Remember!

This is one of the saddest passages in the Bible:

They believed His words;

They sang His praises.

They soon forgot His works.

 Psalm 106:12-13

God has told us many times to remember all we’ve seen Him do and to tell our children and grandchildren (Deuteronomy 4:9), and yet:

“Many churches have forgotten

the premium that the historic Judeo-Christian tradition

placed on remembrance …

and recalling the right things.

The ‘great sin’ of the Old Testament

was forgetfulness

(at least it is the most recurrent offense).

‘Remember’ is the most frequent command

in the Old Testament.”

(Clapham Memo, January 19, 2007,

“Back and Forth,” by Mike Metzger; emphasis mine)

Memoirists have a great honor, a high privilege: We get to “Remember His marvelous works which He has done (Psalm 105:5).

Memoirists have the joy of putting into words what we’ve seen God do. I’m not talking about supernatural events that would get tweeted around the world—though such noteworthy things happen sometimes. No, mostly we write about everyday events because most of us are ordinary people living ordinary lives—yet God is in the midst of our everyday lives, working out His best for us, blessing us, working out His ultimate purposes.

“Almighty God,

You are a very present help in trouble.

Today, I want to remember all the times

You have helped me in trouble.

I am quick to cry out to You for help,

but I am slow to remember the countless times

You intervened to meet my deepest needs.

Especially I remember _______ and _______.

Thank You, Lord.”  

(Lloyd John Ogilvie, Quiet Moments with God; 

emphasis mine)

Remembering takes time. Remembering requires commitment. Be intentional. Carve out times and quiet places that will give you opportunities to remember, and be sure to have pencil and paper with you.

Remembering, rediscovering, what God has done—and connecting the dots—will knock your socks off. You’ll be more blessed than you can imagine.

Related post: Gathering Up your memories

Gathering up your memories

Amy Carmichael died sixty years ago but, because she made time to write, her words still touch many of us.

Her words sound old fashioned, but they contain wisdom we can apply to our memoirs:

Psalm 106:12–13 They believed His words;

                         They sang His praises.

                         They soon forgot His works.  

Have you ever known a weakening in the inward places of your soul because you had let slip the memory of what your God did in the past? You had believed His words, you had sung His praises, for in very truth you had seen His words fulfilled. And then, somehow, the memory faded, blotted out by a disappointment perhaps, and you “forgat His works.”

. . . May the Lord, by His Spirit, quicken our memories, and help us to do our part by gathering up the forces of memory. It is worthwhile to do anything that will help us to do this. “We will remember Thy love” and all the way the Lord our God has led us [references to Song of Solomon 1:4, Deuteronomy 8:2]. (Amy Carmichael, Edges of His Ways; emphasis mine)

“Many churches have forgotten the premium that the historic Judeo-Christian tradition placed on remembrance … and recalling the right things. The ‘great sin’ of the Old Testament was forgetfulness (at least it is the most recurrent offense). ‘Remember’ is the most frequent command in the Old Testament.” (Clapham Memo, January 19, 2007, “Back and Forth,” by Mike Metzger; emphasis mine)

God’s heart longs for us to remember the marvelous things He has done (Psalm 105:5) but, like Mike Metzger and Amy Carmichael point out, we tend to forget. What are we to do?

If you’ve kept a journal over the years, you have a treasure. Your journal is an excellent resource for important events and details you might have otherwise forgotten. (To see the difference between journaling and memoir, see memoir definition, below.)

Some of you, or your relatives, have saved old letters and they, too, help you remember.

If you’re like me, you’ve jotted memories in the margins of your Bible and daily devotionals and Bible studies.

Some people print out special e-mails they’ve sent or received.

All these help gather up memories.

Always remember what you’ve seen God do,

and be sure to tell your children and grandchildren!

Deuteronomy 4:9

What important things have you forgotten?

What will you do to reclaim them?

Every time you rediscover a significant occasion you want to include in your memoir, jot down a few sentences, and keep adding events to your list.

Be like Amy Carmichael: Make time to write, and perhaps sixty years from now, others will receive blessing and encouragement from you.

Enjoy the process!

Related post: What is a memoir: http://spiritualmemoirs101.blogspot.com/2011/04/what-is-memoir.html