When I think of my ability to remember things, sometimes I find it amazing!  Sure, there are lots of things I don’t remember, like each week when the garbage has to go out … I still need a reminder for that.  Sometimes I need more that one reminder.  If you’re driving by my house at midnight on Tuesday (or, is it Wednesday?), it’s possible that you might see me putting the garbage out to the curb.

When you think of it though, on so many things our ability to recall is astounding.  Take phone numbers, for instance.  Some people can remember not only their own phone number, but they know all their relatives’ phone numbers and many of their friends’ numbers as well.  My wife Lily is like that; she’s my personal yellow pages if I need to call someone in our family.

The other day I was flicking channels on the TV and PBS had a special on the Ed Sullivan show.  (If you’ve never heard of that show, it was an entertainment show that ran from 1948-1971.)  This particular PBS special featured musical acts from the 60’s, so I tuned in.

It was great to see some of the bands perform from way back.  But what struck Lily was that I knew the words to many of the songs.  At one point she said, “You were 11 when that song was out and you know every word!”  I thought about it later, and I don’t even know how I learned the words.  They just got stuck in my memory.

Lily didn’t stay too long.  So there I was, alone, singing away with the likes of Herman’s Hermits, The Beatles, Jerry and Pacemakers, Lulu, and yes, even Tom Jones.  I was asked to shut the basement door as if that would create a sound barrier to my singing, that apparently got louder and louder as I got more into it.  What Lily was really hoping for was the “cone of silence” from “Get Smart” (another 60’s TV show).  When I came upstairs later, Lily had an ice pack on her neck.  She said that her neck had been bad for weeks, but I’m wondering if maybe my singing finished it off.

I did enjoy myself though.  I could even remember guitar solos, drum beats – I sang them too.  For about an hour my memory was digging deep, bringing song after song to the front of my mind.  I guess I overtaxed it though, because I couldn’t remember where I put the remote when it was over.

Here is the thing:  God says that when He forgives us, our sins are gone, taken away “as far as the east is from the west”.  So when we have confessed our sins to Him, and then still feel guilty for them, it’s not God punishing us, or needling us with those sins.  It’s our own excellent memory that keeps them coming back!  What we need to do is be a little more selective with what we remember when it comes to our past sins.  We need to treat our past sins more like taking out the garbage or remembering where we put the remote control.

Until Next Time!

Pastor Paul

Question: How do you prevent your past from plaguing you with guilt?