In my article "I Blinked and He Was Thirteen", I wrote of how hard I worked at building the self-esteem of a son who seemed to awaken one day with big feet and acne. I also promised to share on of his assignments that year. Here it is: Bible Verse ABC's.
Derek assembled this project in a view binder. On the front of the binder, he penned in his best cursive writing: "I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you." Psalm 119:11 NIV His assignment was to discover a Bible verse beginning with each letter of the alphabet. He was allowed to use different translations to find them. For the letter X, he used the word eXcept and penned it just like that. Each page was devoted to one letter of the alphabet and it's Bible verse. On the facing page, Derek sketched or painted his own artwork or glued a picture he found in a magazine to go with the verse. At our annual home school awards and graduation ceremony, he received recognition for his creativity, as well as for memorizing so many Bible verses. Often times, Derek would practice cursive or calligraphy on his chosen verses before making them a permanent part of his book. Writing verses over and over again helped him memorize!
First of, I would like to explain the point of this book. You see, God gave us His word, the Bible, so humans could learn and grow spiritually. Reading the Bible helps us learn how to behave. We need no other instruction manual. I'm sure it also pleases God when we read His word, just as it pleases our friends and family when we read their letters over and over again.
Now, let me explain the Bible verse I chose for the cover of my book. I think the writer of Psalm 119:11 was trying to say that he read the Bible so he could earn God's rules so that he could obey them. We all need to know God's rules so that we can obey them, and that's why we all need to read and study God's word every day.
There must be some connection between the fact that in the past, most of our grandparents and parents memorized Bible verses and that they leaned respect for their parents, teachers and other officials. Haven't your parents told you how it was different in their day?
I have heard how comforted people are when they recite Bible verses after they are injured and how they can keep temptation away by remembering God's words.
Today, there are fewer kids studying and memorizing Bible verses. And today, people my age have little respect for authority. What will they have to lean on when they are hurt or tempted?
I hope you enjoy reading this collection of Bible verses. Derek A. Wilkerson
Marilyn is a single mom to one 16-year old son. She's been home educating her son for 8 years. Marilyn was the Regional Director for a home party plan sales company for nine years and has some excellent marketing and sales ideas. She's the owner of a company called Thrifty Creations and the editor of a snail-mail newsletter entitled Creatively Thrifty. Recently, Marilyn was named the National Sales Manager for a new home party plan called Accents of Faith.