The Spiritual Habit of Remembering

The Spiritual Habit of Remembering

Throughout the Old Testament, God delivers the people of Israel from many different situations. He acts miraculously in bringing them out of foreign nations. He even provides water and bread for them in the wilderness.

However, the nation of Israel grew disobedient, and distant from God and His law. They ended up turning away from God, and part of the reason was because they failed to remember.

They failed to remember the great acts of deliverance God did for them. They failed to remember the miracles that He performed in their midst. They failed to remember that He's good and present and loving towards them.

But thankfully, there were also people throughout Scripture who developed a spiritual habit of remembering God’s work from the past. When times became difficult, or when things seemed dark, they took the time to remember how God had previously acted toward them.

The writer of Psalm 9 was one of them. The Psalmist begins this song by doing two things...

First, the writer gives thanks to God, and expresses gratefulness for God.

Second, the writer recounts God’s wonderful deeds. Recounting these deeds from the past helped the Israelites remember His faithfulness and goodness toward them even in difficult times.

And the same is true for us.

We are commanded many times in God’s Word to remember what God has done, because remembering what God has done fuels our hope for what He will do.

So take some time today to remember what God has done for you. Think about a season of your life where you knew God’s goodness and love. Tell Him how grateful you are for His goodness and love in your life. Begin to let those memories of God’s love shape your hope for the future.