And The Lord Remembered...

"And God [earnestly] remembered Noah and every living thing and all the animals that were within the ark; and God made a wind blow over the land, and the waters sank down and abated."
                                                                                                                                         Genesis 8:1




When times are turbulent or when we face major storms in our lives, it can become easy to believe that God has forgotten or forsaken us. Feeling forgotten and forsaken is a normal human emotion that most people have experienced at some point in their lives. David asked, "Why do you stand afar off, O Lord?" and "Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?" (Psalm 10:1). Even Jesus cried out from the cross and said, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken Me?"

Most likely, this is how Noah felt, as well. After living through the incredible trauma of watching the earth be destroyed, he and his family had drifted in the ark for over a year. Loneliness and isolation must have seeped in because, to the visible eye, it appeared that nothing had changed. Same surroundings; same circumstances. It is at this point, though, that the Bible tells us that "God remembered" (Genesis 8:1).

This became the game changer! It wasn't really that God had forgotten Noah and his family. Quite the opposite was true. The word remember in this context means "to pay attention to, to fulfill a promise, or to act on behalf of somebody". The word implies a previous commitment that God has made and the declaration that God is now going to fulfill that commitment.

It is impossible for God to forget or to forsake His people, not only because of His promises, but also because of His character. He is love and He is faithful and He is unchanging. We can depend on Him no matter how bad our circumstances are or how we feel.

There will always be a greater purpose and plan than what our natural eyes can see. Too often, we try to assess our situations with such limited data that it would be impossible for us to understand things the way that God does. He tells us, "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts" (Isaiah 55:9).

When God remembered Noah, He remembered him in three ways. First, He removed His judgment when He began to remove the water. We are told that, "He [that is, God] sent a wind over the earth and the waters receded... The water receded steadily from the earth" (Genesis 8:2).

Suddenly, there was new life and new power in the place of barrenness and death. God's Spirit ushered in the start of a new season and the fulfillment of God's covenant. Supernatural miracles once again displayed the glory of God.

The second way God remembered Noah was by giving him a sign. When Noah sent the dove out again for the second time, it returned with the olive branch in its beak. This sign symbolized the renewal and peace that God was restoring to the land.

It required patience and perseverance on Noah's part before he received the sign. He sent the raven out and nothing happened. He sent the dove out the first time and nothing happened. When he refused to give up, God gave him the confirmation he sought.

God is faithful to comfort and reassure us in our distress. He lets us know that He has not forgotten us or forsaken us and that He still is sovereign. He assures us that He is working all things together for our good.

The third way God remembered Noah was by His words. He said to him, "Come out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and their wives" (Genesis 8:16). It seems that God broke the silence in Noah's life by speaking to him once again. It was when God spoke that Noah knew with certainty that God had remembered him.

When God began to speak, He gave Noah purpose and direction for what He was calling him to do. He said, "Bring out every kind of living creature that is with you- the birds, the animals, and all the creatures that move along the ground so they can be fruitful and increase in number upon it" (Genesis 8:17).

Fruitfulness and multiplication were the order of the day then just as they are now. With the renewal and rest came the mandate to do God's work in the earth. The directive is always to increase the kingdom of God.

Grateful beyond words, Noah then remembered God and all that He had done. He received his mandate and obeyed God's will. He recognized the times he was living in and knew what he was to do.

This is where I believe we are today as believers. In this country, no matter how you feel about the politics at hand, we have been given a reprieve. We now have a reprieve of the assault against religious liberties. Full-term unborn babies have a reprieve from the slaughter that besieged them. Our supreme court has been given a reprieve. There is more I could add to this list, but you get the idea.

God has heard and answered the pleas of His people and He has acted on our behalf. Already, lives are being saved. Just today, in Brent's practice, he was told that all the Christians in Egypt were praying that Trump would win the election. The reason they prayed so fervently is because the Muslim Brotherhood issued an edict that if Clinton won, they would begin slaughtering Egyptian Christians and would begin demonstrations intended to oust President Sissi and replace him with a Muslim Brotherhood president.  They knew a Clinton victory would enable this because they knew there would be no consequences to their heinous actions.  Because Trump won, that isn't going to happen.

We live in wicked times. In order to see our culture changed from the inside out, we must have revival. That starts with you and I. We can no longer afford the luxury of time to not be diligent in our efforts to evangelize the lost. We must remember what God has done on our behalf and follow the same directive He gave to Noah. The Lord remembered... Will you?


"Arise [to a new life] and shine (be radiant with the glory of the Lord), for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you!"
                                                                  Isaiah 60:1