In My Heart and On My Lips

By Chad D Curtis

God's Word from the pages, through our minds, to our hearts, and out of our mouths!

This book walks the reader through a 52-week process of memorizing one passage from each of the 66 books of the Bible.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Chad Curtis
• Release date: Oct 12, 2022
• ISBN: 9798218026363

Book preview

Acknowledgments

The first group I want to recognize are the guys who sat with me at our Bible studies in prison. This book is the product of what we were walking through together:

Adrian Level 2 – Rick, Erik, Aaron, Alexander, Daricell, Donnie, JB, Tom, Grant, Paul, Jordan, Bill, Charlton, Terry, Daniel, John, Brentwood, Joe, KT, Nick, Rocca, Danny, Wolf

Adrian Level 1 – Aaron, Jonah, Moose, Steve, Bryan, Will, Mario, Anthony, John (RIP), Ken, Shane, Tim, Wesley, Mike, Luke

Newberry – Keaton, Evan, Chris, Joe, Jonathan, Sisco, Robert, AJ, Matt, Chad, Jason, Mike, Brandon, Jaeger, Shane

Cotton (Jackson) – Aaron, Nate, Wayne, Chris, Keith, Terrance, Steve, Michael, Leon, Dave, Huck

Help and encouragement from the outside was vital while I was in. Thanks Candace, Cori, Cassidy, CJ, Cephas, CaeLynne, Camryn, Brian, Pastor Jeff, Pastor Craig, Pastor Ardo, Joni, Bob, Dale, Barb (RIP), Marion, Jim, Ken, Carol, Marilee

Thanks for Helping in my transition back to freedom: Jim and Kerry - hospitality; Calvary Church – worship: Pastor Jeff, Steve, Steve and Kevin – accountability; Brian and Essie – generosity and a friend closer than a brother; Myka – grace from the most unlikely of places; Ryan and Rudi – acceptance; Bob – care; Andy and Clayton – new vision; Arvid – for the push I needed to get this book in print.

From the Author

In my half century of life, I have experienced many of the normal things we all go through. I also experienced two things less common played out on very public stages: I spent 10 years playing Major League Baseball – six different teams. During those years I played with and against my childhood heroes, with and against future Hall of Famers, and was a part of two World Series Championships. Throughout this time, my daily activities were reported on ESPN. I also spent 7 years incarcerated in the Michigan Department of Corrections. The last 10 years of my life have been on public display as well: two years pre-trial, a very public trial, sentencing, a federal civil suit, and now parole.

I had a goal from an early age to be a professional athlete. I was given a measure of giftedness to accomplish this goal, but had I not dedicated myself to developing and refining those gifts I never would have experienced the accomplishment. A mentor once told me that our decisions determine our destiny. I decided to lift weights, seek out good instruction, and eat right (no dessert, candy, or pop for 8 years). It was no mistake that I found myself on one of the top rungs of this world’s ladder of success. My decisions had allowed me to taste the coveted fruit of success.

During a time of life that leaders of homes should be on the battlefield with their families, I instead found myself gazing at the beauty of a young lady. Much like my namesake, David, instead of turning away, I allowed my evil desires to drag me away (James 1:14). When we do not do what is right sin is crouching at our door and it desires to have us (Gen. 4:7). God will always provide the way out of temptation, but it is up to us to follow His leading (1 Cor. 10:13). The downward spiral began. Before long one bad decision led to another, then another. My deliberate, selfish choices had me in a place I never imagined I would be - prison. My decisions were allowing me to taste the bitter fruit of failure.

I memorized scripture as a child while a part of the AWANA program. It is a good thing to get God’s Word into our minds. David said he was hiding God’s Word in his heart so that he might not sin. Let’s make no mistake - there is a difference between having His Word in our minds and in our hearts. During my season of failure, I could quote verse after verse that would have screamed Stop, change, redirect. I chose to continue my sinful path.

Jeremiah told us that our hearts are desperately wicked. The old hymn recognizes that the heart is prone to wander. Solomon told his son to guard his heart. How do we do this?

For a decade of my life there was nothing more important to me than making it to the big leagues and establishing myself as worthy of being there. After I had accomplished that I found myself unfulfilled and depressed – the eggs were in the wrong basket. I asked a couple guys from my local church to help me root this idolatry out of my system. It was not easy, but by God’s grace, their help and my diligence, new priorities were created. I prayed that God would either take me out of my profession or use me in it for His glory. Shortly after, I found myself sitting in daily pre-game Bible studies with my Yankee teammate/brothers. ESPN voted the 1998 Yankees the best sports team in the history of sports. There were things going on behind the scenes that few knew about. By the time I hit a walk-off homerun in the 1999 World Series, baseball was no longer a life-defining element of my life but an opportunity to reflect the Light of Jesus.

Fifteen years later I was sitting in prison reading my Bible when Rick Ragap came up to me and asked if I would help him understand that book. The two of us started in Romans – not just verse by verse, but word by word. It was a matter of days before Eric, and then Aaron joined us. Before long, half the dayroom was filled with convicts listening, pondering, and discussing God’s timeless Truth. We started a verse memorization plan that we called our toolbox. Different problems require different tools. If we do not have those tools ready and available, we are unprepared. Eventually we decided to try to memorize at least one passage from every book in the Bible. If the book is worthy to be preserved, it is most certainly worthy of storing a piece of it in our hearts.

My actions led me to a dark environment, but His Light was starting to shine in that place. Was it possible that even after my failure I could be used as a prisoner for His glory? Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways submit to Him and He will make your paths straight. The verse had been in my mind for years. I coached my children to memorize this scripture when they were young. Now was the time for it to move from my mind to my heart.

Let’s pause there a second. What does that mean – heart? We talk about asking Jesus into our hearts, but what does that mean? Jesus, please come into the four-chambered, blood pumping organ in my chest? Of course not! The best I have come up with is that the heart is recognized as the core, or center, of life for our bodies. If my fingers and toes are going to stay useful and active, they must regularly receive oxygenated blood from my heart. So, can we conclude that to ask Jesus into our heart is to allow Him to touch and control every aspect of who we are? That would make Him Master – Lord! I believe that is what our Luke verse will tell us.

Similarly, to hide God’s Word in our heart, or core, would be to allow His Word to have the final say in every aspect of my life – relationships, job, purpose, even what I do with temptation. Trusting Him from my core means that when my agenda and His Word collide, I go with His Word. Had I applied that to my situation in a high school training room ten years ago I would not have had to experience the crooked path of prison.

Hebrews 12 tells us that God disciplines those He loves and that if we are willing to be trained by that discipline it will produce a harvest of righteousness in us. That is great news! I have had many days when a voice creeps in and tells me, You’re a loser that could never be used for anything positive again. I believe the Voice of Truth¹ tells me a different story. Our memorized passage from Joel helps me listen to the right Voice: "Even now declares the Lord, return to me with all your heart. With fasting and weeping and mourning. Rend your hearts and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God because he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity. Who knows, he may turn and