“Remembering… And Being Remembered” (Part 1)

This coming weekend in America is Memorial Day weekend. For many of us, it is a great time for a break from work, a nice cookout with family and friends, and a nice round of golf or a morning out on the lake, fishing. It is about the launch of the summer, and the anticipation of all that is part of the warm months.

For some, however, this is a weekend for remembering. We remember those who have served our country and those who have given their lives to preserve the freedoms that allow us to do all of things we enjoy and appreciate. It is truly a “memorial” of remembering the sacrifices that have been made to secure and advance liberty. As a father of a soldier, and the son and son-in-law of men who served, it is a riveting thing to consider that some may be called upon to give their lives for their country—and regardless of what one might think of government policies or the members of any particular White House administration, that sacrifice deserves to be honored. So, in cemeteries across the land, flowers will be laid, flags flown, guns fired, and bugles played. And, as “Taps” echoes through the trees and off the grave markers of those who gave their lives for their country, people will remember. That is a good thing.

While it is good and right and appropriate for us to remember the sacrifices of those who have served, it is also helpful to know that we are remembered. Our God remembers us, and responds to the needs we face—a helpful bit of information during the troubled days we are facing as a nation. We serve the God who forgets our sins (Isa.43:25) but not ourselves. We serve the God who remembers.

This week, I would like us to consider three places in the Bible where God remembers and see the implications of that remembering. We start today in the Old Testament with:

The Remembrance of Comfort

As the book of 1 Samuel opens, Hannah is a tormented woman. One of two wives of Elkanah, Hannah is childless. In ancient culture, this was a brutally painful thing for a woman, for the culture largely measured a woman’s worth by her ability to bear children (especially sons) to her husband. Hannah, however, is childless. To make matters worse, Elkanah’s other wife, Penninah, has given Elkanah children—a fact that she uses to increase the grief and pain of Hannah’s barrenness (1 Sam.1:6). We find Hannah a grief-stricken woman with no place to turn—but to the Lord.

When the family goes to worship God at the tabernacle in Shiloh, Hannah retreats to the presence of God with her grief (vv.9-11). Deeply distressed, she prays through bitter tears and a broken heart, and is so passionate in her praying that the priest, Eli, accuses her of being drunk (vv.12-14). When she explains the grief in her soul, and her desperate need of divine comfort, Eli assures her that her prayers have been heard and she returns home with her husband and her rival. Notice, however, v.19:

Then they arose early in the morning and worshiped before the LORD, and returned again to their house in Ramah. And Elkanah had relations with Hannah his wife, and the LORD remembered her. (v.19)

The key there is that the Lord “remembered her.” In her grief and distress, in her brokenness of heart, God heard her cry and brought comfort to her heart—and a child to her arms. Her son, Samuel, would be the hinge-pin that would close the door on the days of the judges and usher in the times of the kings. He would be spiritual advisor to two kings and spiritual leader to a nation. All because a broken-hearted woman turned to the God of all mercy, and He remembered her in her grief.

In your distress and in your grief, in your heartache and in your loss, in your struggle and in your pain, know this. As the Lord remembered Hannah, He remembers you—go to Him with your pain today. Right now.

On Wednesday, we’ll continue looking at remembering and being remembered.

One Response to ““Remembering… And Being Remembered” (Part 1)”

1. pegramsdell says:

   May 18, 2009 at 4:21 pm

   Soon after being born again in 1987 I was reading the bible through, starting in Genesis. As I was reading about Abraham and Sarah, how God changed their names…I felt lead to pray. I said: “Lord if you bless me with another child I know that she will be a girl and I will name her Sarah”….with an “h”. And she will be the mother of many nations.”

   Afterwards, I was shocked that I had prayed that, because I already had 3 kids and the youngest was almost 5 years old, almost in school. And I really wasn’t thinking of having another baby. Anyway….a few months later…voila!
   I was pregnant. I couldn’t believe it!

   Then I remembered my prayer. And I knew I was carrying a girl and that her name would be Sarah. Amazing! I know without a doubt that God orchestrated the whole thing. He put that desire in me to pray that prayer. He knew.

   She is now 20, almost 21 and she is getting married soon to a wonderful christian man. She has always made me proud. Very smart, straight A’s in college. Attends church regularly, prays all the time. God is so good.