God Never Forgets

​Have you ever been in a seemingly hopeless situation?  Have you felt abandoned by those you cared about most?  Have you felt like God had forgotten you?
 
Life is hard.  Sometimes we go through situations or circumstances that seem insurmountable.  In these times, God can feel distant or even non-existent.  However, the truth of the matter is that God is still there, right by our side.  He never forgets us nor does He leave us.  Sometimes, we are just oblivious to His presence.   

​This is where the Israelites were.  They felt abandoned and forgotten.  Their lives were hard and their lot hopeless.  Bound in slavery by a ruthless, fearful king, their future looked rather bleak.  They were 400 years removed from the life of their patriarch, and it probably felt like the God of their fathers had forgotten them.  But was that the case?  Let’s find out.

“During those many days the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God.  And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. 
​God saw the people of Israel—and God knew.”
~Exodus 2:23-25​

​Far from being distant and forgetful, God was compassionate and fully aware of the Israelites’ plight.  He did not abandon them, but heard their groaning, remembered His covenant, saw them, and knew.  He knew every hurt, every sorrow, every loss.  Every time a Hebrew mother had her newborn baby boy ripped from her arms, God saw.  Every time an Israelite man felt the sting of the whip or the fatigue from forced labor in the hot sun, God saw. 
 
Throughout all their hardships, God saw and knew the people of Israel.  He did not forget His covenant with Abraham to build a great nation from his descendants.  On the contrary, God was busy at work behind the scenes to rescue and deliver.
 
What about you?  What sorrow or hurt are you facing?  What situation or circumstance are you in that feels insurmountable?  God sees and knows all about it.  He never forgets His promises, but is faithful to keep them to the end.  In the seasons when God feels distant, He is working in the background to make beauty. 
 
So take heart and remember this:  no matter where we are or how hard life seems, God sees, God knows, and God remembers.

“He [God] remembers his covenant forever,
the word that he commanded, for a thousand generations.”
~Psalm 105:8

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​Your turn:  in what ways have you seen God’s faithfulness to you in your life?