. . . how it makes you look more deeply at the passages.  It is easy to miss things when just skimming over passages, but when you memorize them you have to focus on every word.  Take this familiar passage, for example:

Matthew 11:28–30 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

It is a powerful and comforting message from Jesus, but it can be easy to just walk away with an, “Isn’t that nice, Jesus wants me to be comfortable” sense.  When I posted that verse on Facebook it got “likes” from people who I know aren’t Christians.

But look more carefully at the passage: Part of the formula is to take his yoke upon you.  That means you’ll be going the same direction as him, otherwise you’ll feel pain and be dragged alongside him.  If we are happily going along with the world we can be pretty sure we took the yoke off.

And note the command to learn from him.  If you aren’t studying his word, you aren’t learning from him.

And finding rest for your souls is contingent on doing what He said.  No yoke and no learning = no rest for your souls.

Yes, the yoke is easy and the burden is light, but if you take them off then you get nothing.

P.S. If you haven’t checked out ScriptureTyper please do so today!  It is an amazing scripture memory tool.