Thursday, January 28, 2010

I Will Not Forget You...

"I will not forget you. 
See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands..."
Isaiah 49:16

Have you ever felt forgotten? Have you ever felt like no one remembers you are there? Or if you are out of sight for very long, no one will miss you? When you think back to your childhood, or teen years, do you wonder if the people you knew back then ever think of you now?
"I will not forget you"
I have recently found members of my high school graduating class. We are connecting again online and becoming "friends" with each other. Sometimes when I find a name of someone I remember and request to be their friend, I wonder if they think to themselves, "Who is this person?" You see, I wasn't one of the popular kids or a cheerleader or anyone really worth remembering. So, do they really remember me, or are they just befriending a fellow student? 
"I will not forget you"
There is the old adage "out of sight, out of mind". I've always disliked that saying. It leaves one feeling de-valued. But, unfortunately, it can be true. Those things, or people,  that aren't in front of us all the time, we tend to forget about.
"I will not forget you"
How good is your memory? How do you remember important things? Writing them in a calendar is a good idea...unless you leave the calendar somewhere and don't look at it. Some people tie strings around their finger to remember.
That can be a good idea...unless you forget what the string is supposed to represent. Many people write things on their hands so they don't forget them. We used to write our homework assignments on our hands, or our friends phone numbers. My kids do it today. Why our hands? Well, we do everything with our hands. They are always in front of us. So if we are folding clothes or driving a car or doing just about anything, we will notice our hands.  And when we see the notes on our hands we think, "Oh, yeah!"...and we remember.
"I will not forget you"
Have you ever felt like God has forgotten you? We go through difficulties at times and wonder where God went...why He has forgotten us. I wonder if the churches in Haiti feel like God has forgotten them. This horrible earthquake that has killed tens of thousands and turned places of worship into rubble...do they wonder where God is? Isaiah 43:2 says,
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.
It doesn't matter what our trial or difficult circumstances are. It doesn't matter if we feel forgotten. God said He would never leave us. He will be with us in the midst of every situation we find ourselves in.

"I will not forget you"
God tells us in Isaiah that He has engraved us on his hands...they are ever before Him.
He can't forget us because we are always right there...attached to His hands. Engraving is permanent. Remember those notes you wrote on your hands so you wouldn't forget your homework assignment? What happened if you washed your hands? All the ink would run together or completely wash off and the reminder was gone. My name is engraved on His hands. Right there next to the nail prints. In fact, I wonder if the nails themselves didn't engrave my name on His hands. At the very least, those nail scars beside my name remind Him that He went through that for me....and you.
"I will not forget you"
So while we may forget old friends, or important dates or events we can rest assured, that our God will not forget. Our names are ever before Him...permanently engraved on His hands. The same hands that He holds us in. One of my favorite songs our youth choir sings is called I Am Not Forgotten by Israel Houghton.Listen to this song and be reminded...
You are not forgotten...He knows your name.

2 comments:

Cindy said...

Excellent Lena. I've never thought of my name engraved next to the nail scars. Powerful.

Anonymous said...

I prefer the saying "absence makes the heart grow fonder." No one could forget you Lena! You're very sweet! I love that verse from Isaiah. It's on the chalkboard in my kitchen and so far never changes.