Forgetful, but Not Forgotten

We are all forgetful. This is a fact that none of us can get around. Even though we do not completely forget most of what is stored in our memory, we just have a hard time recalling it. Experts in this field recommend that our minds need exercise in order to stay fit. Here are some tips for an exercise that is of utmost importance.

    When people start the familiar topic of what it means to get older, it doesn’t take long for someone to mention memory loss. It seems that once we turn fifty we begin to realize that we too have become afflicted with this “disease”! What troubles us is that there doesn’t seem to be anything we can do about it. We feel like we’re the victim of forgetfulness. The things we could once remember effortlessly we now place in our memory bank with utmost care and deliberation. What can help us is writing things down. The only problem with that is that we end up forgetting where we put our reminder notes!

    It amazes us how many things we begin to forget! Names, places, phone numbers, birthdays, appointments, etc. We find ourselves standing in front of the fridge with the door open, but we’ve forgotten what we needed. We take our pills, and later can’t remember if we’ve taken them or not. It seems like we can easily recall only events that happened long ago. We are told that it’s called short-term memory loss.

    An elderly gentleman from our congregation called me with this request: “Please pray for me. I desperately want to remember what you preach! It seems that as soon as I leave the sanctuary after the worship service, I’ve already forgotten what your message was about.”

    There’s a knock on the door to my office. I run down the stairs to open it. An older gentleman is standing there, dressed in his Sunday best. “Isn’t there a service today?” he asks.

    “Dear brother,” I reply, “the service is tomorrow. Today is Saturday.” Slowly he walks back home. He has forgotten which day of the week it is. I feel sorry for him. But many find themselves in a similar predicament. Maybe that includes you...

    There are a number of things we can do to make life more manageable when our memory starts to go. We are informed about taking vitamins, making lists, learning to consciously repeat things, or playing various association games.

    I would like to draw your attention to something else, however, in our conversation about forgetfulness. You are surely familiar with Psalm 103; perhaps you memorized the first lines of it many years ago. The psalm begins with an anthem of praise: “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless His holy name.” The second verse begins in exactly the same way, but ends differently: “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits.” This tells me that it is possible for us to become forgetful spiritually. The psalmist then lists a number of spiritual blessings that we are not to forget.

    It can happen to us. When we are under pressure, plagued with stress, or when we’re gripped by a disease, or if we’re worried about the times we live in, or whatever it may be, we become so involved in our situation that we no longer see the reality of the whole picture. Martin Luther, a former monk, married Katherine von Bora. The story is told that he once became so depressed in spirit that he did not know what to do with himself. His wife was unable to encourage him. Then she had an idea. She put on a black dress. When she entered his room, Luther was shocked and asked who had died. “God has died,” she answered. “If you are no longer praying, speaking, or singing, then God is dead to you and has no power.” A light dawned in Luther. In his sadness and depression, he had forgotten God, and his situation only worsened as a result.

May I suggest a few things that you and I should never forget? Let’s just begin each of the following points with the words, Forget not…

…that God is alive. Even though everything may darken around us, even though we can speak about the dire circumstances that we live in, or about the future that seems grim and bleak, let’s remember that God is still alive and has not given up His control. He still sits on His throne. I was struck by a phrase I read in a book: “By the way, God is still here.” I wrote it down, and today the phrase greets me from where it hangs on my office wall. When my life grinds to a halt and there seems to be no way out, I look at that sentence. When darkness seems to be winning, then don’t forget: God is still alive.

… that God has not forgotten you. This is an enduring fact. It may occasionally feel like He has forgotten you, but the fact remains that He has not. A songwriter puts it this way: “Though I feel nought of your might, yet You’re on my journey, e’ven through the night.”

…that God neither sleeps nor slumbers. We read this in Psalm 121:3-4: “He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.” While we go to bed and our eyes give way to sleep, He keeps watch.

…that God knows you. Just as you are, with your needs, trials, and burdens. He is familiar with every one of our difficulties, fears, anxieties, and He sees every tear that wells from our eyes. Jesus once stated that He knows us down to the very number of hairs that are on our head (Matthew 10:30).

…that God knows what is best for us. We need to accept that there is a difference between what we desire for ourselves and what is for our best. In His great wisdom, God plans our future from a perspective that transcends time. He wants us to reach our destination. Trust Him therefore in His direction. If you keep with Him, you’re in safe hands. He has never yet made a faulty decision.

…that God will bring us through this time. A songwriter says: “How He will bring me through, I cannot know, but that He will bring me through, of this I’m sure.” God is not just the Author of our faith; He is its Finisher. He will protect us, strengthen us, and give us victory until we enter the safe waters of our eternal harbor.

…that God is capable of dealing with every difficulty. We are weak, but His power in us makes us strong. God knows no hopeless situation. You will never hear God say, “This one is too hard for me,” or, “this is one I’m not equipped to handle.” He is our Almighty God and our Abba; transcendent and immanent. This I never want to forget.

…that God has not changed. He helped three men in a fiery furnace, Daniel in the den of lions, and Paul and Silas in a Philippian jail. He is the same today. He always has enough power to help in every situation.

    As we become more forgetful with age, we have to find ways to cope. It’s just part of life. It is good to know, however, that though we forget, we are not forgotten. Jesus tells us that God remembers even the sparrows. The little, insignificant sparrow finds a place in the heart of God: “Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins? And not one of them is forgotten before God” (Luke 12:6). Jesus says, “Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?” (Luke 6:26) And the prime example from Scripture? “Can a woman forget her nursing child, And not have compassion on the son of her womb? Surely they may forget, Yet I will not forget you.” 

Thank-you, Lord Jesus, that you do not forget us!

Harry Semenjuk

Edmonton, AB