Remember the Wonders

Psalm 105:5-6  ⁵ Remember the wonders he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced, ⁶ O descendants of Abraham his servant, O sons of Jacob, his chosen ones.

Once again, the psalmist reminds us to remember.

As much as Psalm 104 was a natural psalm, Psalm 105 is a historical psalm. In this psalm, as in a previous psalm, the author uses history as a teaching tool. In this psalm, he retells some major historical points in Israel's history. He begins with Abraham and end with God's provision for His people in the wilderness following the exodus from Egypt.

The concept of retelling historical events resonates with me because I am somewhat of a history buff (one of my favorite channels is the History Channel), but this psalm is retelling history for a purpose other than just remembering facts. People tend to forget where they come from especially in regards to God's leading in their lives, and that is a tendency that needs to be broken. Along those lines, Ellen White wrote

"We have nothing to fear for the future, except as we shall forget the way the Lord has led us, and His teaching in our past history." --Life Sketches of Ellen G. White, p. 196 (1902).

However, as we remember how God has led us in the past, we need to avoid the temptation to become nostalgic. John Eldredge had this thought on the matter,

"The most unredemptive kind of remembering is what many people call 'nostalgia.' How sad to visit elderly friends and relatives to find them sitting around listlessly, pining for 'the good old days.' They have no life in the present and little vision for the future, because they are locked in the past." --The Sacred Romance: Drawing Closer to the Heart of God, p. 207 (1997).

So as we take the time to remember our history, let us keep in mind that it is a place of reference, not a place of residence.