A couple of months ago, I decided to memorize the entire Gospel of John.
Not every word. Rather, I memorized one key passage from each chapter along with a simple summary that connected all 21 chapters together into what I call a “memory chain.”
It ended up changing far more than just my memory.
Here’s why I did it, how I made time for it, and what surprised me most along the way.
Why I Did It
Believe it or not, it started with a secular book.
As part of my challenge to read 40 influential books for my 40th birthday, one of the books I picked up was Atomic Habits by James Clear. I enjoyed it, although I probably liked it a little less than most people seem to. But there was one idea that stuck with me.
Instead of focusing on what you want to accomplish, decide who you want to become. Then build habits that move you toward becoming that person.
That got me thinking.
What kind of Christian do I want to be?
The answer came pretty quickly.
I want to be someone who really knows the Bible.
Not just someone who knows about the Bible, but someone who has God’s Word hidden in his heart.
That decision led me to the Gospel of John.
The Moment I Knew It Was Worth It
The funny thing is, I almost immediately saw the payoff.
Just a couple of days into the project, my daughter came into the room. She had been talking with a friend whose grandfather had recently passed away, and they’d been looking up Bible verses together. She mentioned something about Jesus predicting His own resurrection.
Without even thinking, I said, “John 2. John 2:19.”
She opened her Bible and immediately pushed back.
“This is talking about the temple.”
Of course, that’s exactly what the people listening to Jesus thought too.
As she kept reading, she got to the explanation that Jesus was speaking about the temple of His body.
She looked up, smiled, and realized I was right.
After she left the room, I looked over at my wife and thought, I’m only on chapter two.
Before this project, I could have told you that Jesus predicted His resurrection. But now I knew exactly where to find it.
That was the moment I realized this wasn’t just an exercise in memorization. God’s Word was already becoming more available in everyday conversations.
Finding the Time
People have asked me how I had time to do this.
Honestly, I didn’t.
I work full time. My wife and I have four kids. I’m active at church, write books, create content online, and generally have more projects going than I probably should.
The key wasn’t finding more time.
It was redeeming time I already had.
I commute about 45 minutes each way to work three days a week. After finishing my Bible-in-a-year reading each morning, I stopped listening to podcasts and started using that drive to memorize Scripture instead.
No extra hours.
Just better use of existing ones.
I also kept the pace realistic.
I never memorized more than one new chapter on any given day and never more than three new chapters in a week. The other commute days were dedicated entirely to review.
At that pace, I memorized the Gospel of John in about two months.
The Memory Chain
The technique itself is pretty simple.
Every chapter gets a one-sentence summary.
Then I memorize one key passage from that chapter word for word.
The summaries connect together like links in a chain, allowing me to mentally walk through the entire Gospel from beginning to end.
For the verses themselves, I chose the New King James Version.
I don’t exclusively read the NKJV, but it’s the Bible someone gave me during one of the darkest seasons of my life. It’s also the Bible I was reading when I came to faith, so there’s a lot of sentimental value attached to it.
There’s also a practical reason.
The NKJV doesn’t always sound like the way we naturally speak today.
Oddly enough, that actually helps.
Because the wording is so specific, you can’t fake your way through it. You either know it or you don’t.
One tool that helped tremendously was my phone.
I’d record myself reading the chapter summary and passage into a voice memo, then play it back through the speakers while I drove. Once I learned the new chapter, I’d go all the way back to chapter one and recite everything I’d learned so far.
That constant review made all the difference.
What Surprised Me Most
One thing I didn’t expect was how often these passages would come to mind outside my scheduled practice.
I’d be mowing the lawn and suddenly find myself reviewing John 15.
I’d be in the shower and mentally walk through another chapter.
I’d be driving home from work and start reciting passages without even planning to.
It reminded me of Psalm 1, where the blessed man meditates on God’s law day and night.
For the first time, I felt like I understood what that looked like practically.
Another thing that helped was recording myself on camera.
It’s amazing how quickly a camera exposes the places where you aren’t quite as confident as you thought you were.
The same thing happened whenever I recited passages for my wife or kids.
It’s one thing to say the verses to yourself.
It’s another thing entirely when someone else is listening.
What’s Next?
I’m trying to decide what book to tackle next.
Right now, I’m considering Romans, Acts, James, or Philippians.
If you’d like to try this yourself, I’ve also put together a free Gospel of John Memory Chain guide that walks through the exact summaries and passages I used.
More than anything, I hope this encourages you.
You don’t have to memorize an entire book of the Bible to benefit from hiding God’s Word in your heart. Start with one chapter. Then another.
You might be surprised how quickly those small, faithful steps begin to change the way you think, the conversations you have, and the confidence you have when talking about your faith.