What's Your Favorite?

            Do you have favorite Bible verses, or lines from poems, or song lyrics, that follow you your entire life? Mark Batterson has a theory that he wrote about in his book, Chase the Lion: your favorite scripture will become the script of your life.

            Back in the summer of 1974, I had just graduated from high school and was on tour playing trombone with Continental Singers. We were encouraged to learn a certain set of verses to use when counseling at the end of our concerts. When our director first told us to memorize, and gave us a list of verses, I, like most of the others, rebelled. (That’s the trouble with a tour bus full of teenagers … lots of rebellion.) I've never handled ultimatums very well, and at first, I refused to be a part of his little memory cult. But my heart changed with time and I eventually decided to tackle the verses and prove to everyone that even a skeptic could do it. Surprisingly, I enjoyed it.

            I deepened my practice at the University of Oklahoma under the ministry of the Baptist Student Union. As part of a discipleship ministry, I launched into an aggressive memory program, carrying my small pack of verse cards, and reviewing verses while walking from class to class. During my three years at OU I learned hundreds of verses, sometimes entire passages. The compulsion of youth is a mighty thing.

            During that time, I took on 2 Timothy 2:2 as a life verse, “The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” I realized it wasn’t enough to learn more and grow deeper, I had an obligation to give away what I’d received.

            After College, as Cyndi and I moved into adult married life with a family, my favorite life verse became 1 Thessalonians 2:8, “Having so fond an affection for you, we were well-pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God but also our own lives, because you had become very dear to us.” When I first started teaching adult Bible classes, thirty years ago, I assumed the value I brought was the information, insights, and background, … “the gospel of God.” But through the years I gradually began to use more stories than bullet points, as in, sharing “our own lives.”

            And since I’m throwing around verses, I can’t fail to mention Ephesians 3:17, “And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts, living within you as you trust in him.” I love the notion of Jesus feeling at home in my heart, and I’m challenged to make my heart the sort of place where Jesus would be comfortable. This verse influenced my thinking so much I made it my license plate: EPH317.

            These verses have irrevocably changed who I am, what I think, and what I say. They helped me find my spiritual voice and kept my heart soft. They have become the script of my life.

            So why am I writing about this? Not to praise myself - in fact, there is a risk in announcing that I've memorized verses. People will expect me to be able to recite them. I write because Batterson is correct. Our favorite verses become our life script. It’s one of the ways we can intentionally shape our own future.

            What’s on your list? What has become the script of your life?

“I run in the path of Your commands, for You have set my heart free.” Psalm 119:32