Nationals Update

With the National Bible Bee less than a week away as I write this, our studying is intense. The 750 verses we were assigned to memorize have been memorized; however this is only the beginning of the process, as we recite each passage at least once every day--ironing out small slips in the verses we know best and struggling to recall those more difficult sections. Some of the verses are more fun to say than others: we have a couple long passages from Acts it is easy to put a lot of expression into, but there’s also a section in Lamentations that is rather depressing. I think my favorite passages to say are the two resurrection chapters: Matthew 28 and John 20:1-20. It’s rather like having Easter Sunday every day. The thrill of saying “He is risen!” never gets old. One exciting thing about all the verses is the fact that the more we study them the better we can see how many of them tie into Ephesians.
Ephesians is a very rewarding study, with many important theological concepts as well as clear practical directions on living life. My method of studying Ephesians has several parts. First I try to get a general concept of whichever chapter I’m working on by listening to sermons, summarizing each verse and the chapter as a whole, reading commentaries, asking and answering questions about the chapter, and finding the “key verse” (Which means a verse that contains the major theme or teaching of a chapter. Sometimes there is more than one!) Next I focus on more specific aspects of the chapter through greek word studies and cross-references. I also hope to memorize all of Ephesians before the competition, because I have found this helps me understand how everything works together and recall what I’ve learned about each verse.
It’s a lot of work, but I’ve been very blessed to be part of the Bible Bee for the last five years. It has really helped me understand the richness of God’s Word, and given me experience I can continue to use for the rest of my life. We are both looking forward to returning to Tennessee this year, as we had a very enjoyable time last year.