As I Recall

When was the last time you paused to really think about your memories? Everyone has them and our memories--both good and bad--are so important to who we are. However, many times we do not stop to think about how all of the stories that make up our past and impact our future. Casey Tygrett's new book As I Recall: Discovering the Place of Memories in Our Spiritual Life published by InterVarsity Press sets out to change how you interact with your memories.

Frequently, we only wish to engage with our happy memories. The warm fuzzies of life or the mountain top experiences are important, but sometimes we benefit from or learn more as a person from the not so great memories. Often, the times when we completely blew it are the memories that God uses to teach us and help us grow. Tygrett uses psychology and spirituality to show how memories help us to grow as a person and a Christ-follower. He particularly emphasizes the importance of redeeming our memories instead of pretending they do not exist. Tygrett uses a wide variety of imagery to refer to memories and frequently uses the motif of shells and collecting seashells. Another image which particularly resonated with me was drywall and that you can't put up new drywall over a mess without cleaning it up first."

Casey's strengths as a spiritual director and Bible teacher shine in his book. Throughout the book, Tygrett moves easily from psychology topics and brain research related to memories to Bible teaching and spiritual exercises. Along side these researched, teaching portions, he transparently shares many stories of his own life and memories as well as stories from his ministries. His tone is very conversational even when referencing researched sections. His writing style and sharing from his own life experiences creates a very readable and engaging book that you might be tempted to read straight through. However, failure to stop and put the "Pauses" that included at the end of every chapter into practice would be a huge mistake. These spiritual exercises help you to process the content and truly serve to help you redeem your memories to further your spiritual walk.

As I Recall is a marvelous book you will want to add to your collection. You will wish to dip back into the riches frequently and will find it useful to engage in the "Pauses" on a regular basis. Individuals who work as counselors or spiritual directors will wish to encourage others to read and work through this book. Small groups who know each other well and are willing to be vulnerable with each other may find this book helpful to read together as well.

"As I Recall" tackles the fascinating topic of memory, and in particular the role that our memories play in our spiritual lives. Often as Christians we are encouraged to "forgive and forget" or "leave the past behind" but this book provides encouragement that our memories matter, and that all our memories, even the difficult and painful ones can be used by God to shape us - that it's not so much about forgetting the past, but bringing our memories before God and allowing him to help us process them in a helpful way that leads to growth: "Memories are the raw material that God can shape into wisdom if we engage our wandering ways with him."
Throughout the book there are practical journaling exercises and prayer prompts to help the reader do this. There is also lots of interesting information about how the brain stores and processes different types of memories, as well as some biblical insights about the value of memories and plenty of practical application for us today. Well worth a read.