Simple Ways to Cherish Scripture
By Sarah Mockler
“My soul clings to the dust, revive me according to Your Word … my soul melts from heaviness; strengthen me according to Your Word … Your Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path … You are my hiding place and my shield. I hope in Your Word…”
The string of verses formed a golden chain of truth in the young woman’s mind that she went over link by link, verse by verse, in her memory. She sat motionless, face tipped towards the sun, deep in thought. Though God’s Word resounded in her soul, her lips didn’t form silent words and she didn’t dare breathe the words of the banned Book out loud.
She had been 12 years old when she began to follow Jesus, and it was shortly thereafter that the tide of communism swept over North Korea in the 1950s, swallowing the nation whole in palpable spiritual darkness. Childhood friends had up and disappeared from one day’s play to the next. Churches were dismantled, every board removed as if it had never existed in the first place. Any black book was suspect — whether it was a copy of the Bible or not — so much so that there was a reward for any person who turned one in. The ironic thing was that black books weren’t the only things that disappeared — usually the informer did, too.
Seeing the oncoming persecution, her father had chosen to separate their family Bible into sections, squirreling various Epistles in different locations — in walls, under floorboards, even in holes dug in the yard — to protect their family. While her father hid their Bible in a literal sense, she hid God’s Word in her heart, taking herself to the Gospels, the Psalms, and the New Testament with fresh zeal to immerse herself in the Word as much as possible while there was still time. The government could confiscate a Bible, but they couldn’t take away that which she had memorized. It was a treasure that no one could wrench away, stamp out, or confiscate so long as she hid it in her heart.
Those events had transpired years ago. She hadn’t seen a Bible in five years, and she didn’t know if she would ever see one again. But the words of Jesus only grew louder in her mind’s eye, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.”
The Power of Testimony
Can you imagine, dear reader?
Can you imagine not playing worship music as the underscore of your day or it being illegal to hum a hymn out loud for fear a neighbor might turn you in to the secret police? Can you imagine resorting to burying your face in blankets to stifle your prayers so that the name of Jehovah goes undetected by any passerby? Can you imagine having only one Bible — and that one has been butchered with Epistles being loaned out to the underground church or buried or tucked in a hat? Can you imagine watching your children be murdered in front of your eyes before your own death sentence because you cannot and will not recant your faith?
What we cannot imagine is a living nightmare for our brothers and sisters in Christ in North Korea. The details I mentioned above, including the woman who didn’t see a Bible for five years are all based on true events. As it would turn out, it would be nearly 50 years before this woman held a Bible in her hands again.
It is estimated that the underground church in North Korea is flourishing with a 200%–400% rise of true believers in just 17 years. That means there is roughly one new believer in North Korea every hour! While communism has tried to extinguish Christianity, there is a fervent underground church filled with believers aglow with the Word of God burning brightly in their hearts. And this woman is one of them.
I came across this woman’s story in a ministry journal … you know, the kind you usually glance over and then toss in the recycling bin without much thought. But something inside me latched onto her testimony and my soul hasn’t been able to let it go. Time has passed and I have continued to fix breakfast and fold laundry and change diapers and yet, this seemingly obscure story of a woman who didn’t see Scripture for almost 50 years has never been far from my mind.
The only way I know how to describe it is that, for some reason, I feel responsible for this woman’s story. Have you ever experienced something similar? Like the Lord put someone’s testimony right in front of you so that you could be changed by it and, in so doing, change others through the faithful sharing of it? Consider this article my step of obedience. For this woman, whose name history has forgotten, taught me the priceless value of treasuring the Word.
The Sad State of Affairs
I recently counted and, presently, I have 12 Bibles in my house. And that doesn’t include my audio Bible app or Blue Letter Bible’s website which I have casually pulled up on the next tab as I write this article in a cutesy coffee shop … in broad daylight … without fear for my life.
After reading a story like the above, it is strange and jarring to acquaint ourselves with the facts of where we, as a culture, sit in terms of engaging with Scripture. Society defines a “Bible user” as someone who interacts with Scripture at least three to four times a year (outside of church), rather than someone who is faithfully in the Word of God every day. Another survey revealed a grand disconnect saying that while 44% of Christians would say that the Bible is a book to be read again and again, only 9% have actually done so, and only 13% have read the Bible once in its entirety. Since we enjoy ease of access to the Scriptures in a variety of formats, why is it that the majority of Americans have a Bible but aren’t reading it? Sadly, these statistics prove that we are a biblically illiterate generation.
In a world where it is said the average person touches their phone 2,600 times per day, I would say that our disconnect lies not in having enough time, but in failing to prioritize the right things. In short, we have lost the art of treasuring the Word.
But this art form is alive and well in persecuted nations. The woman from North Korea may not have had a physical copy of God’s Word for 50 years, but she had memorized large portions of Scripture to keep her soul nourished. Because the Bible was an actual rarity, owning one — or a portion of one — was of great value. And being able to run her fingers across so sacred a page was something not to be taken lightly.
Here are a few things I’ve gleaned from studying her life and the lives of those in the underground church that can change the way we interact with Scripture.
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1. Read God’s Word
This may seem basic, but it is foundational nonetheless. An old-time preacher used to say that you only love God as much as you love His Word. And it’s true. We treasure Scripture by making it our lifeline — making it our most read, most referenced, most reached-for book year after year on our Goodreads list. But how often do we find ourselves opting for a “more interesting” book because God’s Word has grown dry and dusty, forgetting that we hold in our hands the very breath of God that is “profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Tim. 3:16). Why? So that we can be complete — a whole picture of what God intended.
George Müller is an example of this. He has been credited with reading the Word nearly 200 times in his life simply by being faithful to read every single day. It wasn’t fancy. It wasn’t complicated, but the results far surpass our 9% statistic.
Maybe we need to overhaul the way we get into God’s Word. Familiarity with Scripture can land us in a lukewarm engagement with it. An easy way to get out of this rut is to change up your translation or swap out your Bible reading plan. (Or begin one, maybe with some accountability so you keep at it!) Maybe you need to listen to Scripture or read it aloud yourself to keep your eyes from skipping over familiar words.
I’ll never forget the Christmas Eve where I was asked to read the classic Christmas Story passage. I had reviewed the script several times to be sure I was used to the feel and the flow, but the Holy Spirit got a hold of those “wonderful words of life” in a brand new way. Inexplicably, when I opened my mouth to say, “And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins…” I choked up.
Rather than getting into God’s Word, God’s Word got into me in a way I had never experienced before. While reading Christ’s birth aloud, I was experiencing an incarnation of His Word — one of having the Word indwell me richly with such beauty, majesty, and sacredness that I could do nothing but read the entire script with tears overflowing my eyes. It was the same old truth in an entirely new way. Something holy happened that Christmas Eve, all because I read the Word out loud.
Sisters, get into the Word and invite it to get into you. Speak truth to your heart and words of life over your own soul. (See Psalm 15:2.) Confess His truth and speak it out loud. (See Romans 10:9–10.) These active ways of incorporating the Word into our lives are a way to, “Let the Word of Christ indwell you richly with all wisdom…” (Col. 3:16).
2. Submit to its Authority
Does Scripture have the final word in your life? Or do you? God’s Word is to be superior to our own thoughts and ideas or even other sources of wisdom. God’s Word is not our equal, neither is it our buddy to engage with as if we are on the same level. Its position in our lives is always to be above, higher, and superior. Treat it as indeed the very words of God. Remember it is living and active, but in order for it to be living and active within us, we must obey what God says. Eric Ludy has often said that if you want to go forward with God, then you must allow the Holy Spirit to bring you back to your last point of obedience and begin there. I encourage you to go before the Word of God and allow His Spirit to shine a searchlight in your soul to reveal any areas of disobedience and then act accordingly.
3. Memorize Scripture
My immediate answer on how to treasure God’s Word with my life was to resurrect my neglect of regularly memorizing God’s Word. To my shame, I had the same Scripture memorization goal in place for two years. I would start to memorize a selected portion of Scripture with great intentions, get midway, then abandon my commitment, only to remember and start over at the beginning over and over again. I say this not so we can wallow in our failed commitments together, but so that we might spur one another to love and good works — especially the good work of getting God’s Word in our hearts.
Sisters, His Word is a lamp and a light, and one of the key ways God directs our path is through His commands, precepts, and testimonies found directly within Scripture. We need not scour the internet, consult ChatGPT, or read the latest up-and-coming author to see how we should walk, although those things may have their place. The more we input His Word into our minds and hearts, the more we can easily navigate our everyday lives according to His ways.
To start, I bought a no-frills, unaesthetic-looking spiral-bound pack of index cards and have been slowly (but faithfully!) adding to my repertoire of verses. The size makes it easy to tuck into my diaper bag or keep in the kitchen to reference while I prep dinner. Another fun way to memorize is to build a friendship around memorizing the Word. One of my friends has a monthly call with another gal so that they can review their memory verses together. It builds community and accountability all in one delightful phone call! Maybe, for you, it’s going for a walk or taking Scripture to go with you in the car. Any way and in whatever way you can — memorize! You won’t regret it.
4. Read Testimonies of Faith
Remember, this idea all started with the power of testimony. Had I not been riveted to the woman’s story from North Korea, it wouldn’t have stoked the fires of my own faith. In the same way, read about those who treasure the Word.
I realized while researching for this article that I didn’t own a copy of Foxe’s Book of Martyrs. It doesn’t bear a comfortable title, but the reality is that, “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church,” and we would do well to read of our brothers and sisters who have given their lives for the preservation of the Word. Instead of turning a blind eye to our suffering brothers and sisters in Christ, we are exhorted to remember ourselves as bound in chains with them. (See Hebrews 13:3.) Books like Martyr’s Mirror, Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, and Hearts of Fire are great places to start infusing your faith with the spiritual iron that courses in the veins of our brothers and sisters who have not considered their own lives dear unto themselves, but have given their lives for Jesus.
5. Give Towards the Persecuted Church & Bible Translation
Jesus said, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matt. 6:21). We put our money towards what we value — it’s as simple as that. Consider giving to trusted, reputable organizations and individuals you know personally who are doing the hard work of getting Bibles translated into new languages and unreached people groups, smuggling Bibles into closed countries, and ministering to the persecuted church. A couple of my favorites that you can research more on your own are Wycliffe and Asia Harvest.
6. Defend God’s Word
We witnessed the impact of what defending God’s Word publicly can do through Charlie Kirk’s murder late last year. He inspired the watching world to peaceably share God’s perspective in conversation. How can we defend God’s Word? And do we know enough of God’s Word to give a defense? We must prepare ourselves to, “always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed” (1 Pet. 3:15–16).
It takes courage, but we must remember that when we are in the Word, the Word is faithful to flow out of us the moment we need it. Stand on God’s truth and remember what Jesus said: “Do not worry about how or what you should speak. For it will be given to you in that hour what you should speak; for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you” (Matt. 10:19–20). Dear reader, if He is for us, who can be against us?
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It’s uncanny that a woman from North Korea I’ve never met called me up into treasuring the Word of God with my life, but I’m thankful she did. While she has gone home to be with Jesus, she, being dead, still speaks to each of us who would like to rise above the statistics of mediocrity and live passionately, fervently for the Word made Flesh — Jesus Christ. Like her, may we treasure the Word until our last breath.
This article was originally published in Issue 50.
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