God spoke to Moses: “Speak to the People of Israel. Tell them that from now on they are to make tassels on the corners of their garments and to mark each corner tassel with a blue thread. When you look at these tassels you’ll remember and keep all the commandments of God, and not get distracted by everything you feel or see that seduces you into infidelities. The tassels will signal remembrance and observance of all my commandments, to live a holy life to God. I am your God who rescued you from the land of Egypt to be your personal God. Yes, I am God, your God.” Numbers 15:37-41 (MSG)

Part of my job is to coach people to improve the customer service they deliver on the phone. Most often, the road to improvement means developing behavioral habits which have not been part of a person’s natural conversation. He or she must remember to say certain things inside their interaction with the customer.

To help people remember, I will often encourage them to use a mnemonic device – a visual aid that reminds them to say the appropriate phrase. For example, if people forget to thank customers for holding, I encourage them to put a small sticky note by the hold button on their phone with the word “thanks” written on it. When they reach over to hit the button, they see the sticky note and are reminded to thank the customer for holding.

These types of devices work. Visually seeing something that reminds us of something we’re supposed to do can help us remember. Even God knows that, and gave instructions for the people to sew tassels on their garments to remind them of God’s commands.

Small reminders can help us with much larger matters of faith, obedience, and spiritual discipline.