It is Good To Remember

. . . the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, "This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me." In the same way He took the cup also after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me (1 Corinthians 11:23-25).

Then [they] . . . will remember Me . . . how I have been hurt by their adulterous hearts which turned away from Me . . . and they will loathe themselves in their own sight for the evils which they have committed, for all their abominations (Ezekiel 6:8-9).


As I receive Holy Communion each week,
I try to quiet my mind and remember what Jesus did –
the whip
the blood
the cross
the nails
the thorns
the spear.

But I don’t so often take time to remember
why He did it;
And therefore I miss
the richness
of the
mercy
of God.


But when I recently read St. Paul’s words to the church at Corinth,
I took a moment to remember
the darkness I was before Christ –
and the darkness
I am without Him.

I remember the baby I slaughtered in the womb.
The young women I turned into whores and adulteresses.
The lies I told to gain advantage over others.
The robberies I committed to get what I didn’t earn.
The fledgling faith of friends I destroyed by my arrogant, self-justifying philosophies.

The memories – when I allow them to surface – hurt.

Very much.

And I loathe myself,
I grieve,
for the wickedness in my past.


But the memories also prove –
they undeniably demonstrate –
the wholly incomprehensible
grace of God,
love of God,
mercy of God,

who sent His only Son
to carry the full weight,
the full punishment,
the full and horrible penalty that I –
that I –
so richly deserve
for my sins,

so God could grant me forgiveness.
And with it,
eternal life.


It is good
to remember.