Remembering with Gratitude, & Thanking God

By Pastor Kyle Bertels
​Have you ever wondered why it is so easy to recall painful memories and experiences? Why is it so easy to remember a sentence of words that caused pain from years ago, and yet so hard to remember when the last time we laughed until our cheeks hurt from such a rush of humor and joy? 

As a person that has painful memories I’ve asked these questions quite a bit, trying to understand why it is so easy to be a miserable lump of pessimism and pain. It seems that a big part of it has to do with preservation and protection. We analyze painful experiences so we can know how to anticipate and protect ourselves from future threats. The downside to this is that we are constantly on the lookout for who is hurting us and how we can distance ourselves from them and stay safe. Unfortunately, that is impossible unless you choose to live as a hermit at the base of the Chisos mountains… and even in hiding and avoidance there is no way to forget or prevent difficult situations. The tangled mess of sin and pain will only drag us further down if we dwell on the painful memories of our life.

Since running and hiding won’t do the trick, and since so many of us are exhausted with remembering and dwelling on pains of the past maybe the solution is to fight fire with fire… and the word “fight” indicates there will be effort on our part! In 1 Chronicles 16 we find a song of praise from David and verse 12 says “Remember the wonders he has performed, his miracles, and the rulings he has given,” which highlights the importance of remembering what God has done. David continues the song of praise, or thanksgiving, by retelling the incredible ways that God has moved in his life and in the lives of the people around him, praising God with thankfulness and gratitude.

If the fire of painful memories consumes you or the difficulty of life is overwhelming, you may have to fight hard to uncover the miraculous moments where God has intervened in your life to bring blessing. Remember with gratitude the people that he has placed in your life to help heal and love you, and thank God. Remember with gratitude the times when you thought the walls were coming down and how He brought change that blew the doors off of the prison you were in, and thank God.
Remember with gratitude, and thank God.
As challenging and painful as life can be on this side of heaven, there are real steps and strategies you can utilize in order to live in peace and purpose. Gratitude and thankfulness are key elements in living in such a way! In what ways are you remembering what God has done? Writing things down in a gratitude journal to have handy might be one way. Maybe you have artistic abilities to draw or paint something that will remind you of what God has done. Whatever it looks like for you, find a way today that will help you to daily and weekly remember with gratitude the amazing things God has done in your life, and thank Him for it.

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