Spiritual Amnesia

gray cross near tall green trees

Some days the lies I believe overwhelm me. It’s hard to find peace. Maybe you understand this struggle too. My question to myself is, “why do I sit and soak in the lies and let the troubles of tomorrow invade my today when I have so much to be thankful for?”

Something the late theologian Charles Spurgeon said sums it up like this; “We are too prone to engrave our trials in marble and write our blessings in sand.”

The Bible tells us over and over to “remember”, or “do not forget”, what God has done for you. We tend to hit replay in our minds about our hurts, heartaches, and lies we believe. Yet, we tend to forget our blessings, as well as how many times God has shown up in our lives. 

The Jewish practice a spiritual rhythm they call “Zakhar,” which means “to remember”. This rhythm of remembering what God has done for them refreshes their soul and moves them forward with hope and peace.  

Deuteronomy 6:12, “be careful that you do not forget the LORD, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.” 
Psalm 103:2-5, “Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.”

In other words, when we forget what God did, we will stop believing what God can do.    

The Lord is all about restoring and renewing us, the issue is we tend to have “spiritual amnesia.”  I‘ve heard it said, “it only took a day to get the Israelites out of Egypt but took 40 years to get Egypt out of the Israelites.”  Either their memory was terrible, or they were a bit selfish. God, Himself, had to remind the Israelites about His provision in the desert. Great is God’s faithfulness, and He has not failed us yet.  

I am thinking I should add “Zakhar” to my weekly discipline. Remembering and looking back on how many times God has shown up in my life, empowers me to look forward. Maybe this would bring peace to you as well. Take time to write down how God has provided for you, protected you, and brought you out of your Egypt. 

Lord, you are our provider, our peace.  How grateful we are for your patience with us. Lord, let us have your faithfulness on our minds and be the lens to our everyday.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Tanya Magnus

Tanya Magnus

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