I CORINTHIANS 11:24; LUKE 23:42 | MEMORY

MEMORY

I CORINTHIANS 11:24; LUKE 23:42

JANUARY 14, 2018

COLONEL JACKSON TAUGHT AMERICAN HISTORY AT WINTER PARK HIGH SCHOOL FOR, WHO KNOWS HOW LONG?  MY SISTER, EIGHT YEARS MY SENIOR HAD HIM; MY BROTHER, FOUR YEARS MY SENIOR HAD HIM; AND I HAD HIM.

I DON’T KNOW HOW LONG HE HAD BEEN TEACHING SCHOOL, BUT FOR THE ENTIRETY OF HIS TIME AT OUR HIGH SCHOOL, HE REQUIRED HIS STUDENTS TO ALWAYS CALL HIM COLONEL JACKSON.

HE HAD EARNED THE TITLE; HE HAD BEEN IN THE ARMY; HE FOUGHT IN WORLD WAR II; AND HE SPENT MANY AN AMERICAN HISTORY CLASS REGALING US WITH TALES OF HIS TIME IN THE SERVICE; REVISITING HIS WARTIME EXPERIENCES.  IT WAS ALWAYS – COLONEL JACKSON.

IT DIDN’T OCCUR TO ME AT THE TIME, BUT LATER, AS I MET OTHERS, AND NOT JUST FORMER MILITARY, BUT OTHERS IN ALL LINES OF WORK, THAT THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO CONTINUE TO LIVE IN THE PAST, IN THE PRESENT.

THAT IS, THEY LIVE, IN THEIR MINDS, AND IN OTHER WAYS, IN THE TIME WHEN THEY FELT MOST ALIVE.  IT HAD BEEN, EVIDENTLY, IN THE MILITARY WHERE COLONEL JACKSON FELT MOST ALIVE.

THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE SEEN THE MOVIE, NAPOLEON DYNAMITE, WILL REMEMBER THE UNCLE WHO’S ALWAYS TRYING TO RE-LIVE HIS GLORY DAYS AS A HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL PLAYER; AND HOW HE GOT CHEATED OUT OF HIS CHANCE TO MAKE IT BIG; AND HOW HE’S ALWAYS SCHEMING TO REPRISE HIS FOOTBALL CAREER.

WE’VE ALL KNOWN PEOPLE, WE STILL KNOW PEOPLE, WHO LIVE IN THEIR MEMORIES – GOOD AND BAD.

IN MY CONTINUING SERIES OF JANUARY SERMONS USING SINGLE WORD TITLES, MY TITLE FOR THIS MORNING IS MEMORY.

SOMEONE HAS SAID, THERE ARE TWO WAYS OF REMEMBERING.

ONE WAY IS TO MAKE AN EXCURSION FROM LIVING IN THE PRESENT BACK INTO THE DEAD PAST.  PEOPLE ARE FOREVER RETURNING TO THE PAST, DREDGING IT UP, RELIVING IT, AGONIZING OVER IT, CELEBRATING IT, AS THE CASE MAY BE.

YOU CAN SEE IT IN THE FAR AWAY LOOK IN PEOPLE’S EYES, BECAUSE, THEY ARE JUST THAT FAR AWAY.

THE OTHER WAY TO REMEMBER IS TO SUMMON THE DEAD PAST BACK INTO THE LIVING PRESENT.  THE YOUNG WIDOW REMEMBERS HER HUSBAND, AND HE IS THERE BESIDE HER.

WHEN JESUS SAYS: “DO THIS IN REMEMBRANCE OF ME” AT THE LAST SUPPER, HE’S NOT SO MUCH INVITING US BACK INTO THE DEAD PAST, AS HE IS HOPING THAT WE WILL INVITE HIM INTO OUR LIVING PRESENT.

AND WHEN THE THIEF ON THE CROSS BESIDE JESUS ASKS JESUS TO “REMEMBER ME WHEN YOU COME INTO YOUR KINGDOM” HE’S HOPING JESUS WILL DO THE SAME.

MEMORIES CAN TAKE US BACK, AND CERTAINLY THERE’S A PLACE FOR THAT, AN IMPORTANT PLACE FOR THAT IN OUR LIVES, IF THOSE MEMORIES SERVE US WELL.

BUT MEMORIES THAT DRAG US BACK INTO THE DEAD PAST, OR ENTRAP OUR PRESENT IN THE PAST, A PAST THAT WILL NOT LET US GO, THAT WILL NOT LET US MOVE FORWARD, THOSE MEMORIES ARE PROBABLY BEST FORGOTTEN.

THERE’S A SCENE IN THE MOVIE, THE LION KING WHICH THEY’VE BEEN SHOWING A LOT LATELY ON TV, WHERE SIMBA THE LION, NOW GROWN UP, IS TRYING TO DECIDE WHETHER TO RETURN HOME;

WHICH WILL MEAN FACING UP TO HIS PAST.

HE THEN ENCOUNTERS THE BABOON RAFIKI, VOICED BY RECENTLY DEPARTED, ROBERT GUILLAUME.

AT ONE POINT, RAFIKI HITS SIMBA ON THE HEAD WITH A STICK.

“OUCH,” SIMBA SAYS, “WHAT WAS THAT FOR?”  “IT DOESN’T MATTER,” RAFIKI ANSWERS, IT’S IN THE PAST.”

“YEA, BUT THE PAST STILL HURTS.”  SIMBA SAYS.

“OH, YES, THE PAST CAN HURT,” RAFIKI REPLIES, “BUT THE WAY I SEE IT, YOU CAN EITHER RUN FROM IT, OR LEARN FROM IT.”  AT WHICH POINT RAFIKI SWINGS HIS STICK AGAIN, AND SIMBA DUCKS.

MEMORIES, ESPECIALLY BAD MEMORIES, SAD MEMORIES, PAINFUL MEMORIES, CAN STILL HURT; BUT WE’D DO WELL TO LEARN FROM THEM, RATHER THAN RUNNING FROM THEM, OR BEING ENTRAPPED IN THEM.

“NOBODY KNOWS THE TROUBLE I’VE SEEN” GOES THE OLD SPIRITUAL, AND OF COURSE NOBODY DOES KNOW THE TROUBLE WE’VE ANY OF US SEEN – THE HURT, THE SADNESS, THE MISTAKES, THE CRIPPLING LOSSES – BUT WE KNOW IT.  WE REMEMBER IT.

AND THE HAPPINESS-ES WE’VE SEEN TOO – THE PRECIOUS TIMES, THE PRECIOUS PEOPLE, THE MOMENTS IN LIFE WHEN WE WERE BETTER THAN WE REALLY ARE.

NOBODY KNOWS THAT EITHER, BUT WE KNOW IT.  WE REMEMBER IT.

AND IN SOME SENSE, IN REMEMBERING IT, BEYOND THE JOYS OR REGRETS, LIES A SENSE OF PEACE; A SENSE THAT IT IS WELL WITH OUR SOULS.

MEMORIES, LIKE THOSE OF THE YOUNG WIDOW, BY WHICH WE CAN RESURRECT OUR LOVED ONES, OR PRECIOUS THOUGHTS OR FEELINGS, OR WONDERFUL EXPERIENCES, OR EVEN PAINFUL ONES, FROM WHICH WE HAVE LEARNED AND BENEFITED; THOSE ARE WORTH REMEMBERING.

THEY ARE WORTH BRINGING INTO OUR LIVING PRESENT, AND SQUEEZING FROM THEM EVERY GOOD THING WE CAN.

THIS IS A HEALTHY WAY OF REMEMBERING – THE GOOD AND THE BAD – AND LEARNING FROM THEM, AND MAKING THE MOST OF THEM, FOR OUR BENEFIT.

AND THEN THERE ARE THOSE “WHAT IF – REMEMBER WHEN” KINDS OF MEMORIES WE ALL HAVE; SOME OF THEM WE TREASURE; SOME WE COUNT AS OPPORTUNITIES LOST.

A COUPLE OF WEEKS AGO, LOCAL NEWSPAPER COLUMNIST MANDY MILES WAS WRITING ABOUT THE FACT THAT JIMMY BUFFET HAD MADE ONE OF HIS SURPRISE APPEARANCES AT MARGARITAVILLE HERE IN KEY WEST.

ONLY THOSE IN THE KNOW, AND THOSE WHO LET IT BE KNOWN TO THEIR FRIENDS AND FAMILY, AS WELL AS ANY UNSUSPECTING VISITORS THAT NIGHT, WERE PRIVY TO HIS APPEARING.

SOMEONE HAD ALERTED MANDY MILES TO BE AT MARGARITAVILLE THAT NIGHT, WITHOUT REALLY SAYING WHY, OR SPILLING THE BEANS.

NEAR THE END OF HER ARTICLE ABOUT IT, SHE THANKED THE PERSON FOR MAKING A “WHAT IF…” MOMENT INTO A “REMEMBER WHEN…” MOMENT.

WHAT IF… YOU WERE IN MARGARITAVILLE, AND JIMMY SHOWED UP TO PLAY?  BECAME, REMEMBER THE TIME… WE WERE AT MARGARITAVILLE, AND JIMMY SHOWED UP TO PLAY?!

(THE SAME THING HAPPENED TO A FRIEND OF OURS WHO WAS IN B. B. KING’S PLACE ON BEALE STREET IN MEMPHIS; ONLY THAT NIGHT, IT WAS THE ROLLING STONES WHO SHOWED UP TO PLAY A COUPLE OF HOURS SET.)

I WONDER WHAT “WHAT IF…” MOMENTS WE’VE HAD, THAT BECAME “REMEMBER WHEN…” MOMENTS, THANKS TO A TIP FROM A FRIEND, OR JUST BEING LUCKY ENOUGH TO BE IN THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME.

AND WHAT “WHAT IF…” MOMENTS HAVE WE MISSED, THAT WE WISH WE HAD OVER AGAIN – HAD HANDLED DIFFERENTLY; BETTER; WITHOUT REGRET.

OUR MEMORIES, IN PART, MAKE US WHO WE ARE; THE GOOD ONES, AND THE BAD ONES; BUT MOSTLY, IT’S HOW WE TREAT OUR MEMORIES THAT MAKES THE DIFFERENCE.

I CAN’T BEGIN TO IMAGINE WHAT MEMORIES YOU CARRY IN YOU; I KNOW THE ONES I CARRY IN ME;

AND FOR THE MOST PART, I KNOW ENOUGH TO KNOW WHICH ONES TO HOLD ONTO; AND WHICH TO TURN LOOSE OF; WHICH TO TREASURE; AND WHEN TO DUCK – HAVING LEARNED MY LESSON THE FIRST TIME AROUND.

I SUPPOSE, FOR AS LONG AS THERE HAVE BEEN PEOPLE AROUND, WE HAVE BEEN FASCINATED WITH THE IDEA OF TIME TRAVEL.

COUNTLESS BOOKS AND MOVIES HAVE BEEN PRODUCED IMAGINING THE “WHAT IFS…” OF GOING BACK IN TIME, OR FORWARD, INTO THE FUTURE.

AND IN THE CASE OF THE BACK TO THE FUTURE TRILOGY, IN BOTH DIRECTIONS AT ONCE.

IF MEMORIES ALLOW US TO TRAVEL BACK, I SUPPOSE, DREAMS ALLOW US TO MOVE FORWARD; AND ALL IN ALL, PERHAPS A HEALTHY BALANCE OF BOTH, IS THAT FOR WHICH WE SHOULD BE AIMING.

WHEN I WAS YOUNGER, AND WAS WATCHING MY AFOREMENTIONED SIBLINGS DOING ALL KINDS OF THINGS I WASN’T YET OLD ENOUGH TO DO, BUT WISHING I COULD, MY MOTHER USED TO WARN ME ABOUT “WISHING MY LIFE AWAY.”

AND THEN SHE NOT ONLY PROMISED THAT I WOULD GET THERE ONE DAY, BUT HELPED ME REFOCUS ON THE PRESENT;

HELPED ME APPRECIATE THE THINGS I COULD DO, RATHER THAN WORRYING ABOUT THE THINGS I COULDN’T DO… AT LEAST, NOT YET.

IT WAS A HELPFUL LESSON ABOUT BALANCING PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE; ONE I’VE TRIED NEVER TO FORGET.

IT HELPED ME REALIZE THAT THE “TIME I FEEL MOST ALIVE” SHOULD BE THE TIME I’M ACTUALLY IN, RATHER THAN WHAT’S GONE BEFORE, OR WHAT’LL COME IN THE FUTURE.

I SAW A GIRL WEARING A SWEATSHIRT IN THIS RECENT COLD SNAP HERE IN KEY WEST THAT READ: “WHEREVER YOU ARE, IS WHERE YOU ARE.”

I CAN’T ARGUE WITH THAT; AND IT’S ABSOLUTELY TRUE.

IT TAKES INTO ACCOUNT TIME, AND SPACE, AND HISTORY, AND MEMORY, AND DREAMS AND WISHES, AND EVERYTHING ELSE THAT MAKES US, US;

BUT IT ALSO REMINDS US, I THINK, TO APPRECIATE WHERE WE ARE, WHO WE ARE, IN THE NOW; RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW.

OUR MEMORY WILL ALWAYS BE A MIXED BAG, I SUPPOSE.  GOOD ONES, BAD ONES; HAPPY ONES, SAD ONES; ONE’S THAT MAKE NO DIFFERENCE AT ALL;

AND ONES THAT MADE ALL THE DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

AGAIN, PERHAPS THE BEST WE CAN HOPE FOR, IS TO MANAGE THEM TO THE BEST OF OUR ABILITIES.

I DON’T WANT TO BE COLONEL JACKSON, GOING THROUGH THE MOTIONS, LIVING OUT MY PRESENT LIFE, BUT ALWAYS WISHING I WAS BACK WHERE I FELT MOST ALIVE.

I DON’T WANT MY GLORY DAYS TO BE IN THE PAST; OR REALLY, EVEN IN THE FUTURE; I WANT TO GLORIFY EACH DAY, THIS DAY, IN WHICH I AM LIVING.

I DON’T WANT TO BE ENTRAPPED IN A DEAD PAST, OR WISH AWAY MY LIFE ON THE FUTURE; I WANT TO BE WHERE I AM, WHEREVER I AM.

I WANT TO LEARN FROM THE PAST, NOT RUN FROM IT; I WANT TO BE SURE TO DUCK WHEN DUCKING IS WHAT’S CALLED FOR.

AND, I DO LIKE THE IMAGE OF THE YOUNG WIDOW;

RESURRECTING MY LOVED ONES FROM THE PAST INTO MY PRESENT, AND TAKING COMFORT IN THE FACT THAT THEY ARE WITH ME.

INCLUDING JESUS… AND THAT THIEF ON THE CROSS…

AND I WANT MY MEMORIES, WHATEVER THEY BE, TO HELP ME, MOTIVATE ME, AND MOVE ME FORWARD, IN GOOD WAYS.

FINALLY, TO REMEMBER SOMEONE, OR TO BE REMEMBERED BY SOMEONE, MEANS THAT THEY HAVE LEFT THEIR MARK ON US, AND WE, ON THEM.

IT MEANS WE CAN SUMMON THEM BACK IN OUR MINDS, AND THEY US, EVEN THOUGH COUNTLESS YEARS OR MILES MAY SEPARATE US.

IT MEANS, THAT WERE WE TO MEET AGAIN, WE WILL KNOW EACH OTHER.

IT MEANS EVEN AFTER THEY DIE, WE WILL REMEMBER THEM; AND IF WE DIE, THEY WILL REMEMBER US.

WE’LL STILL SEE THEIR FACE, HEAR THEIR VOICE, HAVE THEM IN OUR HEART, AND VICE VERSA.

AS LONG AS WE REMEMBER, NO ONE IS EVER ENTIRELY LOST.

“JESUS, REMEMBER ME WHEN YOU COME INTO YOUR KINGDOM,” THE GOOD THIEF ASKS FROM THE CROSS.

THERE ARE PERHAPS NO MORE HUMAN WORDS IN ALL OF SCRIPTURE; NO PRAYER SO HEARTFELT.

THE SAME COULD BE SAID OF JESUS’ WORDS: “DO THIS, IN REMEMBRANCE OF ME.”

BY DOING THIS, AND I MEAN ALL OF THIS, EVERYTHING, OUR WHOLE LIVES, OUR WHOLE BEING, WE CAN BRING CHRIST INTO OUR PRESENT… INTO OUR PRESENCE…

AND HE WILL BE BESIDE US.