Crashing the Pity Party
“I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your wonders of old. I will ponder all your work, and meditate on your mighty deeds.” Psalm 77:11-12
In scripture, God repeatedly calls His people to remember His faithfulness. He calls us to remember because our human tendency is to forget and take His redemptive work in our lives for granted. This is why Jesus instituted the Lord’s supper. We must never take the redemptive sacrifice of Jesus on the cross for granted. Failing to honor the Lord for who He is and what He’s done marks the first stage toward great spiritual decline (Romans 1:21).
Remembering is a means of grace that strengthens us by the Spirit in our inner beings to know the deep, deep love of God. The more we know His love, the more we will love Him, trust Him, and obey Him. When we struggle to see the goodness of God in our suffering, we must remember the goodness of God in the suffering of His Son! As the author of Hebrews wrote: “Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.” Hebrews 12:3
When the Philistine army came against Israel under the leadership of Samuel the prophet, they were overcome with fear. Samuel was not a military man, but he was a praying man. Moreover, his people knew he was a praying man who interceded for them. In 1 Samuel 7:8-9 we read: “And the people of Israel said to Samuel, “Do not cease to cry out to the Lord our God for us, that he may save us from the hand of the Philistines.” So Samuel took a nursing lamb and offered it as a whole burnt offering to the Lord. And Samuel cried out to the Lord for Israel, and the Lord answered him.”
The Lord heard Samuel’s prayers and caused confusion among the Philistines, allowing the Israelites to defeat them. After defeating the Philistines, God’s word says: “Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen and called its name Ebenezer; for he said, ‘Till now the Lord has helped us.”’ 1 Samuel 7:12
Commenting on this passage, David Guzik writes:
Joshua also performed a similar act of remembrance. While Joshua was leading the people of God, they came to the Jordan River which was at flood-stage. But as his predecessor Moses had led the children of Israel through the Red Sea on dry ground by God’s power, Joshua led them across the Jordan River. When the priests, who were carrying the Ark of the Covenant dipped a toe in the water, the water stopped flowing and his people crossed on dry ground. (Joshua 4:1-7)
As Samuel did, Joshua also commemorated this moment with stones. He instructed the leaders of each tribe to gather stones from the river and set them up so that they would always remember and also strengthen the faith of coming generations by testifying of the deeds of the Lord.
As Joshua explained to the people: “When your children ask in time to come, ‘What do those stones mean to you?’ then you shall tell them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it passed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. So these stones shall be to the people of Israel a memorial forever.” Joshua 4:6-7
Concerning this memorial, one Christian author writes:
Recently I finished writing a book titled Collateral Blessing: How God brings Unexpected Blessings in Uncertain Times. In this book, I write about God's providential work in my life. I’m hoping that it gets published and can be an encouragement to others to trust that God is at work for our good through the difficulties and uncertainties of life. While setting out to write the book, I did not anticipate that it would be an act of remembrance and a means of grace that would renew my own faith. If nothing else, my heart has been stirred to continue to pray big prayers and take big steps of faith as God leads expecting Him to do great things for the greater fame of Jesus!
In times of difficulty and uncertainty, our human tendency is to fixate on our problems and our pain. Life is hard and we will experience heartache. But often prolonged discouragement, depression, and self-pity, which will keep us from growing in faith through our struggles, comes from focusing on our problems more than our blessings. The truth is that in Christ we have more blessings than we do problems. God has a track record of faithfulness in your life.
Don’t lose sight of who God is and what He’s done in your life. Overcome the human tendency to forget by developing habits of remembrance.
It’s been said, the weakest ink is better than the best memory. Write about those God moments in your life. When you pray, don’t just make requests about the problems in your life and in the world. Take time to revere God and reflect upon His goodness and faithfulness in your life. Read and meditate on the word of God. Read other christian books, like biographies that recount the faithfulness of God in men and women who walked by faith.
Learn to crash the pity party through the power of remembrance. As the old hymn goes:
In His service,
Pastor Marco
In scripture, God repeatedly calls His people to remember His faithfulness. He calls us to remember because our human tendency is to forget and take His redemptive work in our lives for granted. This is why Jesus instituted the Lord’s supper. We must never take the redemptive sacrifice of Jesus on the cross for granted. Failing to honor the Lord for who He is and what He’s done marks the first stage toward great spiritual decline (Romans 1:21).
Remembering is a means of grace that strengthens us by the Spirit in our inner beings to know the deep, deep love of God. The more we know His love, the more we will love Him, trust Him, and obey Him. When we struggle to see the goodness of God in our suffering, we must remember the goodness of God in the suffering of His Son! As the author of Hebrews wrote: “Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.” Hebrews 12:3
When the Philistine army came against Israel under the leadership of Samuel the prophet, they were overcome with fear. Samuel was not a military man, but he was a praying man. Moreover, his people knew he was a praying man who interceded for them. In 1 Samuel 7:8-9 we read: “And the people of Israel said to Samuel, “Do not cease to cry out to the Lord our God for us, that he may save us from the hand of the Philistines.” So Samuel took a nursing lamb and offered it as a whole burnt offering to the Lord. And Samuel cried out to the Lord for Israel, and the Lord answered him.”
The Lord heard Samuel’s prayers and caused confusion among the Philistines, allowing the Israelites to defeat them. After defeating the Philistines, God’s word says: “Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen and called its name Ebenezer; for he said, ‘Till now the Lord has helped us.”’ 1 Samuel 7:12
Commenting on this passage, David Guzik writes:
“Samuel knew the nation needed to remember this amazing victory, which came to a humble and repentant Israel. The LORD won this battle, not Israel – so he named the stone Ebenezer, meaning 'stone of help'…Samuel knew the LORD did a great work yet he knew there was much more to be accomplished. So he could say, 'Thus far the LORD has helped us.' God helps us thus far at a time and His past work is a pledge of future help.”
Joshua also performed a similar act of remembrance. While Joshua was leading the people of God, they came to the Jordan River which was at flood-stage. But as his predecessor Moses had led the children of Israel through the Red Sea on dry ground by God’s power, Joshua led them across the Jordan River. When the priests, who were carrying the Ark of the Covenant dipped a toe in the water, the water stopped flowing and his people crossed on dry ground. (Joshua 4:1-7)
As Samuel did, Joshua also commemorated this moment with stones. He instructed the leaders of each tribe to gather stones from the river and set them up so that they would always remember and also strengthen the faith of coming generations by testifying of the deeds of the Lord.
As Joshua explained to the people: “When your children ask in time to come, ‘What do those stones mean to you?’ then you shall tell them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it passed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. So these stones shall be to the people of Israel a memorial forever.” Joshua 4:6-7
Concerning this memorial, one Christian author writes:
“Joshua knew that in the time it would take the Israelites to travel to Jericho, it would be all too easy for them to forget what that God had done to get them there. Their fear of the unknown before them would be too overwhelming and they would easily lose sight of the One who was holding everything together. We’re not much different, are we? It doesn’t take long at all for us to forget all that God has done. We too can become desensitized to His presence in our day-to-day routines, or as we face the fearful unknown before us. It is equally important for us to stop and recognize God’s presence, power, and provision in our lives…As we take this time to reflect and remember, our faith and trust in Him will grow and He will grant us boldness and courage for the future. Then we are able to share with those around us how God is real and at work every day.
What could you use as a memory stone in your life? Perhaps you could write down some of the ways you’ve felt God’s presence or seen His provision this past year and put it someplace you will see it regularly. Maybe there were times you witnessed His power in situations where you could not have succeeded alone. Remember how God has worked in the past, recognize God’s faithful presence and love in the present, and look forward to the wonderful things He has in store for the future.” (Source)
Recently I finished writing a book titled Collateral Blessing: How God brings Unexpected Blessings in Uncertain Times. In this book, I write about God's providential work in my life. I’m hoping that it gets published and can be an encouragement to others to trust that God is at work for our good through the difficulties and uncertainties of life. While setting out to write the book, I did not anticipate that it would be an act of remembrance and a means of grace that would renew my own faith. If nothing else, my heart has been stirred to continue to pray big prayers and take big steps of faith as God leads expecting Him to do great things for the greater fame of Jesus!
In times of difficulty and uncertainty, our human tendency is to fixate on our problems and our pain. Life is hard and we will experience heartache. But often prolonged discouragement, depression, and self-pity, which will keep us from growing in faith through our struggles, comes from focusing on our problems more than our blessings. The truth is that in Christ we have more blessings than we do problems. God has a track record of faithfulness in your life.
Don’t lose sight of who God is and what He’s done in your life. Overcome the human tendency to forget by developing habits of remembrance.
It’s been said, the weakest ink is better than the best memory. Write about those God moments in your life. When you pray, don’t just make requests about the problems in your life and in the world. Take time to revere God and reflect upon His goodness and faithfulness in your life. Read and meditate on the word of God. Read other christian books, like biographies that recount the faithfulness of God in men and women who walked by faith.
Learn to crash the pity party through the power of remembrance. As the old hymn goes:
Count your blessings, name them one by one;
Count your blessings, see what God hath done;
Count your blessings, name them one by one;
Count your many blessings, see what God hath done.
In His service,
Pastor Marco