Remembering God’s Goodness
JOSHUA 3:14-4:7 

Some individuals have an amazing capacity to remember images or facts. Sadly, however, it’s all too common for people to fail to recall the Lord’s goodness to them.

In light of the human tendency to forget, today’s verses offer a good example for us to follow. God had brought the Israelites out of Egypt and safely through the divided Red Sea. Now, He miraculously provided another dry path by piling up the Jordan’s waters in an enormous heap upstream. The Lord knew that the people were about to enter Jericho, and that by His power, they would overcome the city. How compassionate to encourage them with a tangible illustration of His strength prior to such a battle.

But God also knew how easily they had forgotten Him. We do the same today; when the Lord works in obvious ways, it is easy to trust Him. But as time goes on, we drift toward self-reliance until we are reminded of our need for Him and repent. So in His love, the Father had a plan to help His loved ones recall the miracle at the river. He asked them to create an altar of 12 stones, representing each tribe of Israel that had passed safely through the waters. This way, they would have a tangible reminder of divine rescue.

When it comes to blessings, do you tend to be forgetful? If so, try to create reminders of God’s faithfulness. Some people journal; others write key words on stones and leave them in noticeable places. Whatever you do, make sure you have a way to remember the Lord’s involvement in your life

Argue from the Past    –   Then David said in his heart, ‘Now I shall perish one day by the hand of Saul.’

1 Samuel 27:1

The thought in David’s heart at this time was a false thought, because he certainly had no ground for thinking that God’s anointing him by Samuel was intended to be left as an empty, unmeaning act. On no occasion had the Lord deserted His servant; he had often been placed in perilous positions, but not one instance had occurred in which divine intervention had not delivered him. The trials to which he had been exposed had been varied; they had not assumed one form only, but many-yet in every case He who sent the trial had also graciously ordained a way of escape. David could not put his finger on any entry in his diary and say of it, “Here is evidence that the Lord will forsake me,” for the entire course of his past life proved the very reverse. He should have argued from what God had done for him that God would be his defender still.

But is it not in the same way that we doubt God’s help? Is it not mistrust without a cause? Have we ever had the shadow of a reason to doubt our Father’s goodness? Hasn’t His loving-kindness been marvelous? Has He ever once failed to justify our trust? Our God has never left us at any time. We have had dark nights, but the star of love has shone out amid the blackness; we have been in tough battles, but over our head He has held high the shield of our defense. We have gone through many trials but never to our detriment, always to our advantage; and the conclusion from our past experience is that He who has been with us in six troubles will not forsake us in the seventh.

What we have known of our faithful God proves that He will keep us to the end. Let us not, then, reason contrary to the evidence. How can we ever be so ungenerous as to doubt our God? Lord, throw down the Jezebel of our unbelief, and let the dogs devour it.

The family reading plan for October 17, 2011

1 Kings 20 | 1 Thessalonians 3