The Wisdom of Remembering & the Wisdom to ForgetSample

Forgetting about God’s works of salvation

When the people of Israel were traveling through the desert, they experienced firsthand the Lord’s power and grace. They heard his voice from the mountain of Sinai. They ate the bread from heaven that the Lord provided and drank water from the rocks. The generation that entered the promised land watched how God split the waters of the river Jordan and destroyed the city of Jericho. But the collective memory of the Israelites did not last long: “there arose another generation after them who did not know the Lord or the work that He had done for Israel … And they abandoned the Lord, the God of their fathers.” (Judges 2:10,12)

This lack of remembrance or loss of memory became an enormous problem for the people of Israel. Over and over again, they turned away from the Lord, faced his judgment, repented . . . and forgot him again. This disastrous pattern went on for centuries till the measure of their sins was full and God expelled them from their country.

How is this in your life? Do you remember the Lord and all that He has done for you?