Cultivate Your Mind: How Memorizing Bible Verses Can Give You Clarity of Thought
A cultivated mind is one that is well-tended, nourished, disciplined, and flourishing. How do we cultivate our minds? By taking in ideas, actually thinking through them, solving problems, etc. We “work out” our minds. For the Christian, a cultivated mind is also one that has been carefully grown to have increased sensitivity to the Holy Spirit and see the world as the Divine sees the world.
In his book Scripture by Heart: Devotional Practices for Memorizing God’s Word Korean pastor Joshua Choonmin Kang provides a profound insight when he says,
A cultivated mind can see the universe in a falling leaf, an orchard in seed, an ocean in a drop of water, eternity in a grain of sand. (p. 33)
The Christian worldview actually allows us to step into God’s reality, and to begin to see matter, space, and time as God sees them.
Hiding the word of God in our hearts is perhaps the most foundational step developing the Christian worldview. If the Christian worldview is indeed Truth--and I believe it is--then it is a most accurate lens for examining reality. As we memorize the Bible and mediate on its passages, we allow it change our every perception.
A better grasp on reality means we can think more clearly, draw better conclusions, and experience life in rich dimensions previously unreachable. Things that didn't make sense ("the last shall be first," "power made perfect in weakness," and the rest of the Gospel's counter-intuitiveness) begin to snap in place, and we experience those "oh...I see...!" moments.
We are enlightened by the light of Life.
In a very real way, our minds finally begin to work as they were created to.
All from memorizing Bible verses.