children: remembered

As you may have gathered, my life is back in full swing and the holiday season got me in several bad habits that led to a lack of time management skills! This is the excuse I will use for having waited so long to blog again... this and the fact that before I write a blog I think for several days about it, and I haven't been able to keep my mind on one thing for long enough. My blog philosophy, if such a thing exists, is that if something is worth writing then it is well worth thinking about for a few days, and if I can't keep my mind on it for a while, then why in the world would someone else want to spend their time reading it? And if the whole point of writing this blog is to challenge and inspire readers, then why would I write something that no one wants to read? I know, my brain goes crazy when I let it.

Anyway... on to the point of the story today. There is a bible verse that I cannot get past. Not that I'm trying to get past it.. its just that every time my mind is free to wander I try to redirect to scripture in an attempt to control my thoughts, thereby controlling my actions (which is a huge challenge and definitely material for another blog). So each time I redirect, my mind goes to Isaiah 49:15-16 "Can a mother forget her infant, be without tenderness for the child of her womb? Even should she forget you, I will never forget. See, upon the palms of my hands I have written your name."

How beautiful! My pastor in Knoxville used this scripture at a conference a few years ago, and it stuck instantly. I want you to imagine your mother. I don't know what she's like, and she may not be that loving or caring or kind. You may not even know her. But then think of the ultimate mother figure, and what she would be like. I think most people would agree that the average mother could not forget her child if she wanted to. How could she? How could she not feel love and compassion toward her child?

More importantly, this passage goes on to say that EVEN IF your very own mother, who gave birth to you and raised you into who you are, completely forgot who you are, JESUS WILL NEVER FORGET YOU.
 I think it is such a crucial part of the Gospel that this country desperately needs to hear and understand. No matter where you are in your life, whether you are on the highest mountain or in the lowest possible valley, so low you feel like you will never see light again, Jesus has not forgotten you.

The next part of this passage is definitely my favorite... Jesus cannot forget me because MY NAME is written on his hands! When he looks at His hands and sees the bloody holes from the nails He was crucified with, He reads MY name! And yours, and every single other person who has lived and will live! What an amazing scene, to see Jesus look at His palms and say my name.

I realize this is a very straight forward blog tonight, but it is so encouraging to know that we have a Savior who knows our name, and will never forget us, even if our own mothers do. This is something that people need to hear, so share this joyful news with someone else. Spread the love and comfort that these verses bring, because there is not a person in this world that doesn't like to hear that they will never be forgotten. It is what we strive for as human beings... to leave a legacy, to make an eternal impact. And we already have... in the life of the One Savior of the world! What could be better than that?

If you are reading this I'm praying for you today!