Monday, March 23, 2009, "Remembering"

Triumphant Victorious Reminders
Inspired by the Holy Spirit
By: Teresa Criswell

“Some trust in chariots, and some in horses;
but we will remember the name of the Lord our God.”
~Psalm 20:7~

Definition of remember: To recall to mind with effort; thinking of again
Antonym of remember: To forget

“God your name is already lifted on high
but I want to join that beautiful chorus
as I remember who You are.”
~Teresa

Lord, may we always remember there is an enemy ~ however, as we realize the enemy’s tactics which are revealed in John 10:10 ~ “The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy…” May we realize and remember that the love of God dispelled near and abroad are anecdotes against the tactics of the enemy. The rest of John 10:10 says:”…I [Jesus] came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows).”

We must remember the Lord and how we truly fell in love with Him when we accepted His free gift of salvation; knowing that He rescued us from ourselves and most of all the sin that separated us from God our Father. As we are in a constant process of growing, there has also been the process of allowing the world to distract us and seduce us away from our first love.

How do we get back? We remember ~ a glorious tool from the Lord, when used to glorify Him. We need to remember that moment of knowing who our God was and as we remember we want to do something. That “something” is to run back to Him and smell the fragrance that once intoxicated us…the fragrance of His abundant mercies and love for and over us.

We can take this tool of remembering and allow it to be a “vehicle” that revitalizes our marriages, parenting and other relationships. Life has a way of seducing us away just as if you are wading in the vast ocean. You walk towards the beautiful horizon, enthralled by the overwhelming beauty, sounds and smell of the ocean and details surrounding it. As you walk you feel as though you are walking straight ahead, however when you turn back to the sandy beach you realize you have drifted from the area you "pitched" your belongings, and ask, “Where am I?” Panic tries to rise up as you may feel like a child who has been separated from a parent. You didn’t realize you had even walked away from the course of your first step into the ocean, until you need and want to get back.

This happens in life ~ we have a tendency to be seduced away from those things that are most precious. Most of the time with no understanding that there are tools that seduce us. For instance, as husband and wife if they have drifted away from one another they MUST jump into the “vehicle” of remembering and “drive” to that first moment of falling in love with their spouse. Remembering that moment the first day they met; the excitement, seeing through eyes that could only see the good in that person and nothing else.

This “vehicle of remembrance” is able to assist us in getting us to the original “state” of appreciation, love and respect that we once had for each other.

The same goes for parenting. When the behavior of our children is about to test our patience as it swiftly becomes impatience, we MUST jump into the “vehicle of remembrance” and “drive” it to the first day we met our child. The day we laid eyes on that precious baby that we knew we would protect, cherish and love with all of our heart. Remembering will assist us in getting back to the original “state” of appreciation, love and adoration for our children once again.

This brings me back to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ; our first love. In I Corinthians 11:23-25, Paul reminds the church in Corinth that the night Jesus was in the process of being betrayed, Jesus took bread and gave thanks to God. As He gave thanks, He then broke it and said, “Take eat, this is my body which is broken for you, do this to call me [affectionately] to remembrance.” He did the same when supper had ended he took the cup saying, “This cup is the new covenant [ratified and established] in My Blood, do this as often as you drink [it], to call me [affectionately] to remembrance.”

There is truly power to remembering the Greatness of God and what Jesus Christ did for us. It is truly amazing how remembering the greatness of God, or remembering the day of His deliverance, His salvation, His redeeming power and it “demagnifies” the evil and many problems before us and it “magnifies” and exalts Almighty God!

Let us drive the “vehicle of remembrance” to that great thing. We must not use it to conjure up hurts, hate and grudges. We must remember God’s forgiveness, shown by His love (Who is LOVE) as “He has removed our sins as far as the east is from the west.”
~ Psalm 103:12.

I guess we can say that the word of the day is: REMEMBER!

God bless you as we remember His faithfulness!