Mom was an extremely bright woman who read voraciously all
her life. She loved talking about history, politics, murder mysteries, cooking,
and her family. At the end it was heartbreaking to see all that gone.
I hate the thought of one day not remembering. And I’ve
wondered what such a loss might mean to my walk with Christ. What if I forgot
not only my family, but my Savior? What if I forgot the precious truths of
Scripture upon which I’ve built my life? What if I no long remembered the
gospel?
What if illness and aging cast such a shadow over my mind
that I lost my experiences of God’s faithfulness, forgiveness, and
provision? If I no longer remembered
Christ, would He still be my Savior?
I know I’m not the only person to worry about such things.
John Newton was the former slaver owner whom Christ gloriously freed from
slavery to sin. Newton
became a preacher, abolitionist, and writer of the beloved hymn "Amazing Grace."
He lived to be eighty-two. He continued to preach and to
have an active ministry until the last couple years of his life, when his mind
began to fail. Here’s what he told friends:
My memory is nearly gone;
but I remember two things;
That I am a great sinner, and
that Christ is a great Saviour.
As in all things, my hope is not in me. Not in my efforts,
improvements, or perseverance. Not even in my memory of the sweet truths of the
gospel. Thanks be to Christ alone, whose memory of His own will never fail.
“Can a woman forget her nursing child,
that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb?
Even these may forget,
yet I will not forget you.
Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands…" (Isaiah 49:15,16a, ESV).
