‘What Should I Do with All These Notes?’

We had numerous opportunities to savor delicious food during the weeklong Feast of Tabernacles as well as the Last Great Day. While those meals have long been digested, the spiritual meals we enjoyed still need to be absorbed.

Can you remember what the sermonette was about on the fourth day? What were the important verses from the first sermon on the Last Great Day? The fact is, we all forget things! Properly reviewing your Feast notes is essential to getting the maximum benefit from the messages that were prepared for your spiritual welfare.

Yet going back over your notes can seem to be a huge, intimidating task. To get the most from this important exercise, you must break the process into manageable tasks.

(1) Set a Goal

To start, it is important to set a goal. This will give you focus, help measure progress, and give you the motivation to finish. Using all the points in this article, track how long it takes you to review the messages from one service. Knowing that there were 12 services during the Feast, you should be able to roughly calculate how long it will take you to review your Feast notes in their entirety.

Consider alternately reviewing Feast messages with other forms of Bible study to ensure you are getting a balanced spiritual diet. Another consideration includes keeping up with going over weekly Sabbath notes.

Whatever you do, avoid the urge to put off completing this project too far down the road when your memory will be even more hazy. Make it your goal to review your notes by a specific date.

(2) Put in the Time

The more effort you put into revisiting your notes, the more you will get out of them. A first step for each message is to review what you wrote and the Bible passages—but do not stop there. As you go, add to your notes, perhaps with a different color pen.

Set aside adequate time to meditate on the message and the referenced scriptures. Notice Psalm 119:15: “I will meditate in Your precepts, and have respect unto Your ways.”

Have you ever looked up the definition of meditate? Strong’s Concordance defines the original Hebrew word as “to ponder, converse with oneself and hence aloud, utter, speak, and talk with.”

Meditating on a message can mean to sit quietly and contemplate what you are learning. However, there is clearly also an audible component!

Try reading key parts of your notes aloud—the Bible verses too!—to activate auditory links in your memory. Researchers have found that reading something out loud can sharpen your focus and result in greater comprehension.

Abraham Lincoln wholeheartedly believed in this learning tool. He stated, “When I read aloud, two senses catch the idea: first, I see what I read; second, I hear it, and therefore I can remember it better.”

Another way to get more out of your Feast notes is to ask yourself questions. These do not have to be complicated or overly profound. One example: “How can I apply this sermonette or sermon to my life?” While this exercise can seem simplistic, answering such questions can help each message spur you to action and become part of who you are.

(3) “Get Wisdom”

Next, notice Proverbs 4:7: “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all your getting get understanding.”

An acceptable definition of understanding is “to become intelligent.” A great way to “become intelligent” about the subjects taught at your Feast site is to summarize each message on a separate piece of paper. When creating your summary, some helpful questions to ask yourself are: What are the key points? What was the intention of the speaker? Was the message meant to inspire me or was it meant to motivate me?

Being able to summarize the message, in your own words, shows understanding and will help ensure that the message sticks.

Setting a goal to review your notes, meditating on them, and becoming intelligent about them will help guarantee that the spiritual food we received becomes the godly “vitamins and minerals” we need to become more effective Christians.