The Things We Forget

by Rev. Jim HollandI’m reading through the Bible this year using the YouVersion Chronological Bible-reading Plan on my iPhone. I know that doesn’t sound very spiritual, reading on an iPhone and all. But for someone like me who isn’t very “spiritual” anyway, who has trouble remembering whether or not I have read the Bible today, who is often prone to trying to do “spiritual things” and get so busy I might miss a few days (typically on the weekends), and then can’t remember were I left off, then YouVersion on the computer, iPad or iPhone is for you. It tells me where I am, is legalistic in not letting me forget or omit, and is like the Holy Spirit—it nags me if I miss a day, and if I miss a few days, it will send me a very nice email asking me if I need help in not being such a spiritual slug. The discipline of reading the Bible is something I need to know God better and to remind me that I don’t just use the Bible for messages and information that I will relay to other people. If spiritual slugdom is your problem, perhaps you need something like this too.Today is a good day. I took my boys to school early and as usual, we listen to various new artists on YouTube and talk about life. Well, Patrick and I do; Eliot hits the car and is instantly asleep. But today is special; I am checking Patrick out of school to get his license. It is his sixteenth birthday today—a hallowed day. It is ritual that I check my children out of school and take them to the local Tennessee Highway Patrol Station. There is no pressure today; all we have to do is show up—all the testing is done. The pressure was on when we went for the Learner’s Permit and the Driver’s Test. Today is formality: the hard work has been accomplished; the heavy lifting is complete—now it’s just paperwork and picture. Tonight, Eliot has a huge lacrosse game with playoff implications and then we feast Patrick at Buffalo Wild Wings. A good day!After I dropped the boys off at school, I had some time to read. My YouVersion Bible had just sent me a reminder, and so I pulled out my iPhone and journal and started reading. What struck me as I read in the book of Samuel was how easily we forget essential things. By that I mean that the Bible gives us truth that is essential for living with joy in a fallen world where anything can happen to anyone at any given time. What brought this to mind was the episode when God told the prophet Samuel that he had rejected Saul as Israel’s king, and that Samuel was to quit moping and grab his flask of oil—it was king-making time again. God sends him to Bethlehem to the house of Jesse. Among his sons, Samuel will find the king after God’s on heart.When Samuel arrives, the city fathers are terrified that something must be wrong if the mighty prophet of God would show up in their out of the way town. Samuel assures them nothing is untoward; Samuel has come to worship with the people, and the elders need to ensure that Jesse and his boys are there as well. When Jesse and his sons arrive, Samuel sees Jesse’s oldest, Eliab, and immediately thinks, surely this is the new king. And you can tell why he is thinking this fine specimen is the next king. We see his thought process in the rebuke he receives from God: “But God told Samuel, ‘Looks aren’t everything. Don’t be impressed with his looks and stature. I’ve already eliminated him. God judges persons differently than humans do. Men and women look at the face; God looks into the heart.’” (I Samuel 16:7, The Message)What struck me as I pondered this passage is how easily we forget essential truths that we are to build our lives upon, and instead default into thinking that “conforms to the world’s standards.” Samuel is not a novice or new believer; in fact at this time he is older and wiser. He is, after all, the prophet who anointed Saul—who because of his height, looks and physical prowess was the people’s choice for king. You would think he would know better, but alas, when he sees Jesse’s strong, strapping, handsome first-born son, he forgets.I have been a pastor for a long time, and I have come to one major conclusion: if we are off track spiritually it is usually not because we are missing more spiritual information from the Bible; rather it is because we are forgetting what we already know. I think the main point of spiritual disciplines is to keep our eyes on the essential truths that we do know, rather than becoming a place where we meet God for new and exotic spiritual truths. The reason I say this is simple: the thrust of most of the writing in the Bible is “remember.” I get spiritually off track a lot, and when I do, I lose my joy. The rediscovery of that joy always comes as I remember the essential message of the Gospel, not in thinking, “Well, I am missing some new truth and when I find that, I will have my joy back.” Spiritual amnesia is our problem more often than a lack of new, or more, information.The chief reason to read the Bible is to listen. When I am able to listen to God in the Scriptures with humility, God’s Spirit has a way of ministering to my heart the truth I need. Typically, it is not some new insight; usually it is “the same old thing,” and God takes me deeper into it. The next time you pray and read the Bible, don’t ask for more information; ask God to help you remember the essential truths that he used on your heart when he first drew you to himself, the truth that humbled, and at the same time electrified, your soul.