By Canaan Chapman
Do you ever have moments when you forget where you put your phone or your keys? It can be frustrating—you search and search, retracing your steps, checking every pocket and every room. Sometimes, you even have to ask someone else to help you look. It’s like your brain is playing a game of hide-and-seek with you—you knew you just had it…so where is it?
Over time, we’ve invented tricks to help us remember things. An image came to mind from childhood books, retro pictures, and classic stories: a ribbon tied around someone’s finger—a visual reminder to remember. Personally being a fan of technological advances, I prefer asking Siri to give me a reminder on-demand! In lieu of digital assistants, though, sometimes I just repeat what I need to remember over and over and over to myself until I get to a place where it sticks.
In today’s reading in Deuteronomy, God instructs His people to constantly repeat and remember His words and ways. It is not enough to simply read the Bible once (or twice) and forget about it. Instead, we must intentionally meditate on it, apply it to our lives, and teach it to those around us, including and especially our children. This challenge of repetition allows God’s Word to take root in our hearts and minds so that we can be transformed by it. It’s interesting how that works, isn’t it? If you spend time thinking about something, it tends to stick!
This is not just a suggestion or a nice idea. Rather, it is a call to action that has been given since the earliest days of God’s people. Through tangible and regular practices of remembrance, like the rainbow after the flood, the unleavened bread, and the rocks gathered from a dried river bed, God provided His people with visible reminders of His faithfulness to His promises.
When we make it a habit to remember God’s instructions and deeds, we can live a life that is pleasing to Him. We can make wise decisions, love others well, and overcome difficult situations. Remembering God also reminds us of His faithfulness and love, even in the middle of life’s nastiness.
As you go about your life, practice remembrance.Think about God’s words and actions, and as Scripture says, talk about them. This is part of the way we will see God’s kingdom advance. Not sitting quietly and forgetting but intentionally passing on truth and acting accordingly. God, help me remember, whichever way works best!
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