For the uninitiated, Bible Bee is a summer family discipleship program, now in its fourth year. It was founded by the Shelby Kennedy Foundation as a tribute to its namesake, a young woman who was deeply devoted and known for her commitment to Scripture. Over the course of the summer, registered families spend time studying a particular book of the Bible and memorize many Bible verses. This year there are many changes and the amount of Scripture memory required for the local contest is SIGNIFICANTLY less than in the past. Veteran Bible Bee-ers are rather delighted, I think. Though those that qualify for nationals will still have a tremendous amount of study heaped on them after the local contest.
At the end of the summer, local contests are held nationwide on the same day. They are a lot of fun, even if they are sometimes tense for the young people as they take written tests on their knowledge of the Sword Study (book of the Bible) and orally recite their verses word-perfect to judges they do not know. At the end of the day, scores are compiled nationwide and the top 100 students in each age category (which makes a total of 300 contestants) are invited to the National Bible Bee in November. Last year my Adventure Girl (also known as Country Girl 2) qualified for Nationals. Tender Warrior and Country Girl accompanied. I think they were even more "hooked" after such an experience.
This summer we are studying 2 Timothy and I just love it! Such a timely book and one of my New Testament favorites. Since the Scripture Memory requirement is now 25 passages (instead of hundreds), Tender Warrior and I are even endeavoring to commit these passages to memory and this is much more unifying as a family.
Each week we have the opportunity to meet with other families in our area who are doing the same. Our local hosts affectionately call this our "HIVE" and let me tell you, it is buzzing with excitment! This year it is also at FULL capacity--not a surprise to me since our hosts have to be one of the most enthusiastic Bible Bee families you'll ever meet! The children can practice reciting their verses and there are games to reinforce what they have learned in the Sword Study the previous week. Our host family is fantastic! This is their second year hosting and they set the bar high with enthusiasm and the activities they come up with. My children can't wait to go each week! Plus now they have built friends who have been on the same journey for these 3 years as well and so they are so eager to see them again. The only difficulty is that this year our HIVE is an hour away and that is more challenging in terms of time and gas money! So we are aiming to get to as many as we can.
I am very much looking forward to what God will do this summer, both in our family and in those we meet with. I greatly appreciate the accountability the Bible Bee provides me personally. It is a season I look forward to to keep me on pace in my study of Scripture and in memorizing His Word. These disciplines are much harder in a season of life with a busy household and it is easy to let diligent study of the Word slide to a bare minimum of survival. I love how this gives me opportunity to grow and enables our family to reach toward these goals together. It also gives us much to converse over.
Registration is closed for the 2012 Bible Bee season, but if you are interested to learn more visit www.biblebee.org to see what all of the "buzz" is about.
However you best learn and study God's Word, I encourage you to persevere in it today. Set apart some moments to meditate on a verse. Write it down and post it where you will see it. Read the Proverbs chapter for today or a Psalm. There are so many ways to engage with the Word of God. You will be blessed.
What a wonderful activity to do together! Our family is very interested in doing this next year, so I hope you can share more with me your experiences with this? In the meanwhile, we will cheer you on!
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