On a chilly day in the middle of August, dozens of families gathered in Australia for a fantastic Scripture Memory Bee. Outside, rain threatened all day. But indoors, young and old alike presented from memory Bible verses to the audience. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the time. Even the children quietly listened as they watched each person go on stage and recite. Not all recitations were perfect, but listeners’ hearts were stirred. They were encouraged to see how much each presenter had invested in, loved, and wanted to share God’s Word.

One mother recited more than 100 verses in English, even though English is her second language! What a powerful demonstration of putting the right importance on God’s Word. She loves God’s Word, and encourages her children to memorize it also. Her six-year-old quoted more than 150 verses while her twelve-year-old quoted 250+ scriptures!

But the day didn’t end there! One of the families organized games for everyone to participate in. Children loved this time to play games with their parents! This especially helped kinesthetic children learn Scripture. It made the whole day all the better.

Games included “Pictionary Guess the Verse.” Individuals would draw pictures to get their team to guess a Bible verse. Newest of all the games was one called “Guess the Bible Story from Emojis”!

There was also a race to find verses with a specific word in them, such as faith, sinner, or fear. Yet the most popular game was a Bible verse treasure hunt on the property. In this activity, people were given a verse that would contain a reference to an item somewhere on the property, such as a wide gate, a fruit tree, a pool, etc. Everyone enjoyed getting to exercise, not only their legs, but also their minds for this one.

Participants were stretched in their Bible knowledge. The young, the old, and everyone in-between did an amazing job to help their teams. Everyone who attended was encouraged to see them all together quoting God’s powerful Word. These are everyday people with everyday lives. Some memorized God’s Word; some thought of creative games; some hosted the event; and God brought them all together to glorify Himself! 

The psalms the participants quoted are filled with prayers — prayers that God hears and acts on. We have yet to see all of the ways God will answer, and how many ways He will use the Word the people have hidden in their hearts for the rest of their lives!