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MEMORIZE

Plan A:

Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
James 1:21-22 (ESV)

Plan B:

for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.
James 1:20 (ESV)

MEDITATE

Can you receive new things if your hands are already full? There are things you put off, and things you put on. Things you don’t do, and things you do.

Listening isn’t enough this week. Let’s not just hear. Let’s do! A great start is by memorizing our verses this week. Please join us.

PRAY

Lord,
Help us lay aside our dirty, ugly words and deeds this week. We humbly replace them with Your words and heart instead. May we demonstrate Your love to all You put in our path.

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MEMORIZE

Plan A:

Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger;
for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.
James 1:19-20 (ESV)

Plan B:

Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger;
James 1:19 (ESV)

MEDITATE

If you started memorizing James 1 with us but life got in the way, begin again with this week’s verses.

If you aren’t memorizing, consider dwelling on these important verses this week anyway.

Every day we all have to begin again. . .

• With being quick to hear
• With being slow to speak
• With being slow to anger

These verses humble me because I often fail in all three categories. But each day, His mercies are new. Start fresh. (Reminder: Next week is our 2nd scheduled break!)

PRAY

Lord,
My heart is to bring You honor. But my mouth gets in the way; my pride is prone to rule. Double my capacity to listen to others this week, and halve my overabundance of speech. In all things help me reflect your righteousness.

Which is hardest for you? Which is easiest? (1) Quick to hear, (2) Slow to speak, (3) Slow to anger. Please share in the comments.

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MEMORIZE

Plan A:

Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.
James 1:18 (ESV)

Plan B:

Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger;
James 1:19 (ESV)

MEDITATE

We can’t trust all of our desires (some lead to sin, James 1:14-15). But all of God’s desires are good (James 1:17), including this one: God wants us to be His people. We are His on purpose.

As you memorize this week, remember that you are here by God’s perfect will.

PRAY

Lord,
I thank you for Your willingness and power to bring us into Your family. May we give You all the praise this week as we remember our origins.

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MEMORIZE

Plan A:

Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers.
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.
James 1:16-17 (ESV)

Plan B:

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.
James 1:17 (ESV)

MEDITATE

After being advised last week (James 1:14-15) to not let desire turn into sin and then into death, James urges us to stand strong against one of those temptations: the temptation to believe that God is NOT good.

When He doesn’t seem to answer or when life gets too chaotic or when we get a clear “no” to something we wanted, we can start wondering if God is really as good as we once believed.

But yes, He is not only that good, He is even better. James 1:17 says that not only does God give solely good things, His giving is perfect and complete. Hold on to that belief this week.

PRAY

Lord,
When I begin to doubt if You truly are good, remind me that every good gift in my life comes directly from You. You are unwaveringly generous and loving in all You do.

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MEMORIZE

Plan A:

But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.
Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.
James 1:14-15 (ESV)

Plan B:

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.
James 1:17 (ESV)

MEDITATE

We each have our own specific set of temptations. When something dangerous dangles in front of us, we have a choice: take the bait or keep swimming.

James lays out the process clearly in this week’s memory verses: desire–>sin–>death. Let’s pray for help to refuse the lure and stop sin before it begins.

PRAY

Lord,
I want to birth things of life into this world, not things of death. You don’t tempt me to sin; You promise me blessings. I trust You this week to help me stay true to You.

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MEMORIZE

Plan A:

And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
James 1:4

Plan B:

for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.
James 1:3

MEDITATE

Staying under a trial isn’t always optional. We often have no ability to alter our circumstances even if we want to.

But enduring a trial with cheerfulness is our choice (James 1:2). If we can maintain our joy in the Lord despite swirling situations around us, we will mature (James 1:4). (We’ll see this again in James 1:12.)

PRAY

Lord,
I want to meet my trials with steadfastness so I can be complete in you. You alone can make me whole. Help me keep this promise in the front of my mind this week.

QUESTION

Is there a trial you are having to remain under right now? Do you see maturation at the end of it all? Please share in the comments.

Don’t forget our Scripture Memory Link-Up is coming April 27, only 2 weeks from today! Get your blog post written about anything relating to memorizing scripture in general or James 1 in particular. We want to hear from you.

Want to memorize James 1 with us? Get all the details here.

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MEMORIZE

Plan A:

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.
James 1:2-3

Plan B:

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds,
James 1:2

MEDITATE

When are you the most joyful? It seems easiest when things are going right, yes?

But James says that when things are going wrong, we can still choose joy. Instead of letting our circumstances lead our attitudes, we can set the tone ourselves.

How? By faith. If we can believe that God is using our momentary trials to work something greater in us, it’s easier to keep not just some joy, but all joy, as James says.

PRAY

Lord,
I’m not there yet. But I’m trusting in You through these truths we’re memorizing. May we learn to prove our beliefs by keeping our joy. Whatever may come, all will be well.

QUESTION

How does this look in your life? Who have you seen choose joy despite their trials? Please share in the comments.

Get all the details here to memorize James 1.

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MEMORIZE

Plan A:

James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes in the Dispersion: Greetings.
James 1:1

Plan B:

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds,
James 1:2

MEDITATE

The author James could have introduced himself this way: “Hey everybody. I am the half-brother of Jesus himself! So listen up!”

But no. He simply says, “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.”

As you begin memorizing James 1 this week, reflect on the humility of James. Are we as humble in introducing ourselves to others? What kind of impression do we hope to make?

PRAY

Lord,
Thank you for reminding us that our greatest calling is to be your servant. May we share our message with others through humility.

We often overlook these opening verses, but what value can we gain from James’ beginning? Please share in the comments.

Did you know that in just a few minutes a day, a few days a week, you can memorize some amazing Bible verses?

And when you string several weeks together, you can memorize a whole chapter?

You can! We’re ready to give you an opportunity to do it, not only by scheduling a great chapter, but also by inviting you into our online community of memorizers who are eager to do this with you.

Beginning in two weeks (March 30, 2015), we’ll start memorizing and gleaning from what God wants to show us in James 1.

Plan A – All in – is all 27 verses, one to two verses per week, in the translation of your choice.

But NEW this challenge, we’re also offering Plan B – the Best of! If you’d rather just catch the highlights, then memorize eight key verses from James 1, one verse every two weeks. (See Plan A and highlighted Plan B verses here in ESV)

Both groups will work alongside each other, sharing insights and providing encouragement. Choose your preferred pace.

Join our Facebook group to meet the growing family of believers who are placing God’s word deep in their hearts so they can live it out more fully in their lives.

Full Schedule here

Resources in 4 versions will be available on the blog and in an email to registrants beginning Monday, March 23. If you have any questions or comments, please let us know.

Will you help us spread the word on your social media? Thanks!