As Peter said several time, “So I will always remind you of these things, even though you know them and are firmly established in the truth you now have. I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this body….” 2 Peter 1:12,13

He said this because we all suffer from what I call “spiritual amnesia.” In our culture if we’ve heard something once, we think we know it and move on to other things. But God knows how we often  know things only superficially, and forget important spiritual truths. Rarely do biblical principles come to our minds when we are confronted with a situation. For instance, I was driving the other day and got behind a guy doing 25 miles an hour! Then he slowed down to 20! My natural response is to be impatient, to complain and to do so out loud, involving my passengers with my natural negativeness.

But (and that’s a big but), Jesus immediately held out his hand and reminded  me with 1 Then. 5:18 , “Give thanks in all circumstances….” prompting me to respond with a biblical perspective, because I have memorized scripture like this. Repetition may be counter-cultural, but it is powerful. He brought another verse to mind, “My times are in your hands, Lord.” “Ok, Lord, you have control here, so I can relax and drive 25—or even 20!”

Left to myself, I often forget that the thrust of my life should be to glorify God, primarily by thanking Him in and for all things. I need to remember that He is using whatever circumstances surround me both for my good, and to bring about His will in the universe. Praising and thanking the Lord Jesus is such a freeing and empowering activity: “let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise–the fruit of lips that confess his name” (Heb. 13:15) “so that the power of Christ may rest on me (2 Cor. 12:9). Praise is one very practical way of taking “up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one” (Eph. 6:16).

Now those are truths we need to repeat to ourselves often so we can think the thoughts of God. How about memorizing I Thessalonians 5:18 to help remind yourself of this high and holy truth.

“For all the gods of the nations are idols, but the LORD made the heavens” (Ps. 96:5).

You stretched out the tent of the skies,

driving in its pegs firmly,

tying its ropes securely,

making it strong and sure:

it cannot be changed without your desire.

You spoke and the stars became,

you shepherded them into galaxies,

assigning them their places and names,

and at your command they settled there.

You spread the galaxies across the vast, empty stretches,

forming gigantic patterns,

beyond the perception and comprehension of man.

You, O Lord, are immense in power,

wonderful in wisdom,

awesome in creativity.

We exalt you in your greatness and your goodness; we bow before you in full and amazed submission, leading us to whole-hearted obedience.

We proclaim among the nations, “The LORD reigns!” You are truly God.

We  prostrate ourselves before you in awe, in smallness, in humility that flows from a vision of your holiness.

You are God, you do what pleases you and it is always good.

So We tremble before you, the Holy One, the great I AM, the righteous Judge, the faithful Father.

You alone are worthy of obedience, of submission, of trust and praise.

Prayer: “You reign rightly, O Lord. Reign in me today. Convict me of where I am following my own whims and desires instead of your great goodness; bring me up short, bring me to submission. Amen.”

The day after getting that really negative email from Charlie, during my quiet time new thoughts came to mind of what to share with him. Sitting at  my computer, a positive letter poured out of my head and into an email–it was truly a letter from the Lord.

In reply Charlie started by asking forgiveness for his incorrect interaction, and later another email came expressing further remorse at his angry words.

So, the Lord answered prayer and worked; I am deeply thankful that He got me to listen to Him, directing me to lift my soul to Him the night before. Through that He could give me both a good night’s sleep and His positive perspective ın the morning.

The key was lifting my soul to God by writing out my thoughts and then comparing them to Scripture. To just express them verbally alone does not bring for me the insight that comes with writing. It brings clarity on what is actually happening inside me so the Lord can give perspective and direction. It is truly good to “pour out our hearts to Him, for God is our refuge” (Ps. 62:8).

Prayer: “Lord, praise you that you call us to lift our souls to you. Help me to be consistent in honestly telling you what I am thinking, feeling, wanting, and processing these in the light of your Word. Restore my soul so that you may rule me wholly. Amen.”

You, O Yahweh, you are worthy of honor and praise, you are worthy of fearing and obeying, “For the LORD is the great God, the great King above all gods” (Ps. 95:3).

You are the One who is actually in charge;

you are Ruler and Director,

Sovereign and Limit Maker,

Controller and King–nothing happens without your permission.

You allow only what contributes to your plans, to bring glory to your name by sweeping all willing into your Dominion,

And you protect, equip, mature, break and deepen those who are in your Kingdom of Light.

You have evil on a short leash, able to do only what you will use to bring your plans to pass—primarily to bring people to their senses, to belief, to salvation.

You cannot be defeated: there is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against you (Ps. 33:10,11).

Your power is unimaginable,

your grasp of detail is mind-boggling,

going from the miniscule to the mighty,

from subatomic to super-galactic,

from counting hairs and watching sparrows,

to moving the universe and history to your desired conclusion.

I praise you, heavenly Father, that in your compassion and grace, your patience and wisdom, your power and love, you are able and ready to transform, train and teach each of your saints.