Spiritual Memories

By: carole l. haines

⁵ I remember the days of old; I meditate on all Your doings; I muse on the work of Your hands. ⁶ I stretch out my hands to You; My soul longs for You, as a parched land. Selah. (Psalm 143 NASB)

Ah yes, I remember, I remember. When our hearts are aching for our Father’s love, in a world filled with arrogance, rejection and the destruction that follows such attitudes, remember the Lord’s faithfulness. When our souls long for justice, mercy and grace, in a world filled with selfishness, greed and pride; we will choose to meditate on all the doings of the Lord our God. We will muse on the Work of His hands.  Let us stretch out our hands to our Lord God. Yes, we long for You, Lord, as in a parched land.
Now many of us may not have experienced a parched land, but any who have been through a drought or extreme dry season know what it’s like.  First, the lack of rain begins to wilt the flowers. The edges of the leaves turn brown, starting at the bottom of the plant, eventually making the blooms stunted. The grass becomes brown and crunchy beneath our feet.  We watch helplessly, as all that was thriving a month ago, slowly withers and dies.  The ground becomes so dry that it cracks open, and tiny, soil crevasses form in our yards and gardens.
We can have spiritual droughts in our lives as well.  This is part of what was happening to the writer of Psalm 143, David. But I love how David chooses to encourage Himself with the memories of God.  He looked back to the days of old, meditating on God’s faithfulness, and encouraging His own heart. We must learn to do the same.
Look at all the “action” words in these two verses.  David remembered, meditated, mused, stretched out his hands, longed for. David took responsibility for his heart, his thoughts, and his actions.  He didn’t just let himself be hi-jacked and spiral down into the pit of despair. We must learn to do the same.
Spiritual maturity is not automatic, it takes work.
*One of those works is to choose time, lots of time with God.
*To call to mind His faithfulness when things are difficult. To meditate means to speak, utter or imagine.  Focus hard to remember all the good things God has done in the past.
* Write it down, make a list and read it often, if necessary. Muse on the work of His hands. Muse means to ponder, talk, sing and pray; all are activities.
* Stretch out your hands to Him in prayer, trust Him, believe Him in these difficult times.  He has been faithful in the past, and He will be again.
*Long for Him, in this dry season.  Come to Him and He will fill you up to overflowing. Linger longer in your times alone with Him, and you will find He comforts and satisfies you.  Let all else fade away, as He fills you with Himself.
Spiritual Memory, is crucial to spiritual maturity. Sit long with Your Lord.