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Partnering to Remember: The 2011 Philippians Memory Moleskine

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Written By Tim Brister

Tim has a missionary heart for his hometown to love those close to him yet far from God. He is husband to Dusti and father to Nolan, Aiden, and Adelyn - fellow pilgrims to our celestial city.


In the summer of 2008, I came up with the crazy idea called a “memory moleskine.”  The goal was to memorize the book of Ephesians before the end of the year.  Since then, that Ephesian memory moleskine has resulted in 4,000+ people joining in.  With a number of people desiring to do it again, I pitched the idea of memorizing the book of Philippians beginning in the New Year.

Let’s face it. Memorizing Scripture can be a difficult discipline, especially memorizing long passages of Scripture.  In our fast-paced lives of multi-tasking with any number of things vying for our attention, there is a real danger for the Word of God to get squeezed out of our daily lives.  More than any other time, Christians need to partner together for the purpose of internalizing Scripture, encouraging one another to abide in the words of Christ, and remembering the weighty truths that center us in God’s work in our lives. To do this, a system for memorizing Scripture has been created called the memory moleskine.

Starting in 2011, I am beginning a project called P2R (Partnering to Remember).  The goal is to memorize the entire book of Philippians by Easter Sunday (April 24, 2011) through partnering with other believers using the memory moleskine.  Paul praised the church in Philippi for their partnership in advance of the Gospel, and in the spirit of that partnership, this project intends to bring Christians together for the deepening work of God’s Word in their lives.  Simply put, I believe we should partner to remember.

Using the Cahier moleskine, I have created a pocket-size notebook that provides a practical and accessible way to memorize Scripture.  Through collaboration with The Resurgence, a customized PDF has been created for you to download with a week-by-week outline for memorizing the book of Philippians in 16 weeks using the English Standard Version (ESV) of the Bible.  On one side of the moleskine you simply paste the week’s verses to memorize, and on the other side you write your reflections on the verses while indicating how many times you rehearsed them each day.  Included in this PDF are encouragements and helps to memorizing and retaining Scripture from Donald Whitney, Andy Davis, and John Piper.

The Cahier moleskine can be purchased either directly from Moleskine or from various bookstores such as Borders or Books-a-Million.  My hope is that many Christians will establish a rhythm of remembering God’s Word together through a system that helps access Scripture wherever you are.  So I encourage you to join me at the beginning of the New Year with a memory moleskine in your hand that God’s Word may be more treasured in your heart!

How to Make Your Own 2011 Philippians Memory Moleskine

1.  Purchase your own Cahier Moleskine (3.5×5.5 size)
2.  Download the PDF provided by the Resurgence
3.  Cut the weekly Scripture reading according to the border
4.  Use double-sided tape to paste the weekly section of verses
5.  Find someone who you can partner with for encouragement & accountability
6.  Jump in starting January 1, 2011!!!

If you decide to partner with me next year to memorize Philippians, please let me know in the comments.  I would love to know who you are!  And if you don’t have someone to partner with you, I will attempt to encourage you through my blog. 🙂

NEW INFORMATION & BLOGPOSTS (updated regularly)

* My 2011 Memory Moleskine [PICS]
* Update, Tips, and Networking
* Now on Facebook and Twitter
* Twitter Hashtag: #P2R

275 thoughts on “Partnering to Remember: The 2011 Philippians Memory Moleskine”

  1. Love this. Thanks for the inspiration and downloads. Like John, I’ll probably use a moleskin look-a-like (aka something I already have on my shelf). For a variety of reasons, Philippians is the perfect book for me to memorize right now.

  2. I would like to join you. I started memorizing Phil. in June and got bogged down towards the end of ch. 2. I’d like to try again. Thanks!

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  4. printed off the pdf file, cut it and taped it in my ‘knock-off moleskin’ and ready to go! would also love to see this for galatians (i will be teaching through it at the beginning of 2011 and then preaching through it later in the year! just a thought

  5. I have my P2R Philippians Moleskine ready to go! Thank you for putting this spiritual tool together, you can count me in!

  6. My wife and I are in, thank you for the idea and putting it together. I’m putting together the moleskins right now. Merry Christmas!

  7. So fun! I have been memorizing Philippians (ESV) for the past 5 weeks, and plan to end about the same time. Excited for more resources and encouragement. There is a small group of us on Twitter who have been memorizing and sharing encouragement and tips using the hashtag #hpimh (Hiding Philippians in My Heart).

  8. thanks Tim. I just started memorizing James and wanted to memorize the book. This has given me the creative tools to keep it up and stick with it. Really excited to making my “Partnering to Remember::James” journal! I’m also asking our leadership team about challenging all our people to do the same!

  9. Thanks for providing this for us, Tim. Memorizing Scripture can be a daunting task because there are 66 books to choose from. This will help many begin this practice personally. I have 2 empty Cahiers already, so I’ve got it printed off and will be putting it together once I get that tape. Thanks again.

    Blessings to you,
    Freddy

  10. After memorizing 1 Chronicles 29:10-18, 1 Timothy 1:12-17 and Romans 8, I have fell out of the memorizing rhythm. Fortunately I am getting back into the swing of things with Titus 3:3-7, Acts 20:24 among countless others.

    I wanted to work my way up to Hosea 2, Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53 before attempting to do a book. However, our church just recently finish Philippians. It would seem prudent to go in and attempt to memorize a book that is so fresh on my heart.

    Count me in.

  11. Tim,

    Thank you so much for this! I have about 9 more verses to learn and then I will have Philippians 1 (NASB) memorized! I plan to have that completed by December 29th and recite it to someone from my Sunday school class by memory on December 31st, as that is the goal date that has been set. Please pray for me, as I seek a partner to help me with the rest of Philippians.

    God bless you! 🙂

  12. I’ve been wanting to memorize Philippians for years but have not done it. Here’s the perfect opportunity. I’m in.

  13. Thanks for coming up with this it’ll help me to be familiar with God’s word. I’m joining and will encourage others to join.

      • When I was putting our notebooks together, my daughters asked what I was doing. So now, all 4 of us are going to work on it, and we’re going to do it when my not-yet-reading son is with us so that he hears it. If all goes well, the whole family will have Philippians memorized by Easter.

  14. Hey Tim,

    I will memorize Philippians with you. Because of the example of some other guys at my school and their love for the word I have been encouraged and driven to memorize scripture. Over 2010 I memorized Ephesians, 2 Timothy, and just finished the sermon on the mount. Nothing changes a man like the word of God. I love this idea of the booklet and whatnot. I think I will make a few as gifts. Thank you for all you do. I love reading your books and actually just got generous justice from amazon today. I read the reason for God at a turning point in my life. Your faith evidenced in that book and your concern for dealing with people’s questions was a great encouragement to my soul. I thank God for your faith and your love toward all the saints. 🙂 Press on, brother.

  15. Hey Mr. Brister,
    Look forward to starting this with you. I am currently putting together my moleskin in anticipation of Jan. 1 2011. Are there any helpful hints on notetaking or anything else?

  16. Tim,

    I attempted this many years ago and got through most of chapter 3. I’ve always thought about returning to Philippians and giving it another try. Your encouragement has given me the impetus to stop thinking about it and do it. Thanks.

  17. Hey Tim,

    I’m in and i have a partner to help me out who has memorized the book before using a different method. Thanks for putting this together and sharing.

    Justin

  18. I’m in!
    I am going to post this on my blog and twitter and see if I can get a partner.
    Thanks, I was looking for encouragement to memorize more scripture this year! What a great way to do it.

  19. My wife and I are going to do it together. We’re pumped! Also, I just bought a 3 pack of pocket sized cahiers last week to aid my training as a campus planter – so I had two unclaimed ones ready for us. Thanks for putting this together!

  20. I stumbled across your blog through a post on twitter. This idea is fantastic. The book of Philippians is my favorite book of the bible, and I am extremely excited about the idea of memorizing it. Thank you very much!! I am definitely going to be participating!!

  21. I’ve not had much success memorizing scripture before. I’ve never tried to memorize a whole book but this looks like a good approach. I’m partnering with one of my accountability partners. Thanks for the sharing and encouraging.

  22. […] I recently came across a great blog post with some tools to help memorize Philippians beginning on January 1, 2011. To download the tools, click here: […]

  23. Hi! I’m trying it! So far I haven’t been able to convince any of my friends to partner with me so you’re my partner, I fear. 🙂 Looking forward to doing this. I hope I make it all the way through and don’t lose heart.

    Samantha

    PS-I was directed here from Between Two Worlds. Shout out to Justin Taylor. He rocks.

  24. I am wondering if a blank template could be made available for folks wanting to memorize other books. I’d love to be able to type my verses into a template and print and affix to my little moleskin – I’m already working my way through 1 Thessalonians and would love to do the same thing with this book as you are doing with Philippians.

  25. Hey Timmy – what a great idea. Will be joining you from Central Asia.

    I think I might even do this with my 8 year old son. He has such a knack for hearing something a few times and then being able to remember it. Our family has 3 Psalms, the Beatitudes, James 1, and Ro 8:1-6 memorized so far. How? Read the entire passage every single day and bite off a new phrase each day to memorize. Usuallyafter the end of the first week, whether the rest of the family has yet or not, our oldest already has it down. PTL!

    Thanks again; any partners out there in Central Asia?

  26. I picked up my moleskin today at Barnes & Noble in Champaign (IL), and I just printed off the verses, so I’m almost ready to go. I’ll be prepared on January 1.

  27. I’ve never had sustained success in memorization over the past 40 years, and I now have a head covered in snow white hair (glad to have hair of any color) but, I’m going to attempt to follow your plan. I purchased the 3 Moleskin ‘cahiers’ plain journals at BN this evening. Thanks for leading this.

  28. Count me in! Looking forward to memorizing Philippians while studying at Covenant Seminary and grabbing a few guys to join with me!

  29. I’ll be joining you from Southeast Asia.

    I had actually just found your posts from 2008, and was just getting my plans together for doing this in 2011. I have been reading Philippians repeatedly recently and was thinking that I’d like to start with Philippians. Then, I opened up my google reader and saw your post on the Resurgence about this. No real Moleskins out here, but I’ve found a knock-off that will do the trick.

  30. Thank you so much for doing this Tim! Frankly, I am a little nervous and floored that it is possible to memorize a whole letter from Paul! Count me in!

  31. me, my hubby, and our dear friend are all in … making up the notebooks as i type this … thanks so much for the challenge and the tools to do it … may God be glorified!

  32. I am part of a small group of men who meet weekly for some Bible Study, prayer, and encouragment. We will be joining you in Philippians. I am excited.

  33. I’ve memorized random Bible verses but have always been too intimidated to even try an entire book. But, I’m planning to memorize Philippians along with you. I’m still searching for a partner to hold me accountable. Thank you for giving me the nudge I needed to follow God’s prompting in this area.

  34. why bother with printing out the sections and cutting them up. Don’t be so lazy. It’s a journal for writing in. Why not hand write out the portions of Scripture. That’ll be a better start to get the text into the brain.

  35. I’m in! and I’m encouraging my church fellowship and friends to do the same. I’m so looking forward to remembering and meditating on the same part of God’s Word with brothers and sisters all over the world (I’m in Australia). God bless!

  36. I somehow came across this blog yesterday and am glad I did! I would love to join in on the fun. I am training to run a half marathon this year and this would be a perfect thing to do while I’m running. I have a friend who memorized the book of James while she trained for a marathon. Looking forward to the challenge of doing something i’ve never done before.

  37. My husband and I are it too! This is exciting Philippians has always ben one of my favorite books of the Bible, what could be better than to memorize the whole thing. Can’t wait.

  38. Don’t know if anyone will actually see this reply, but as a pastor the thought struck me, what a great way to prepare for preaching a book of the Bible! To have it memorized may be the epitomy of ingesting the book well enough in your pre-study so as to be able to grasp best the theme and nuances of argumentation as the book develops. Count me in, and count on me preaching Philippians soon – easily one of my favorite books in Scripture.

  39. I’m in…. it occurred to me last night in my spin class that if I just put a 3 by 5 card with a few verses, I’d memorize quite a bit. Love this idea.

  40. Very interesting! I’ve spent a lot of time with Philippians but haven’t attempted to memorize it … or done any Scripture memorizing for quite awhile. Count me in; I’ll be following on Twitter.

  41. Hi – I am really looking forward to this challenge and if I succeed would be keen to do more of these:-)

  42. Tim-Count me in! However, I just realized I bought the wrong size Moleskine and have already pasted the verses. Ugh! Oh well! Thanks again. I’m going to ask my son to do this with me!

  43. Ordered a three pack of notebooks and grabbed one before my kids grabbed the other two. Here we go! Thanks for doing this.

  44. A dear woman from our church brought this to my attention. She wanted to know who wound join her in this challenge. I decided that I would take this opportunity for hiding God’s word in my heart. I know I will grow spiritually as well! My husband and 2 children have decided to participate too! I’m very excited by this chance to memorize scripture as a family. Thank you so much developing this program.

  45. Thank you for sharing this!
    I was wrestling with what to memorize this year, and hoping to someday commit an entire book to memory.
    Looking forward to memorizing Philippians with all of you!

  46. Going for it with you and encouraging Cuyahoga Valley Church to do the same. Thanks for the challenge and the tools, brother.

  47. Found about this on fb from a friend! I am in on this challenge! Gonna ask some other women to join me as well! So excited…love the timeline too, not just “out there” to be done, but let’s do this by Easter Sunday! Thanks!!!

  48. Love what you have been inspired to here Timmy ! Sneaking in late to join in and accompanied by the very lovely Mrs Mitchell (Wife not mother )for the duration…

  49. I’m a little late but I’m in! Funny, I bought a cahier moleskin and wasn’t quite sure what I was going to do with it yet.

  50. My pastor shared this with us this morning in his sermon. I accept the challenge to be a part of this.

  51. I think this is a fascinating idea and a brilliant plan. My wife was trying to memorize Philippians last year so I’m going to offer it to her first. I may tackle it as well.

    Thanks for sharing your great idea!

  52. Hey Aaron!

    Thanks again for this. I started memorizing Ephesians in 2009 and got through the first 2 chapters before life got crazy and I set it aside. I was all set to do Philippians with you, but saw the older Ephesians post and resources and I’m going back to finish that! Philippians will be next though. Thanks again- this is life changing and I am super excited to be starting out 2011 in such a great way!

    Keep up the great work!
    Melissa

  53. Thanks for the encouragement and helpful tools. I am in need of renewing my mind and setting my mind on Christ. There are a few ladies from my church that are in too!!!

  54. Just now found out about this. A little to catch up but hey … it is the Word of God!! I’m excited. Thanks for doing this and for all the future encouragement. 🙂

  55. My husband told me last week he was going to memorize Philippians this year ~he hadn’t heard about the P2R plan yet. Now we will both join you, plus (by God’s grace) our five kids (14, 12, 8, 6, 6)

    Thanks Tim!

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  57. Thanks for the work! My wife found this in late December and we are doing it with our two older kids. Just posted your link with a note to our church – hopefully more join the effort!!

    Psm 119.89

  58. Pastor David Sulcer of Crosswind Church, Westminster MD. opened this up to our entire church at services this weekend. I am joinng in and and very excited! How pleasing it must be to our Lord that so many will be focusing on His word at the same time. This takes committment to do the work, but the lifetime of rewards and benefits are the prize.

  59. I’m now in, too! Just got the book set up. Thanks for providing this needed challenge…and the resources to help accomplish the goal.

    Sola Gratia!

  60. I have challenged my church to enter into this with me. I think this is a super idea!

    Did anybody find out that Philippians 1:4 is a very difficultly written verse? It took me the longest to get that one verse remember!

    I love this challenge and look forward to reciting this before Easter.

  61. I have challenged my church to enter into this with me. I think this is a super idea!

    Did anybody find out that Philippians 1:4 is a very difficultly written verse? It took me the longest to get that one verse remembered!

    I love this challenge and look forward to reciting this before Easter.

  62. I’m a little late to the game but I’d love to do it! printing the PDF now and I already have the perfect Moleskin for this. Woo hoo!

  63. My wife and I are joining you. This will be our first endeavor to memorize scripture. We’ve just begun and its all ready been a source of encouragement. Thanks for helping encourage us in this way!

  64. I began this last week and am already excited to be reigniting a rhythm of memorising and meditating on God’s word that was initially sparked 20 years ago in my teens. those passages still fill my heart and mind today. i’m partnering with a friend in Liverpool (UK) and I’m living in Harrogate (UK). bless you for a tremendous idea!

    in Christ Jesus
    stu

  65. I’m in. I’ve desired to have Philippians in my heart for so long . . . Started in the NIV years ago. It will be great to do ESV now.

  66. Friends of ours shared this link with me, I love the idea and shared it with my husband. We’re partnering with you to remember. So far so good, although verse 7 is a mouthful!

  67. Getting a late start, but I’m in. Thanks for the idea and the encouragement.
    One question…In Andy Davis’ practical helps he says to, “covering each word as though photographing it with your eyes.”
    Not sure I’m grasping this. More explanation please.
    Jeff

  68. I just put together a Facebook event for support in my commitment to memorize Philippians. Thanks for the inspiration and the plan! May God be glorified.

  69. I just put together a Facebook event for support in my commitment to memorize Philippians. Thanks for the inspiration and the plan! May God be glorified. If anyone would like to join, go to Facebook and look for The Philippians Challenge.

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  71. Just wanted to say that my wife and I are partnering to remember with you, Tim. I memorized Colossians in the fall, and had been thinking about what to memorize next when I came across your post in mid-December. I thought it also would be great for my wife to experience the joy and comfort I had in memorizing and meditating on Colossians. So, I ended up giving my wife two Cahier moleskines for Christmas, and here we are! Not only has it been a joy to start memorizing Philippians, but also to be able to encourage one another. Thanks for spurring us on in this good work, brother, and grace to you.

  72. Hi Tim,

    Greetings from Switzerland! We are excited to hear about P2R and would like to join in here in Switzerland.
    As we speak German, would you allow me to translate your resources (your blog entry, learning plans, how to do…) and provide it on a german blog (with credits and links to your website of course)?

    In case you will do another campaign after Philippians I’d like to hear from you so we can start simultaneously here in Switzerland…

    Be blessed!

    Deborah

  73. I’m joining you. Very nice work. I love creative and God honoring uses for my moleskine.

    And if anyone is interested I invite you to join me at BibleTogether.com as we read the Bible searching for the Lord and His gospel.

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  75. I am just now joining you in the effort to memorize Phillipians. I am excited to be hiding this passage in my heart, but am a little concerned because my memory isn’t what it used to be. I’m praying that this method will make it stick. Thank you for providing this for us.

  76. Love this system! Has made it so much more encouraging to memorize God’s Word. I’m so inspired, that I went ahead and made a similar weekly PDF of Psalm 119 that I hope to memorize by the end of the year. Anyone want to join me? I can email you a copy if you’re interested. [email protected].

  77. Wow! I just did a Google search for partners to memorize scripture and this was first. I’m amazed because I just finished Philippians and am about to start on Ephesians. My sister-in-law has a slight head start. Anyone want to join us or review?

    I’m looking forward to next year’s challenge!

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