s that’s planting the seed into fertile soil, your heart. Jesus talks about this. We plant the seed.

God takes responsibility for the miracle of growth. There’s nothing that we do to that seed once it’s planted in the ground aside from watering it and giving it But then we cannot make that seed bring growth. That’s a miracle. Hope. To not lose hope.

Anyway, that’s Hope hope is a is a key ingredient. The Bible says in Romans twelve one and two, do not be conformed any longer to the patterns of this world, but instead be transformed. So there’s a transformation process that happens as we as we meditate on God’s word. But the the actual actualization of God’s word is God’s responsibility. Otherwise, it would be like a vending machine.

I memorize this verse. I say it out loud two dozen times. I read it in ninety days and then it must happen. That is not how God works. He is responsible for the germination and the sprouting.

He and he alone. That that makes sense. I’m you know, I guess looking back, there are some things that I know and I have no doubt that my body was healed and it is it is in the rearview mirror. But there are things that many would not consider as traumatic as cancer, that are still with me. Mhmm.

And it it’s it’s a little confusing even being an older man like myself, you know, and being in God’s word, I I I tell people all the time. I said I don’t know if my journey through cancer was the way I would have designed the ministry that I felt like I was in at the time, but gosh, it was so effective. But at the same time, it different people the the effect of that is so different and I I experienced that when I was in the waiting room talking to other patients that were going through similar, if not worse, situations that I was going through. That I laughed, cried, talked, you know, did a little bit of everything. And I don’t know.

Sometimes there’s it’s just not as clear. It it’s clear as mud, I guess you would say sometimes. Welcome to following the Lord. Christina. And then we’re gonna land the plane.

Sorry. I’m a little nervous because I don’t have all the vocabulary that I want to say, but, I think your body respond about healing and the word of God. I think your body will respond of what you have in your heart, not just in your mind. Sometimes we want to understand everything, and that’s not gonna happen. But if you let penetrate those words in your heart, in your soul, your spirit, which is the knower, so your body will respond.

That’s how the heal yeah. In a different word. Yeah. So in yeah, your body will respond to the healing because it’s what we have in here. Not in here.

So when we look here, what should I memorize? What touches a pain point? What touches your heart? What jumps out to you out of excitement? But what touches your mind?

In what areas does your mind need to be renewed? And this applies to what you were just talking about, Clay. Like, okay. So I got verses for pain point. I got verses, that that excite me and jump out.

But in what areas does my mind need to be renewed? And I know that if we continued on, we could add to this. What should I memorize? We could add to the list and keep going. Well, we definitely should memorize verses about being good stewards of our finances.

We definitely should, memorize verses about the the sovereignty of God. You know, we should definitely like there’s a lot of those but listen to what Jesus says. Love the Lord your God with all all of your heart, with all of your soul, with all of your mind. We kind of get that covered here. The Bible says in the gospel of John, For the word became flesh and from the message translation it says, and moved into our neighborhood.

And we beheld him, the only begotten son of God. When you memorize God’s Word I don’t know if you’ve ever thought of it this way, but this is my last thought when you memorize God’s Word, you are putting Jesus deep into your heart because He’s the embodiment of the Word. And He will counsel you, instruct you through the word that you have memorized. We’ve covered a lot of ground. Now, if it’s alright, I’d like to pray for you a short, simple prayer.

So close your eyes. Lord Jesus, or from the Bible, would you want your children to bury deep in their heart? And I believe that even right now, He will give you a fragment of that. If you had it memorized, then that he wouldn’t need to remind you of that. But he’s gonna call up either a topic or a fragment and he’ll say, Oh, let’s chew on this one together.

And it I know that it’s hard to take a note on your phone or to write with your eyes closed. So I had you close your eyes so that your hearing increases. But now you can open your eyes. And if you need to take a note or jot down or flip over to it, maybe it’s one that you’ve been working on, but you’ve just kind of been a slacker lately, turn back to it. God, I ask that you would give the gift of mental plasticity.

Help us. Plasticity, flexibility, help us to bury your word deep in our heart so that it can germinate and take root and be like that tree in Isaiah and be like that tree in the book of Revelation that who’s in Psalms one or two where the roots grow down deep into your living water and it bears fruit every season. And the Bible says in the book of Revelation that the leaves from that tree are used for the healing of the nations. Jesus, thank you for your written word. May we treasure it.

This book is unlike any other book. The book that sits in your lap right now is unlike any other book in all of history because it’s the only book that’s alive. It is the only book that reads you. Not just you reading it, but that book reads you. Thank you for your word.

Lord, we know that that that there are people in the world today who it is illegal for them to have a copy of this book. And the punishment for even owning a copy of this book is capital punishment. It’s a death sentence because this book is alive and it is a dangerous book. This is the book that in countries that where it’s illegal, people would receive fragments of it, like just the gospel of Luke, and would memorize it. And then when you would gather in secret underground church, oh, you’ve got Matthew.

Matthew is here. Mark is here. Romans is here. If oh, Ephesians is here. Okay.

Oh, now we got something. And you had to commit it to memory because you couldn’t be found with a written copy of it. May we treasure your word. In Jesus name, amen. Let’s worship the Lord one more way this morning.

We worship Him with song. We worship Him by honoring the word that was preached. I can’t wait to see what verses that I as I talk with you, what verses the Lord put on your heart to memorize. And if you’re like, I need to start really simple, you can what’s the shortest verse in the Bible? It is.

Maybe a gospel of John at, Lazarus’ tomb. Start there. Whatever it takes. There you go. Well done.

Let’s worship the Lord in one other way by bringing our tithes and offerings to the Lord. And a quick administrative note. Next week we will tell you a little bit more about this, but Planning Center, which is our online giving platform, they are changing. So today you can still use this number, 84321, in terms of text to give. But starting June 2, they we are going to be using the same platform, but a full 10 digit number instead of, like, this kind of, like, random sequence of numbers.

It’s not random, but, like, meaningless. Yeah. So we’ll have, we’ll have a full number. So you can replace that as your contact in your phone or whatever. Try tithing.

And then it will still work the same, just the number is changing. And next week, we’ll roll that out to you. Alright? But you can still use text to give. There is oh, Cheyenne, touch that box of your left hip.

Yep. That is still effective. Cash a check. It’s not gonna expire. And yep.

Slot still works. It still does it still work there? Yep. It appears that it still works. And then there’s also a black box on the outside of the building that you can, drop off your tithes or your offerings.

Alright? When we bring our tithes and offerings to the Lord, we’re telling him, thank you, We love you and we trust you. And when you give from your finances, the amount is irrelevant. Some people have this mental barrier that says, well, I can’t give or I’m not going to give until and then you just fill in the blank. You get to make that old dirty devil sit on attack when you take whatever amount, anything more than $0 to give to the Lord.

He’s like, wow. Now now now we’ve now we’ve got something that I can work with to reciprocate back to you. Thank you for your expression of telling me that you love me, that you trust me, and that I, the Lord, am your source of provision. So let me pray over the offering and then a few announcements. Lord Jesus, thank you for allowing us to live and work and play in this area.

Very few people around the world have the privilege and the luxury of living where we live. And Lord, I thank you that our tribe fam is so generous with their finances and I love to see first time givers almost every week. God, I ask that you would use these finances to make your name famous here at Tribe in Jackson Hole, the surrounding region, and to the uttermost bounds of the earth. We praise you. We thank you in Jesus’ name.

And everybody said, the Lord bless your giving this this morning. And announcements wise, we’re going to have a graphic about it next week. Really just, one thing to draw your attention to. Number one, well, the only thing is, next, is it next Sunday? Two Sundays from now will be the first Sunday of the month.

We’re continuing to have gatherings. That’s what we call them, gatherings on the town square at 5PM on Sundays in support of Jewish people that live in this community as they gather to continue to raise awareness for the remaining hostages still being held in captivity. Those that are alive and those that have, passed away whose remains have not been returned to family and loved ones. And so so as a command from scripture, those who bless Israel will be blessed. So those both are happening the same Sunday.

The first Sunday. Where’s my calendar? Hold on. The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want.

She was the goddess. Ah, okay. And then the next week sorry. Thank you. Thank you.

And then the next week, they’re going to show a documentary film. We’ll send a link out to the film. And I would recommend that you watch this film just like in your own living room and then come and support the showing of this film as it is shown to the public. But the title of the documentary film is called October 8. Next week, I’ll have a graphic for you.

The title of the film is called October 8, and it has to do with the prop the propaganda war against Israel that started almost immediately after the attack in in Southern Israel. And so it is it’s very interesting and enlightening. So that’s coming up. I’m gonna ask Lee, when we’re done here, if you would slip back to the VIP room and if there’s anything that you need prayer for, that Lee would love to agree with you in prayer and pray for you. And that will be what we call the little VIP room back there.

Would you stand? Can I pray for you? Lord Jesus, thank you so much for your word. Bible. Remember what we learned in youth group?

Bible is an acronym for Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth. Thank you that we thank you that everything we need for life and godliness is is within your word. And not just your written word, but your word that comes alive in our hearts. May we ever be passionate and hungry for your word coming alive in our life. And that happens as a result of burying your word deep into our hearts.

Father, I command a blessing over our tribe fam here this morning. God, I pray for fertile soil in the hearts of people here in this room and those that are watching the livestream and those that later listen to the podcast. Fertile soil so that your word can take deep root and change our lives. We praise these things in Jesus’ name, the strong son of God. And everybody said, amen.

I love you. Have a great week. Memorize God’s word. And remember, you got this.