Being a Rookie
Micah Hollen
"That's just crazy, insane, impossible! – Such were my immediate thoughts when I heard of Bible Quizzing. I mean, memorizing an entire 20 chapters of the New Testament is not what you would think an average kid is capable of achieving. By sharing my rookie experiences – breaking through that initial wall of memorizing, the endless rewards, figuring out quiz meets – I hope your rookie year will be off to a jumpstart and be a wonderful experience.
The first two to three months of memorizing is a real challenge. Why? The brain is like a major cerebral muscle which requires work in order to get it into shape, demanding an enormous amount of self-discipline and commitment. For me it was a mental battle: getting off track in memorizing by thinking about random things, the temptation to sleep or play a game, versus learning to just focus and pray about it, to accomplish the memory goal. There is great reward for working hard. It helps to have a parent, brother, sister, or close friend to encourage and keep you accountable to stay on task. I would ask my parents specifically to keep me from playing video games for a time prior to quiz meets which benefited a lot.
Memorizing scripture yields lifetime benefits. The Holy Spirit uses the copious amount of verses in our minds to convict our hearts to be more Christ-like, as well as moving us, as his vessels, to challenge the hearts of others. Meditating on His word throughout each day deeply enhances our personal devotion time. It continually reminds us of His promises and gives us the ability to boldly share with others. The result is an invaluable relationship builder with the best possible friend Jesus Christ.
Quiz meets are where the fun and excitement starts. Teams, coaches, score keepers, answer judges, and strategies, along with fierce competitors turns quizzing into pure sport. The frantic chaos of occasionally having to dash to and fro from room to room is enjoyable in its own way. There's an abundance of nervousness and stress when a well-earned jump is secured in a quiz, but when the quizmaster announces "correct", it turns into complete joy. Hi-fives go all- around, even from the opposing teams, lifting the tension off your shoulders. Even if the question is missed there is still an encouraging environment. Beside the quizzes, there's the opportunities to meet a whole assortment of new kids who are like-minded in Christ and are sharing in the same vibrant experiences.
From the vigorous memorizing turning into eternal rewards to developing the best of friends for a lifetime, you will enjoy one of the greatest experiences in life – Bible Quizzing!
David Steinke
Being a rookie, for me, was very hard for the first two meets. Before the Scramble Meet, I hardly studied at all, and I was actually a little bored with the whole thing. But then, in the first quiz of the Scramble Meet, I jumped on a question, and I answered correctly. Oh boy, did that change my perspective. It was SO FUN to compete in an organized environment, against other kids and young adults. I had a TON of fun at the Scramble meet, and I decided to really start to study. I remember sitting down in my chair, pulling out my quiz book, and making the commitment to memorize all of James 5. It was a big deal for me, since only a few weeks ago, I had been bored by the whole thing. The first meet came along, and I was pumped! But, it was a little harder than I expected. I only got 1 question the entire meet. However, that question came from James 5. I resolved to study even harder, and so I memorized a ton of Romans 1-3. It paid off, and I was able to really contribute to my team's success. I REALLY love quizzing, and my goal is to memorize even MORE, and do even better.
However, there is another side to quizzing. During the times where you aren't competing, you are building friendships that will last a lifetime. In just nine months, I went from not knowing the people in our program at all, to have some of the best friendships in the world. Just being in the program, you'll make friends like no other.
Another thing is, you do NOT have to be a competitive person to enjoy quizzing. If you don't see any fun in competing, there is still plenty of fun and friendship to be had. by just participating, you will make friends that will last forever, grow in your faith in Christ, and learn what it truly means to be a Christian. After all, that is the true purpose of quizzing.
Anyway, if you have doubts as to how fun quizzing is, or if you think it may be really annoying to have to memorize verses, please, please, please just come to the Scramble meet, and experience it for yourself. You won't regret it!