I cried today as I heard Slim Dusty’s The Traveller’s Prayer. There are nice sentiments in the song but it isn’t really the material of tears. Then I remembered that this is the song we sang at my mother’s request at her funeral.

Memories can be triggered by many different things: dates, smells, songs, places and events. They are so powerful and uncontrollable. Anything can set them off and once recalled they shape the way you think and act.

And in themselves they are neither good nor bad. Memories help us to learn. They assist us in determining what is important and what is not. They remind us of significant things that have been taken for granted. It is no wonder that hundreds of times in the Bible, God calls on His people to remember. Remember his great acts of salvation. Remember His words. Recall his promises.

Memory & Ministry

Part of our task as Christian brothers and sisters must therefore be to help each other remember what we know of our God. We need to help bring to the front of our minds what should never have left there, but what so easily does.

But in our ministering to each other we also need to take into account that no one is a blank slate. As we speak with each other memories from days gone by sometimes consciously and sometimes subconsciously influence how we hear. It is worth us pausing to ask why we feel what we feel in response to things. Sometimes our memories reinforce what we are learning and sometimes they create an obstacle to belief, trust and growth.

Memory & music

This week at Moore College we had the privilege of a splendid session with the popular American Christian song writer Bob Kauflin. Bob spoke of the power of songs to help let the word of God dwell in us richly. He helpfully said that it is not emotions that change us, but recalling the gospel of God through songs. He also said that it is impossible to tell what effect a song will have on people from one week to another.

I agree. The effect of anything upon us is sometimes changed by our circumstances, the circumstances around us and what has happened most recently to us, and even how the rest of the church meeting has been going. But I also want to suggest that the impact of songs is somewhat predictable as songs have a memory too.  So often songs we sing have a strong link to the memory of significant events in our lives. Many people testify that they are unable to sing particular songs without crying; not just because of the words but also because of the memories the singing of them evokes.

So in our church gatherings, by our introductions to songs, by explaining how a song unravels a current situation, or how songs appropriately are attached to different seasons or events  we should try to link songs to remembering  our good and gracious God.