Songs for Scripture Memory

I am continually amazed at the memorizing ability of my three small children!  In fact, my 7-year-old can STILL tell me the name and number of our parking spot at Disney World from THREE years ago ("Zurg 109, Mommy!")  Wow. They are better to have around than any smart phone app when it comes to recalling shopping items, parking numbers, or house numbers!  I am sure that you as a parent see this on a daily basis, too.  Our little ones are truly little sponges, soaking in the words we say and the things we do (for better...or for worse, I might add)...and this includes the music we listen to and the things we encourage them to know by heart.

Now, if you ask any young girl between the ages of 3 to 9, I am confident that they would be able to sing to you at least a portion of a song from the wildly popular Disney movie, Frozen.  So, let me ask, why do our children NOT know God's precious Scripture?  Surely, if they can memorize the entire soundtrack of a Disney movie, they can memorize several verses of Scripture that will serve them well their whole life through! One huge benefit of memorizing Scripture is spoken of in Psalm 119: 9,11(NIV)...

"How can a young person stay on the path of purity?
    By living according to your word...
I have hidden your word in my heart
    that I might not sin against you."

We truly have NO excuse as parents, especially when there are fantastic resources that are available to us that encourage us, as well as our children, to memorize Scripture (and worship the Lord) with enjoyable music!

Today I'd like to highlight two resources that have been an amazing asset to our family through the years. One of my favorites is this 2-CD set called Hide 'Em in Your Heart Vol. 1 and 2 by Steve Green.  These CDs are permanent fixtures in my car and serve to give my kids Scripture set to music that are appropriate and interesting for their age levels.  In addition, there are often kids speaking at the introduction of each song and also singing along with Steve, which is a nice touch they enjoy.

Another resource is from Seeds Family Worship.  I would whole-heartedly endorse any of their CDs for you and your children to enjoy.  We personally own Vol 1 on Courage and Vol 4 on Purpose and we plan on adding many more volumes to our collection as we are able!  These CDs are especially nice as they target the entire family, so you will find more contemporary music and more difficult passages of Scripture that will challenge your older children (as well as you!).  LOVE these CDs as they combine worship of the Lord and Scripture memory!

Do not be misled, however...there are a TON of similar resources out there from which to choose--these are just our personal favorites. So, take a few minutes to peruse your local Christian bookstore or the Amazon music store to find one or two that will serve your family!  You will NOT regret hiding God's Word in your hearts together as a family--what a great way to encourage one another in the Lord!