We have a tendency to remember what we should forget and forget what we should remember. That’s why we need altars. Altars are reminders of God’s faithfulness. And faith for the future is really just a byproduct of remembering God’s faithfulness in the past. Simply put: He did it before He’ll do it again.

Jesus asked the disciples an interesting question in Matthew 16:9: “Don’t you remember the five loaves of bread and the five thousand people, and how many baskets of leftovers you filled?” Here’s the great irony. The miracle had just happened. And they had already forgotten. The truth never got translated from short-term memory into long-term memory.

For what it’s worth, C.S Lewis said, “We need to be reminded more than instructed.” It’s true. One of the primary responsibilities of leaders is helping people remember what they should not forget. It’s telling stories of God’s faithfulness over and over and over again.

It reminds me of the classic SNL skits when Chris Farley interviewed famous guests. Instead of asking questions he lead with “Remember when” and ended with “that was awesome.” That’s leadership!

Remember when…that was awesome.