Remembering to Remember
It was 1995 when Pastor John Bishop started feeling a dull pain in the back of his head. Before long the pain became overwhelming, so his wife of 24 years, Donna, took him to the hospital where he was diagnosed with meningitis. He came home a few days later seemingly okay, but within a month he had lost his entire memory, and it never came back. To this day he remembers nothing that happened prior to 1995. Their story has so many fascinating layers (listen to their interview here: part one, two, and three), but the part that I want to focus on is the importance of remembering.
Who are we if we have no memories? We are not only a collection of memories, yet if we have no memories at all, how are we defined as a person? Memories shape our every action and decision in life, and when we stop remembering, we stop living in one sense.
Choose to Remember
This is why God warned the Israelites to remember that He was the one who brought them into a “land that you did not build” (Deuteronomy 6:10-12). Malachi closed the Old Testament with the command to remember “the law of my servant Moses” (4:4). Paul called the Ephesians to the only command in the first half of the book, to simply remember that they were at one time “separated from Christ” (Ephesians 2:12). If we are not actively remembering God’s grace, goodness, and provision in our lives, then we are likely in the process of slowly forgetting Him altogether.
85 Years of Ministry
This is one of the reasons why we are being intentional this Sunday to dedicate an entire Sunday morning to remembering God’s gracious hand in giving Valley View 85 years of ministry. He has done so much in this community through the years, and we plan to remember as much as we can during our time together and also look forward to what we pray God will do in the coming years.
Fellowship Hall Grand Opening
This Sunday we will also have our grand opening of the newly renovated Fellowship Hall immediately following the service. Please come join us to see how God has provided for this wonderful renewed space. We have some surprises planned that you won’t want to miss! Be praying for all the planning and details that our team is working hard to finalize this week. Pray for God to work in powerful ways this year as our church starts filling up the Fellowship Hall again!