Bible Drill and Speakers

Congratulations to our 2021 High School Essay Winner – Suanna Morris! As the 2021 winner, she is the recipient of a $500 College Scholarship to use at the college of her choice. Suanna is a 9th grader and is Homeschooled. She is a member of Covenant Baptist Church in Valdosta, GA. This year’s High School Essay Topic was “Living for Christ in a Woke Culture.”

You can download and read a copy of her essay using this link:

For more information on our essay contests, you can visit our webpage.

Fun, life-changing, sticks with me, and I want to keep doing it! These words are not describing a new app, or a fun road trip. All of these are words that have been used to describe Bible Drill.

Fun – I memorized Bible Verses during this time (Bible Drill), I had fun at competitions, made lifelong friendships, improved my public speaking (Student Speakers), and most importantly, I had the opportunity to share God’s Word with others – Sarah North Scheffler (former Bible Drill and Speakers Competition State Winner)

Life-changing – “I cannot adequately express how important Bible Drill was as a part of my spiritual formation. I didn’t simply memorize verses; I developed a love for scripture. To this day, I can recite many of the verses I learned in the mid-1980’s. These verses guided me through childhood, and they continue to guide me as an adult. Even though many of our discipleship methods have changed, I remain committed to the simple, life-changing ministry of Bible Drill. – Rev. Inman Houston – Pastor, FBC, Lawrenceville, GA

Sticks with me – ” These scriptures (from Bible Drill) will stick with me the rest of my life.” – Mary Carol Kletcke, 9-year-driller, FBC Cochran

I want to keep doing it – “I just wanted to keep doing it (Bible Drill) over and over again.” – Will Bowick, 9-year Driller, FBC Monroe

Bible Drill is truly an investment for a lifetime as spiritual foundations are laid in the lives of kids and students. This Giving Tuesday, invest for a lifetime by donating to Georgia Baptist Bible Drill and Speakers, Inc.

We are excited to announce our 2022 Event Dates and Locations! Mark your calendars!

April 14 – Regional Drill, Bible Skills Exhibition, and Student Speakers Competition – Tom’s Creek, Martin

April 12 – Regional Drill, Bible Skills Exhibition, and Student Speakers Competition – FBC Douglas

April 18 – Regional Drill, Bible Skills Exhibition, and Student Speakers Competition – FBC Lawrenceville

April 19 – Regional Drill, Bible Skills Exhibition, and Student Speakers Competition – FBC Cochran

April 21 – Regional Drill, Bible Skills Exhibition, and Student Speakers Competition – Cassville Baptist Church, Cartersville

April 24 – Regional Drill, Bible Skills Exhibition, and Student Speakers Competition – FBC Powder Springs

May 14 – State Youth and High School Bible Drill and Student Speakers Competition – FBC Monroe

June 16-17, 2022 – Nationals – Hosted by Georgia – FBC, Brunswick

Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.  And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.  You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.  You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. Deuteronomy 6:4-9

Posting scripture verses in a room are a great way to focus on and memorize God’s Word. Today, we are offering a free download of 10 Scripture verse posters. The posters are available in ESV, KJV, and CSB.

3 creative ways you can use these posters to help with scripture memorization:

1. Print out the posters on 8 1/2 x 11 cardstock, trim and insert one in an inexpensive 8 x 10 picture frame. Place the framed verse on your kitchen counter or table so that your family can read and memorize the verse together. Change the verse weekly (or monthly.)
2. Use in your Youth Bible Drill Class. Print these Cycle 2 Bible Answer Verses in color on 11×17 sheets. If you don’t have access to a copier that prints on 11 x17 paper, check out a local store that offers copy services. Hang the verse posters in your Classroom.
3. Print out 8 1/2 x 11 size on white cardstock and laminate. Use these with teaching activity stations as students are learning the verses.

Download ESV Verse Posters Here

Download KJV Verse Posters Here

Download CSB Verse Posters Here

Thank you to Karen North for creating these posters and sharing them with us! She is the Bible Drill Leader at Covenant Baptist Church in Valdosta, GA and one of our Georgia Baptist Bible Drill and Speakers, Inc board members.

5.  Psalm 56:3 – Light Switch Cover

• Items Needed:  Light switch cover and several colors of thin permanent markers
• Preparation:  None 
• Directions:  Have drillers print the verse onto the light switch cover, take it home, and put it in a place that they see each day to remind them of the verse.

6.  Psalm 119:11 – Bible Bag Knockdown

• Items Needed:  Paper bags, newspaper, permanent markers, and bean bag
• Preparation:  Print phrases from the verse onto paper bags including the reference for one bag.  Fill the bags with crumpled newspaper then staple bags at the top.  Line the bags up in a row.
• Directions:  Allow drillers to knock down one bag at a time with a bean bag.  When a bag is knocked down remove it and have the driller say the verse.  Repeat until there are no bags remaining.

7.  Proverbs 22:1 – Digging For Gold

• Items Needed:  large bowl, rice, and coins with phrases on it
• Preparation:  make several “coins” with phrases of the verse on them and fill bowl with rice
• Directions:   Let drillers take turns digging for gold in a large container of rice to find “gold” with phrases of the verse written on them.  Have them read the phrase as each coin is found.  When all of the coins are found have the children put the verse in order.

8.  Isaiah 6:8 – Voice Relay

• Items Needed:  None
• Preparation:  None
• Directions:  Divide drillers into two teams.  Next, divide each team in half.  Send 1^st half of both teams to the opposite side of the room.  Each half of the teams stands in lines and faces the rest of their team.  Divide the verse into parts depending on the number of children.  Example KJV:

Part 1 – Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying,

Part 2 – Whom shall I send,

Part 3 – and who will go for us?

Part 4 – Then I said, Here am I;

Part 5 – send me.

Part 6 – Isaiah 6:8

• Begin relay by having driller #1 of each ream run across the room toward the other part of their team saying part 1 of verse, and tag driller.  The tagged driller on each team then runs across the room to the opposite side while saying part 2 of the verse.  They will tag the next driller in line.  Continue until the verse is completed.  When the team has finished the relay, the halves of each team will have traded sides of the room and the verse will be complete.

For today’s blog post, I’ve gathered up 7 fun teaching activities! Scroll down and under each picture is a link to one of our webpages with complete instructions for creating and playing the game/doing the activity. The water games would be a great to include for a Bible Drill Kick-off or an extra Sunday afternoon practice while it’s still warm!

Pool hoop-de-loop and Kickboard Books of the Bible Scavenger Hunt

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Water Balloon Toss

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Looking for some new games and teaching activities to use this year in Children’s Bible Drill? Today, we’ve got 4 creative verse activities for you to use in teaching and reviewing the first 4 Blue Cycle Verses!

1.  Genesis 1:31 – Put the Verse in Order

• Items Needed:  Genesis 1:31 verse on cardstock, scissors, and laminator (optional)
• Preparation:  Print out the Genesis 1:31 verse onto cardstock. Cut apart and laminate.
• Directions:  Have drillers put the verse in order as quickly as they can.  Variation:  Using more than one set, have a relay to see which team can put the verse in order the quickest.

2.  Deuteronomy 16:17 – Fill in the Blanks

• Items Needed:  Poster board cut in half, permanent marker, and Jenga blocks
• Preparation:  Print every other word of the verse onto the poster board with a block shape the size of the Jenga block in between each word you have printed.  Print the words of the verse that were not printed onto the poster onto the Jenga blocks.  Don’t forget to include the reference.
• Directions:  Have the drillers fill in the spaces of the missing words with the correct word.  Drillers can see who can fill in the blanks the fastest.

3.  Joshua 24:24 – Spinning Top Game

• Item Needed:  Spinning top
• Preparation:  None
• Directions:  Use a spinning top (or multiple spinning tops).  For individual drillers or a pair of drillers – begin spinning the top and see how many times a driller can say Joshua 24:24 before the top stops spinning.  To play in teams (1 top needed per team) – spin the top and see how many times driller #1 can say the verse before it stops spinning.  Pass the top to driller #2 and repeat.  The team that can say the verse the most times wins.  

4.  1 Chronicles 16:9 – Sign a Verse

• Item Needed:  Signing video of verse
• Preparation:  View 1 Chronicles 16:9 video.  Become comfortable with the signs so that you can teach them to the children.
• Directions:  Teach the drillers the verse using the signs.

For some, writing an essay can be a fun and creative process. For others, it can be a challenge and sometimes intimidating. However, writing an essay can often also be beneficial.

This fall, Georgia Baptist Bible Drill and Speakers, Inc. is holding an essay contest that offers 3 benefits:

The first benefit is that of spiritual growth. Students who participate in the contest will engage with the topic and scripture as they develop their essay. This provides an opportunity for students to grow spiritually as they examine their beliefs. Churches, ministries, schools, and families can use this essay contest as a discipleship mentoring process for high school and college students. Mentors are encouraged to engage students through intentional conversation related to the topic. Students can be guided to examine God’s Word prayerfully as they begin to write. An added bonus is for students to discover that writing can be an avenue to share their faith with others.

The second benefit is the development of writing skills. Through the process of this essay contest, students can develop their writing skills. Parents, mentors and teachers can assist students in setting intentional goals in the development of their essay by guiding them in the development of an outline, a first draft, and final draft. An offer by a teacher or a mentor to proof their essay can be valuable in this process. Feedback students receive help students grow as writers.

The third benefit is a college scholarship. The winners of our High School and College Essay Contests each receive a $500 college scholarship to use at the school of their choice. For more information regarding our Essay Contests, visit our essay webpage using this link: Essay Contests

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Photo by Ivan Samkov on Pexels.com

Here are 10 tips to for kicking off a new year of Bible Drill:

• Determine when and where you will meet. Be creative and flexible. You can meet on Wednesday or Sunday nights at church, Thursday afternoon in a homeschool group, or with a group of friends during the week at your house!
• Plan a fun kick-off event to get kids and students excited about Bible Drill. Include some fun Bible Skill games as well as an overview/introduction of Bible Drill. Door prizes and food are always a big hit. Consider including parents (for Children’s Bible Drill).
• Choose your translation (ESV, KJV, or CSB) if you are beginning your first year of Bible Drill.
• Download Bible Drill cards in the translation of your choice from our website: https://bibledrillandspeakers.com
• Download our administrative materials including our New Children’s Bible Drill Leader’s Guide, Our handout on how to have a winning year in Bible Drill, and scoresheet. We also have similar administrative resources on our Youth and High School pages.
• Create a Bible Drill calendar or checklist for the school year. List out all the dates related to Bible Drill: Bible Drill kick-off/parent meeting, dates you will have class, dates you will take a break (due to holidays, fall festival, etc.), Christmas party, special practices/activities, and dates of the Church, Associational, Regional and State Drills as well as which verse(s) you will be teaching each night. We’ve created a checklist for each age group that you can fill in your dates. Children, Youth, and High School.
• Order Children’s Bible Drill Resources from https://www.lifeway.com/en/product-family/bible-skills-drills-thrills or contact Georgia Baptist Bible Drill and Speakers, Inc (maria@bibledrillandspeakers.com) for Youth Bible Drill Resources.  
• Utilize new resources this year in teaching Bible Drill: (1) Family Bible Drill Devotions for Children’s Bible Drill – Alabama Baptist Bible Drill (2) Use the Verse Ring cards from North Carolina featured on our Children, Youth, and High School pages. These are Bible Study flash cards about the size of a baseball card. Choose your age group and translation, then download and print out on white card stock. This is a great printable to have your drillers cut out and use to review verses. They can be used whenever and however you meet.
• Keep connected with Georgia Baptist Bible Drill and Speakers, Inc and other Bible Drill leaders by subscribing to our website/blog and/or by joining our Facebook group. By entering your email on our website, it will allow you to receive our latest Bible Drill updates by email. Joining our Facebook group is a great way to connect with other Bible Drill leaders in the state.
• Be flexible in how you do Bible Drill this year. Having a schedule with the flexibility to meet people where they are will allow us to engage more kids and students in discipleship and hiding God’s Word in their hearts. Download our free ebook that shares strategies for Bible Drill to take place at home, online, at church, or outdoors

I hope you have a fun year as you help kids and students develop a love for God’s Word and to memorize scripture! We’d love to hear what you have planned for your year in Bible Drill!

Each year we recognize Bible Drillers at the 3, 6, and 9 year milestones of participating at the Regional Level of Bible Drill. By the time students complete their 9th year of Bible Drill, in addition to learning Bible Skills, they have memorized 359 verses plus learned where 30 Key Passages of Scripture are located. At our State Drill this year, we asked two 9-year drillers (Will Bowick, FBC Monroe and Mary Carol Kletcke, FBC Cochran) to share what Bible Drill meant to them and/or how it helped them grow spiritually and their favorite Bible Drill verse.

These High School Students shared the following comments with us:

• It’s a great way to learn scripture and have fun.
• I just wanted to keep doing it (Bible Drill) over and over again.
• These scriptures will stick with me the rest of my life.
• I am going to miss it.

As I thought over their comments about their 9-year discipleship journey through Bible Drill, I asked myself, how many of us could view our last 9 years the same way?

• Are we learning scripture?
• Are we enjoying our time with God’s word (having fun)?
• Do we want to go back to God’s word over and over?
• Are we abiding in God’s word in such a way that His Word is with us throughout our lives?
• Do we miss it when we are not spending time in His Word?

What does Bible Drill mean to you? To your church as part of a discipleship journey?