Let us not Forget to Remember: What Gods Already Done.

One of the inspirations for this blog were the Israelites! Those annoying Israelites!

They sat complaining in the desert! They wanted food, and then when they got the food they didn't like the food! They wanted a home, but they didn't want to have to fight to get it! They loved God and then they hated Him. They were the epitome of whatever Katy Perry was talking about in that song.

Reading through those chapters of the bible I got annoyed.  Those Israelites are quite the whiny bunch!

But then I look in the mirror and realize that the reason I hate them so much is they often look a lot like me.  I am the discontented, whiny, hot and cold Israelite.

Why? Because I forget to remember.

Then I noticed that generally, the Israelites would complain in a season of wilderness, but that the season of wilderness was generally right after a season of Providence.

So the ticket to not being a whiny Israelite is to look and remember what God has already done.

For example: When we are tempted to complain about manna, we should remember that God had just rescued us from slavery! He had thrown crazy plagues on the Egyptians and He had split the red sea in two!

Wow! So instead of being flabbergasted by what had just happened. They are focused on the manna in the wilderness.   There are hills and valleys in this life, but we make the valleys a lot deeper by not remembering what happened on the hill.

Wildernesses generally directly proceed times of great success.

Take Graduation for example. You are so excited about what God has done, and the amazing education you've just received, and all the awesome memories you've made.  Then fast forward a few months and we're complaining because the reality isn't what it's cracked up to be. We're doing our time eating manna while we are waiting for the promised land.

However, we have a choice. We can complain about the manna, where we are right now. Or we can remember all the amazing things God has just done.

I've never been married but I'm sure it's the same way.  You have this wonderful special wedding where all your friends and family bless your relationship before God and men, and then you have this amazing vacation where you spend time loving and doting on one another.  Then you come home to a little more honeymoon as everything is new and fresh.  And then, probably about a year in. All the newness fades. The morning breath is real, the finances are tight, the house is dirty, and you're both busy and stressed. That's when the real marriage starts, and the real beauty is at.  But at that moment you can choose to run, or complain that your wife/husband is not who you thought or expected. Or you can remember all that God has already done to get you to that point.

Let alone God has already died for us so that we can be free.  He is our true husband who has done all to win us and cherish the church that is his bride.

It's in the wilderness we get to remember what he has already done.  That he is already paid the price, and we've been set free. We were enslaved and He moved heaven and hell to rescue us.

So let's stop complaining about the stupid manna, and rejoice that we have the perfect Husband who has set us free!

Let Us Not Forget to Remember: God's Not Done Yet.

A few weeks ago beautiful flowers were delivered to me.  All the flowers were in full bloom except my favorite ones: Lilies.  They were just about to bloom.

This did not disappoint me. This excited me! I got to watch all my lilies bloom one by one.  It was magical and beautiful! Getting to watch my flowers grow into full beauty right before my eyes was the best part! It was a joy seeing my flowers grow and change every day. I rejoiced in the process. 

Why don't we look at our lives like that?  

Colossians 1:9–12

And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. (ESV)

Sometimes I look at seasons of my life and I see flowers that have yet to bloom.  

When I look at my life now and compare it to my dreams and the callings that the Lord has put on my life, there is a stark difference. 

I begin to wonder. Am I in the wrong place? Did I hear God's call wrong? Are my dreams too big? Am I being too hopeful to believe that God wants those things for me?

That is when I must remember the flowers. God has a perfect design.  God is in the process of making things bloom, and it is our privilege that we get to watch.  

God's not done yet. 

1 Thessalonians 5:24

He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it. (ESV)

If God called you, He will make it happen.  He doesn't say that He will maybe do it, or might do it, or even that He could do it or that He would do it.  He says that He will surely do it. 

And for someone as suspicious as me, that's quite encouraging. God can't lie so when He says He's sure. He's sure!! 

Wow, God's not done yet! 

God knows what he is doing, and we are right where we are supposed to be.  

So, let's look at our unopened lilies with expectancy, not dread or frustration. Let's have patience with joy knowing that we get the privilege of watching our flowers bloom.  

Sometimes the most joy is in the process, and so today let's remember that. 

Let's not forget to remember that God is not done yet. 

Lord, Let us be content with where we are and expectant of where you are taking us. Let us look at our flowers yet to bloom and give us patience with joy as we know you are not finished with us yet and there is so much beauty yet to come.