Do Not Forget to Remember

When we trust Christ as Savior, He redeems us from sin and we belong to Him.  However, He also redeems us daily from things that would steal our hearts, He has "radically redeemed" me through His gentle reminders (and sometimes not so gentle) to remember all He has done for me and all He has done in history.  He reminds me not to forget who He is and what He is able to do.

Remembering the works and wonders of the Lord is a mentally strengthening exercise that has the power to bring victory into our lives.  Knowing our weaknesses and becoming aware of the areas where we are prone to fall into sin, will help us to develop a plan to fight a good fight of faith when we are faced with struggles.  We are instructed in 2 Corinthians 10:5 to destroy speculations and any lofty thoughts that are raised up against the knowledge of God, taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.  Remembering His works and wonders is a way to exercise our minds and help bring our thoughts into obedience.

Through my struggle with depression, I have found victory in remembering the works and wonders of the Lord.  Our God has been so faithful to reveal Himself to us throughout history, all the way up to current day.  He wants us to know His power, His abilities, His desires, and His heart.  All the many stories in the Bible from, Genesis to Revelation, are revelations of who He is and what He is able to do on the behalf of those who fear Him.  I once heard it said that when our walk with God is distant, it isn't always that we lack devotion but that we fail to remember.

King David was known as being "a man after God's own heart" however he struggled with depression.  Reading through the Psalms will reveal many times in David's life where he was being pursued by someone or was overtaken by his own sin and distress, all of which led him down the road of depression.  However, David did not allow it to rule his life, he fought it by remembering the works and wonders of the Lord.  Many times after David would list all of his woes he would finish up with remembering, as in Psalm 77:11-12 "I shall remember the deeds of the LORD; Surely I will remember Your wonders of old. I will meditate on all Your work and muse on Your deeds."

When we remember His works it strengthens our trust so we can confidently say, "The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid..."  (Heb. 13:6).  Remembering His wonders of old will give us understanding because it is an exersice in fearing the Lord and the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and a good understanding have all those who do His commandments (Psalm 111:10).  When we meditate on all His works and ponder His deeds we are comforted.  David said, "I have remembered Thine ordances from of old, O Lord, and comfort myself." (Psalm 119:52)  David knew that remembering whe works of the Lord would give him victory as well as comfort, therefore, he remembered them often.

I have had seasons of victory and seasons of defeat but I am convinced that defeat does not have to be chronic.  We often choose to live defeated lives but if we choose Christ, we can live in victory.  It is my hope and prayer, that if there is anyone reading this blog that is struggling with depression, you will know that you are not alone.  Many godly people that were used mightly of God struggled with depression as well.  However, we must take steps to obey God's word by taking our thoughts captive and bringing them into obedience.  Remembering His works and wonders is a way to do that.

In this blog, I want to encourage you to do a little scripture study on the word "remember" and then study the phrase "did not remember" and see what you come up with.  Word studies are done easily if you go to http://www.biblegateway.com/ and simply put in your word or "phrase" in quotes then every scripture which contains that word or phrase will come up. 

Ask God to give you creative ways to remember all His works and wonders.  If you do this exercise and experience being radically redeemed please share what God did so we can all rejoice with you and praise His Name.

A Thorn in the Flesh

I've had a lot of ups and downs in the last three years and through various pressures of life, some days are filled with simply surviving.  Throughout all these things, God is changing me and I think a new "normal" is developing.  

Lately, in my assessment of some of these life pressures, I was drawn to think about Paul and his thorn in the flesh. Many have speculated on what that thorn could have been but I began to wonder if it could have been a 'being' because Paul describes the thorn as a "messenger of Satan" and it was given to "buffet" him. We all have personalities that make who we are and when we come to faith, our personality does not change. It takes a certain kind of personality to kill people. Paul was a persecutor and murderer before the road to Damascus experience. When he became a believer, he still had the same personality, however, it was now turned toward holiness instead of destruction. I'm sure that his new nature did not dominate his old habits all the time. Thus we have Romans 7 where he explains the struggle he is going through within his own body. When the Bible uses the word "messenger" it is usually talking about a "being" or a person. A messenger of God is always thought to be an angel so wouldn't a "messenger of Satan" be a demon?

This was something God was allowing in Paul to keep him from exalting himself. There are others in Scripture who were given a "messenger of Satan" by God. Then of course, when Paul asked God to take this from him God's reply was, "My grace is sufficient for you for power is perfected in weakness." The weaknesses we all have are given to us by God and many times we live with an expectation that someday we will overcome these weaknesses, however that day may never come. Our weaknesses are, in reality, our greatest strengths therefore, we may continue to struggle with these things continually. I think a "spirit" of depression is my thorn and while I do not have to live in a depressed state, it will always be looming even during a "good" season. If I can look at "Depression" as the name of an outside force that has been given to me by God to keep me on my face before Him, then fighting a good fight of faith takes on a whole new meaning. Rather than viewing self with contempt, Depression can be viewed with contempt and with the armor of God in tact, He will fight the battle and I am free to show myself grace.

If you struggle with depression, on down days, remember God's grace upon you is sufficient and you are allowed to show yourself grace.

"Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong."