Dear West Family

My wife Sue is the most delightful person I know, bar none. She is spectacular, and kind, and gentle, and merciful. And … she possesses the ability to terrify me like no one else ever could. What does she do to invoke such terror in a grown man, you ask? She simply starts a question with three words that turn my blood cold and reduce me to a mess of self-doubt and existential dread. What three word question introduction could have such crippling effects, you ask?

“Did you remember?”

The answer is inevitably “No. No, I did not remember that thing that you very clearly asked me to remember and reminded me to remember and wrote a small note to me which you thoughtfully left in an obvious place as a desperate plea for me to remember. But still no, I didn’t remember. Until you asked right now. But, you look pretty today.”

“Did you remember to get milk and the kids’ snacks on your Costco run?”

“No, but I did buy a TV soundbar, a rooftop tent, 8 lbs of salted pecans, some golf balls and six hot dogs.” 

“Did you remember to RSVP to that thing that is happening this Saturday?”

“I did not, but I did plan a potential trip we could take to Slovakia in 2025.”

I keep forgetting to remember, and it is a liability to our family, and my dear wife’s mental health. 

But, it got me thinking (or even remembering) that there is a clear call to active remembering in the Scriptures. I will teach through one of them from Nehemiah 4 this week where Nehemiah calls on the people of Jerusalem to “Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome …” (Neh 4:14.)

As I was thinking about this text - and trying to remember what I promised Sue I would do this morning - I thought of one of the instructions that Paul gave to his protege, Timothy. You can find it in 2 Timothy 2:8, and the context is that Paul is reminding Timothy that sharing in suffering is part of the Christian life. He says something to Timothy that might seem obvious and strange. Remember Timothy is a committed believer and fervent follower of Jesus and a leader in His church. 

He says … “Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead …” - 2 Tim 2:8a (ESV)

Why does Paul have to remind Timothy of this? Does he think that Timothy might forget Jesus, or that he might forget that Jesus rose from the dead? Well, yes, he clearly does. Paul knows that in the busyness of ministry life, and in the difficulties of suffering and persecution and in the distractedness of swamped routines, that it is possible to forget the reality of the resurrected Christ and what that reality means in the life of believers.

We, like Timothy, forget to remember.

And so, friends, in whatever it is that you are facing today, remember Jesus, and remember that He died for you, and that He rose from the dead. It actually changes everything.

When you remember the reality of Christ resurrected, you can:

• Bring purpose and meaning to the clutter of your schedule, because the one who walks out of the grave gets to dictate the direction of your life.

• Face the enemy with boldness and certainty because you remember that death and sin and Satan’s feeble plans for your failure were defeated by that empty grave.

• Get through whatever it is that you’re going through because Jesus went all the way to the depths and emerged from the darkness night in history with the sunrise of resurrection life.

• Be comforted and secure in the certainty of His love, knowing that if He is for you then it really is irrelevant if others might be against you.

• Face your biggest temptations with renewed hope because He went into the darkest recesses of the earth and emerged in the light with the keys to the locks that have kept you bound for so long.

• Start again, knowing that resurrection reminds us that you aren’t done till God says you’re done.

Beloved friends, please don’t forget to remember Jesus Christ, who is risen from the dead. When you bring that to mind in the regular routines of your life, it brings about an entirely different perspective. Don’t forget to remember!

The song this week is from Leslie Jordan and her wonderful (all female) band. It’s 1 Corinthians 13 set to a great melody.
Enjoy.

Love Will Never Fail (Fox Den Sessions) - Leslie Jordan

See you Sunday,
Ross