A portion of family devotional time can also be used effectively for memorizing certain portions or facts from God's word and then reviewing those items periodically. The focus here is upon:

4. CONSPICUOUS SCRIPTURE
"You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates" (Deut. 6:8,9).

The Hebrews of old wore certain Scriptures and wrote others in certain places at home. These would often be put to memory. Today, there is great value in memorizing Scriptures or spiritual principles and in having important truths from God regularly brought before our eyes via artwork, signs, notes, flash cards, etc. We all need reminders (cf. II Pet. 1:15). Consider what the Bible says about making Scripture a conspicuous part of your life (and the lives of your children):

• Proverbs 7:1-3 - "My son, keep my words, and treasure my commands within you. Keep my commands and live, and my law as the apple of your eye. Bind them on your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart."
• Psalm 119:11 - "Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You."
• Psalm 119:97 - "Oh, how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day."
• I Peter 3:15 - "But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear."

PewPackers.com is a website dedicated to this important task. Take a look at the PDF lists of memory facts. Let me encourage you to introduce a new fact each week with your family and work together to put them to memory. You'll be glad you did! Although I suppose it comes down to personal opinion, my preference for many years now has not been in requiring verbatim verse memorization as much as memorizing where certain topics are found or what certain chapters are about in God's word. For example, in what chapter are the Ten Commandments given? Exodus 20. Where do we find the Sermon on the Mount? Matthew 5-7. Where is a good place to read about love? I Corinthians 13. Faith? Hebrews 11. You get the idea. I find this to be most helpful and use it as one more method of training my children for the Lord's kingdom.

Parents, our time is limited to train our children in the way of the Lord. I plead with you: Don't abdicate your God-given duty! I beg you to be intentional in your parenting or the cares of the world or the deceitfulness of riches will put you and your children in a choke-hold! "Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful" (Matt. 13:22). What we want instead for ourselves and our children is what is described in the next verse - "But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty" (Matt. 13:23). Will your children bear good fruit for the Lord?

We will conclude this study in our next lesson.