“I say to God my Rock, “Why have you forgotten me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?” My bones suffer mortal agony as my foes taunt me, saying to me all day long, “Where is your God?” Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.” Psalm 42:9-11
Something to ponder on this Monday. Schools in Haiti commenced 3 weeks ago and most are in session now. Some are not as gangs are still making life miserable for many living in Haiti. I have read a few people saying that if the gangs were to just lay down their weapons, repent and help undo what they have done, shouldn’t we just forgive and forget? Forgive and forget? I am a sinful man and have been that way since when I was conceived in my mom’s womb. I can honestly forgive the person who wronged me, but forget? That is the hardest thing to remove from my mind. Why is that? My only answer is that for me, forgetting is something that is shared with no other person. That wrong is frozen in my memory probably until the day I die and then, in Paradise, it’s gone. It was foolish to cling on to so tightly. My energy used to keep that chunk of minutia frozen in my mind should have been focused on the Lord and not on person who wronged me.
On this Monday morning, here two questions for you. First, is there someone or something that we have refused to forget, which keeps us from being happy and productive? If our answer is yes, stop right now and declare it openly to our Heavenly Father. Ask Him to take away the pain and the bitterness.
Second, AM I a victim of self-pity, living out my days emotionally paralyzed by anguish and despair? Being a card carrying Lutheran, there are times that I wear a millstone around my neck with the words “self-pity” engraved in stone. If your answer is yes, stop and consider the consequences of living the rest of your life excusing your self-pity rather than turning it all over to the only One who can remove it. From the words David wrote in Psalm 42, we read and learn that it is not too hard and we are not too old to change our sinful ways. And our situation is not too much to overcome. What we need to do is to place our hope in God today. On this Monday, there's a wonderful freedom there. It's never too late to start doing what is right. Invite our Heavenly Father to bring about this change in you.
Heavenly Father, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown. Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. Amen.
May God be with you,
Jay