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Reflections

A Day for Remembering

Today is designated as Memorial Day on American calendars, but few of us remember what we are memorializing. For most people Memorial Day marks the first long week-end of summer, a time of transition from the routine school year to vacation fun.

In my childhood (pre-World War II) the holiday was called Decoration Day, a time for remembering those who had died in their country’s service. For days before the holiday, my mother and other women gathered wild flowers to fill baskets for each grave.

When Decoration Day came, I joined other children in a parade around our small-town cemetery. We stopped at each military grave to leave a flower-filled basket as a tribute to the memory of past warriors. The parade ended at the flagpole with a military tribute.

Today, cultivated fields have taken over the open range where once wild flowers bloomed; similarly our changing culture has crowded out past memories. Even though we designate a day for remembering the past, we tend to live only for present pleasures.

Forgetting to remember is not a recent problem, nor just a cultural problem. The psalmist David recognized this tendency as a spiritual problem also. In one of those stern conversations with himself, David recognized his need for remembering God’s blessings.
The conversation went like this:

Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits (Psalm 103:1,2, NIV).

It may have been one of those days when praise did not come easily. David seems to be exhorting himself to praise God by remembering certain things.

Remember His benefits

The greatest benefit we have from God is forgiveness from sin. David reminds his own soul of this deliverance, comparing it to being brought out of a pit. Some people have radical life changes when they come to the Lord so they relate to this statement.

Those who came to Christ early in life can thank God they were delivered from sin before plunging into its depths. They have been delivered from, rather than out of, the pit of sin. Whatever our experience, remembering deliverance should bring praise to our lips.

Remember His blessings

Not only does God deliver us from sin, but He blesses our lives with goodness. David put it this way:

(He) crowns you with love and compassion, (and) satisfies your desires with good things (Psalm 103:4,5, NIV).

In the busyness of life, it is good to regularly pause and remember how God has blessed us and surrounded us with evidences of His love. Just this remembering should cause praise to swell in our hearts.

Remember His greatness

David moves on from remembering the blessings of God to thinking about God himself.  He remembers God’s greatness, His love and compassion. He dwells not only on the character of God, but also on His actions (Psalm 103:6-13).

God truly is a loving God, and is active in the affairs of men. When our thoughts center on these facts, praise comes easily.

Remember that He remembers us

Probably the greatest cause for rejoicing is that God remembers us:

He knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust (Psalm 103:14, NIV).

Just remembering that God knows all about me—my weaknesses, my strengths, my needs, my fears—helps my sluggish soul to rise with joyful praise.

Remember to Praise

I love the way this psalm is structured. It opens with David stirring his innermost being to praise. It ends with a call for all creation to join in the symphony of worship.

Like a director calling in different sections of his orchestra in the grand finale of a symphony, David calls in all the created orders—the angels and heavenly hosts, all God’s servants and all His works. Then, with that background of resounding worship, David commands his soul to sing the solo of praise.

When we remember God’s greatness and love, our soul joins with David in joyful praise.

PEGGY MUSGROVE is a licensed Assemblies of God minister. She is also a speaker, freelance writer, author and prayer group leader. Her latest book, Musings of a Maraschino Cherry was released in 2004.. You can visit her at www.musgroveville.com.

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