Remembering

Last evening, Betty & I spent some time looking over the pictures taken when we walked the 630 miles of South West Coast Path, some years ago. The scrapbooks had been assembled around the time we did the walking, but I had never spent time looking over the details of what we had done. Betty on the other hand, having put the scrapbooks together, knew every step of the way. as though she had been there recently! What I had forgotten, though I was there, she had remembered!
The Bible is full of reminders to remember, and we do well to learn to do this.
When Joshua, the new Israelite leader in about 1200BC is given his instructions from the Lord, remembering is at the heart of his charge.
“Moses my servant is dead. Therefore, the time has come for you to lead these people, the Israelites, across the Jordan River into the land I am giving them. I promise you what I promised Moses: ‘Wherever you set foot, you will be on land I have given you. No one will be able to stand against you as long as you live.' For I will be with you as I was with Moses. I will not fail you or abandon you.' (Joshua 1.2, 3, 5)
Joshua is reminded of the promises given to and through Moses, and encouraged that the Lord was going to fulfil those very promises. In all that was to come, the Lord was going to be seen as faithful and trustworthy. That knowledge comes from taking time to remember.
All of us can easily forget the Lord's faithfulness to his promises, and so we start to doubt Him. But when we take time to recall the journey we have been on, or learn of God's faithfulness throughout Christian history, then our own sense of trust grows. Remembering is good for our soul's health.
Best wishes,
Richard