In the Old Testament, the Israelites set up memorial stones at certain locations to help them remember what the Lord had done in that place. We too need to create reminders for ourselves, lest we forget God’s gracious provision.

Joshua 4:20-24 (NIV)

20 And Joshua set up at Gilgal the twelve stones they had taken out of the Jordan. 21 He said to the Israelites, “In the future when your descendants ask their parents, ‘What do these stones mean?’ 22 tell them, ‘Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground.’ 23 For the Lord your God dried up the Jordan before you until you had crossed over. The Lord your God did to the Jordan what he had done to the Red Sea when he dried it up before us until we had crossed over. 24 He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the Lord is powerful and so that you might always fear the Lord your God.”

Coach Lou Holtz said, “We aren’t where we want to be; we aren’t where we ought to be; but thank goodness we aren’t where we used to be.” It is when we look back that we see how far God has brought us. Too often we forget all that God has done for us. We allow our present circumstances to obscure our memories of His past faithfulness. Forgetting how God has provided for and protected us in the past is one way we lose sight of our faith. When challenges come, we need to remember that God came through for us before, and He can and will do it again. 

I have been driving to my in-laws’ house for over twenty years now, but only recently have I managed to get there on my own. They live in the country on the backroads, and every time we drive there, I am talking, thinking, or listening. I’ve always just relied on my wife to tell me each and every turn (and there are a lot). Left to myself, I always forgot which way to go. So, the first time I made it to their house without having to ask for directions, I was quite pleased with myself.

In the same way, I repeatedly forgot the directions to my in-laws’ house, so too can we forget God’s directions to us in the past and find ourselves in danger of making a wrong turn. The Bible encourages us always to remember and speak of His past faithfulness. Why? So that we never forget how amazing our God was, is, and will always be! I have heard it said, “Don’t remember what you should forget…and don’t forget what you should remember.”