I don’t know about you but I have a terrible memory. The kind where I go to tell someone
something, but mid-sentence I forget what it is that I was going to say. Or I
go upstairs for something, and by the time I’ve reached the second floor, I’m
completely clueless about why I climbed those stairs. So frustrating! I chalk it up to being the
busy mom of two kids. At least that
sounds like a good excuse.
I don’t think I’m the only one who struggles with short term
memory or long term memory loss for that matter. Apparently, we as humans have very short-lived
memories. There are several places in
the Bible where God tells us to remember things – important things. The above verse that I started out with is
probably one of my favorites when it comes to the reminder to recall all that
God has done for us.
The verse comes from Ecclesiastes a book that was written by
one of the greatest men who ever lived – King Solomon. Remember that guy? He was the one who asked for wisdom when God
promised to grant him any request. God
was so pleased with his request that he made a special promise to Solomon.
“Since you asked for this and not for long life or wealth
for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment
in administering justice, I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart
so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever
be. Moreover, I will give you what you
have not asked for – both riches and honor – so that in your lifetime you will
have no equal among kings.”
Guess what? God kept
his promise. In time Solomon became so
famous that even the queen of Sheba came to visit him. (1 Kings 10:1) God was faithful to his word. See, it’s not God who has trouble
remembering. No, God isn’t the forgetful
one. We are. Even Solomon had a poor memory. At the height of his glory, Solomon had seven
hundred wives and three hundred concubines.
Many of them worshipped foreign gods.
God had warned the Israelites about this – that if they intermarried
with other nations, their hearts would surely turn away from Him. And in Solomon’s case that’s exactly what
happened.
1 Kings 11:4 As
Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart
was not fully devoted to the Lord his God as the heart of David his father had
been.
Even the wisest man who ever lived forgot to remember. Throughout the Bible there are examples of
man’s forgetful nature. And in my own
life, I’ve found one thing to be very true, it’s when things are going fine
that it’s easiest to forget about God.
Psalm 1:45 Though your riches increase do not set your heart
on them.
When I was going through some rough times, I believed that
better times were coming, I just didn’t know when they would come. But before I even got there, God planted this
truth in my heart. It was like he was
telling me, times will get better, but don’t forget about me. I don’t know about you but it’s much easier
to forget about God when things are going well.
When life is tough and rough and down-right dirty, those are the times
when I cling to him like crazy.
But what about now, now that things are better for me. I have to admit it takes more discipline to
pray and read scripture. See, I don’t
really feel like I need God when things are going well. Life is smooth, easy, not a cloud in the sky. That’s why God told me – “Though your riches
increase do not set your heart on them.”
I’ll close with one last thought, one last story from the
Bible. It’s about those Israelites,
those dog-gone Israelites. Theirs is another great example of how easy it is to
forget about God. He’d led the
Israelites out of the desert and into the Promised Land. Keeping his vow to give them this land “flowing
with milk and honey”, God went before them and routed out their enemies. He
didn’t forget. Unfortunately, for the Israelites,
they did. Yup, they failed to recall all that God had done for them. He’d led them through the Dead Sea, pummeled
the Egyptians who were chasing them, given them manna from heaven and water
from the most unlikely places but still they forgot. God remembered just like he always does. They forgot just like they always did. Much like we do today.
So learn a lesson from those dog-gone Israelites, and from
the wisdom of Solomon’s pen. Remember
your Creator in the days of your youth, because I’ll guarantee he hasn’t
forgotten you.
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