Choosing to Remember

​“Tell me about a time when you KNEW God answered a prayer you prayed,” I said to the class of bright-eyed 4th grade girls seated in front of me. One sweet girl raised her hand exuberantly and I quickly called on her. 
 
With a big smile on her face, she said, “Last week, my mom realized I had outgrown all of my clothes and we didn’t have any money for new ones. We prayed together and the next day, someone gave us two full bags of clothes! They fit both me and my sister perfectly!” A story of God’s faithfulness displayed. A monument in her little mind that the big God cares for her. If she ever feels uncared for, that story will be a bearer of truth to her heart. God cares. He’s good. He can be trusted. The day bags of needed clothes showed up, a little root grew that would anchor her. This story, when shared and remembered, ignites faith and reminds us of who God is. 

In Deuteronomy 11, remembering what God had done is directly linked to obedience. We will not obey a God we do not think we can trust. The chapter begins in verse 1 with Moses declaring that the Israelites are to love God and keep his statutes, ordinances, and commands. Next he reminds them in verses 2-7 that although they had seen firsthand God’s discipline, deliverance from Egypt, provision in the wilderness, and holiness displayed, their children had not. Their children needed the stories to build their faith in the holy and good God until they had stories of their own. In verse 19, Moses makes it clear they were to teach their children God’s commands daily and in ordinary moments: sitting at home, walking, at bedtime and in the morning. Their stories told to the next generation would pass on knowledge of God’s greatness, goodness and holiness. The commands were what they needed to do, but the stories revealed who they were obeying. Without remembering, their children would not know God’s heart or holiness and laws would become arbitrary and disconnected from a good God. Obedience requires trust in a good God. 
 
Faith travels through stories. Sharing our faith with the next generation not only means sharing beloved truths and Bible stories but also new stories. The stories where God shows up in our ordinary lives teach our children the faithfulness of God and encourage them to follow Him in their ordinary lives. Stories build faith and obedience rests on faith.
 
It is our forgetfulness of God that causes us to lose faith and eventually disobey. When we don’t remember who God is or what He has done, we begin to put more faith in ourselves or things around us than in Him. Tragically, eventually the Israelites forgot and turned from God. Forgetting is easy when remembering isn’t intentionally woven into the fabric of our lives. Stories preserved become a foundation for faith and obedience to be built upon.
 
As parents of God’s created, we are tasked with the responsibility of teaching Him to them in normal, everyday life. We are storytellers. They learn about Him in Bible stories and teaching His ways, but also through personal stories we tell. Not only do stories help our children to remember, but they help us and others who hear. We easily forget, but we can choose to remember. Let’s be ones who remember and tell the stories of God’s kind generosity and faithfulness to us. 

Memory Verse: “In the night, Lord, I remember your name, that I may keep your law.” Psalm 119:55

About the Author

Hi! I'm Wendy Gerdes and I live in Omaha, NE. I've lived here most of my life except for a few years in Florida where I attended Bible school and started married life with my husband of 22 years, John. We moved back to Omaha with our oldest two sons and had two more children shortly after. We have 3 sons and 1 daughter ranging in age from 14 to 21. I am passionate about motherhood and love the creative work of partnering with God to help our kids develop into who He designed them to be! I love to write, read, hiking and being outdoors. I am most passionate about learning and writing about God's heart for us because when we see his heart for us, it changes everything! Connect with me at wendygerdes.com