Remembering Truth

Have you ever been told (by an email or otherwise) to write a multi-column list or some such about strengths, weaknesses, etc.? Just now, I was directed to write a three-column list with

1. Old Identity
2. New Identity
3. What would I believe differently about myself if I believed I really were this new person?"

It actually turned out really well.

I get daily emails from the Lighthouse Network. You would be surprised how often the little devotionals are uncomfortably relevant. Today's email was "Comfort Zone: Letting Go of Old Identities." I have been feeling quite dragged down by old and current-old identities. And we all know the plain facts, but it's hard to ingest them sometimes, and it's hard to remember them actively sometimes.

Interjection: Sometimes, people talk on their phones in polite, hushed tones. Typically, they seem to speak with outside voices.

It's hard to remember truth actively sometimes. I have on occasion heard a person share their displeasure with liturgy: repeated prayers, songs, etc. — as if it's fake or constricting. Admittedly, memorizing times tables isn't very natural — and it's not even quite imperative — but the only way you can compensate for a lack of memorizing the basic facts is being really intelligent and really quick-witted. Likewise, liturgy, familiar prayers, revisited songs, etc. give us a solid foundation on which to build a stronger faith. If some rote memorization doesn't catch your fancy, that's just fine. You are welcome instead to read the Scriptures, pray without ceasing, fast often, and embody the many spiritual disciplines.

Obviously, it is not quite so simple as that dichotomy, but my point is this: remembering is often such a large part of the battle. (I'm trying not to use more math analogies. I have so many math analogies.) Look at it this way: you can either memorize the quadratic formula (negative B plus or minus the square root of B squared minus four A C all over two A) or you can derive it from the quadratic equation (A X squared plus B X plus C equals zero). Memorizing may seem tedious. (Heck, the whole quadratic equation-formula due may seem useless, which is another conversation I'd love to have.) However, while understanding will always have more worth in the long term, it is dramatically more tedious in the short term.

Long story short, memorize your times tables, memorize your Bible, memorize the basics so that you could build grand structures.