Day 3: Remember Me

Sunday's Reading: Genesis 8-11

One of the most shameful moments for me as a parent was the day I forgot to pick up my children from school. I was engrossed in some task, the time flew by and I forgot about them. They were so hurt, and I was devestated. They had depended and trusted me totally, and I had let them down.

In the reading for the first Lord's Day of this calendar year, we hear these wonderful words, "God remembered Noah..." Despite the grief and sorrow and torment of the flood, God didn't say, "Just forget it" when it came to Noah.

Noah, whose name means "rest," had two great attributes from God. In 6:8, we see that he "found grace with God" and in 6:9 we see that Noah "walked with God." He also had another thing going for him: God established God's covenant, God's pledge of allegiance with Noah.

Saturday, January 2, 2010, I was one of the witnesses at a wedding where two people made a covenant with God and with one another...a pledge of allegiance. At our baptism, God makes covenant with us: "I will be your God and you will be my child--I will remember you and you are to remember me."

Fortunately, God always keeps God's covenants, even when we fail to keep our end of the bargain. We become forgetful when life is moving along normally. We begin to "make bricks," "build cities" and erect our own "towers of Babel" hoping to reach the top of the sky/heaven on our own. We get wrapped up in our tasks of our day, time flies by and we simply forget about God. We forget to talk with God. We forget to love on God. We forget to adore God. We forget to serve God.

The question is this: When we realize we have forgotten God, are we overwhelmed with even a bit of shame and devastation? Are we aware of the pain we cause God? Are we cognizant that God is depending upon us?

Now, Noah was not about to forget God. He was trapped in an ark with a bunch of critters surrounded by the chaos and destruction of water. He was totally dependent upon God for his salvation and existence. No way would Noah forget God!

I'm always amazed at the times we "remember" God---when we've heard bad news, when we're scared, when we are at the end of our rope, when we finally realize that even when things are going well, we are totally dependent upon God for our salvation and existence.

One of the thieves on the cross had a time like this and despite his dire circumstance, he turned to God and said, "Jesus, remember me." Don't forget about me. Don't leave me alone or behind or in this mess or without hope. "Jesus, remember me."

As Noah stepped off the ark, knowing God remembered him, the first thing he did was an act of remembering God. He built an altar of worship to the LORD (8:20). And in these mutual acts of remembering--God remembering Noah and Noah remembering God--God was soothed and Noah found rest.

The word in 8:21 translated "soothing" or "sweet" which refers to the aroma is the Hebrew word nichowach whose root word is nuwach, the word from which "Noah" or "rest" originates. Remembering God and God's remembering of us leads us into a place of rest, quiet and soothing comfort from all that grieves or troubles us.

So when Jesus says, "Do this and REMEMBER ME," the mutual covenant invites us into mutual rest and soothing comfort. God remembers me. I remember God. And we are both at peace.

Jesus, remember me...

Day 2: Just forget it!

Assigned Reading: Genesis 4-7

I've been having trouble with my computer today...trouble connecting, staying connected and system failures with crashing. My computer issues parallel the scriptural issues, and my spiritual ones.

In the midst of all the frustration of trying to make the computer cooperate, I received messages like "unable to connect" and "attempts failed." What a mess! At one point I just said, "Just forget it! I'm not messing with this anymore."

When God set everything up, it was all "good." God was creating, blessing and naming all over the place (5:2) But something happened. A liar came into the picture and eyes began looking at something forbidden and passions longed for more than what had already been generously given.

Result? A big mess.

According to chapter 3:
1. Hiding oneself from the very ones you love
2. Being afraid of truthfulness with God
3. Learning the blame game
4. Receiving a spam load of curses
5. Enmity between the sexes
6. Inequality
7. Laboring against odds and decreased fruitfulness
8. A body submitted to pain and decay

Now if that isn't enough to set one into a frustrated depression, check out what I think is the saddest verse in the Bible, at least so far...6:6 "The LORD was sorry that He created humanity on the earth and He was grieved in His heart."

God looked at us and what did God see? Wickedness and evil hearts (6:5) and corruption and violence (6:11). What a mess!

God looked at creation and in frustration said, "Just forget it!" I don't want to deal or mess with this anymore.

I think the worst thing anyone could ever say to another person would be, I wish you were never born. You aren't worth my time or energy. I am disconnecting from you and you will never be able to reconnect with me, NO MATTER HOW HARD YOU TRY. I writing you off. Just forget it!

Now, some optimists would say, "Wait, don't forget Noah and the big ark!

Yes, there is Noah, wife, 3 named sons, 3 unnamed wives, and lots of crawling, creeping, bellowing, chirping creatures that are not forgotten. But, lest we forget, there were millions of creatures destroyed.

We try to forget it. We try to forget the sorrow of God, the grief of God's heart and the extent of the destruction of the flood. We turn this tragic story of violence into a cute children's story about fluffy animals, a ride in a big boat and smiling suns peaking through colorful rainbows. We just forget the horror, the death and the stench of decaying, bloated flesh wiped out by God's regrets.

And we just forget that despite our best attempts, we will never reconnect with God. A virus has invaded our system and the intimacy originally planned is blocked.

Day 2's reading is a horrible, frustrating tragedy. To realize how we grieve our Creator is so sorrowful, we should have our own flood...a flood of tears.

Day 1: God saw that it was good

Today I have begun to read through the Bible chronologically.


Today's Reading: Genesis 1-3.

I was struck by the phrase "God saw that it was good."


There are really only 3 Hebrew words in this phrase:
Elohim, a plural form of the word God;
ra'ah, meaning to perceive, to regard, to give attention to;
and towb, which carries with it the essence of "pleasant," "appropriate," and "excellence."


This is the picture that comes to my mind:

After a day of work, Elohim sit around the dinner table discussing the accomplishments, challenges and tidbits of the day. There is a hearty and affirming cheer as the review of the day is finished and congratulatory pats of joy are given to the backs.


"What a good day! Well done! Good job!"


And with this affirmation comes the excitement and hope that the next day will be full of yet more beauty, excellence and goodness.


So I must ask myself as one created in the image of Elohim; what will be the consensus of Elohim as my day's work is discussed today? Will there be time to perceive, regard and give it attention? Or will I go through the day unaware of what I am creating in my presence by the words I speak, the tasks I accomplish, the "being" I project or unconscious of the wake I leave in my path? Will I discuss it at the Eucharistic table with Elohim? And what will be the response from Father God and Brother Christ and Mother Spirit?


O, to hear, "Well done, good and faithful daughter! And tomorrow is yet to come. I wonder what excellence will be seen in you in the coming day."