songs of light

This past summer I memorized the first three chapters of the Gospel of John, word for word. Scripture memorization, for me, is an important part of my journey of faith. It always seems to accompany times of growth and maturity...which I don't think is a coincidence.

People who can recall from memory large sections of the Bible, verbatim, are always incredibly impressive. But that isn't why I do it. In fact, I couldn't recite to you any part of the first three chapters of John's Gospel right now without looking. I've forgotten it already. I've forgotten all the large sections of Scripture that at one time were burned into my memory.

Why? Because I don't do it for the sake of memorization...as much as for the sake of marination.

Repeating it over and over, letting it sink it...letting it soak in. That is why Scripture memorization is important to me. My friend Mike told me regarding studying the Bible, "You can't always remember what you read. But so what? I don't remember what I ate for breakfast last Monday...but it helped me get through the day."

It isn't so much that it remains on the top of your mind, but that it remains in the depths of your soul.

And because of the marination process, I tend to see common themes in my own songwriting during times of memorizing Scripture. Thus, as I was memorizing the first part of John's Gospel...I began writing songs about light (If you've read the beginning of that Book, you'll understand why. If you haven't...well, you really should).

In the next couple days, I am going to share with you my two favorite songs of light that came out of that time this summer. They differ drastically from one another, yet remain much akin.

So, stay tuned and let me know your thoughts...