Hiding Scripture in Your Heart

How Blake Stanley and the Proclamation Coalition team are working to help Christians memorize and share the gospel

By Mandy Crow

We care deeply about biblical literacy here at The Bookery, and we’re always on the lookout for tools, tips and resources that will help us—and you, our readers—increase your knowledge of the Bible. Scripture memorization is a valuable spiritual discipline, but it’s also one we often avoid or excuse away. I’m just not good at memorizing, we say, or I just don’t have time.

That’s why we were so excited to recently talk with Blake Stanley, the owner and founder of the Proclamation Coalition and the Bible Memory Project, about how he and his team are resourcing believers to share their faith and memorize Scripture.

The Proclamation Coalition offers apparel designed to start conversations about the gospel—but it’s much more than an apparel company. The shirts are designed to help believers carry the gospel into the world, providing invitations for deeper conversations that lead to proclamation of the Gospel. The Bible Memory Project helps to equip believers to know and understand the gospel more by memorizing Scripture on a weekly basis. With a monthly subscription, users receive four bracelets emblazoned with acronyms created from the first letters of each verse they’ll memorize that month. Devotions, texts and posts on social media support subscribers as they endeavor to memorize each week’s verse.

Here’s what Blake had to say.

Tell us about the Proclamation Coalition and the Bible Memory Project. Where did the idea come from?

Both the Proclamation Coalition and the Bible Memory Project started out of a burden in my heart to share the gospel that was met with a lack of ability or resources to do so. There are two sides to what we do, and we try to merge them as best we can. The Bible Memory Project is the side where we help people know the gospel, and the Proclamation Coalition is the side where we help them share the gospel. We want to help people start conversations about the gospel and give them the tools they need to do that.

I have a deep burden and desire to memorize Scripture, and I was that person who would say, “I Can’t memorize Scripture. My brain just doesn’t work that way.” I kind of blew myself away that first year when I was able to memorize 48 verses. I started this to fulfill the burden in my own life and thought, “Why don’t I help other people do it, too?” I had seen friends write an acronym [reflecting the first letters of the words in the verse they were memorizing] on their arms, so we created a one-off bracelet and it went really well. So then we thought, “What if we add rhythm to this?” and that’s when we added the subscription side of the Bible Memory Project. To build habits you have to have rhythm.

Why was helping people share the gospel and memorize Scripture so important to you?

There are multiple points in God’s Word when we’re called to walk in purity and holiness and to proclaim the gospel. On the personal side, when we hold God’s Word close to our hearts, it’s easier to fight temptation and the schemes of the devil. As believers, we’re also called to always be ready to make a defense of the hope that is in us, so we want to be a part of equipping people to know God’s Word enough to share it with those around them. We live in a culture where everyone wants their voice heard, but what if instead of our own words, we could speak God’s Word into our conversations?

What advice or tips might you give someone who is new to memorizing Scripture?

Everyone tends to be all or nothing at the beginning, thinking, “I want to memorize a book of the Bible,” but start small. You’ll be surprised to realize that the more verses you memorize, the easier it is to memorize more. I thought when I had 30 verses memorized, I’d be maxed out, but that’s not true. You really have to engage with the process intentionally to start, but the more you practice and work it, it starts to come more naturally. Just remember that it won’t always be as hard as it is in the beginning. The more you train yourself in something, the easier it becomes.

And don’t give yourself a whole chapter of the Bible to memorize in the week. We’ve found the week-by-week rhythm [of the Bible Memory Project] is a really good rhythm, allowing you to find a good balance. You’re simply committing to memorizing one verse of Scripture a week. Time moves quickly, and soon you’ll have many, many Scriptures memorized.

Interested in learning more about The Proclamation Coalition and the Bible Memory Project? Head on over to the Proclamation Coalition website. If you do decide to subscribe to the Bible Memory Project, use the code WORD to get your first month free!