WAYPOINTS: Hiding God's Word in Our Hearts

Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. Ps. 27:14

This is the last of 16 Waypoints Bible Memory Verses that members of Chapel Hill’s Children’s Sunday School program have memorized over the course of the past eight months. Asked by Children’s Ministries Director Deb Robertson how they could apply this verse to their lives, young Joshua had a ready answer: “When you have a problem you pray and you be patient and you wait for God to work it out.” Bingo!

We believe that God’s Word has the power to reroute and change the lives of people who hide His Word in their hearts. Children like Joshua who memorize Scripture are being well prepared to handle life’s challenges. They have a ready reference right at hand, stored in their memory banks, ready to pull out and apply as problems arise. They are thus assured a better chance of overcoming difficulties by relying on God’s Word rather than their own understanding.

A new memory verse is introduced to the children every other week by means of a trio of puppets with attitude: Skipper the wise old salt, Tug the inquisitive kitty, and Scoop the slightly arrogant teenage pelican. They engage in humorous wordplay and banter to capture the children’s attentions and cleverly explain the meaning of each new verse.

Then the kids take the verse home and memorize it. Some of the verses are short and basic, such as: Do to others as you would have them do to you. Others require a little more work, as: But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect. (Mikaela thought this was the hardest verse of the year!)

When they have a verse memorized, the children recite it at the end of the Sunday school hour to either Karen Kent at the end of the second hour or Pam Gatto at the end of the third. Successful recitations are rewarded with a ticket which can be spent at the Student Store to purchase all manner of cool kid stuff. The children’s attendant adults can also win tickets for their children by reciting the verses!

Children recite with varying degrees of confidence and mastery. Some kids have learned only a few verses. But there is a growing list of those who have memorized all 16. This is a great accomplishment and it will be honored in a special award ceremony during services on Sunday, June 8. Hope you can be there!

Link to the Waypoints page on our Chapel Hill Kids' site.

back to the newsletter