Remember when…

television programming ended every night with the playing of the National Anthem. (Try explaining that to your children or grandchildren and record their reaction!).

Remember when…

in order to make a call away from home you had to have at least 20 cents. (Again, try explaining that one to your children or grandchildren and get ready for shock and awe.)

Remember when…

you actually talked to people more than inanimate objects like your phone or gps system.

Remember when…

you received information about your children at school from a printed report with actual hand written teacher’s comments.

Remember when…

you had to actually stop what you were doing to hold your baby, take a moment and take it all in: not drop them in a chest carrier contraption to get to the next thing.

Remembering is this powerful mindful activity that we get to do because a loving God made our brains remarkable. Remembering can be nostalgic, encouraging, and what we call a walk down memory lane. It is stimulated by so many of our senses, so much so that anything in our external environment can trigger us to remember. It is a powerful thing. Now think about what is like not to remember. What to we like to call them today, “senior moments”. We can’t remember whom we wanted to call when we picked up our smartphone. We don’t even remember phone numbers anymore because our smartphone does it for us. We can’t remember where we put our keys and we are running late. Total frustration can set in. Now contemplate how traumatic it could be for a person who suffers from a lack of remembering. Today, we might call it aging, memory loss or even more devastating Alzheimer’s. I don’t know anyone who has Alzheimer’s, so I have no personal point of reference but in musing over this topic I began to realize how much “remembering” is a part of our lives.

What about what our Father God says about “remember”?

One of the first mentions of “remember” in the scriptures is in reference to the Sabbath. Father God tells us to “Remember the Sabbath” in Exodus20: 8. Now before I discuss this any further I want to mention another portion of scripture.

Isaiah 55:8 reads, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth. So are My ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

SELAH.

Father God, the Most High God, Creator of the Universe told His people, the Israelites to remember the Sabbath. Are you wondering why I am talking about the Old Testament? Well, it’s been over a year now that Holy Spirit has been speaking to me about entering into the rest of God. (Hebrews Chapter 4). When I write for this blog I don’t want to write something that doesn’t mean anything to me. I don’t want to just put words on paper that have not been inspired, or God-breathed. God-breathed meaning, His Spirit has ministered it to me in some way in order to share and impart it to someone else who may need it. So I can only share what I believe Holy Spirit is prompting…and He has not released me from studying and understanding the rest of God. WHY? Simply put, because I need it and from my observation of the world in which we live…I am not alone.

Remember the Sabbath.

Father God did not institute the Sabbath as part of the law as many of us modern day believers assume. If we “remember” God hallowed and set apart the seventh day as part of his original plan of creation. God rested on the seventh day and made it holy. Please think about that. Father God chose a day, sanctified it from the beginning of time and made it holy. I don’t want to get into a doctrinal debate with any believer about the law and grace; so please don’t misunderstand why I am sharing this. Let’s just agree…His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. His ways are higher than our ways.

As I mentioned earlier, its been over a year that I have been seeking and receiving from Holy Spirit about entering God’s rest. It has been a difficult journey because it is challenging for a Type A personality, like myself, to adjust to the admonition of Psalm 46:10 “Be still and know that I am God.”   What I have learned is that entering God’s promised rest is for all of us who believe. Entering God’s rest should begin with remembering the Sabbath. For me remembering the Sabbath means I purposefully and intentionally acknowledge God’s appointment with me. I remember that He wants time set aside for just us.

Remember that Father God rested from His work and He sanctified an appointed time for us to enjoy Him. Remember that loving God isn’t about doing, it’s about being His child. Remember that our life in Christ isn’t about legalism but freedom. Remember that part of that freedom includes enjoying the original plan and purpose of God; we are not striving to become but we are embracing the reality that we are. So we can rest in Him.