Remembrance Psalm 77:1-15

In his book The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains, Nicholas Carr calls the Internet "a technology of forgetfulness" and describes how, thanks to the plasticity of our neural pathways, our brains are literally, being rewired by digital distraction:

The more we use the Web, the more we train our brain to be dis­tracted—to process information very quickly and very efficiently but without sustained attention. That helps explain why many of us find it hard to concentrate even when we're away from our comput­ers. Our brains become adept at forgetting, inept at remembering.

-Remembering God’s work and character will move us to worship Him.

You are able to worship through deep sorrow when you:

I. Remember that God Hears You vv. 1-3

Our passage begins with a declaration: I will cry out and God will hear me

This underlines everything that we know about worship

God receives the prayers and the cries and the adoration of His people

He is able to hear

He is willing to hear

His life is marked by two characteristics:

In sorrow, He longs for God’s presence. No one else can satisfy the need of his life

His posture is pursuit. He seeks the Lord and stretches out his hands to him

However, if God did not hear, this would all be fruitless. There would be no reason to worship

Hebrews 11:6

[6] And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. (ESV)

Improving one's memory is not all that difficult. Most of us simply don't expend the time or effort required. 'the true art of memory,? wrote an English historian, "is the art of attention.? We can improve our memories by simply putting our minds to it and by following a few simple rules:

1. Remember to remember. Telling yourself that you want to remember this or that fact and concentrating on it will improve your memory immediately. We remember what we WANT to remember.

2. Sharpen your observation. Pay close attention to what you see and hear. Use images. Shut your eyes and try to SEE it. Notice details. Really LOOK at things. Few people actually do.

3. Practice recall. Forgetting is most rapid soon after learning. It helps, therefore, to make a deliberate effort to repeat and review immediately. Repetition will help fix the fact or image in our minds.

4. Concentrate. Eliminate distractions. The mind is at its best when it is centered on one thing at a time. Avoid such things as fatigue, noise, and competing visual images during the time you are trying to learn.

II. Remember that God Remembers You vv. 4-9

Next, we see that in the worst of his suffering, the psalmist cannot hide from his sorrow

The Lord holds his eyelids open, seemingly making him face his situation

He cannot speak; there’s no way to make sense of what he is enduring

He desperately needs a “song in the night”, a spark of inspiration that will draw him into the presence of the Lord

He will find this song as he walks through a series of questions:

Has God stopped being God?

Do my present circumstances mean that I have misunderstood who God is or what He is doing?

What do I do when I am feeling these things?

I must remember that God never forgets me: my “song in the night” flows out of an understanding of God’s character and ultimate purpose for me.

This is Paul and Silas in the prison in Philippi

These are not just men that are oblivious to the seriousness of their circumstance

These are men who pull from a deep well of experience with God

This is the cry of Jeremiah in Lamentations

In the face of terrible sorrow, he finds reason for great hope

God is faithful!

Lamentations 3:19–24

[19] Remember my affliction and my wanderings,

the wormwood and the gall!

[20] My soul continually remembers it

and is bowed down within me.

[21] But this I call to mind,

and therefore I have hope:

[22] The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases;

his mercies never come to an end;

[23] they are new every morning;

great is your faithfulness.

[24] “The LORD is my portion,” says my soul,

“therefore I will hope in him.” (ESV)

III. Remember that God Redeems You vv. 10-15

This conscientious decision to remember the Lord and His past work

He determines to settle his heart in what he knows about God

God is great and holy

God intercedes for His people in powerful ways in the face of their difficult circumstances

God rescues, redeems, and restores His people

This is exactly the work that God is doing right now

He rescues us out of a fallen world

He redeems us from our sin

He restores us to His presence

This is His present work and our future hope: rescue, redemption, and restoration

This is exactly what Jesus offers to us

If you want to know how God loves you, look to Jesus

Romans 8:32

[32] He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? (ESV)

If you want to know how to endure, look to Jesus

Hebrews 12:1–2

[1] Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, [2] looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. (ESV)

Long years ago, as a high school senior, I made an educational trip to Washington DC. We made a stop at a spot that will be familiar to many of you, Arlington National Cemetery, where we watched the changing of the guard and the wreath laying at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. If you have never been, it is one of the most solemn events that a person can ever be a part of. I was deeply moved at the recognition of the sacrifice, not only of this soldier, but of so many who gave so much. Today, we are called to remember. We stand at the edge of another Tomb. That one was occupied for just a few days by the one who paid the ultimate price, but is now empty. He stands in ultimate victory and He is inviting us to follow Him as He completes our redemption. This news is the news that changes everything!