Discipleship & the Coronavirus: Lessons from Scripture Memory

Discipleship & the Coronavirus: Lessons from Scripture Memory

Discipleship and the Coronavirus

This is part of our series, Discipleship & the Coronavirus, featuring posts written by GABC members on what God is teaching them during the coronavirus pandemic.

You may read the entire series here.


by Darlene Lubinus

A year ago, on April 19th, I made a bold and intimidating commitment: I wanted to try and memorize a verse of Scripture every day for a year, starting with the book of 1 Peter. I got this crazy idea after listening to a talk on the value of Scripture memory. (And what believer doesn’t know this should be a part of their regular spiritual disciplines?) I decided to give it a go and, so far by God’s grace, unless something cataclysmic happens between now and then, it looks like I will probably make my goal.

Let me say before I go any further, please don’t hear any braggadocio here. I would never have done this unless prompted by God and sustained by Him. I didn’t particularly want to do it but felt compelled for some reason. There are many days it feels more like a duty than a delight. It takes A LOT of time to not only memorize the day’s verse but also keep up with all that has gone before. That said, I don’t know if I will just be able to stop cold turkey when the 19th rolls around. There’s something rather addictive about it.

Psalm 46

Some passages have been easier to memorize than others. Psalms are a delight. Ephesians was a slog. Paul is wordy and tends to say the same thing in slightly different ways; Peter is pretty straight forward. But one of the passages that has highly fascinated me has been Psalm 46. I memorized it sometime last year, and it was giving me much to chew on even before COVID interrupted the world.

It starts with a declaration that the place of our refuge, strength, and help is found in God alone. This is good stuff! Then, the world literally falls apart with natural disasters; mountains shaking, waters roaring, THE EARTH BEING REMOVED! Fortunately, next, we are shown a place of peace and security, the river of God, where we dwell with Him and He with us. His holy tabernacle is here, and this is where we would like to stay. But no. Now for a little geopolitical turmoil; nations raging, kingdoms moving, God melting the earth.

And then, blessedly, the invitation comes. Come, behold the works of the Lord. After all that has gone before, we are ready to see some awesome work of God!

Expectations & Reality

We expect (dare I say, want) sunshine, rainbows, and birdsong. What we get are desolations and war. Not exactly the kind of thing that one would think God would use to show off His mighty power, yet that is exactly what we are invited to witness and be in awe of. 

And then something almost as equally shocking, we are told to “be still.” The weather is out of control, the countries are playing fruit basked upset, and war machinery is being broken right and left—and we are told to BE STILL. We are not to freak out. We are not to run and hide. We, as God’s chosen, have been given a front-row seat to watch our God work in these epic events. And what is to be the takeaway? HE IS GOD. He will be exalted among the nations. He will be exalted in the earth. 

This could potentially leave us shaken. Who wants to live through anything described here? Yet, sprinkled throughout this Psalm, we are reminded that we have nothing to fear as God stirs His finger in our world. He is our refuge and strength. He dwells with us and helps us. The same God that melts the earth holds His people in a place where they can watch but not be troubled. 

A House with a River View

Now, this is no “name it and claim it” passage. We still live in countries while they rage; our house may be on that mountain that is carried into the sea. But I also have the assurance that if God takes my house, He has one for me with a river view. If He destroys my country, He has a new kingdom waiting. I have been given a command, and that is to “be still and know that He is God.”

All these thoughts have been knocking around in my head and heart this past year as I memorized and pondered and chewed on Psalm 46. And then the coronavirus hit and the world changed. This Psalm, more than anything else I memorized, has helped me process what is going on. It has been the surgical mask filtering out the fear that tries to invade. It has been the hand sanitizer killing doubts about God’s goodness. It has been the news outlets broadcasting what is true in light of the latest statistics. And because I have it memorized, it is always with me and speaking to me as I practice social distancing or venture to the store, and, as I go about the new normal, I truly can be still and know.