I Forget

“Therefore I intend always to remind you of these qualities, 

though you know them and are established in the truth that you have. 

I think it right, as long as I am in this body, 

to stir you up by way of reminder, 

since I know that the putting off of my body will be soon, 

as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me. 

And I will make every effort 

so that after my departure 

you may be able at any time to recall these things” 

(2 Peter 1:12-15, ESV).

Do you know when death will toll its bell for you?

I know not the day or the hour it will call out to me. However, I do know that I will not be on this earth forever. Hence, I want to make this life count.

Walking with Christ is teaching me daily that I am here for a purpose. I am to "love the Lord my God with all my heart and with all my soul and with all my mind and with all my strength . . . and love my neighbor as myself" (Mark 12:30-31).

Sounds simple?

As I endeavor to do so, I find it challenging.

Scratch that.

I find it . . . I - M - P - O - S - S - I - B - L - E.

It means I am to surrender my heart (affections, desires, passions), my soul (recesses of my deeper self), my mind (intellect, knowledge, thought life), my strength (all my physical faculties) to God and neighbor.

Yeah, right!

I struggle . . .

. . . big time.

I struggle with the concept of surrendering myself completely to loving God and neighbor because I am as memory-challenged as Dory in Finding Nemo.

I forget.

I forget concepts.

I forget beautiful, amazing, time-tested truths that are taught me, shown me, and re-applied to my life on a daily and continual basis.

I forget to be content with food, clothing, and shelter.

I forget to give thanks in all circumstances.

I forget that God supplies all my needs.

I forget that I am held secure.

I forget that I am loved.

I forget whose I am.

I forget.

I forget (be it by nature or nurture) that it is not up to me to right all the wrongs in my world, to defend my case, to promote my agenda, to take the reins of my life, to supply all my needs, to decide how the entire universe should function. I forget that life is jam-packed with opportunities designed to remind me that Grace is sufficient, that Love endures forever, that Faith removes mountains, and that Mercies (sweet and sour) are renewed every day.

I forget that there is One whose eyes range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are committed to Him. I forget that He, indeed, is the lifter of my head, the smoother of my storms, the healer of my wounds, the drier of my tears, the sweetener of my bitter trials, the strengthener of my feeble arms and knees. I forget that there is One who is my help and shield, one in whom my heart is invited to rejoice and sing.

I forget God . . . all too often.

I forget to forget.

And because I forget, I stake out my perceived "rights" and brandish threatening "swords" of my own, insisting on having my way:

-  the right to say anything I want (never mind when free speech dehumanizes others)
-  the right to have some peace and quiet (never mind when it communicates rejection and annoyance to my children)
-  the right to label anyone different from my expectation as "other," "untouchable," "disgusting," "worthless," "untouchable" (never mind that it hinders fellowship)
-  the right to denigrate and slander another individual (never mind the professional, emotional, and relational damages caused by my interference)
-  the right to spend money any way I want (never mind that others go without basic needs)
-  the right to hate and curse those who have wronged me (never mind how it violates God's commands to love and bless my foes)

A life of faith is one of surrendering to the life-giving precepts of Scripture. They are life-giving because they help us grow in knowledge and remind us of our true identity in Christ. In fact, the apostle Peter encourages all believers to “make every effort to supplement [our] faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are [ours] and are increasing, they keep [us] from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins” (2 Peter 1:5-9, ESV).

Spiritual amnesia is costly.

It causes us to return to old sinful patterns and follies as a dog returns to its vomit (Proverbs 26:11).
It renders us unproductive, unfruitful, insipid, and inauthentic in our faith sharing because love, the most essential ingredient, wanes without active remembrance.

In essence, surrendering is truly remembering that nothing else matters but love.

-  Surrendering my personal time to my wife, daughters, relatives, friends, neighbors, colleagues, and students screams to them, "Lou loves me."
-  Surrendering my talent(s) to encourage and lift up souls communicates to them, "This guy loves me."
-  Surrendering my treasure to invest in young students in Haiti tells them, "Dr. Lilite loves me."
-  Surrendering my toil to the cause of Christ translates into, "Jesus, I love You!"
-  Surrendering my trials, tempests, temptations, tribulations, torments, transgressions, and triumphs to God expresses my love for my sovereign Lord and Master.

But I still find that I cannot love God and neighbor.

Thankfully, there is grace.

Relying on the sufficiency of Christ, I can let go of all concerns. 

He surrendered on my behalf by becoming a man.
He surrendered on my behalf by being tempted in every way and yet sinned not.
He surrendered on my behalf by dying a sinner's death and rising again as a righteous conqueror.

He surrenders on my behalf today.
He will surrender on my behalf for as long as I have breath.

Will I remember today and tomorrow?
Will you help me remember?

In surrendering today, tomorrow, and the remainder of my life on this earth, may I increasingly grow to love God and to love my neighbor wholeheartedly!

Lord, You are Jehovah Jireh, the God who provides. Please send me wisdom and understanding. Open my eyes, ears, mind, and heart so I can see, hear, receive, and absorb Your truth. Holy Spirit of God, please convict my heart of the poisonous tip of sin's dagger and remind me that it has no power over me because Christ has clothed me with His righteousness. Refresh my memory, O Jesus, that You were tempted in every respect, yet without sin. Help me draw near the throne of grace with confidence and point me to Your Word that I may find grace to help me respond rightly in times of need. In Christ alone I pray. Amen!