Hey y'all! Today I'm going to be sharing with you my top ten, results-focused studying hacks, that I've been using, and that help me use my study time effectively. But before that, how are you doing today? I want you to know how incredibly loved you are, and how fondly the Father thinks of you, and especially how much He cares for you and your well-being - in every aspect, and in every part of your life. He cares a whole lot! And real quickly, I wanted to tell you about this revelation I got the other day, when I was studying through the second chapter of 1 John... You can skip over this and go ahead and go to the next section, if you want to get to the hacks - but this is pretty cool ;) I was really kind of confused when I first started to read that chapter, because it sounds an awful like John is telling us to keep the Law, or at the very least, obey all of Christ's teachings (both of which, of course, are impossible for us to accomplish in the natural). Verses 3-6 say, "And hereby we do know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He that saith, 'I know Him', and keepeth not His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth His word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby do we know that we are in Him. He that saith he abideth in Him ought himself also so to walk, even as He walked." (sorry for the -eth's, I use KJV :P) Kind of confusing, to the New Covenant believer, at face value, right? Right! But I wasn't taking into account the truth about reflection, and producing fruit. That might not make a lot of sense, but let me explain... In the Kingdom of God, there's this law about effortless change on the outside, when change happens on the inside. This is demonstrated in a few different places, but one of the ones I was looking at was Mark 4:26-28, which describes the effortless growth of a seed: "For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear." I've said this before, but any kind of plant that produces fruit doesn't have to try to produce fruit - it just kind of happens, and that's how it is. Of course, it has to be healthy, and being fed and watered, and looked after. But if those things are happening, it's just a matter of time before you can start seeing the results. That's the law of producing fruit. But what's the law about reflection? It's that, in the way that people think of, or perceive God, that's what they're going to involuntarily reflect. It doesn't matter if how they think of/percieve God is accurate or not. Christians under the bondage of the Law, who are trying to fulfill it in of themselves, will typically see God as demanding, condemnatory, hard to please, and even mean. And unfortunately, that's what they're going to eventually reflect (to some extent or another) - and they'll probably experience a lot of frustration, whether or not it's visible to other people. Basically, what these two laws mean, is that our relationships with God greatly effect how we act, and who we become. Pretty simple, right? So when we read these verses in that light, and in the light of the previous chapter (when it's talking about walking in the light with Jesus), it becomes more clear, and easy to understand. Through fellowship with our God - which we now have access to, because of Jesus cleansing us and making us pure and holy before Him - we begin to change from carnal, to who He originally intended us to be, which is pretty much like Him. But what even is that? It's full of love, for God, ourselves, and other people; full of truth about who He is, and who we are; compassionate; all of the other fruits of the spirit; etc.. Becoming like God comes from having a relationship with Him, and getting to really know Him. So you see, "keeping His commandments/word" really just means becoming like God, because we'll start to operate how He operates, as a reflection of seeing Him for who He really is. Under the Law, and the Old Covenant, we were really dirty, stinky, and unholy - we couldn't be in God's presence, because of how much holier He was. So we had to try to keep the Law, and offer sacrifices to clean ourselves up a little, in order to be saved and have the hope of eventual relationship and fellowship with God. We had to do things, try to be like God in our natural state, in order to have relationship with Him. However, under the New Covenant and Jesus' blood and sacrifice for us, we are completely holy - Jesus gave us His holiness. Now, being holy and clean, we can be with God and have relationship and fellowship with Him. And through that relationship, we can effortlessly become like Him. And it does a full loop, because becoming like Him will cause us to walk like He walks, which is what the people under the Law had to try to do, all in of themselves. We have gone, through Jesus, from "doing the right things in order to have relationship" to "having relationship and becoming someone who does the right things". That's pretty awesome!! But anyways, sorry that was so long... I get excited :P. But let's get into these cool study hacks now! 1. Learn the material as an overview, before learning the details, or memorizing it This is what makes memorizing the material so much easier for me, a lot of the time. I usually read the material more than anything else (especially at the beginning/middle of the season), because I want to get a good understanding of everything that's going on. I want to be able to see in my mind, all of the chapters laid out, and what's in each chapter. After I know it pretty well, I start learning the details (like lists, or the genealogy), and going full throttle in memorizing whatever I'm memorizing that year. It's a lot easier, because these things have been floating around in your head for a while already, and now you're just perfecting your knowledge! This is one of my very favorite hacks, for sure, because it saves me not only a lot of effort, but a lot of time, and it also is a great way to really solidify these things in your memory. 2. Block out your study time, and do other things between sessions This is a simple thing that a lot of quizzers do, but it's so beneficial, and it really enhances your over-all results. It's pretty much taking the studying that you plan to do, and then dividing it up into a couple of pieces, that you'll work on one at a time. These divisions could be in regard to study techniques (i.e. memorizing, reviewing, reading, etc.), or in regard to time. But however you decide to do it, the most important this is to remember to give your brain a good break between these blocks of studying. This is especially helpful when we're trying to cram in as much study as possible before a big or important quiz, because it's a way to get a lot done, but not overwhelm yourself (or your memory) with too much information, too quickly. Plus, it's a great way to be a good steward of your energy, because you're allowing time for intense work, and a good amount of time for necessary rest. 3. Pace, exercise, or move around while studying This is helpful, not only to get two things done at once, but also because it helps keep you focused. It might be just me, but when I really need to learn something, I have to get up and move around. Sometimes, but not always, sitting still can be like letting your body distracting your mind (to some extent). If you really want to learn something, one of the best ways to help your brain do that, is to give your body something to do while your brain works - i.e. exercise, pacing, or going on a walk with the audio in your ears. 4. If you're in a slump, and discouraged about studying, put on a smile and a playlist of your favorite songs while you do some simple, light studying (i.e. reading) Music is a great way to snap you out of slump, frustration, or a bad mood. Purposefully associating studying with some of your favorite songs, will kind of trick your brain into thinking about studying in a different way - in a better, happier, more fun way. Also, music can be really motivating and encouraging. Picking some really good songs can not only get you out of a slump, but also propel you into an awesome sprint of hard work, and accomplishing a lot of things! 5. Repetition over long periods of time As admittedly boring repetition can be, it's really the only way to move something from short-term to long-term memory. This hack has to do mostly with memorizing and review, but it can probably go with any kind of studying you apply it to, anyway. When you're reviewing what you learned (probably the most important part of learning it), it's important to regularly revisit what you committed to memory, or else you'll eventually lose it entirely (which is really frustrating, as I'm sure most of us know :P). When you're learning new material, just try and remember to review the material that's older, and that you may have had down cold in the first few months of the season. The most common occurrence of failing to apply repetition, was called "chapter one syndrome" by my team back in South Texas as a joke :P. It's when a quizzer knows the first chapter forwards, backwards, and upside down, so they study the new stuff, and leave the first chapter (or first few) un-studied for months on end, until they begin to forget it entirely. In the end, the quizzer will get a really easy question/bonus from chapter one, but will miss it entirely, and we'll say that they've come down with "chapter one syndrome". Don't do that! Remember to review. 6. Recall at the beginning of your study sessions, to stretch your memory muscles Honestly, this sucks almost as much as doing cardio before breakfast in the morning - but just like that, it is very effective. Typically, from what I've experienced and seen in other quizzers, a quizzer will start off by quoting what they've memorized by chapter, or by listening to or reading the material. Then, later, they'll follow up with doing flashcards or the reference tool on QuizMaster, to practice their recall. However, the recall practice is a lot easier when the material is already fresh on your mind from that same day - it's a lot harder when you haven't thought of the material in 24 hours or so. This stretches your recall/memory muscles, and will really benefit you (especially if you're doing memory or according to's) in a quiz. 7. Drawing/writing pieces of the material out (for visual people) Learning best from visual/audible aids, I benefit a lot from things like writing the genealogy out on a poster, or looking at a map of Paul's journey's (for Acts), or even writing out lists, verses, and references by hand. Being able to see what you need to learn, especially if it's pretty and color-coordinated (:P), is an awesome and fun way to get it stuck in your brain. 8. Listen to the dramatized audio of the material (for light-studying) This is an awesome way to learn the material when you're doing other things (like cleaning, in the car, or playing a video game), and it made up about half of my total studying my second year, when I made first in the quiz off at the regional qualifying tournament. Especially during the gospel/Acts years, the dramatized audio CD's are definitely worth getting. 9. Look up different versions of confusing verses/passages, to better understand them Especially in 1-2 Corinthians, but in other materials too, some parts can be really confusing, and even hurtful or offensive, if we jump to conclusions about the meanings of these verses too quickly (guilty!). But there are a lot of ways that we can go about easily understanding our quiz material, and looking them up in different versions is probably the quickest, simplest way possible. 10. Study in different place, when you study sections for the first time This is also for visual people, because when I study different sections for the first time, in different rooms/places, I remember the place matched with the section, and it's just another easy alleyway to remembering things in a quiz. Well that's it for today, fam - I hope you enjoyed this post, and got something out of it that will make your studying more fun and effective! Until next time my friends, keep quizzing and living victoriously, because you're not only blessed, not only favored, but abundantly blessed, and highly favored. Love you guys! Keep calm and quiz on (and out)! Your fellow quizzer, Mallory
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Trending Posts:Author:Mallory is a graduated Teen Bible Quizzer originally from the Southern region, moved to the Northwest, coaching quizzing over the book of Matthew. Check out our
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