Mornings, not just on the radio. It's a.

Mornings, not just on the radio. It's a.

Podcast too. Blogger Rebecca Matt joins us now. She wrote an article getting the most out of Scripture writing. It's both encouraging and instructive. So we can start taking notes. Now everybody get their pen and paper ready. Uh, Rebecca, full disclosure after reading your article, I went out and bought some notebooks, and I am going to start during the hurricane to write. Right. I think that's probably I was going to try earlier. And then the hurricane came. Of course, you get so busy. But now that I'm prepared and I know what I'm doing, I'm ready.

Podcast too. Blogger Rebecca Matt joins us now. She wrote an article getting the most out of Scripture writing. It's both encouraging and instructive. So we can start taking notes. Now everybody get their pen and paper ready. Uh, Rebecca, full disclosure after reading your article, I went out and bought some notebooks, and I am going to start during the hurricane to write. Right. I think that's probably I was going to try earlier. And then the hurricane came. Of course, you get so busy. But now that I'm prepared and I know what I'm doing, I'm ready.

I'm really excited for you. I hope you enjoy it. Um. What a what a time to begin. Yeah.

I'm really excited for you. I hope you enjoy it. Um. What a what a time to begin. Yeah.

Well, what got you into it? Why did you start writing scripture?

Well, what got you into it? Why did you start writing scripture?

Yeah. Oh, gosh. It's been six years. Um, why did I start? That is a good question. I think that I had been reading the Bible and listening to the Bible for, you know, a couple of decades. And I'm obviously, you know, I still think those are, you know, clearly good things to be doing. And I still do them, but I think I was just looking for something maybe a little more tangible, something that I could, um, just give a try. I enjoy writing, like the physical act of writing. I'm the kind of person who loves the back to school sales, with the notebooks and the pens and things like that, and I thought, you know, maybe this would be just I'm going to just try it and see if this is a new way to sort of inspire me to get more out of Scripture and see it in a different way. And so I had a friend who, um, had compiled a three year plan for scripture writing that was really easy, really doable. Um, really short passages each day. She arranged them by theme so you'd get a different theme every month. So you might write about hope, or about fear, or about trust, or about friendship. Every month was a different topic, and I thought, you know, I'm just going to jump right in. And I remember it was in September 6th years ago. I just jumped right in and I haven't stopped since. So I did her entire three years. And also the link to her plan is in my blog article. Actually, it's in an original article I wrote on scripture writing a few years ago. So those are all still available online, and I got into it that way, writing these very short, very doable topical passages. And then when I was done, I thought, well, what do I do now? Do I start over? Do I find another plan? And what I decided to do was, um, I just felt like I was ready to take the plunge and write out whole books of the Bible. So that's what I've been doing for the past three years, is choosing books of the Bible to write out and just, um, writing them out on my own schedule, however much time I have that day. Sometimes it's 5 or 10 minutes, sometimes it's 15 or 20. But that's about as much as I will ever do. Yeah. And I'll. Yeah. So that's what I've been doing for six years now.

Yeah. Oh, gosh. It's been six years. Um, why did I start? That is a good question. I think that I had been reading the Bible and listening to the Bible for, you know, a couple of decades. And I'm obviously, you know, I still think those are, you know, clearly good things to be doing. And I still do them, but I think I was just looking for something maybe a little more tangible, something that I could, um, just give a try. I enjoy writing, like the physical act of writing. I'm the kind of person who loves the back to school sales, with the notebooks and the pens and things like that, and I thought, you know, maybe this would be just I'm going to just try it and see if this is a new way to sort of inspire me to get more out of Scripture and see it in a different way. And so I had a friend who, um, had compiled a three year plan for scripture writing that was really easy, really doable. Um, really short passages each day. She arranged them by theme so you'd get a different theme every month. So you might write about hope, or about fear, or about trust, or about friendship. Every month was a different topic, and I thought, you know, I'm just going to jump right in. And I remember it was in September 6th years ago. I just jumped right in and I haven't stopped since. So I did her entire three years. And also the link to her plan is in my blog article. Actually, it's in an original article I wrote on scripture writing a few years ago. So those are all still available online, and I got into it that way, writing these very short, very doable topical passages. And then when I was done, I thought, well, what do I do now? Do I start over? Do I find another plan? And what I decided to do was, um, I just felt like I was ready to take the plunge and write out whole books of the Bible. So that's what I've been doing for the past three years, is choosing books of the Bible to write out and just, um, writing them out on my own schedule, however much time I have that day. Sometimes it's 5 or 10 minutes, sometimes it's 15 or 20. But that's about as much as I will ever do. Yeah. And I'll. Yeah. So that's what I've been doing for six years now.

Well, I'm with you. I like the whole act of writing it, just sort of it, it composes me in a way. But for people who don't like that, and certainly we have a chunk of a generation that doesn't even know how to do that. Really. They haven't been taught to be writers. Um, but there are benefits to writing. And you talk about that in your article.

Well, I'm with you. I like the whole act of writing it, just sort of it, it composes me in a way. But for people who don't like that, and certainly we have a chunk of a generation that doesn't even know how to do that. Really. They haven't been taught to be writers. Um, but there are benefits to writing. And you talk about that in your article.

I do. Oh, there are so many benefits. They have done study after study and just countless studies on is it more beneficial to write things out by hand, or is it okay to just type them. And so they've studied students who take notes, they've studied young people, you know, adults. Every single study has concluded that there are huge benefits to writing things out by hand. So some of those benefits would be that it helps your memory more, and it also helps you learn what you're writing and retain it much more if you're doing it on a keyboard, if you're typing, uh, you know, it's just sort of an automatic thing you're doing and it's not going to be stuck in your memory the way it is if you're handwriting it.

I do. Oh, there are so many benefits. They have done study after study and just countless studies on is it more beneficial to write things out by hand, or is it okay to just type them. And so they've studied students who take notes, they've studied young people, you know, adults. Every single study has concluded that there are huge benefits to writing things out by hand. So some of those benefits would be that it helps your memory more, and it also helps you learn what you're writing and retain it much more if you're doing it on a keyboard, if you're typing, uh, you know, it's just sort of an automatic thing you're doing and it's not going to be stuck in your memory the way it is if you're handwriting it.

That's amazing, isn't it?

That's amazing, isn't it?

Yeah, it is. And just think that's exactly what we need with the Bible is to be retaining it in our minds and in our hearts.

Yeah, it is. And just think that's exactly what we need with the Bible is to be retaining it in our minds and in our hearts.

Now, Rebecca, for beginners, give us some tips on how to even begin.

Now, Rebecca, for beginners, give us some tips on how to even begin.

Okay, so you you do have a couple of choices. Now you can just plunge right in and start writing a book of the Bible. You liked. I started with Philippians because it's very short. It's a joyful, positive book, and there's a whole lot of really memorable verses in there. But if you want. Now again, the way I started was, I think, an even easier way, which is through topical, um, plans where you just have maybe a verse or two each day and it also tells you what to do. So you don't have to make those decisions yourself. Um, there are many, many things online I will advise you. You don't have to pay for this. There are lots of people who are providing these for free, including the person that I referenced in my first scripture writing post. Um, so if you if you follow a plan like that, it takes the decision making away from you and you can just write out those particular verses. Also, please keep in mind it does not have to be fancy and I think sometimes I know both men and women who do scripture writing, but sometimes women in particular feel like they have to make it really pretty. And so that's one of my tips, um, is that it doesn't have to be pretty. Just use your regular handwriting if you want to. Um, now, if you're if you're particularly artistic, you can write it out beautifully. You can sort of do decorations in your margins or, you know, beautiful capital letters, something like that. But really, I think that's the exception rather than the rule. And, um, unless that's just your natural bent, I would really suggest keeping it simple and just writing out the word of God. And he's not concerned with how beautiful you're making it. Um, he just wants to make sure you're getting it in your memory and by by writing it out by hand. It's kind of a tangible way to cement that in your mind and your heart. Yes.

Okay, so you you do have a couple of choices. Now you can just plunge right in and start writing a book of the Bible. You liked. I started with Philippians because it's very short. It's a joyful, positive book, and there's a whole lot of really memorable verses in there. But if you want. Now again, the way I started was, I think, an even easier way, which is through topical, um, plans where you just have maybe a verse or two each day and it also tells you what to do. So you don't have to make those decisions yourself. Um, there are many, many things online I will advise you. You don't have to pay for this. There are lots of people who are providing these for free, including the person that I referenced in my first scripture writing post. Um, so if you if you follow a plan like that, it takes the decision making away from you and you can just write out those particular verses. Also, please keep in mind it does not have to be fancy and I think sometimes I know both men and women who do scripture writing, but sometimes women in particular feel like they have to make it really pretty. And so that's one of my tips, um, is that it doesn't have to be pretty. Just use your regular handwriting if you want to. Um, now, if you're if you're particularly artistic, you can write it out beautifully. You can sort of do decorations in your margins or, you know, beautiful capital letters, something like that. But really, I think that's the exception rather than the rule. And, um, unless that's just your natural bent, I would really suggest keeping it simple and just writing out the word of God. And he's not concerned with how beautiful you're making it. Um, he just wants to make sure you're getting it in your memory and by by writing it out by hand. It's kind of a tangible way to cement that in your mind and your heart. Yes.

Yeah, I know I've got a Bible once. One of those. You color the pages. Sort of. There are certain verses that you can color. And I was like, I it made me stumble. It was like, I don't know what color. I'm not an artist, I don't know. So I gave it to my daughter, who is an artist. I said, it's a beautiful Bible. I can't do that because that's too much for me. But you said, use paper and pens you enjoy. And I totally got that. I get that now. I'm a person and we do a lot of us here say, oh, nice pen, you know, because it's just so I, I get that part is me. So I get that. So everybody has to go where, where their inclinations are.

Yeah, I know I've got a Bible once. One of those. You color the pages. Sort of. There are certain verses that you can color. And I was like, I it made me stumble. It was like, I don't know what color. I'm not an artist, I don't know. So I gave it to my daughter, who is an artist. I said, it's a beautiful Bible. I can't do that because that's too much for me. But you said, use paper and pens you enjoy. And I totally got that. I get that now. I'm a person and we do a lot of us here say, oh, nice pen, you know, because it's just so I, I get that part is me. So I get that. So everybody has to go where, where their inclinations are.

Maybe you do. And here's a funny thing. I'm a writer by profession, so I write for a living, you know, different kinds of things. So when I started my scripture writing, I made myself a column in my notebook and I thought, oh, I'm going to write scripture. But then I'm also going to journal my thoughts next to it. You know what? That was an utter failure. I couldn't do it. And I thought being a writer, I would just naturally want to journal all my thoughts. And it turned out that's not at all what I needed to be doing. So now. And I have pictures of this on my post and you'll see how plain my journals are. They're just writing from margin to margin. I'm not journaling my thoughts, I'm not decorating, although those are fine things to do if that's if that's helpful to you. That is not something that adds anything for me. And so I'm just like, okay, I'm just going to write out the word of God. I don't need to make it pretty. I don't need to have all my thoughts in the margin. And that's what's working for me now. I will say I use a study Bible, and I don't know if you've planned to do that or not, but if you use a study Bible, it's nice because you have some additional notes there. Yeah. And so sometimes if I'm just doing a Bible reading plan, it's kind of a big chunk of reading. And I don't have time to read all those notes. And they're very distracting to me. But one advantage to Scripture writing is that you're in charge of how much you're writing, and you can take the time to read those notes, and it really adds to what you're writing. And you're thinking, why did God put this in here? Or what does this word mean? Or how does this relate to another passage? And you've because you're in charge of how much you write, you've got time to read those notes. So I really do like using a study Bible when I do scripture writing, because instead of distracting me, it actually adds to my understanding of Scripture.

Maybe you do. And here's a funny thing. I'm a writer by profession, so I write for a living, you know, different kinds of things. So when I started my scripture writing, I made myself a column in my notebook and I thought, oh, I'm going to write scripture. But then I'm also going to journal my thoughts next to it. You know what? That was an utter failure. I couldn't do it. And I thought being a writer, I would just naturally want to journal all my thoughts. And it turned out that's not at all what I needed to be doing. So now. And I have pictures of this on my post and you'll see how plain my journals are. They're just writing from margin to margin. I'm not journaling my thoughts, I'm not decorating, although those are fine things to do if that's if that's helpful to you. That is not something that adds anything for me. And so I'm just like, okay, I'm just going to write out the word of God. I don't need to make it pretty. I don't need to have all my thoughts in the margin. And that's what's working for me now. I will say I use a study Bible, and I don't know if you've planned to do that or not, but if you use a study Bible, it's nice because you have some additional notes there. Yeah. And so sometimes if I'm just doing a Bible reading plan, it's kind of a big chunk of reading. And I don't have time to read all those notes. And they're very distracting to me. But one advantage to Scripture writing is that you're in charge of how much you're writing, and you can take the time to read those notes, and it really adds to what you're writing. And you're thinking, why did God put this in here? Or what does this word mean? Or how does this relate to another passage? And you've because you're in charge of how much you write, you've got time to read those notes. So I really do like using a study Bible when I do scripture writing, because instead of distracting me, it actually adds to my understanding of Scripture.

Thank you for taking some time to listen to this episode of the Curtin Cape Mornings podcast. We always welcome a review with your thoughts and comments, and please feel free to subscribe and follow us as well.

Thank you for taking some time to listen to this episode of the Curtin Cape Mornings podcast. We always welcome a review with your thoughts and comments, and please feel free to subscribe and follow us as well.

Also, where do you begin now? You've mentioned and talk about it, but you go into some kind of length about where and how to choose where to begin?

Also, where do you begin now? You've mentioned and talk about it, but you go into some kind of length about where and how to choose where to begin?

Yeah.

Yeah.

And again, it kind of depends on if you're going to do the topical version or if you're going to sort of do what I like to call my freestyle version, which is writing out just books of the Bible.

And again, it kind of depends on if you're going to do the topical version or if you're going to sort of do what I like to call my freestyle version, which is writing out just books of the Bible.

Now, if you're going to do topical, how do you even begin that? Pick a topic. And how do you find them?

Now, if you're going to do topical, how do you even begin that? Pick a topic. And how do you find them?

I mean, I suppose you could come up with it yourself, but honestly, there are so many good, um, good plans out there that have already been developed. And like I say, the one I used was a three year plan. So this friend of mine had come up with 36 months of different topics, and she just held my hand. You know, I would just print it out and I would tape it down in my notebook so I knew what I was going to write every day. And I just didn't have to think about it. And I really, really liked that as a way to begin, because I felt like it did a couple of things. It took all the decision making away from me, which was good because I was a beginner. And the other thing it did was it it helped me develop the habit of writing every day. And, you know, I know we all try to read our Bibles every day, right? And sometimes we are successful in that and sometimes we're not. Sometimes we, you know, kind of dread it a little bit because we're busy and we're thinking, oh, no, I still have to do my Bible reading. But for whatever reason, Scripture writing, it's like it flipped a switch for me. I just really started looking forward to it every day. And it it just transformed that. And by developing this habit that I truly enjoyed and I still do to this day. So I like to recommend the topical way to do it at first, at least for people, because of those great benefits, it's just easier. And like I and I mentioned before, you don't have to pay for these plans. People have developed these for free online and you can look them up. You can also look at the one I used, um, which is a really good one. Very, very doable. Um, now, but if you choose instead that you want to jump right in and start copying out books of the Bible, that's totally fine too. I know when I transitioned from doing the topical to the books of the Bible, I, I kind of again, I was sort of like, oh no, how am I ever going to choose what to do? And my friend who had developed that plan, she had started writing out books and she said, you know, I just started with Genesis, so that's an idea, and you can do that. But for whatever reason, I thought that's probably not for me. Genesis is a really, really long book. Um, and I felt a little bit intimidated by that. And so I was getting ready to teach a women's Bible study in Philippians. And so that's what I started with. And wow, that was a great book to start with because it was super short and it had all these really famous lines of scripture that we all remember. It's a really joyful and positive book. So I started with that one and I thought, wow, I think I can do this. And actually, it's so much fun to me to decide which book to copy next. It's probably one of the most fun aspects of this for me. So I thought maybe other people would kind of like to know the thought process behind that. And so I included in my post, I have a list of all of the 25 books that I've copied so far and the reasons why. And of course, this isn't going to be the same list for everyone. Um, I mean, you can follow my list, but probably you'll come up with your own. Uh, but I think it's just fun to see why people make that choice. I mean, my friend started with Genesis because it was first I started with Philippians because it was short and because I was about to teach it, so everybody will have a different choice. But I really just love choosing the next thing, and I tend to go back and forth from a really long book to a short book, Old Testament to New Testament. So my goal is to not leave all the really long quote, more boring books till the end. Like, I don't want to leave all the histories till the end or all the prophets till the end. So I'm trying to put those in now so that I've got a good variety. Yeah.

I mean, I suppose you could come up with it yourself, but honestly, there are so many good, um, good plans out there that have already been developed. And like I say, the one I used was a three year plan. So this friend of mine had come up with 36 months of different topics, and she just held my hand. You know, I would just print it out and I would tape it down in my notebook so I knew what I was going to write every day. And I just didn't have to think about it. And I really, really liked that as a way to begin, because I felt like it did a couple of things. It took all the decision making away from me, which was good because I was a beginner. And the other thing it did was it it helped me develop the habit of writing every day. And, you know, I know we all try to read our Bibles every day, right? And sometimes we are successful in that and sometimes we're not. Sometimes we, you know, kind of dread it a little bit because we're busy and we're thinking, oh, no, I still have to do my Bible reading. But for whatever reason, Scripture writing, it's like it flipped a switch for me. I just really started looking forward to it every day. And it it just transformed that. And by developing this habit that I truly enjoyed and I still do to this day. So I like to recommend the topical way to do it at first, at least for people, because of those great benefits, it's just easier. And like I and I mentioned before, you don't have to pay for these plans. People have developed these for free online and you can look them up. You can also look at the one I used, um, which is a really good one. Very, very doable. Um, now, but if you choose instead that you want to jump right in and start copying out books of the Bible, that's totally fine too. I know when I transitioned from doing the topical to the books of the Bible, I, I kind of again, I was sort of like, oh no, how am I ever going to choose what to do? And my friend who had developed that plan, she had started writing out books and she said, you know, I just started with Genesis, so that's an idea, and you can do that. But for whatever reason, I thought that's probably not for me. Genesis is a really, really long book. Um, and I felt a little bit intimidated by that. And so I was getting ready to teach a women's Bible study in Philippians. And so that's what I started with. And wow, that was a great book to start with because it was super short and it had all these really famous lines of scripture that we all remember. It's a really joyful and positive book. So I started with that one and I thought, wow, I think I can do this. And actually, it's so much fun to me to decide which book to copy next. It's probably one of the most fun aspects of this for me. So I thought maybe other people would kind of like to know the thought process behind that. And so I included in my post, I have a list of all of the 25 books that I've copied so far and the reasons why. And of course, this isn't going to be the same list for everyone. Um, I mean, you can follow my list, but probably you'll come up with your own. Uh, but I think it's just fun to see why people make that choice. I mean, my friend started with Genesis because it was first I started with Philippians because it was short and because I was about to teach it, so everybody will have a different choice. But I really just love choosing the next thing, and I tend to go back and forth from a really long book to a short book, Old Testament to New Testament. So my goal is to not leave all the really long quote, more boring books till the end. Like, I don't want to leave all the histories till the end or all the prophets till the end. So I'm trying to put those in now so that I've got a good variety. Yeah.

Leviticus. Yeah. Well, yeah, I already did Leviticus. It's not so bad.

Leviticus. Yeah. Well, yeah, I already did Leviticus. It's not so bad.

Because if you do it with your study Bible, you can have the time to look and look things up. And I also have this other handbook that I, that I talk about. And actually Leviticus and Exodus and Isaiah in particular were hard for me because they're very repetitive. They're very long and they're not very exciting at all. Not very interesting. And I was thinking, why? I know that all of the word of God is important, but why? Why is this relevant to me? So I got a little handbook that, um, I can read the significance of every chapter of the Bible. I've got a link to that in the post, too. Um, it's this wonderful handbook written by Warren Wiersbe quite a while ago, and it tells me here's why this chapter is important to you. And so sometimes if I'm in the middle of Isaiah or Leviticus, I can see God's purpose in putting this in the Bible and saying, yeah, you need to read this too. Even if it's not all that interesting to you, here's why you need to read it or write it.

Because if you do it with your study Bible, you can have the time to look and look things up. And I also have this other handbook that I, that I talk about. And actually Leviticus and Exodus and Isaiah in particular were hard for me because they're very repetitive. They're very long and they're not very exciting at all. Not very interesting. And I was thinking, why? I know that all of the word of God is important, but why? Why is this relevant to me? So I got a little handbook that, um, I can read the significance of every chapter of the Bible. I've got a link to that in the post, too. Um, it's this wonderful handbook written by Warren Wiersbe quite a while ago, and it tells me here's why this chapter is important to you. And so sometimes if I'm in the middle of Isaiah or Leviticus, I can see God's purpose in putting this in the Bible and saying, yeah, you need to read this too. Even if it's not all that interesting to you, here's why you need to read it or write it.

Thanks for listening to Kurt and Kate Mornings podcast. Please take a minute to follow, subscribe and review us. And no matter where in the world you are, you can listen to us live from 6 to 9 a.m. weekdays on the Moody Radio app.

Thanks for listening to Kurt and Kate Mornings podcast. Please take a minute to follow, subscribe and review us. And no matter where in the world you are, you can listen to us live from 6 to 9 a.m. weekdays on the Moody Radio app.