“He has made His wonderful works to be remembered” (Psalm 111:4a, NKJV).
Last month, we were blessed to join our friends, Pat and Susan Donahue, in a reception to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary. During the celebration, Susan took an opportunity to address those in attendance, and I was really moved by her remarks. As she began, she made a special point to note that if it had not been for a miracle of healing God performed in Pat ten years earlier, they would not be celebrating this anniversary.
I was really touched that on this special occasion, Susan stopped to acknowledge the power of God. After fifty years of marriage, there were literally millions of memories she could have shared. But she chose to acknowledge the work of God. It was obvious that this was not an afterthought for Susan; God’s blessing was at the forefront of her mind. We can all learn from her example. Indeed, God has made His wonderful works to be remembered!
You see, every time God works in your life, there’s a double blessing. The initial blessing comes in that your immediate need is fulfilled, but that’s not the only benefit. The other part of His blessing is that we have a memory of God’s faithfulness to hold on to. That memory can encourage, comfort, and remind us of God’s faithfulness for the rest of our lives.
Yes, our memories are very important to God. He wants us to remember the moments He has shown His hand of blessing in a special way. Let’s consider how God caused the people of Israel to remember His faithfulness when Joshua led them into their promised land.
In order to inhabit the land, the Israelites had one more barrier to cross, the Jordan River. To cross successfully, Joshua had to follow God’s special instructions to let the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant lead the way. When they stepped into the banks of the river, God miraculously stopped the flow of water to allow all the Israelites to cross on dry ground.
But that wasn’t the end of God’s instructions. He also told Joshua to take stones from the Jordan River and set them up as a memorial to Him. He wanted the people to commemorate the miracle God performed that day. He wanted something that would stand as a reminder to them and their children that God was always faithful.
You see, God was interested in more than just meeting their immediate need of crossing the river. He wanted to use the opportunity to teach them about His character.
We need to remember God’s faithfulness as well. When we experience the blessing of God, we shouldn’t take it for granted and just move right on to the next thing. No, we should take time to pause and acknowledge the work of God we see in our lives.
Today, we may not be building a physical memorial to the Lord, but we can acknowledge His faithfulness with our praise and our testimony. “Let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name” (Hebrews 15:13).
I know you have your own “memorial stones” and I encourage you to call them to remembrance today just like Susan did. Don’t ever forget the great things God has done for you! Your testimony will remind you of His faithfulness, encourage you to move forward, and teach others to trust Him.
Reflections 