History Lessons

Read: Psalm 78:9-16

They forgot what he had done, the wonders he had shown them.

Psalm 78:11

IN WORD God has done great things. Many of them are recorded in the written Word by generations who wanted their descendants to know of His faithfulness. Many of them are the subjects of biographies and church traditions. But many of them are relics of history, forgotten by a forgetful humanity. They are often buried in the minds of those who have passed on. Sometimes they are faint hints in our subconscious that God has done something good for us, but we can’t remember what. The wonders were marvelous at the time, but they are wasted in the present. Far too often, we don’t let the lingering goodness of God linger long enough.

Why not? What is it about us that can remember who insulted us decades ago but cannot remember the deliverance God gave us last year? We can hold a grudge for a lifetime, but when asked how God has answered our prayers in the past, we struggle for a response. It’s not that He hasn’t answered our prayers, even dramatically sometimes. No, the problem is that we are always focused on the next hurdle, the next problem, the next goal. God is only relevant in our minds when He is relevant to today’s needs.

He would actually seem more relevant to today’s needs if we could rehearse and remember His past victories. It’s much easier to pray to the God who delivered us from an impossible situation when we remember the deliverance. We pray with faith when His miraculous strength stands out in our minds. We pray with ambiguity and doubt when it doesn’t.

IN DEED Make sure His strength stands out in your mind. If you are not in the practice of keeping a prayer log, begin the practice now. It doesn’t need to be elaborate. Just make a list of what you ask God for, and then when He answers, check it off. Then in a day of distress, review all the checks—and watch your faith grow. The spiritual markers you put up in your life will largely determine the depth of your faith today.

When remembrance of God lives in the heart . . . then all goes well.

—THEOPHAN THE RECLUSE