Write the word on your heart

Which Bible translation is this in?

—29 out of 30 verses are from the ESV, 1 is from the NASB.

What ages is this for?

—Personally, I would say 6-10, but this will vary by child. (And we’ve had a few adults who said they wanted to try it, too) Your child should be comfortable writing (though they don’t have to be amazing at spelling). There are options for children who don’t like to write (like using the downloadable verse puzzle pieces to plug into the missing word spots in the verses), and WTWOMH seeks to use multiple methods for memory. Still, the primary method is copywork, so your child should be comfortable writing. I used this for my 8-year-old girl and 10-year-old boy, and felt it was just right. I didn’t feel my young 6-year-old boy was quite ready for it. You know your child.

I’ve seen the copywork pages, but what else is included?

Within the book, every verse comes with a perforated coloring page, meant to be colored, removed and displayed in the home, with the hope that both parents and children will be reminded of these verses and be able to reference them often. There is also a memory card and a memory puzzle for each verse that can be downloaded from this site.

There are also 10 short devotional thoughts within the book (one to go with each section). These contain discussion questions, supporting verse references, and personal stories all designed to bring depth to the verses and encourage you to apply them within the home. This could be used throughout the week, or on the first day when introducing the lesson, or on the final day of the week, as the child is coloring.

How long will this take my child to complete each day?

—Depending on how focused your child is, the work itself should take between 5-10 minutes per day, including the time you read and recite the verses together. Friday’s may take a little longer (or be a lot shorter) depending on how much your child gets into the coloring, or how many memory cards are in need of review.

Who was this written for?

It was written by me, (a homeschool mom), for my children, as a way to work Bible memory into our homeschool day, and as a way to to help us be consistent with scripture memory. But it could also also be used by families with public/private schooled children as a brief way to connect around the word before or after school, or within private schools who may wish to include daily copywork and Bible memory into their day. It could also be worked into Sunday school or VBS camps as a way to include/strengthen memory work outside of class.

Will Write the Word on my Heart be sold through your website? Or as a digital download from Amazon or Etsy? Or as a physical product that will be received In the mail?

—Physical copies of Write the Word on my Heart can be found on Amazon and at AnekoPress. It’s also available online at ChristianBook.com, RainbowResource.com and at both Target and Barnes and Noble online.

Currently, WTWOMH is only a physical product. We are exploring the possibility of selling digital products in the future.

Would you be willing to give my group discount/bulk pricing?

Groups purchasing 16 or more can receive a discount from Aneko Press. If purchasing for a church or school, contact the publisher before purchasing—you may be eligible for further discounts

How many verses/weeks are in the book?

—30. It is written to be completed over the course of 30 full weeks, with four days of written copywork and one day of coloring/review each week.

Will you have a cursive edition?

—We have considered making a Print-on-Demand edition available on Amazon. This would not have the nicer lay-flat binding, perforated pages, or folding cover flaps that this first print edition has, but it would still work. (This type of binding, called “perfect binding” is what my children had as they used Write the Word, and while it is not the *best* for writing, it still works okay. 

Will you offer WTWOMH in other translations?

—Currently, there is no plan in place for this, simply because there is such a high cost to printing so many, and new translations mean each verse must be fully reformatted to remove new missing words. However, as with the cursive edition, if it became evident that there was a strong demand for WTWOMH in another translation, we may consider offering something via Print-on-Demand.

It’s early, I know, BUT will there be several editions published in the future?  I can see a teen edition, gender specific editions, themed editions (same scriptures but targeting different interests).  

—Yes! That is the hope. Little by little. This first book was written for my own children to use through their school year. I hope to continue to release these each year as my children grow and learn more verses, and I do have several ideas for future themes. However, if you have a certain verse or section of verses you’d like to see in print, let us know, and we’ll prayerfully take it to heart. 

What passages of Scripture does WTWOMH cover?

—This first edition covers 30 verses that were selected with the heart of a younger child in view. Paul tells us that “All scripture is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,” (2 Timothy 3:16 ESV) and my own experience says amen, the Lord can and does use every part of the Bible—even crazy, obscure verses—to speak to us in time of need. But in this case, all 30 of these verses were chosen specifically for shaping the character of a young child, and especially came from a desire to point our children to the Lord and his standard with sins and struggles that may pertain specifically to them.

These verses were intended for parents and children to memorize together, with the hope to equip parents to use the word in their homes, “talking of them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road and when you lie down and when you rise up…” (Deuteronomy 11:19 NASB)  and also help our children to have his word on their hearts, so the Lord can bring conviction or help or encouragement to them at just the right moment.

There are 10 sections, some with just one or two verses, others with several. Each section includes a brief devotional thought, with discussion questions, teaching tips, or suggested ways to apply the verse at home.

I was wondering what doctrinal perspective the devotions came from? Solid doctrine is important to me.

It’s important to me too! And there’s no better way to be clear on doctrine than to be immersed in the word! I’m a Christian who desires to be rooted in the word of God and desires the same for my children. In saying this, I realize and respect that many Christians share this desire and still arrive at theologically diverse positions. We have not yet arrived at the “unity of the faith.” (see Eph 4) However, in writing the various devotional thoughts and teaching helps for Write the Word, I don’t think any of the sharing goes deeper than our “common salvation” (Jude 1:3) …those basic unifying truths that most all of us agree upon: that Jesus is the head of the body, the one and only begotten son of God, who came to earth as a man, died on the cross as an atonement for our sins, was raised from the dead, ascended to heaven, and is coming back again. Praise Him! You almost can’t write that without being brought into worship.

There are lessons that touch on God as the creator; there are lessons that touch on grace, and extending forgiveness, on praying for our children, on Christ in us and God for us. There is one lesson that shares on the importance of calling on the name of Jesus for help in time of need, and lots of questions without answers, leaving plenty of room for parent-navigated discussions. The goal of Write the Word on my Heart is not to provide a statement about doctrines or theology, but to simply be in the word with our children, that these conversations around the word would become the norm in our home. That the word would be “impress[ed] …on your heart and on your soul; …[taught] …to your sons,… [shared] …when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road and when you lie down and when you rise up… [written] …on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, so that your days and the days of your sons may be multiplied…” (See Deut 11:18-21 NASB, brackets added)

All that being said—the teaching pages were added as an *optional* help for you, the parent—and only if they are useful to you. If you’d rather not use them, all of the teaching pages stand alone at the beginning of each section and can easily be removed without affecting the student’s work.

That’s all we have for now… if you have a question we didn’t answer … send us a message online, or leave a comment below and we’ll try to add it as soon as we can!

…My heart is inditing a good matter: I speak of the things which I have made touching the king: my tongue is the pen of a ready writer (Psalm 45:1).

As a student in school, when you were being taught, the teachers gave you notes or you took notes as they were lecturing. When you got out of class, you went back to study more on the subject, and made more notes, and as a result, you had better knowledge than what was taught in class. That way, you did better during exams than the guy who didn’t go the extra mile to research, study some more, and make his own notes.

The foregoing illustration was to further help you understand our study today, picking up from our previous study. We learnt that the Word is written in your heart, but it’s what you write that’s more important. So, how are you going to write it? Our opening verse gives us the answer. It says, “My heart is composing something; it’s framing something, and my tongue is the pen of a ready writer.” So, how do you write something on your heart? It’s with your tongue; you write in your heart with your tongue.

This is the reason for meditating on the Word. There’re three levels of meditation: you ponder, you mutter, and you roar. You think through the Word, mutter or speak it under your breath, and then you voice it. When it gets to coming out of your mouth boldly, you’re writing it on your heart—on the tables of your heart. If you don’t write it in your heart, you’re not going to have it when you need it. So, write the Word in your heart with your tongue, by affirmations.

Your tongue is the pen of a skillful writer; as you study or listen to the Word, you find your heart overflowing with this composition. As you speak forth the Word, it gets framed on your heart.

Writing it in your notes is with ink; but He wants it written on the fleshy tables of your heart. Read it; it says, “…written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart” (2 Corinthians 3:3). Hallelujah! When you have it inside, out of that abundance, you’ll bring forth good things. Blessed be God!

CONFESSION

The Word of God is in my heart and in my mouth, producing fruits of righteousness. As I meditate on the Word, it mingles with my spirit, causing me to walk in success, victory, prosperity, peace and everlasting joy. Amen!

FURTHER STUDY:

Joshua 1:8

This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.

Hebrews 13:5-6

[Let your] conversation [be] without covetousness; [and be] content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. 6 So that we may boldly say, The Lord [is] my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.

Mark 11:23

For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.

DAILY SCRIPTURE READING

1-Year Bible Reading Plan=> Luke 12:49-59 & Judges 10-11

2-Year Bible Reading Plan=> Romans 9:14-25 & Psalm 118

#Quotidian…grow daily!

Watch full episode here!

If we believe that sacred texts are a path to understanding God, how can we more fully engage with them? With the help of Reverend David Millar and the technique he developed called Logopraxis, we’ll learn a new way of interacting with divine revelation.

Millar applies these techniques to the writings of eighteenth-century theologian Emanuel Swedenborg, but the method can be used with any text that an individual considers divine—even Harry Potter! Hosts Curtis Childs and Jonathan Rose talk with Millar to learn more.

The Necessity of Revelation

What purpose does revelation serve? In short, revelation helps us step out of ourselves to see a different perspective.

Without revelation from the Divine, we cannot know anything about eternal life or even about God, and even less about love for God and faith in God. . . . So there must of necessity be some revelation that makes it possible for us to know.  (New Jerusalem §249)

In fact, revelation in scripture allows us to witness the Lord through language we can understand. In some places, Swedenborg uses the term the Word to refer to scripture and God interchangeably.

“The Word” means what is divine truth coming from divine goodness, or in other words, divine wisdom from divine love. (Divine Providence §172:3)

In a way, the Word is the part of scripture that we can interact with—not just the text but also the divine truth that is represented by the text. As David Millar puts it, when the inflow from God encounters concepts in our mind that it can be wedded to, it allows God to live within us. But without having those concepts, there’s no way for the inflow to take hold.

There’s a parallel to this spiritual process in the physical process of nucleation. If you heat distilled water beyond the boiling point in a smooth container, it doesn’t bubble, because there’s nothing for the bubbles to form around. It’s not until you add another substance that a reaction happens.

Reverend Millar’s approach treats reading as a devotional act. This principle allows us to truly engage in what we read and pay attention to our own reactions as we read.

Our hosts distill this into three simple steps for getting started:

1. Pick a source and read it regularly.
2. Make your reading devotional.
3. Be aware of your state as you read.

Process Catalyzation

In a way, every person has a different scripture. We all see God in our own way, and reading a sacred text is the interaction between what is written in our heart and mind.

Swedenborg says that when we read scripture, angels see that person’s reaction to what is being read (assuming it is read in a devotional way) as a kind of beautiful panorama. In Logopraxis, it’s understood that the more we are aware of our own state as we read, the more it allows God to respond to our state of mind and help us. Just opening the book unlocks something in us.

Since the Word comes from the Lord alone and is about the Lord alone, it follows that when we are being taught from the Word we are being taught from the Lord. The Word is actually divine. Who is able to communicate something divine and instill it into our hearts except Divinity itself, the source and the subject? (Divine Providence §172:2)

It can be a powerful process but also a difficult one—doing this work can reveal things that we’re attached to that don’t serve us very well. The process of devotional reading can help us straighten ourselves out and save us from the distractions of daily life.

The Lord’s life flows into the literal meaning through the inner meaning in keeping with the feelings of the person who is reading it. (Secrets of Heaven §2311)

This can be stressful, but careful interaction with revelation helps you trust the process and move through it.

Now we have two more steps to add to this process:

4. Note a point of engagement (something that particularly triggers you).
5. Reflect about it with respect to your life.

Be Engaged

Revelation is a manifestation of divine truth that we can interact with, engage with, and track our own responses to. It’s a tool that helps us look inside ourselves and focus on the good and challenge the bad.

It should be fully understood that none of us can live a life aligned with concepts from the Word if we don’t use those concepts as a basis from which to reflect on our own thoughts, intentions, and deeds—use them to explore ourselves, and to abstain from evil behavior and do what is good as if doing so under our own power. Otherwise we receive no [faith], and if we receive no faith we have no partnership with the Lord, and so cannot be led by the Lord. (Spiritual Experiences §5945)

This isn’t easy—nothing important is. Building the muscle of spiritual discovery through revelation is something that takes practice. And, as Millar observes, that’s exactly the way it should be.

To really understand and internalize truth, we need to challenge it and explore it over time. It’s worth taking the time to trust the process.

It is in keeping with the laws of the divine plan that one ought not to accept the truth instantaneously; no one should be persuaded in a single moment that the truth has been proved beyond all doubt. This is because truth imprinted this way becomes merely expedient truth and lacks any reach or give. Such truth is represented in the other world as rigid and impervious to any good influence that would make it usable. On that account, as soon as plain experience in the other world presents good spirits with any true idea, an opposing thought is presented right afterward to raise doubt. This allows them to think and ponder whether the idea is so, gather arguments, and thus use reason to introduce the truth into their mind. Doing so extends their range of spiritual vision on the subject all the way to its opposite. As a result their intellect sees and perceives the entire nature of the particular truth, which enables them to let in heaven’s influence according to the state of affairs. Truth takes various shapes, depending on circumstances. (Secrets of Heaven §7298:2)

The process can be stressful and confusing, but the end goal is a beautiful one: to experience God’s love as wholly real within us. Meditation can be an incredibly valuable way to encounter this.

In the wrap up, we’re reminded that the Divine is already all around us and invested in us, and that divine revelation is a way we can experience it and apply it to our lives.

And we sign off with the last two steps in the Logopraxis process:

6. Mark a take-away idea or teaching.
7. Thank the Lord and pray for the Lord’s help.

Question

Did the Bible story authors realize the spiritual meaning behind the literal story when they wrote it?

Related Swedenborg and Life Videos

“What the Bible Is”
“Who was Swedenborg? What should I read?”

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Heaven and Hell 
New Jerusalem 
Secrets of Heaven 
True Christianity

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About Swedenborg and Life

In a lighthearted and interactive live webcast format, host Curtis Childs from the Swedenborg Foundation and featured guests explore topics from Swedenborg’s eighteenth-century writings about his spiritual experiences and afterlife explorations and discuss how they relate to modern-day life and death.
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When we wake up in heaven, Swedenborg tells us, angels roll a covering from off of our left eye so that we can see everything in a spiritual light. The offTheLeftEye YouTube channel uses an array of educational and entertaining video formats to look at life and death through an uplifting spiritual lens.
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