Every time I look at their picture I am filled with awe! I recall how God brought them together. How He orchestrated their circumstances. Defined their relationship. If I’m having a rough day I try to take a moment to stare at the photo and I am soon reminded that God can do anything! The answer to my prayers is symbolized here. The desire of my heart fulfilled! I can go forward with renewed faith. Because I remembered I was renewed.
Our memory is an incredible gift from God. The ability to reminisce can be delightful or sometimes painful. The Lord wants us to remember His goodness and thank Him for answers to prayer. But the trials of life often blind us with a cloud of despair. It takes intentional discipline to steer our thoughts in another direction. When we call to mind what The Lord has done for us in the past, we are empowered to stand strong in the face of new problems. Remembering builds our faith and help us counteract wrong reactions to adverse circumstances. It’s for our own good to commit our victories to memory sealing them forever in our minds. But we need memory joggers. The Bible calls them Stones of Remembrance. A picture, a journal, or some inanimate object that will serve as a souvenir of past blessings. And help us remember what God has done for us.
1. What should we remember in Psalm 77:11-12? What synonyms for remembering are used here?
2. In Psalm 78:4 what were God’s people urged to tell the next generation? What stories are you telling the younger generation?
3. Why is remembering and repeating important according to Psalm 78:6-8? Your challenge this week is to tell someone what God has done for you in the past.
4. What charge does God bring against His people in Psalm 78:11? What stone of remembrance can you establish as a memory jogger? Share your ideas with us.
5. In Psalm 78:13-16 what miracles did God want His people to remember? What answers to prayer or specific blessings does God want you to remember this week?
RENEWED MIND – RENEWED MEMORIES – What a wonderful lesson this is – we need to jog our memories most of the time and just meditate on the LORD and all of the wonderful things HE has fulfilled in our lives.
1. The wonders of old times – needed to meditate.
2. God’s people needed to tell the next generation about HIS praises – HIS strength – HIS wonderful works.
3.Remembering what the LORD has done for each one of us – our hope in GOD – not forget HIS works – KEEP HIS commandments – telling people what the LORD has done for me in the past – that is not hard to do at all – Just remembering how HE has kept me – Just telling how HE has healed me through the years.
4. Not to forget HIS works and wonders through the years. I can tell how HE saved me – How HE filled me with the Holy Ghost – How HIS hand has been on my life all of these years – I just would not be without GOD in my life at all.
5. The miracles GOD wanted HIS people to remember – Divided the Sea – Waters stand parted and were still – Cloud by day – Fire by night – gave the people water to drink – streams out of rocks – Rivers of living water. There has been so many answers to prayers in my life – I could go on for pages upon pages telling of the goodness of the LORD in my life – many many answers to prayers and then the many many blessings HE has given to me – I rise each morning thanking HIM for another night and the start of a brand new day – and to just lead me in the way HE would want me to go for this day – Help me tell the people I meet about GOD and all of this wondrous works – OH MY – Karen this paper just could go on and on – each day is a new blessing from my LORD.
Odella, you just bubble over with love and praise to God. It’s contagious. Thank you for encouraging all of us with your comments about remembering God’s goodness and thanking Him for it.
I love to tell my girls about “tangible” things God has done in my life. I can’t say there are many (tangible)…most are things He drops in my heart that are hard to communicate with someone else. But when I have a good one, I love to watch their jaws drop. :) I do struggle with remembering. I am not a journaler…I would love ideas on other ways to remember! Today a scripture has caught my attention: “They are to give Him no peace until He does what He said.” We are also to remind God of His Word to us….not because He forgets, but to strengthen our faith (hearing is believing) and to remind us of what He has promised. This week I want to remember when God told me several years ago that He had literally “painted” me with His Holy Spirit anointing. It was thick honey and was so heavy that I was completely coated and it was dripping off onto the floor. I did not have to worry about it coming off because it was just like when you try to rub away honey…it continues to leave a sticky film. (I used to have a fear that if I was not “good enough”, that I would lose my anointing. So God gave me this visual so that I could understand and believe.) My sister just reminded me of this yesterday…I had totally forgotten! What a WONDERFUL warm & fuzzy feeling that overtook me when I REMEMBERED! :) <3
Love!!
beautiful. I remember your annointing description to me. Beautiful.
Tara, I love the picture God gave you of painting you with the Holy Spirit’s anointing. Now that’s something to remember! Even if you don’t journal regularly, it might be a good idea to write this on one of those blank back pages of your Bible. That way it will be preserved for your girls in your own handwriting…so they won’t forget. It’s great the way you share the tangible things God has done with your daughters that makes their jaws drop. Those things are being written in their hearts to remember forever. Those are faith builders! Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for joining in, Donna!
Vanessa, thank you for participating and staying connected through FB and this study.
Another wonderful lesson. I am amazed at how many times, God told the Israelites to “remember”. Then he reinforced it over and over. I am totally convinced that this is so we will remember it ourselves when we are facing a trial. Our family is going through some rough waters right now over a close family member and these lessons have been such a blessing in the storm. We are taking great comfort as we dwell on God’s goodness and what He has done in the past and are finding it so much easier to stay focused on Him instead of letting fear overtake us. Thank you so much, Karen.
I guess that’s why the Lord told us to not forget., Peggy. I am trilled that these lessons have urged you to remember God’s past blessings in the face of a new trial. You’re right that this practice helps us to stay focused on Him instead of the problem. I read that our fears can become idols if we indulge them…that really hit me hard. Remembering helps us take our thoughts captive to focus on the truth that God is for us, and we need not fear. Praying with you for your concerns.
Loved this lesson! I was a little frustrated after reading it tho! I know there are many times God has moved mightily in my life, & yet as I sat here trying to remember some, I was coming up completely blank! I used to journal, but haven’t done it in awhile. I dragged out my journal to see what I wrote for my last entry & was thrilled to read it! It started out ” I want to document some things that The Lord has been doing in the kids lives!” And reading it 9 months later it totally increased my faith to believe for something I am seeking God for now in the life of my son. It reminded me Christ has been so faithful to me & my family & that He always has a better plan than me! After having my memory jogged by my own journal The Lord reminded me of more times He has amazed me at His goodness & blessings to me! I am going to start always writing down when God shows up Big & beautiful & amazing so that when my brain can’t pull them up at a moments notice I will have it in writing to remind me! And someday, can pass it on to my children to carry on & add their own to it! “Great is thy faithfulness…”
Yes, Teresa, I agree that journaling will increase our faith as we face new problems in life. I’m so glad that you found your entry from 9 months back and it reminded you God’s goodness and blessings. That’s why I believe these stones of remembrance are so important to establish. And having these things to pass on to our children are life changing. Thanks for sharing your comments.
I agree with Teresa. A journal is a great way to write down what The Lord has done in your life and a great way to bring back to memory those things. I must admit I really wasn’t good about telling my children how God answered prayer and what God has done in our lives but this is a call for me to get going on doing so. So I am going to bless the Lord’s name and tell of His works in my life. I tend to be more of a private person but we are to declare His great works with our mouths. I pray that I won’t forget what He has done for me. I need to establish a “stone of rememberance”. There is a plaque that I plan to make and it says “to proclaim your love in the morning and your faithfulness at night” Psalm 92:2. I have a spot over our bed that the plaque will hang. That’s my “rememberance stone”
What a great idea for a stone of remembrance, Anita. That’s being creative for sure!
Please take a picture of your plaque when it’s done so we can all see it. Not everyone likes to journal, but I think it’s good to at least write down specific things God does for you, even if it’s not a daily entry. This lesson really challenged me as well to tell my kids more stories. Grandchildren love to hear stories of when we were growing up, and those can be teachable moments to let them know how God took care of us. Love all of your comments.
“Here I raise my Ebenezer, hither by thy help I’ve come.”
It is good to remember! :)
Oh yes, Kim, that phrase in that old hymn is powerful! Our Ebenezer is our “stone of help.” I looked it up and found 1 Samuel 7:12 where Samuel took a stone and set it up to commemorate victory in battle, saying “Thus far has the Lord helped us.” Thanks for bringing that up because it’s just what we’re talking about with our stones of remembrance in our own lives. May we all be able to say whenever we face a new trial, “thus far has the Lord helped me.” Yes it is good to remember! And thanks for the reminder!