Payin’ the Price of Forgetfulness

Take care, lest you forget the covenant of the LORD your God, which he made with you…Deuteronomy 4:23

The Price

I look awful. My eyes are swollen, my face is red and blotchy, and my nose looks like I was the loser is a hard fought fist fight.

A lot of years ago I developed an allergy to the antibiotic ointment, Bacitracin.

Last week, a med tech recommended I use it on two very sore spots where my glasses had been putting too much pressure at the bridge of my nose.

So, I did…without thinking about my history. In my own defense, the ointment did not say “Bacitracin,” it said, “Antibiotic Ointment.” (I still like generics!)

I am paying a painful price for not remembering what had happened many years ago.

What Have I forgotten?

Today, I was wondering how many other things I may have forgotten over time that might cause similar levels of pain, even spiritual pain.

I think it is sad when you ask a Christian what God has been doing in their lives and they give you their salvation testimony from 25+ years ago. I always want to ask, “What has He done for you lately?”

This week, though, I am thinking that some of those old memories have their place and purposes, too. Especially for Christians who may have been feeling far from God as their memory of what Christ has done in the past gets lost in a history of difficult times or hard work.

Genesis 1:28 tells us that we are to take dominion over the earth; fish, birds, and “every living thing that moves on the earth,” are to be subdued.  It is really hard to do any work for God if we have forgotten His goodness, His faithfulness, His mercy, and His grace.

Often people come to faith and they spend a few years studying their Bibles and learning through other Christians. They invest in their faith and find a church where they can serve. Some are great witnesses to their neighbors, serving God wherever they happen to be.

Then. Life. Happens.

We forget God. We don’t have time to be in His word. We lack the motivation to worship and dig deeper because of some hard stuff, or maybe some sin that we think is too far over the edge to return for forgiveness.

So, our faith fades and we lose the joy of the Lord that is our strength.

People in this situation forget. They forget that God has work for them to do and that there is blessing in the work and in the favor and forgiveness of God, and that if they are in the faith, there is no condemnation. They forget the things that will bring them back to life and help them to escape the pain – and serve the Lord with gladness.

I am in pain because I forgot what happened to me a long time ago. Are you, or someone you know, paying the same painful price for forgetting the blessings that flow from our great God when we remember His past faithfulness?

Forgetfulness can cause a lot of pain.