Remember and Forget

Sometimes I feel like I have the worst spiritual amnesia ever.  My life, my brain, my world are busy and crowded, full of yucky noise and causing me to forget things small and big.  I can't remember all of the small miracles God has done for me already each day, let alone the huge ways He has changed me, shaped me, and interceded for me in the past year.  Can I get an amen to that?!



One of my favorite stories in the Bible, Joshua 4, shows me (and you, if I got an amen) that we're not alone here.  The Israelites, after wandering the desert for 40 years, finally, miraculously cross into the promised land 'in haste.'  But God stops them and encourages them to select memorial stones from the middle of the parted Jordan River, that "...these stones shall be to the people of Israel a memorial forever" (verse 7).

Remembering is intentional, a choice...forgetting important things happens because we live in a fallen world.  Over the past few weeks, I've been
 trying to intentionally choose to remember important things God has done for me and choose to remember to stay connected with Him.  Nothing I've tried is incredibly creative or original, but these ideas have been fruitful in my life.  I'm sharing in the hopes that maybe you can find your own memorial stones in your daily life, to choose to remember to pursue God, to pray, and to remember His steadfast faithfulness.

For me, the key has been to choose to use my iPhone for these projects...I held off on getting one for years, focused on being a good financial steward and decreasing my debt.  I finally cracked in order to use it for photos and videos during my last Haiti trip.  I've intentionally chosen to use my phone for spiritual growth rather than the spiritual torpor that seems to accompany excessive gaming and social media outlets.

***I use Siri and my alarm clock function for prayer reminders daily at noon, 5pm, and 7pm.  It's a one minute prompt to praise God for grace and mercy (noon), pray for future ministry opportunities and growth (5pm), and to pray for a friend in great need and with little hope in her current situation (7pm).

***Bible apps...need I say more?  It might not be socially appropriate to crack my monster ESV study Bible at lunch and re-read my daily readings, but it is totally appropriate (and common, in my workplace) to be playing/reading on your phone at lunch.  Repeat readings create, in my experience, increased understanding with the help of the Spirit.

***Evernote...I just re-did my weekly prayer lists into Evernote and am a fan so far.  Totally portable, I can always have my daily list with me and keep track of PODs (prayers on demand) throughout my day.  Much easier than carrying around my trusted prayer journal everywhere I go. I'm working on integrating my memory verses and prayer triggers for important people/requests into the list...it's actually fun!

***Twitter is actually great when used responsibly for developing prayer lists for current world and national issues and political leaders.  My favorite follows are @Joshua_Project, @BBCAfrica, @compassion, @SamaritansPurse, and any mission organization (@simintl, @SOI_hope, @WorldVenture).  I also like using news media apps to stay connected with potential prayer needs.

***Lastly, and I hope people are still reading, because this has been the best thing I've done yet...take Facebook off your phone.  Seriously.  It's amazing how much time I've spent choosing to be distracted, allowing clutter into my brain, or wondering if my last status update was clever or witty enough/etc/etc.  Just let it go and say no!  The free time and free brain power can be channeled much more productively and positively.

Anyone else have ideas?  The iPhone or other smart phone is such an amazing piece of technology, which I believe can be powerfully used for our own growth and the Kingdom...if and when we are intentional with it!  'With great power comes great responsibility' :).