Memory is one of God’s greatest gifts.

According to Think magazine, the human brain can store enough data to fill several million books, a capacity that makes modern computer storage seem insignificant. Conductor Arturo Toscanini demonstrated this, as it is said that he memorized every note for every musical instrument in 250 symphonies and 100 operas. (Parsons Illustrations).

Remembering brings events from the past to relive and to reexperience. As we remember, we can feel again our original feelings and emotions, reliving them as often as we wish. It is a blessing to retrieve treasured memories from our memory banks. We can relive the joys of family gatherings, holiday celebrations and special moments. We remember the joy of life itself.

Memory can be a blessing and a curse. Many memories are painful. Bad memories make us toss and turn at night. They can haunt our sleeping and our waking. When we remember the death of a parent, spouse, or other family member, our grief and sadness leap to life again in the present. When we remember conflicts with friends, family, or fellow church members, we relive the pain and anguish of broken bonds of love. When we remember the physical pain of illness or injury, we often re-experience the hurt we knew before. The memory of sins past can cause feelings of guilt, shame, and regret — and can become a curse in our lives no matter how hard we try to forget.

King David knew the curse of the memory of past sins. His conscience was disturbed by the painful memories of his adultery with Bathsheba and his treacherous murder of her husband, Uriah.

So David prayed to God for forgiveness, a prayer that asked God both to forget and to remember. He prays that God would remember who He (God) is: “Remember, O Lord your great mercy and love, for they are from of old” (Psalm 25:6-7).

“Remember not the sins of my youth” is the second petition of David’s prayer. The sins of our youth are many, testing the limits of our parents’ patience, experimentation with sex or drugs, or any of the many other sins of youth. We may dismiss these youthful sins, but sin is sin and gives offense to God.

David’s prayer does not plead for justice, but for mercy. And as we consider our own personal pasts, this is also our prayer. We plead with God for forgiveness not on the basis of our own goodness, but for the sake of Jesus Christ, who paid the price of the sins of our past, present and future.

As we are at the beginning of a new year, remember God. Remember his blessings of the past. Remember who he is. Remember his forgiveness. And especially remember who you are, his loved and forgiven child who lives in his memory.