While misery may like company, a group of my closest friends and I share another common malady, the ability to forget what we were saying in a split second (or less). Perhaps you know what I'm talking about.
Here's an example: (to self) "Once Friend X is finished her sentence I am going to tell her about an upcoming event." Friend X completes her statement. I tell her, "Hey, I wanted to tell you about …" That's when an extended pause kicks in. "Yeess," she questions. In what has become a routine response, unplanned words creep out, "Sorry, I can't remember what I was going to say."
My source of consolation? I'm far from alone! Be it the result of information overload or normal aging, the ability to forget has become a standard part of nearly every conversation. Fortunately I usually remember within seconds or, at most, a few minutes.
In a wry twist, there are things I'd love to forget but so often they pop unbidden into my mind, mostly in the early hours of the morning, words I'd give anything to take back. Unwise decisions, self-condemnation or unjust criticism coming to or going from myself. For too many years I allowed these "unforgettable" things to rob me of peace.
"For I will be merciful and gracious toward their sins and I will remember their deeds of unrighteousness no more." Hebrews 8:12 (Amplified)
"Can a woman forget her nursing child, and not have compassion on the son of her womb? Surely they may forget, yet I will not forget you." (Isaiah 49:15 NKJV)
Friend X and I continue to forget, and laugh at our common affliction, but I'm grateful for a God who forgets my sin, but always remembers His mercy. In fact, I revel in the love of One whose memory is gloriously selective.
