As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them. John Fitzgerald Kennedy
Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday among all holidays. It’s special to me because it’s when I look back, reflect on the past year and give thanks. Also because it’s a time when God reminds me of my burning bush experience. Every year, I use Thanksgiving as a point in my spiritual journey to (a) re-define (b) re-align (c) rejuvenate myself in Christ.
Our memory is like a hard drive in a computer, events, experiences etc get logged into it. This year, God’s been asking me if the past year’s experiences are logged well or poorly. I don’t know about you but it’s harder to forget the bad things that happen to you. Somehow it gets replayed like a movie over and over. But God wants us to have those events that have wounded us to be logged into our memories without us feeling hurt.
The form of how it has been logged into our memory bank is important. As I sat to remember the past year to put down a thanksgiving list, He identified 3 things for me to recognize and practice so that my default system of remembering poorly will be transformed into – Remembering WELL.
Not Alone
When Christ died and rose again, He left us a helper so that we don’t need to walk on our own. ‘I will talk to the Father, and he’ll provide you another Friend so that you will always have someone with you. This Friend is the Spirit of Truth. The godless world can’t take him in because it doesn’t have eyes to see him, doesn’t know what to look for. But you know him already because he has been staying with you, and will even be in you!’ John 14v16-17 (The Message)
We have the Holy Spirit! HIS ministry – to help us to remember well. Our experiences in life need to run by the Holy Spirit just like water gets filtered by a filtering system. When we do that, it gets logged into our memory bank correctly.
It doesn’t mean that we forget what has happened. It just means that we remember those events in a way that doesn’t hurt us.
Practice, Practice, Practice
Now I know why Paul says that we need to bring our thoughts into captive. ‘We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.’ 2 Corinthians 10v5 (NIV).
It’s not enough to say Holy Spirit come filter my thoughts. We have to make that pre-decision to literally bring our thoughts into captive. It’s not a one time thing, it’s something we have to do daily.
So if we don’t dwell on the things that hurt us, what do we dwell on? ‘Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me, put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.’ Philippians 4v8-9 (NIV).
When we keep practicing, we get better and better at something. After a while, it becomes part of us.
Remembering the Cross
Jesus knew we’d forget, so He instituted communion and guess what He said… yep, ‘Do this in remembrance of me.’
When we bring the events of our lives that may have caused us hurt to the cross, we’re not saying that God is going to erase our memory of that ever happening. Nope, it means that we are allowing the Holy Spirit to wash it with the blood of Christ and then log it into our memory bank. So that when we bring it to remembrance, we no longer feel the hurt.
Christ has set the example for us when He was crucified. He chose to not hate those who crucified Him, instead He forgave and loved them. We won’t be saved by grace if He didn’t.
Likewise, I pray that you will look back upon the past year and say ‘God I’m going remember the good and the bad in my life well. I’m going to surrender the bad events in my life to you so that you can wash it with your blood and return it to my memory bank for it to be lodged well. ‘
Happy Thanksgiving!
Charissa Ee
Imagine that you have been invited to Thanksgiving dinner at the home of the richest man in the world. You pull up a chair at a table two football fields long that’s piled high with so much turkey, dressing, potatoes, bread, carrot cake, pumpkin pie, mixed vegetables, milk, and anything else you can think of that the table is about to break under the load. Your host tells you to take your fill of anything you see.
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10. Hundreds of volunteers have started to stack sandbags around you.
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