Has the Lord rejected me forever? Will he never again be kind to me? Is his unfailing love gone forever? Have his promises permanently failed? Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has he slammed the door on his compassion? And I said, “This is my fate; the Most High has turned his hand against me.” But then I recall all you have done, O Lord; I remember your wonderful deeds of long ago. They are constantly in my thoughts. I cannot stop thinking about your mighty works. O God, your ways are holy. Is there any god as mighty as you? You are the God of great wonders! You demonstrate your awesome power among the nations. By your strong arm, you redeemed your people, the descendants of Jacob and Joseph. (NLT)
Beware of forgetting to remember. There can be times in life when all seems dark, when God seems to have taken leave of us. There can be times when we seriously doubt the goodness of God amidst the badness of our immediate circumstances.
This is what the Psalmist experienced repeatedly. He is not afraid to tell God just how he feels. But what saves him from despair is his memory. He calls to mind all that God has done in his dealings with his people in history. The road to recovery comes via a self-imposed history lesson.
When we journey through a dark night, we do well to remember. Not just the broader history of God’s dealing with us, but we need to recall the more immediate blessings we have received. Things might be against us right now, but that doesn’t mean God has not been doing good things throughout our lives. The bad memories and bad experiences need not swamp the good memories and good experiences.
We recall our previous darkness’s and remember the dawn came at the end of the darkness. We trust it will be so again.
Blessings
David
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