What happens when you begin to recall what the Lord has done for you? How does that change your spiritual outlook? Remembering what the Lord has done is so important the Lord creates opportunities for us to celebrate and remember Him. When we celebrate and remember the Lord it takes the focus off ourselves and places it on God. It lifts us up.
God’s Word Leads the People to Celebrate
As the people in the days of Nehemiah began to read the word, they discovered God had planned celebrations for them to remember Him and what He had done. One of the Feasts the people had forgotten about was called the Feast of Booths. The Feast of Booths (or Tabernacles) was established by God to help the nation of Israel remember their history. The Lord did not want them to forget their slavery in Egypt nor His faithfulness when they wandered in the wilderness. God wanted the people of Israel to remember how He delivered them from slavery from the Egyptians. Like a good parent the Lord did not want the people to take that amazing deliverance for granted. God wanted the people to remember what He did and to live for Him.
The Feast of Tabernacles
By making a booth or tabernacle (what we would call a tent) the people were to remember their time of wandering in desert where the Lord provided for them in their temporary shelters. These temporary shelters would be a symbolic re-enactment of the wilderness experience of the Exodus.
Nehemiah 9:16 So the people went out and cut branches and used them to build shelters on the roofs of their houses, in their courtyards, in the courtyards of God’s Temple, or in the squares just inside the Water Gate and the Ephraim Gate. 17 So everyone who had returned from captivity lived in these shelters during the festival, and they were all filled with great joy! The Israelites had not celebrated like this since the days of Joshua son of Nun. [1]
Remember Jesus during Communion
These same principles of remembering God are true for us as believers in Jesus. In the New Testament era, we look to the cross and remember what God has done for us when we celebrate Holy Communion. Giving thanks and remembering what God has done help us to appreciate all that God is doing in our life. 1 Thess. 5: 16 Always be joyful. 17 Never stop praying. 18 Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. [2]
To hear more about remembering what the Lord has done, listen here:
https://podpoint.com/light-of-christ-church-podcast/rebuilding-unfinished-hope-spiritual-renewal
[1,2] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation. Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.