“Jesus loves me – this I know, for the Bible tells me so.” I remember hearing this hymn a great deal growing up. We would sing it during Sunday school class, and my mom sang it with my sister and me at home. So thankfully, as a child, I was no stranger to the fact that God loved me.

The first verse I memorized as a child was John 3:16. I attended a youth Bible study hosted by Awanas, a Christian non-profit organization, to help young people grow in their faith. One of the challenges they gave us was to memorize a verse weekly. Since then, my love for God’s word has grown, and I’ve continued memorizing verses. Yet, my first memory verse will always have a special meaning in my heart.