By Joe Harvey
He forgot . . . and twice in one week. First, he forgot to arrange transportation to a doctor’s appointment. Then, while at the appointment, he forgot to regather all his possessions before leaving. Neither incident was a big deal, but it did take time to sort things out, and it did cause inconvenience and frustration.
There are tools and techniques for remembering and staying on track. And these days, even phones and watches can remind us of upcoming events and chide us if we are being lazy. In this crazy multitasking world, some people need all the help they can get!
Wouldn’t it be great if God gave us a smart watch to remind us to pay attention to certain things? He has, in fact, done something like that, but better. He created spiritual Post-it notes because he knows we so easily forget the things that matter most.
One spiritual Post-it note is Communion. Jesus established the event and then called on us, his disciples, to live with it. This is of very practical importance because we so often forget what really matters in life. We are distracted by things that shimmer and shine. We get caught up in the “tyranny of the urgent.”
Ezekiel 16 offers an example of forgetfulness. It tells a story that compares the nation of Israel to an abandoned baby girl. God saved the baby from sure death. He cared for her. He married her. He loved her and provided for her. She, to the surprise of all, was then ungrateful and unfaithful. She (Israel) betrayed God’s trust and became a prostitute. We are told it happened, in part, because Israel “did not remember” who they were without God, what he had done for them, and how they came to enjoy the life he had given them.
Communion is a forget-me-not type of thing. Each time we participate, we are called back to things that matter most. It is as if God is saying, “Hey, whatever you do, don’t forget what I have done for you through Jesus.”
Joe Harvey is an adjunct professor at Johnson University and the road manager for singer and songwriter Mandy Harvey. Joe and his wife, Valerie, live in St. Cloud, Florida.
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