May 11, 2024

 

Psalm 77: 5 I thought about the former days, the years of long ago.

God’s proof is God’s past. Forgetfulness sires fearfulness, but a good memory makes for a good heart.*

Who doesn’t like to reminisce about the good old days? Everything was better back in the day, right? I am reminded, however, of a line from an old Barbra Streisand song: Memories may be beautiful – and yet, what’s too painful to remember, we simply choose to forget.* (For all the power that negativity wields in the present, it seems to lose some of its grip on our memories. Unless we experience something truly scarring . . . and then we can’t forget, hard as we may try.)

This verse is from a psalm of Asaph (whose identity is not firmly established by scholars) who recalls a time when, in the midst of distress, he cried out to the Lord. And then he thought about the past. He remembers his anguish and then he remembers God’s mercies. Suddenly, he goes from whiner to winner as he deliberately moves his focus from himself and his problems to God and his victories.

We have the same capacity to dwell on our problems, wallowing in our grief. We also have the same opportunity to choose our focus. When we think about the former day, the years of long ago, we are forced to acknowledge: God has never failed us. We declare, as did the psalmist, “I will remember the deeds of the Lord . . .” (vs 11) I would encourage you to make a list of all the times that God delivered you from trouble. I would even challenge you to try to recall a time when he didn’t.

Are you in distress? Does your soul refuse to be comforted? Seek the Lord. Remember his deeds. And don’t say to yourself, “God has never failed me yet.” Proclaim this: God has never failed me. And he never will.

Our faith has its own unique past, where God personally intervened.*