June 28, 2013
Do You Remember Me?
Gwen Smith
Today’s Truth
Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me.(Isaiah 49:15-16, NIV)
Friend to Friend
I’ll be the first to admit that I am a woman who is easily distracted. More times than I care to even discuss. Sigh. I would love to say that the detail-oriented-woman in me rocks my days, but that’s not always the case. One crazy day, a few years back, the absent-minded-scatter-brain in me dominated big time. Here’s what happened…
After I dropped my kids off at school, I swung into the local gas station and ran inside to prepay. I handed the cashier forty dollars in cash and headed out the door to pump my gas. As I left the mini-mart, I held the door for the woman behind me. As she passed in front of me, we recognized each other. She is the secretary for a local church where I had ministered in the past. We chatted for a few minutes and then each went to our cars and went about our days.
My next stop? The coffee shop.
I grabbed a piping hot dark roast, added a happy little splash of half and half, and settled down with my Bible and journal for some one-on-One time with the Lord. In the hour and a half that followed, I read, prayed, and chatted with a few friends that came through. It was a very peaceful, pleasant morning… until a horrible realization hit me full force: I never pumped my forty dollars worth of gasoline!
Oh. My. Glory.
I had pulled up to the gas pump, paid the cashier, and then drove away!! And, to answer the question you’re surely asking, “no…I didn’t even have a receipt to prove that I had paid.” This was not good. The detail-oriented-woman in me hid as the distracted-absent-minded-woman in me snickered.
A cold panic washed over my heart. I felt awful. My husband and I run our household with on a cash budget. We try our best to be good stewards of our money. To make wise financial decisions. This was a possible forty-dollar blunder!!
In a flash I was out the door and on my way back to the gas station. I felt like such a ding-dong! I prayed the whole way there, “Please Lord, let the same cashier still be working. Please let her remember me!” I screeched into the parking lot on two wheels, ran inside, and blurted out, “Do you remember me?” The cashier turned to me with a smile and a receipt in her hand and said, “I know exactly who you are! You are paid in full. Go ahead and fill up!” I thanked her and breathed a big sigh of relief.
As I pumped my gasoline, the panic faded to peace. In that moment, the Lord spoke to my heart as if to say, “My sweet daughter, so many times you pull up a chair to spend time with me and fill up your soul on my daily bread, only to be distracted and leave empty. Rest assured, each time you return to my heart and to my Word, my response is the same to you: “I know exactly who you are! You are paid in full. Go ahead and fill up!”
Let’s Pray
Holy Father, Who am I, that You are mindful of me? Thank You for always remembering me, for engraving my name on the palms of your hands. Would you please be my portion today?
Now It’s Your Turn
Is there a place of panic in your heart that needs to be handed to the Prince of Peace? Pause to pray about it now.
God knows everything about you and His love is inescapable. Read all about it in Psalm 139. Write down the verse that moves your heart the most today. Commit it to memory and share it with a few friends today!
Got a story about a time when your panic faded to peace? Got a prayer need? Join me on my blog pageor my Facebook page to take the conversation deeper.
More from the Girlfriends
So many times we feel like failures because we don’t have a consistent quiet time with God. If this is you, don’t be discouraged. Romans 8:1, reminds us that there is no condemnation in Christ. Yes, God wants your attention…but not to scold you...He wants to hold you. You can trust Him.
We really need to learn to trust God, and that can sometimes be hard. Need help? Order a copy of our GiG book, Trusting God, A Girlfriends in God Faith Adventure. This is the perfect book for individual study or for gathering a group of friends in what we call GiG Groups. With impactful devotions, study questions, journal pages, free on-line video intros, and an index of trust-building Scriptures, this book is a resource you’ll refer to time-and-time again.
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