Every January we get a fresh start, if only in our minds. We make lists and dream dreams and aim high. Every year my top goal is to be more consistent in God's Word.
The past four years haven't been easy on me with three pregnancies + three seasons of sleepless nights and fussy newborns. But that fog is lifting! And it would be easy to continue giving myself the excuse that I have three little ones underfoot and at the end of the day I just don't have it in me to dig deep into the Bible and chew on those meaty chunks of scripture and let them nourish me and sustain me. Because I've been there. It's been true. There have been a lot of times in the past four years of pregnancy and new motherhood that I couldn't.
Of course, even then, God's Word was my strength and my portion but my time with Jesus looked differently. When you're averaging under 6 hours of sleep a night for months on end, you may not be able to study the Bible as academically and thoroughly as you'd like. And God knows you and your season and He is still there. There in the time you do get in His Word. There in the cries for help and quick prayers. There in the audio sermons while you're nursing all night. There in the attempts you do make to commune with Him. Motherhood and pregnancy aren't seasons where we're given an excuse to stop pursuing God, but they are seasons where God's grace is richer, if we'd just grab it.
Seeing Jesus in those long seasons of little sleep and physical exhaustion was probably more beautiful than when it's easy to catch his reflection. Because I knew I had nothing to give but HE WAS STILL THERE. And He is still here. He's seen me through.
This January, I know I'm going into a year where there will be no pregnancies or newborns. God can and probably will bring other trials my way, but for now, I know my time with Him needs to stretch. I'm ready, I'm alert, I'm willing. He wants me. So my goal has been not only more scripture in my days (a LOT more!) but more scripture memory.
Being the do-er I am, I searched Etsy and Pinterest for some scripture memory cards to help me on my quest. I wasn't thrilled. I found a few options that were out of my price range, and then I found a printable option (no shipping fees + print on whatever paper you'd like). But every.single.option I found lacked the meaty verses i was hoping to memorize. I was frustrated by the huge amount of scripture taken out of context, the verses split up, and the fluff! So I set out to make my own.
I spent the next week ferociously reading the New Testament. I nearly finished the entire New Testament in 7 days. I was hungry and I think you might be too. I found 70 verses that I knew I wanted to commit to memory. Can I memorize 70 verses in a year? Probably not, but these were the verses I wanted on my door posts and on my heart. These were the verses I wanted to chew on and be convicted of and delight in. So I made my own cards. Simple, modern, geometric, black and white (cheaper to print!), and chalk full of profound scripture.
If you'd like to order the PDF of my New Testament scripture memory cards, e-mail me @ emily.terreberry@gmail.com. The cost for the pdf is $8.
Print them at home or splurge on the super thick card stock. Cut them out and hang them up. Use them as a book mark for your Bible, or string up a garland of them. Basically, join me this year as I seek to get more of God's word in my heart and mind.
The past four years haven't been easy on me with three pregnancies + three seasons of sleepless nights and fussy newborns. But that fog is lifting! And it would be easy to continue giving myself the excuse that I have three little ones underfoot and at the end of the day I just don't have it in me to dig deep into the Bible and chew on those meaty chunks of scripture and let them nourish me and sustain me. Because I've been there. It's been true. There have been a lot of times in the past four years of pregnancy and new motherhood that I couldn't.
Of course, even then, God's Word was my strength and my portion but my time with Jesus looked differently. When you're averaging under 6 hours of sleep a night for months on end, you may not be able to study the Bible as academically and thoroughly as you'd like. And God knows you and your season and He is still there. There in the time you do get in His Word. There in the cries for help and quick prayers. There in the audio sermons while you're nursing all night. There in the attempts you do make to commune with Him. Motherhood and pregnancy aren't seasons where we're given an excuse to stop pursuing God, but they are seasons where God's grace is richer, if we'd just grab it.
Seeing Jesus in those long seasons of little sleep and physical exhaustion was probably more beautiful than when it's easy to catch his reflection. Because I knew I had nothing to give but HE WAS STILL THERE. And He is still here. He's seen me through.
This January, I know I'm going into a year where there will be no pregnancies or newborns. God can and probably will bring other trials my way, but for now, I know my time with Him needs to stretch. I'm ready, I'm alert, I'm willing. He wants me. So my goal has been not only more scripture in my days (a LOT more!) but more scripture memory.
Being the do-er I am, I searched Etsy and Pinterest for some scripture memory cards to help me on my quest. I wasn't thrilled. I found a few options that were out of my price range, and then I found a printable option (no shipping fees + print on whatever paper you'd like). But every.single.option I found lacked the meaty verses i was hoping to memorize. I was frustrated by the huge amount of scripture taken out of context, the verses split up, and the fluff! So I set out to make my own.
I spent the next week ferociously reading the New Testament. I nearly finished the entire New Testament in 7 days. I was hungry and I think you might be too. I found 70 verses that I knew I wanted to commit to memory. Can I memorize 70 verses in a year? Probably not, but these were the verses I wanted on my door posts and on my heart. These were the verses I wanted to chew on and be convicted of and delight in. So I made my own cards. Simple, modern, geometric, black and white (cheaper to print!), and chalk full of profound scripture.
If you'd like to order the PDF of my New Testament scripture memory cards, e-mail me @ emily.terreberry@gmail.com. The cost for the pdf is $8.
Print them at home or splurge on the super thick card stock. Cut them out and hang them up. Use them as a book mark for your Bible, or string up a garland of them. Basically, join me this year as I seek to get more of God's word in my heart and mind.
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