Isaiah 49:15 | Psalm 105:8 | Luke 22:19-20 | Exodus 12:14 | Joshua 4:21
“I feel like there was something else…”
If something is important enough to you, you will find a way to remember it. You set an alarm or a schedule reminder for a big appointment. Or maybe that’s unnecessary, because you have so much preparation to do for it.
To remember a big event, you record the date and celebrate each year. Like your best friend’s birthday, for instance…that’s an important day to remember!
God wants you to remember a few things. First, He loves you, and could never forget you.
“Can a mother forget her nursing child? Can she feel no love for the child she has borne? But even if that were possible, I would not forget you!”
Isaiah 49:15b NLT
Second, He always keeps his promises.
He always stands by his covenant—the commitment he made to a thousand generations.
Psalm 105:8 NLT
If you are a follower of Christ, you are under the New Covenant, sealed with Jesus’ own blood when he gave himself on the Cross.
After supper he took another cup of wine and said, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood, which is poured out as a sacrifice for you.”
Luke 22:20 NLT
Third, God wants you to remember…to remember what he has done for you. How can you do that?
Back in the day, God would have his people, the Nation of Israel, have special celebrations to remind them of what he did for them.
“This is a day to remember. Each year, from generation to generation, you must celebrate it as a special festival to the Lord. This is a law for all time.”
Exodus 12:14 NLT
Today, Jews still celebrate Passover to commemorate God’s freeing them from Egyptian slavery in a mighty, miraculous way.
Other times, God’s people would set up monuments to remind them of how God came through for them in a big way. As God dried up the Jordan river for the Israelites to cross it, he instructed their leader Joshua (remember the Battle of Jericho?) to have them take twelve large stones from the river and set them up where they stayed that night.
Then Joshua said to the Israelites, “In the future your children will ask, ‘What do these stones mean?’ Then you can tell them, ‘This is where the Israelites crossed the Jordan on dry ground.’
Joshua 4:21 NLT
How can you remember what God has done for you? Communion is a good place to start.
He took some bread and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”
Luke 22:19 NLT
Right after telling them his blood was the confirmation of the New Covenant between God and whoever believed him, he set a reminder: he told them to eat bread and drink wine in remembrance of him. Did they have to do this in a temple or synagogue? No. Did they have to do this as a ritual? Maybe. Or maybe he just wanted them to remember him whenever they ate and drank together. Either way, Jesus said to remember him.
Today, we celebrate Christmas. We celebrate Easter. Our churches offer a formal communion on a regular basis. We may just need to remember what we celebrate when we do so.
Questions for Group Discussion
- Besides Christmas, Easter, and Communion, what other ways can we remember to remember?
- How do you remember to read scripture? Do you find a reminder necessary? If so, why do you think this is?
- How do you remember to pray? Do you ever find yourself asking God to bless your endeavor, still unsure if he is okay with your taking it on? Is it difficult to remember to pray for guidance before you make big decisions?
Application: A Monumental Task
If you want to use twelve large stones for this, that is okay.
Has God come through for you in a big way recently? Do you need a reminder to pray first or read the Bible?
- Choose what you need to remember.
- Someone prayed for you, and the cancer left your body? Choose that.
- You keep going to bed, realizing you didn’t do the Bible reading you planned. Choose that.
- You know your sins are forgiven, and they were many. Choose that.
- Make yourself a simple, creative reminder like the ones below.
- Write a dry-erase message on your mirror.
- Make a sculpture of an open Bible.
- Create a weekly, monthly, or annual commemoration of the time God came through for you.
- Wear charms or a pendant that remind you of how you are forgiven.
