Second Forgetting Quotes

“When a person develops significant cognitive impairment much of their life seems to revolve around their disease. It begins to redefine their identity and seems to be the truest thing about them. Yet this is not biblical. Scripture tells us that all who trust in Christ — including those with Alzheimer’s — have a new identity. They are a new creation. They have value, regardless of their cognitive or intellectual ability. A spiritual community can remind us of this by treating us in ways that are consistent with this truth.”
― Benjamin T. Mast, Second Forgetting: Remembering the Power of the Gospel during Alzheimer’s Disease

“When God calls us to remember him, he already knows we are prone to forget.”
― Benjamin T. Mast, Second Forgetting: Remembering the Power of the Gospel during Alzheimer’s Disease

“When I interview caregivers and ask what the church can do for them, the most common response is: They simply want the church to be present in their lives through the journey of dementia. They do not want to be alone.”
― Benjamin T. Mast, Second Forgetting: Remembering the Power of the Gospel during Alzheimer’s Disease

“The church has an Alzheimer’s of its own.” Just as those with Alzheimer’s are prone to forget things, the church is prone to forget those who aren’t involved, who don’t attend services or contribute in some way. When people are no longer present at church, they tend to be forgotten by pastors and church members alike.”
― Benjamin T. Mast, Second Forgetting: Remembering the Power of the Gospel during Alzheimer’s Disease

“For many reasons, the church at large has been absent in speaking about the struggle with Alzheimer’s disease. The psychological components of Alzheimer’s can frighten pastors and the general church body. After all, how can you minister to a person who doesn’t remember who you are, who doesn’t appear to understand what you’re saying? It hardly seems worth the time when they won’t even remember your visit. Many pastors feel ill-equipped to address the needs of people with dementia.”
― Benjamin T. Mast, Second Forgetting: Remembering the Power of the Gospel during Alzheimer’s Disease

“Many caregivers live in quiet desperation like this, feeling as though they are alone and helpless. Even in a room of sympathetic caregivers, this woman felt alone. All of the things that had worked for others seemed to fail in her situation. It felt hopeless.”
― Benjamin T. Mast, Second Forgetting: Remembering the Power of the Gospel during Alzheimer’s Disease

“Seventy percent of caregivers say they feel unable to leave their loved one alone, even in their home.”
― Benjamin T. Mast, Second Forgetting: Remembering the Power of the Gospel during Alzheimer’s Disease

“I am weary, Lord . . . bone tired. Weary to the point of tears, and past them. Your Word says you never grow weary; But I know you understand weariness Because once you dragged a heavy cross up a long lonely hill. Many times you had nowhere to lay your head — And people who needed you pressed upon you by day and by night. My reservoir is depleted, almost dry. For longer than I can remember I’ve been dredging from its sludgy underside Giving myself and my loved ones the leftovers of a life occupied with endless tasks. The elastic of my life is so stretched out of shape that it doesn’t snap back anymore. Just once I’d like to say “It is finished,” like you did. But you said it just before you died. I guess my job won’t be over till my life is and that’s okay Lord, if you’ll just give me strength to live it. Deliver me from this limbo of half-life; Not just surviving, but thriving. You who know all, you who know me far better than I know myself — Deposit to my account that as I spend myself there may be always more to draw from. Give me strength To rest without guilt . . . To run without frenzy . . . To soar like an eagle Over the broad breathless canyons of the life you still have for me both here and beyond.”
― Benjamin T. Mast, Second Forgetting: Remembering the Power of the Gospel during Alzheimer’s Disease

“God’s grip on us, in the gospel, is much more important than our grasp of the gospel.”
― Benjamin T. Mast, Second Forgetting: Remembering the Power of the Gospel during Alzheimer’s Disease