Reminding you to remember

I was sitting at the bank drive-thru this morning and saw a Walmart receipt on the dash. While we were in Myrtle Beach last week (and on the way home) we stopped at different Walmarts buying Operation Christmas Child Shoebox toys from the clearance sections. I checked the receipt on my dash to see if it was another receipt I needed to keep. It was not. It was a receipt for 77 cents for a bag of Walmart brand corn chips that I bought in Myrtle Beach. That made me happy because it reminded me that I had some corn chips inside the arm rest between the seats of the car. I took them in the house when I got home from the bank and I look forward to snacking on them some time today. I had forgotten they were in there.

I always need reminded of things. I assume you do as well. After a week that seemed like spring in Mrytle Beach, I came back to Short Gap to a forecast reminding me it is still winter. I went down to the fire department this morning to look over the ambulance to familiarize myself with it and remember where things are for the next call I go on. (We have two ambulances that we switch between and they have things in different places and it is confusing when we switch them out.)

I preached from the book of Mark this past Sunday and reminded church people of a couple of familiar stories. I covered the story of Jesus healing a leper. I also covered the story of four friends tearing through the roof of a home to lower their lame friend down on a mat in hopes that Jesus would restore him, which He did. These are stories that most people who have gone to church any length of time have heard before. But preachers cover these stories over and over. People come to the church to gather for worship and hear these stories over and over because we need reminded. Next week I will remind people that Jesus was criticized because He “ate with sinners”. It is a good thing he did. Otherwise He would have always been seated at a table for one 😉 While I am just beginning to study the Scripture for next Sunday, it could be a good opportunity to remind the church that we need to show each other more grace, especially after nearly a year of the stress of Covid and a recent election. It is pretty easy to remember the Scribes and Pharisees fell short in showing grace to “sinners”. I am constantly in need of being reminded that I frequently fall short in showing grace to the Scribes and Pharisees.

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