Participating in the National Bible Bee is fun and exciting, but each individual has different experiences. Tabitha Everling lives in Texas, is part of a family of nine kids, and has loved to participate in the NBB. Let’s hear from Tabitha about her time in the NBB:
“My name is Tabitha Everling and I just turned 18 years old. That means that this is my last year being allowed to participate in the National Bible Bee. I am sad that I have to stop, but the journey of learning doesn’t have to stop. I can still study and memorize God’s word and encourage others who are still in the National Bible Bee. Our family found out about the NBB in 2017, and signed up the year after that. I have made it to the National Bible Bee Competition in 2018 and 2019. This is my third and last year, but my siblings will probably still participate even though I cannot. I am so amazed that I got to go to the NBBC my very first year, and the second year, I just barely got in because I was 117th! I really hope I can do better than the last two years because I only have one more chance. I am also hoping to get over my “stage fright” because oral recitations make me so nervous.
“My favorite part of the National Bible Bee is so hard to pick. I guess I’ll have to settle for three things: I love meeting new friends, learning new information, and the way God brings memorized verses to mind in time of need. I also think that it is so cool to see how God can show you how certain verses work together to make a bigger picture. I loved to see all the unity between the competitors. Although they were competitive, they found ways to encourage and cheer each other on and be genuinely excited for the winners.
“I am not the best at studying, but I use quizlet.com, classmarker.com, and scripturetyper.com to help me. I study background information, context, Greek and Hebrew words, memory passages, my Discovery Journal, and cross-references.
“If I wanted someone to join the NBB, I would say GO FOR IT! It may seem daunting, but it is worth all the work. Even if you don’t get far, that’s okay. God can use every little thing you learn and memorize for His glory and He can change your life through what you study. One tip I would give a person is to never give up, lean on God for encouragement, don’t forget to pray, and enjoy yourself. And make sure to review all your memory passages once a day if you can. If you can’t, maybe you could split your passages into two parts and review one section the first day and the second section the next day and then repeat. I hope you found this encouraging. Keep your eyes on Jesus. Keep going strong in the race that is set before us!”
Written by NBB Alumna: Abigail Charleston
