Copyright (c) 1999 by Benjamin Devey. All rights reserved

Watching our youngest become a baby genius, I am awestruck by the miracle of growth. From the very beginning, a baby is a remarkable system of integrated senses, bringing meaning and understanding to the world around him. He associates images of parents and siblings with the sounds of their voices, linking family and caregivers as providers and protectors. He learns motor control, mobility, communication and self-will. He explores and maps his world with every step.

If we could continue learning at the same rate that babies assimilate, there would be no limit to our potential. We come equipped with marvelous faculties to gain knowledge and learning of every kind. Each of us has God-given ability to continually expand and grow. It's well known that we use less than 10 percent of the capacity of our brains. Yet, psychologists find no limit to the human capability of learning and retaining information.

In the first Sherlock Holmes story, Watson is dumbfounded that Holmes has no clue about astronomy, to which the detective answers he has no room in his mind for irrelevant facts. He explains that irrelevant information must "elbow out" knowledge already stored in the attic of the brain. It's amusing that this fictional "greatest" of minds got it wrong on such an essential matter.

What about memory? Sometimes it seems as if we're destined to learning the same things over and over again. Why do our minds seem so faulty in their most specialized function? Why is it so easy to forget what we learn?

How we retain what we learn depends a lot on how we receive information. The rest depends on how we retrieve it. Here's a little experiment--quick, name George Washington's mother. You don't know, right? How do you know that information isn't stored in some forgotten corner of your brain? It isn't. Chances are, it was never put there in the first place. You could name the seamstress of the original American flag, or the inventor of the light bulb. The miracle of how our minds work is instant memory access with little actual effort.

Our minds store information by random placement, whether chronologically, thematically or emotionally, without much attention to organization. Everything we've ever learned, felt or experienced may come to instant recall by a triggering cue. A simple association may unlock a flood of memories at any moment.

The trick is conditioning the mind to recall what is needed at the right time. How do we do that? The answer lies in the way we store memory. Take the way you're reading this article, for example. Do you just skim over the information, hoping some of it will sink in? Good luck. Most of the information read is forgotten within days.

How do we improve memory retention? We can start by receiving the information through multiple senses. How many dozens of lines can you quote from your favorite romantic (or for the guys--action) movies? Easy, right? That's because sight, sound and emotion all went into those memories. Put five senses into our learning, and the memories will last. That's how first impressions, first dates, first kisses and special moments stay fresh in our minds. By expanding our sensory input, we can improve our memory at will.

How do you remember principles of love, so you can live by them and share them with your loved ones? The question hints at one of the answers. By learning so we can share what we learn, we engage parts of our mind that would otherwise remain uninvolved in the learning process. This enables information to cross into long-term memory. In general, women naturally learn in this social context, but men need to work at it. Our frame of reference then, aids retention, whether our learning is me-oriented or others-oriented.

There are other helps that will dramatically improve our memory and the efficacy of our learning. One of them is being open to new information. As simple as it sounds, one of the biggest impediments to memory is our own reluctance to learn. We unconsciously erect our own barriers to learning. We have several filters that block information out of long-term memory. Some learning filters include anger, envy, prejudice, selfishness, pride and greed. Information processed through these blocking filters becomes distorted and discolored. Our minds make such an active effort of refusing entrance to information, that when we need it, it isn't available for recall.

How we classify and categorize information affects its retrieval. When I want to remember something, I consciously think ahead to when I'll need to remember it. Then I associate the memory with a visual cue in the future context. This can be as simple as setting my due library books with my keys by the door. In the context of remembering love principles, I might jog my memory to bring a written thought home to my wife. Writing it down is a valuable memory tool.

According to an unknown author, "Some never learn anything because they know everything too soon." Humility is a vital tool to learning. Being teachable means realizing that we don't have all the answers. Christ encourages us to become as a little child. Meekness is not a failing--quite to the contrary! Only by recognizing the infancy of our knowledge will we ever be able to learn truths of the eternities.

Listen to whisperings of the Spirit. God reveals what is vital for us to know to our spirit. Learning comes in quiet moments of seeking the Lord and pondering His words. Isaiah said, "The word of the Lord was unto them precept upon precept, line upon line, here a little and there a little." (28:13) God gives us understanding of spiritual matters as we're able to receive them. As we learn of God, our understanding grows, building a foundation for grasping greater things. Our knowledge is added upon incrementally, as we open ourselves to God's infinite wisdom.

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