Part 5: Scripture Card Mini Clipboards

God's Words to Read:

I meditate on your precepts
   and consider your ways.
I delight in your decrees;
   I will not neglect your word.
~Psalm 119:15-16

In my third post last year of a series I started writing called "Spend More Time with God", I shared about how I write Bible verses I want to memorize on index cards and tape them up in certain well-frequented areas in my house where I can see them often to aid in memorization.  Although having white index cards taped up all over your home can be helpful to your Scripture memorization efforts, unfortunately, they're not very pretty.  I knew there had to be a more attractive, decor-friendly way to display my Scripture cards, but I just had no idea or inspiration of how to go about this.  So for years I've had white cards taped up by my kitchen and bathroom sinks.  Boring.  Kind of messy-looking.  Not a good thing for this clean freak momma.

So while I was in deep thought and prayer about writing this series on what I do for my personal devotions and spiritual growth, I experienced a moment of sheer creativity (which rarely happens to me since I'm not very artistic, so once I got over the shock I went with it!).  Here was my creative inspiration:  what about using mod-podged mini clipboards to display the verse cards?  Eureka!

Of course I immediately got busy shopping for supplies. I found 2 plain hardboard mini clipboards at Menards - each for just over $1 (I'm telling you, you save big money there).  Add in a bottle of Mod Podge, a few sheets of pretty scrapbook paper, some coordinating ribbon, a sea shell (Say what? You'll see...), a small 3M Command wall hook, and a small suction cup hook.  And now I have 2 very cute Scripture card clipboards that match my bathroom and kitchen decor!

What follows is how I made my very own mod podge clipboards.  I found instructions online for mod-podging clipboards at two different sites (Small Family Big World and Echos of Laughter ), but incorporated the instructions from both and made some adjustments to create my own.

You will need:

- mini clipboard
- scrapbook paper
- Mod Podge
- paint brush or sponge
- scissors
- X-Acto knife or box cutter
- pencil
- newspaper or other table cover
- 3M Command wall hook or suction cup hook (for hanging on mirror or window)
- embellishments (optional)
- glue/hot glue

Step 1:
On the back side of the scrapbook paper, trace around the clipboard.

Step 2:
Cut diagonal slits from each corner of paper all the way to each corner of traced section.

Yes, if you couldn't tell by now, I'm left-handed.  Please refrain from all left-hander jokes at this time, thank you.  I've heard them all by now anyway.  You try to sit in a school desk that has the attached writing table only on the right side.  Or have random people comment on your left-handedness nearly every time you write in public.  Like, wow, it's really that noteworthy.  Oops, sorry, a little sensitive about it.  But you know you noticed it and would have commented on it had we been together in person while I was cutting.  That is, unless you too are left-handed and then it just looks normal.

When you're done cutting the corner slits, your paper should look like this.

Step 3:

Lay back side of paper over the top of clipboard and using X-Acto knife or box cutter, cut around the clip part of board.  Also cut off the very top middle part of paper above clip part.

Please notice I put the box cutter on the right side for this photo to be fair and give visual aid to all you right-handers out there.

Now the back side of your paper should look like this.

And this photo shows what the cut-out part of the front side should look like, so that it will snugly fit around the clip.

Step 4:

Okay, now you're ready to mod podge.  Yay! Open a window, though.  It has a strong smell and I'm not so sure how good it is for the old brain cells.

First, coat the top of the clipboard with a layer of mod podge.  Remember to protect your table surface.  Mod Podge is really hard to wash off (learned that from experience, folks)!

Step 5:

Then quickly paint a coat of mod podge on the back of the scrapbook paper and gently press on the top of clipboard, carefully pulling the sides of paper around to the back of clipboard.  Press paper down on all sides of clipboard, gently smoothing out wrinkles.

Step 6:

Next, gently paint on 1-2 coats of mod podge over the scrapbook paper on the top, sides, and back of the clip board.  If doing 2 coats, let dry for about 15 minutes between coats.

This yellow clipboard is for my kitchen.  Pretty!  I love tone-on-tone patterns.

Step 7:
Embellish!  I glued on some coordinating ribbon.  Make sure to wrap it around the sides of the clipboard, gluing all the way around to the back.

I also tied a little ribbon to the clip.  Adds a little extra flair, don't you think?

I wanted to fit 2 verse cards on this clipboard, so I found these amazing sticky note holders at the local teacher's supply store.  They have an adhesive side on the back that sticks to just about any surface and is completely removable and re-adjustable.  And they are designed to hold up a piece of paper as thin as notebook or printer paper, or as thick as cardstock.  Love!  What will they think of next?

Step 8:
Hang it up where you'll see it often!  I hung up my kitchen clipboard with a 3M Command hook next to the sink, where I can easily read it while doing one of my most dreaded and never-ever-ending chores:  dish washing.

Yellow and green are such happy colors.  Perfect for the kitchen where I spend countless minutes each day (and not always happily enjoying what I'm doing in there!).

Now for my beach-themed master bathroom clipboard, I used 2 pieces of scrapbook paper - one is ocean waves (or lake waves!  I'm a big Lake Michigan lover!) and the other is a sandy beach.  I mod-podged the waves paper over the clipboard first.  Then cut a bottom section out of the sandy beach paper.

I mod-podged the beach paper over the bottom of the clipboard until it looked like...

THIS!  Cute, or what?

Then I glued on a sea shell my mom brought me back from a recent trip to Myrtle Beach.

Now, simply add a Scripture card...

Hang it up on the bathroom mirror with a suction cup hook and viola!  You are ready to memorize and meditate on a favorite verse while you floss your teeth!  But watch out for flying floss shrapnel.  You don't want to get your pretty Scripture card clipboard dirty.

I guess I'm not as artistically-challenged as I had previously thought.  Wonders never cease.

So, what do you think?  Are you going to make a Scripture card mini clipboard like mine or do you have any other creative display ideas to share?  I'd love to hear about it!  Please share in the Comments section below!

In Christ,

Suzy

Keeping a Scripture Card File: Part 4 of Spend More Time with God

 God's Words:

I meditate on your precepts
   and consider your ways.
I delight in your decrees;
   I will not neglect your word.

~Psalm 119:15-16

The law from your mouth is more precious to me
   than thousands of pieces of silver and gold.

~Psalm 119:72

The ordinances of the LORD are sure
   and altogether righteous.
They are more precious than gold,
   than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey,
   than honey from the comb.
By them is your servant warned;
   in keeping them there is great reward.

~Psalm 19:9b-11

In my last post I promised to go into greater detail about how I use my index card-sized poly expanding file to help memorize Bible verses.  I wrote that I use the file to organize the verses I've already memorized so that they are readily available for anytime I want/need to "brush up" on them, as well as any verses I've already written down that I'd like to someday memorize, but haven't gotten to yet. 

Here once again is my Scripture Card File:

And here is a close-up, in case you want to look for that brand or a similar brand:

 
I specifically chose this file because it has 12 divided sections with adhesive tab labels.  This feature will enable you to better organize your chosen Bible verses according to their topic.  My file has 12 sections, so I came up with 12 general Scripture topics (it was so hard to think of just 12!), which I wrote on the tab labels with a fine point Sharpie:

 1.  God's Character

 2.  God's Promises

 3.  God's Word

 4.  Love, Obey & Worship God

 5.  Love Others

 6.  Prayer

 7.  Salvation

 8.  Christian Living

 9.  Faith

10. Wisdom

11. Sin & Temptation

12. Spiritual Warfare

Also, the front pocket holds my extra blank index cards, so they're right at hand - pretty neat!  I love this file!

Now, as I come upon a verse I would like to memorize, I write it down on an index card and file it away according to topic for later use.

Also, when I'm done memorizing a certain verse, I file it according to topic as well.  But before I file it, I first write a small "M" for "memorized" in the upper right hand corner.

That way, just in case I don't remember right away as I'm looking through my file, I can quickly and easily see whether I've previously worked on a certain verse or not.  This also makes reviewing verses I've already learned much easier!  One of the most important steps of memorization is to review what you've memorized on a regular basis.  For some people, that might mean once a week; others once a month or every few months.  It really all depends on how many verses you've already memorized and what works best for you.  Come up with a simple review system of some kind that will work well for you and your schedule and will be easy to keep up with.

One idea is to review all the verses you've learned from one section per week.  Then the next week, review all the verses from another section.  Once you're finished reviewing the last section, start again with the first section the following week.  So for example, this week I might review all the memorized verses in my "God's Character" section and next week I'd review the verses in the "God's Promises" section.  This is my preferred method for review.  I guess I just get overwhelmed at the thought of reviewing all the memorized verses in my file at one time!

Another idea is to have your Scripture memory review be your devotion time with the Lord once a week or month.  As you review the Bible passages you've memorized, meditate on them and make them prayers to God.  Not only are you reviewing your memory verses, but praying God's Word back to Him is a very powerful and meaningful way to communicate with Him.  I could write a whole devotional series on praying God's Word!  I will leave that for another time!!

Well, now that I've shared what I do to memorize Scripture, I'd love to hear what you do for Bible memory, or any ideas or suggestions you may have that I could add to my own memorization efforts.  Please share your ideas, suggestions, and/or thoughts in the Comments section below.  I'd love to hear from you!

May God bless you richly as you dig deep into His Word to find the countless precious treasures there to store in your heart and mind forever!

In Christ,

Suzy 

Scripture Cards - Part 3 of Spend More Time with God

God's Words:

These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.  Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.  Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.  Write them on the door frames of your houses and on your gates.

~Deuteronomy 6:6-9 

Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long.

~Psalm 119:97

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. 

~2 Timothy 3:16-17

Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.

 ~1 Peter 3:15b

For those of you who have been waiting in earnest for my next post about the methods I use to memorize Scripture (including photos and step-by-step instructions!!!), well here it is...FINALLY!  I've been rather preoccupied as of late.  My family is currently in the process of finishing a couple rooms in our basement to add some much-needed living space to our home.  This project has been going on since last summer and we are so ready to be done with it!  At long last, the carpets are in and now I'm in decorator mode, which for me is the most fun.  FYI:  I plan to share some photos of our new homeschool room and play area in the near future when I write a post (or actually, it might turn into its own blog or series, you never know...) on teaching your children at home. Over the last few years that I've been homeschooling, I've had so many questions about homeschooling from friends and strangers alike, that I might just put all my accumulated homeschool knowledge and know-how on the world wide web to save others the time and effort it took me to find all that information out!  So make sure to "stay tuned" for that if it's something you'd be interested in.

Anyhoo, back to the subject at hand!  So with the home improvement work taking up all my extra time recently, I've had to put my blog writing on the back burner for the last few weeks.  Ugh.  But I tell you what, this post has not been far from my mind and I'm actually kind of glad that I've had these extra 3 weeks to really pray and think about what to write next because Bible memorization is such an important thing for believers to do.  If you didn't read my last post and you're curious why I would say that, then please go back and read Part 2:  3 Steps to Take in God's Word So it "Sticks" of the series, Spend More Time with God.

Over the years, I have put together a Bible verse memorization method that has proven very effective for me, personally.  Now what I do might not work well for everyone, but it works great for me.  And I've been really looking forward to sharing it with my readers, in the hopes and prayers that it will help some of you, too.

So without further ado, here is what I do to memorize Scripture:

It’s simple really.  All you need is a pen or pencil, a roll of painter’s tape for delicate surfaces, a package of 3x5 or 4x6 index cards (ruled or blank, it doesn’t really matter.  However, if you are like me and cannot seem to write in a straight horizontal fashion, but rather “uphill” or “downhill”, then perhaps ruled index cards might work better for you!), as well as an index card-sized poly expanding file (this may otherwise be known as a coupon-size expanding file).  I found all the items below for super cheap at Menards, of all places.  You really do save big money there!   I call Menards the “Men’s Target” because most of the guys I know seem to love to go there at least once a week just to see what’s new and on sale, plus you can find pretty much anything there – from wallpaper and tiles to milk and birthday cards.

Then, as you come upon a Bible verse or passage you'd like to memorize, simply write it down, including the reference, (in your very best handwriting, of course) on one side of an index card and tape it somewhere you will see it often throughout your day.  Now, I have never had a problem with the 3M Scotch-Blue Painter's Tape for Delicate Surfaces harming any surface I've used it on.  But just like with any glue or tape product, please test it out first in an inconspicuous area before you go to use it.

So where should you stick it up at?  Well, for some of you, that might mean on your bathroom mirror or wall next to the bathroom sink so you can review the verse(s) while you get ready for the day and then again while getting ready for bed.  If you work outside the home, a good idea might be to tape your card next to your computer or other work area.  In my very first blog post, I shared that I like to have a Scripture card on the cabinet right next to the kitchen sink, where I spend countless minutes each day doing dishes, cooking, and cleaning up.

This is a close-up view of the card next to my kitchen sink (notice my 9-year-old daughter's hand-painted flowers and flowerpot.  The big green "M" on the pot is for "Mom", of course!):

I also like to keep another card up on my bathroom mirror.  Sometimes it's a totally different verse I'm working on; and sometimes it's the same verse as the one I have up by my kitchen sink.  As a side note, I admit I'm a little OCD about things being matchy-matchy and so, as you can see, my ink color perfectly coordinates with the blue in my bathroom.  Of course you do not have to follow suit in having your pen color match your room.  I just find simple pleasure in doing this.

Ok now, this is totally random, but I couldn't resist sharing a photo showing the main theme of my master bathroom, which is relaxing at the beach!  Ahhh, yes...relaxing.  An activity that quite often eludes me in my busy life of being a mother and wife.  But still, it's a good reminder for me to at least try to relax each day!

You know...I think that shelf is crooked.  Maybe that's why it ended up half coming off the wall the other day.  I think a screw was loose.  That really bothers me...OCD again.  Don't worry, my handy man will fix it soon!

Again, sorry, let me get back to the subject!  To learn a Bible passage even more quickly, it might help for you to copy the passage down onto several index cards and tape them up in different locations that you spend a lot of time at.  That way, you're sure to spend adequate time throughout the day viewing and reviewing the verse(s) you're working on memorizing.

What I do after I put up a new passage is to read it and repeat it out loud and then in my mind at least several times each time I'm near it.  So, for me, brushing my teeth in the morning is a perfect time as any to review my Scripture card.  And then again, sometimes many times (depending on how many dishes need washing), when I'm working at my kitchen sink.  I don't really count my bedtime teeth-brushing session as the best time for memory review.  At that point in the day, my brain function is pretty much shot and I definitely don't want to undo all the hard memorization work I've done all day long when my brain function is at its height (aka:  "Mom Brain"), which is still not saying a whole lot, at least where memory strength is concerned.

Now, another way to help the memorization process is to daily, or at least several times a week, copy the Scripture passage on a piece of notebook paper.  Copy it down just once each day, or however many times you find helpful to aid in memorization.  This is really an optional activity.  I rarely do this, maybe because I'm too lazy too busy to do so, but usually just the act of frequently reviewing the verses by looking at them on my cards is enough for me.

Having Scripture cards displayed where you can frequently see them is not just good for memorization.  It's also a wonderful reminder for you to focus on a portion of God's Word and really give it some deep thought (which is what it means to "meditate on") and prayer as to what God wants you to learn from that passage.  God doesn't want us to just read His Word, because sometimes we simply forget most, or all, of what we read.  Rather, He wants us to really think and pray about how we should apply His Word to our lives.  So these Scripture cards should not only help you memorize Bible verses, but also provide a very visible reminder to meditate on what you're "hiding in your heart".

In closing, I will briefly introduce what I use the poly expanding file for, which I will go into greater detail about in my next post.  I use the file to organize the verses I've already memorized so that they are readily available for anytime I want/need to "brush up" on them, as well as any verses I've already written down that I'd like to someday memorize, but haven't gotten to yet.  Until my next post, perhaps now begin thinking about how you would like to organize your Scripture cards.

And don't forget to stop by Menards this week to get your supplies, and be ready to run into lots of men you know who are just happily browsing the store!

In Christ,

Suzy