Hello! 

After a short break, The Up Devotional is back to your email inboxes, social media feeds, and podcast platforms five mornings a week.

Here we are in 2024. Wow, that sounds futuristic. But it’s the new now.

The start of another twelve-month cycle gets you thinking about priorities. If you have them (and you probably do), you most likely want to get better at living by them.

That’s why habits are so important. Habits are priorities with a watch. When you create and establish habits that are in line with your big picture priorities, and when you work them into your actual schedule, you are more likely to be successful.

If you already have some good, godly habits in mind for the coming year, that’s great. 

If not, or if you’re looking to go deeper, I suggest the habit of memorizing Bible verses. 

In Psalm 1 we are told that a righteous person delights in God’s law and “meditates” on it day and night (verse 2). The word for meditate carries the sense of muttering or murmuring something. Picture someone who is quietly reciting Scripture as they go about their day. Immediately before the famous verse in Joshua 1:9 about being “strong and courageous,” we read this: “Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night…” (verse 8).

God’s people have a long history of memorizing his words so they can carry it around with them wherever they go. That’s what memorizing Bible verses can help you do.

If you’re new to it, perhaps one verse a week is a good place to start. What you’ll find is that as you go about your days, biblical ideas will come into your mind right when you need them. They can help you become more Christlike, they can help you make better decisions, and they can make you wiser as you seek to bless and help the people around you.

It’s just one idea. But it’s a good one: one verse per week. Imagine in twelve months from now having 52 verses committed to memory and oozing out of your thoughts, decisions and actions.

Habits are priorities with a watch.

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Notes:

–Bible quotes are from the NIV.