Four Simple Ways to Remember Blessings and Move Forward Confidently
My sweet Pastor husband and I recently traveled back in time. No, we don’t have a Delorean. Whereas that might be exciting, we instead returned to where my sweet Pastor husband once served as youth Pastor.
Over Labor Day weekend, my sweet Pastor husband and I visited our old stomping grounds in the Olympia, Washington area. We received an invitation to join with friends as they celebrated fifty years of marriage. Their invite provided the catalyst we needed to contact other friends and arrange a weekend getaway.
Looking Back
We both felt as if we had barely left even though we’d been gone almost 30 years. We greeted our friends with big hugs and then began a conversation that never seemed to end. I was reminded how blessed I was then and how the blessing has continued even though our children are all grown.
As I experienced my weekend, I looked at the various moments through eyes tinted by my study of the Torah. I’m currently reading Deuteronomy, and in the first eleven chapters, Moses reminds the Israelites of what they have experienced and endured. Once I arrived home and processed our adventure, the Holy Spirit revealed four ways to remember the blessings He had provided all those years ago.
Remember and Reframe with the Goodness of God
God first led me to remember the joy. We received the privilege of visiting with a plethora of friends we haven’t seen in years. In addition, we reminisced with a portion of our youth group way back when. We laughed together over memories we had long forgotten.
As we live our stories, we easily become lost within the daily struggles of life. During those former days, many of my moments involved changing diapers, corralling toddlers, and stretching dimes into dollars, while also teaching school part time. I couldn’t always recognize the richness of the blessings God provided.
In Deuteronomy two, Moses summarizes the forty years in the wilderness. I imagine that in the Israelites’ tents, they didn’t always discuss their journey with positive overtones. Therefore, the Israelites that now waited to enter the Promised Land grew up hearing their parents grumble, complain, and long for life in Egypt.
Moses reframes the wilderness years with the goodness of God. He pointed out that God had watched over them while they were in the desert, and they didn’t lack anything. He even tells how God provided for Esau and Lot as the Israelites traveled through the land where Esau and Lot’s descendants lived. When we take time to look back, we can reframe our journey with joy. With the Spirit’s help, we can see how God watched over us and provided for us.
Remember How God Showed Up
Second, God enabled me to remember His movement. For a good portion of our time in Olympia, my sweet Pastor husband and I lived paycheck to paycheck. On paper, we didn’t make enough money to pay our bills. Yet, every month, God provided somehow, someway, exactly what we needed.
Also, during those years, my sweet Pastor husband was in a horrific car crash while on a teen mission trip. If you were to look at a picture of the vehicle he was in, you would discern he shouldn’t be alive. However, God was with him miles away from home, and God was with me and our daughter in our small three-bedroom house. God prepared my spirit, and when I learned of the accident, I was calm and confident of God’s provision regardless of what happened.
“Only be on your guard and diligently watch yourselves, so that you don’t forget the things your eyes have seen and so that they don’t slip from your mind as long as you live… learn to fear me all the days [you] live on the earth…”
Deuteronomy 4:9-10 (CSB)
Moses reminded the children of Israel they needed to exert consistent and conscious effort to remember. Once we gain the rhythm of a blessed life, we forget God’s provision during difficult days. God commands all of us to be on guard so that we don’t forget to always revere Him as Lord and Sovereign King.
Remember Your Passion
Third, God challenged me to remember the passion and perspective I had while we lived there. Did I mention we were young? Our tenure in Olympia followed my sweet Pastor husband’s graduation from seminary. We were no longer students, we now had a family, and people viewed us as official adults. However, we were wide-eyed, idealistic, and overflowing with hope.
Even though we had been married for five plus years, we had not yet become jaded by life. We had endured difficulties, however we still optimistically believed in the impossible. We moved to Olympia to make a difference for Jesus, and we were all in.
Once the Israelites crossed the Red Sea and the Egyptians drowned in the water, they too were all in. At least they were until they got hungry and thirsty. I’m sure you’ve experienced your own moments when the journey no longer felt great.
In Deuteronomy three, the Israelites face King Og with his whole army. God tells them, “Do not be afraid of him…Do to him what you did to Sihon king of the Amorites…” (Deuteronomy 3:2) Like the Israelites, we need to follow God’s advice. We must treat each new difficulty with the confidence we gained after we conquered our previous struggle.
We must not allow life to negatively alter our perspective. God is still Sovereign. He continues to lead and provide. Christ remains our Savior, and the Spirit is always with us. In Deuteronomy 3:22, Moses reminds Joshua, “the Lord your God himself will fight for you.” We serve the same God who fights for us as well.
Remember the Mission
Last, God impressed upon me to remember our service. God opened a door, and I saw the impact He had allowed us to have. We weren’t perfect by any means, and God used us.
I remembered a willingness to do whatever was necessary to influence those students for Jesus. Our life was wild and hectic. However, we were focused outside ourselves. We were engaged in Christ’s mission and giving life away.
In Deuteronomy three, Moses reminds the Israelites how God allowed the Reubenites, the Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh to settle east of the Jordan river. God gave the stipulation that they still had to fight with the rest of the Israelites and conquer the Promised Land before they could return to their homes and be with their families. The mission was the main thing.
We all find it easy to idealize the past. We think back and wish, if only things could be like they used to be. Perhaps we wish we were younger and more energetic. Sometimes we long for the resources we had at a particular point in time. Many times, we mistakenly think life was just easier back then. Regardless of our rambling thoughts, God’s mission remains the same and He calls us to make His mission the main thing.
Remembering Moves Us Forward
In the first part of Deuteronomy, Moses challenges the Israelites to remember so they can then move forward with greater confidence and strength. God has blessed me with a similar experience. He reminded me of His goodness, provision, strength, and mission, and He has challenged me to be more dedicated to influencing others for Christ.
God has gifted us with the memory of His involvement in our lives. When we take the time to remember how He moved in the past, we re-establish foundations of joy, passion, and a holy perspective that challenges us to continue serving. We anchor ourselves again in the truth “the LORD God is God, the faithful God who keeps his gracious covenant loyalty for a thousand generations to those who love him and keep his commands.” (Deuteronomy 7:8, CSB)
Thank God Sign Photo by Ashkan Forouzani on Unsplash
