Daily devotional, January 4, 2023 Memory Loss
"For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.” Hebrews 8:12
They say that some gradual memory loss is normal as a person reaches old age. That as long as memory issues do not affect one’s daily life, and functioning it should be okay.
For us Christians, there is a kind of memory loss that could be beneficial. It is completely forgetting about the hurts and pains of the past.
"Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you."
Ephesians 4:31-32
Our Heavenly Father modeled this Himself by assuring us that He has forgotten about our past sins that He has pardoned.
“I, I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins.” Isaiah 43:25
If we will think about it, most of us do try to forgive others but we often retrieve the hurts and past pains from our hearts whenever we are triggered by hate and certain situations. We even justify it by saying that it is easy to forgive but it is hard to forget.
But by following our Lord’s lead of forgetting about the offenses commited against us, we sets ourselves free. We allow ourselves to move on and continue glorifying God in our lives, and live the perfect plan He has in store for us.
And as we cut the chains of resentment in our lives, we get to open up our hearts and minds to new and more pleasant memories. We become receptive of the joy that our Almighty Father longs to give us.
"Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead"
Philippians 3:13
It may be hard to totally eliminate sad or bitter thoughts in our hearts, but we will benefit from cleansing our minds and souls of hate and loneliness. Moreover, moving on will help us remain aligned to the will of God, that commands us to love and forgive each other, and leave vengeance to Him.
“Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; i will repay.” Romans 12:17-19
Thank you for reading through our devotional today. I invite you to ponder on Colossians 3:12-13, Philippians 3:12-16, and Jeremiah 31:34 to dig deeper on today’s topic.
Reflection question: Are there still existing hurts and pains you still cannot seem to forget? Would you like to offer them to the Lord and move on?
Conversation with the Lord: Heavenly Father, I praise and thank you for modeling us the kind of forgiveness we should uphold in our lives. Give us the confidence to fully move on from the hurts we have sustained, and truly forgive those who may have hurt us so that we can fully enjoy your peace. Amen.
