Tag: memory

Do Not Forget (Proverbs 3:1)

We tackle Proverbs 3 this week, and before we jump in, I just want to say a huge thank you for your comments so far. I hope you have been enjoying it and it has increased your hunger for wisdom.

My difficulty in writing about the Proverbs is knowing how deep to dive. As you can imagine, we could study a single line each day and spend the next 10 years on the book! Perhaps that is not a bad thing, but I do want to encourage you to study the depths for yourself too.

My son, don’t forget my teaching;

    but let your heart keep my commandments:

Proverbs 3:1 (WEB)

The chapter opens with an instruction not to forget the teaching. That sounds simple enough, but I wonder how easy it is?

This post lands on a Monday, and if I ask you what your pastor taught on yesterday at church, can you remember? What about the previous Sunday?

I mentioned before that I enjoy a number of Christian podcasts, and listened to several over the weekend. What were they about? Am I able to give you a summary? Not easily! The reason is, although I listened, I did not engage with the teaching. I agreed with it, found it helpful, but took no notes and did other things while listening. I may retain some surface knowledge of the subject, but did not meditate on it nor store up the knowledge in my heart (as Proverbs 3:1b encourages us to).

God has been leading me to “consume” less and to engage more. It is not about how many sermons I listen to, but what I learn from the ones I do.

It is not about how many sermons I listen to, but what I learn from the ones I do. #Bible #Christianity #Memory

Being perfectly honest with you, I am not doing very well with this command. I have cut back on the range of messages I listen to, but I cannot say that I have taken the steps I need to really engage more.

What I need to do, and I offer this as a suggestion for you also, is as follows:

  • Slow down
  • Give it my full attention
  • Make notes
  • Apply

Taking each in turn, I must first slow down. I turn up the speed on my podcast player so that a 30-minute sermon takes much less time. This may be of use in certain situations, but if trying to learn something, then slow and steady is far better.

As above, I tend to plug my earbuds in, turn on a podcast and then do a hundred other things while listening. Again, this is not wholly wrong but it must also mean that I am not giving the teaching my full attention. I may hear the words being said, but are they penetrating my heart? Unlikely. Rather, I should be sat down, limiting distractions and focus on the subject at hand.

My memory is naturally good, and so I have never been too reliant on notes. the truth is though, that when we write notes about something we are listening to, we are processing that information. Our retention of that message will be far greater if we have written down key things that were important to us.

Many years ago, I started a journal of sorts where I wrote down particular Bible verses and bullet points about things the Lord had shared with me (be it directly or through others’ teaching). This was a very7 helpful practice and I had hoped to build an almost entire commentary over the course of my life. I have let it slip, although still have it, and perhaps this post is a nudge from God to pick that up again.

Finally, if we really want to ensure we do not forget a teaching, we must apply it. We need to assess what we have learned and decide what we will do about it. Not every passage in the Bible lends itself to practical action. For instance, it is easier to apply an instruction to pray from an epistle, than it is to apply something from a historical narrative or word of prophecy.

Most Bible teaching should lead us to some form of corresponding action. I am quite a practical person so am always reading the Scriptures, and looking for something I can do with them. Often I am thinking, “How would I teach this passage?” It is not always a healthy approach, and so we should handle the Bible text appropriately.

Having discussed only one verse from Proverbs 3, I am coming to a close on this post. All that I have said above about not forgetting teaching applies also to blogs you and I read. I follow a number of Bible and Christian blogs, and all are helpful at times. Do I fully engage with them though? The truth is not always. I read, like, and then move on to the next one, missing huge opportunities to grow in my faith. How about you?

Will you take the steps above to improve your recollection of Bible teaching? Let me know how you get on.

Get into the Word (PoW#23)

Pearl of Wisdom #23

If you get into the Word of God, then the Word of God will get into you!

You will never be a strong or successful Christian unless you get into the Word of God in the Bible. Consider the Bible as your spiritual food!

As you begin to study the Word of God and absorb it’s truths, those truths will begin to shape your life. As you get into the Word, it will begin to get into you as well.

This means that when you need it, the Holy Spirit can bring the Word to your memory. He can bring that Word to life in any situation. The Bible describes the Word of God as a “sword of the Spirit,” and the Spirit can put that “sword” in your hand when you need it.

As you read and study the Bible, the truths you learn will change your mind – how you think. It will shine light on areas you need God’s help with, and it will encourage and strengthen you.

Get into the Word this week, and let that Word shape your life!

Life is not a dress rehearsal (PoW#19)

Pearl of Wisdom #19

Life is not a dress rehearsal

We only get one shot at life, and it is often far shorter than we would like. There is no dress rehearsal, and we do not get a second chance.

We must make the most of every single day!

All of us look back over our lives and wish we had done certain things differently. We recall wasted opportunities or mistakes, and wonder what might have been. This is not without value, but we cannot live in the past.

Even if you have wasted every day up to now, you can still make the best of whatever time you have left. Don’t waste it! Time is the one thing you cannot get more of.

You can’t change what has been, but you can do whatever you can to make the most of the rest of your life. Be blessed.

One Day’s Dream is Another Day’s… (PoW#14)

Pearl of Wisdom #14

What is now in the junkyard was once somebody’s lifelong dream.

Life is a funny thing, and is so often dictated by the drive to gain material possessions. It is not wrong to have things, and indeed we need many of them, but it ought to shock us to realise how much of our lives are driven by the pursuit of “stuff”.

It is even more humbling when we consider that whatever we gain in life – materially that is – cannot come with us. Whatever you believe about the afterlife, surely you will agree that none of these possessions we worked so hard to get can come with us.

Think about what you will one day leave behind. Your dream, whatever it was and no matter how long it took you to build, will ultimately age, breakdown or be thrown away.

Junkyards and rubbish dumps are full of things that were perhaps once someone lifelong dream.

I don’t say any of this to depress you! But I’ve learned that life is very short compared with eternity, and we only get one shot at it. Don’t waste your life working for something that will one day be trashed.

Work out what is really important and start building a lasting legacy.

Pearl of Wisdom #5

If you know how to worry, then you also know how to meditate.

The word “meditation” can conjure up a mixture of images in our minds these days. For many, it refers to something like Buddist meditation, or some other form of this “spiritual” or “religious” practice.

For the Christian however, meditation means something quite different. Instead of focussing on ourselves, we focus on God and His Word. Meditation simply means to chew over or mull the meaning of a particular Scripture – the idea being to get every bit of goodness we can from it. It also enables the Word to get rooted deep down inside of us.

If you know how to worry, then you know how to meditate. Worrying is just negative meditation. Rolling a problem around your mind over and over. But instead of focussing on the problem, why not focus on something positive? Take a relevant Scripture and mull it over all day long. Just see what benefits you get from it. If nothing else, your mind will be on something useful.

Don’t worry, meditate!

Forget Me Not

All the Benefits of Believing (ATBOB) #2

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits,

Psalm 103:2 (ESV)

 

We continue our series on “All the Benefits of Believing” with the second verse of this great Psalm. And it’s a cracker…!

This verse repeats the phrase found in verse one – Bless the Lord, O my soul! I discussed before that this encourages us to stir ourselves up to praise God – even in times when that might be difficult. In such times, we must speak to ourselves – our own souls – and remind ourselves of the many reasons to worship the Lord. No matter how bad things get in this life, there are always more reasons to praise.

If you are reading this now, then you must have Internet access – a blessing if used correctly! But more than that, you probably have eyes to read it. Look around you, wherever you are, and there are likely many reasons to be thankful. Whether it is lighting, heat, electricity, a roof, food or drink or many other physical things. Beyond that, if you are interested in this subject, then you either know God or are seeking Him. So the reasons to praise God are already mounting up.

Our petition should not outweigh our praise!

This verse instructs us not to forget all of God’s benefits, and we see this little word – all – once again.

Remembering – forgetting not – the benefits of the Lord is a powerful thing to do. What our mind dwells on has a huge impact on our lives. The fruit of your life today depends greatly on the thoughts you sowed yesterday. Joyce Meyer says, “Where the mind goes, the man follows.”

For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he…

Proverbs 23:7a (KJV)

Our minds are incredibly powerful, and everything we perceive in life goes through the “filter” of our inner thought life. If that filter is clogged or damaged, then our perception could be off. For instance, if someone doesn’t return your call straightaway, it could be that they are angry with you and that you have offended them in some way. Or, it could simply be that they are busy right now.

How we choose to use our minds impacts our life

We can use our minds in many different ways. This verse is instructing us about how we use our memory.

When you think back, what key events or situations stand out in your memory? Are they generally positive or negative? It’s probably easier to recall in vivid details the times when you have been hurt or when some tragedy befell you. Perhaps it’s in our nature to dwell on the bad, rather than the good, but it is a choice.

Ultimately, you can choose what you think about and how you use your memory.

There are times when we need to examine a bad thing that happened to us, and work through it. I’m thinking of those who experienced some kind of trauma. I’m not suggesting you simply bury those experiences and don’t deal with them in the proper way.

However, if we spend our time recalling only the bad things that have happened to us, then our minds – and subsequently our lives – will not be in a good place.

For even though they knew God [as the Creator], they did not honor Him as God or give thanks [for His wondrous creation]. On the contrary, they became worthless in their thinking [godless, with pointless reasonings, and silly speculations], and their foolish heart was darkened.

Romans 1:21 (AMP)

Here Paul explains how some fall away from the Christian faith. Even though they knew God as Creator, they didn’t honour Him as such. Paul points out that they stopped giving thanks and that their thinking became worthless.

We must not allow our thoughts to become worthless. We must continue to give thanks always. We must not forget all the many reasons to worship God.

What is your thought life like? Perhaps you’ve never thought about it! Try to memorise this verse from Psalm 103 (above) and if you find yourself not being thankful, complaining or dwelling on negatives, then speak to yourself. Don’t allow yourself to forget the benefits of God. Think back over your relationship with Him, and the times He has come through for you.

Your memory is extremely powerful – don’t waste it!