Give thanks and build a wall for the Lord!
/Why remembering fuels gratefulness
“I will give thanks to you, LORD, with all my heart;
I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.” Psalm 9:1
The above scripture is one of a host in God's word that encourages us to give thanks. But there is a cultural problem with it, and it comes in the second part of the verse. If being grateful is underpinned with declaring his deeds, then we need to remember them. Culturally, for many of us in the UK, that presents us with a degree of discomfort.
Firstly, are we inclined to remember what God has done in our lives? Or does the busyness of western life distract us to simply move on to the next challenge? Is our thankfulness limited to the moment of enjoying God’s response to us, but then cast away and forgotten forever? In God’s word we see traditions of celebrating and commemorating what he has done both personally and corporately. But the 21st century’s obsession with the present and the immediate has moulded generations to forget the value of the tradition of remembrance.
If we do capture and record what God has done, there is a second problem for the British to overcome. We are not a nation of bragers, we honour understatement and instinctively react to those brash in victory. But the word of God is clear (Deuteronomy 4:9) - don’t forget what you have seen, don’t let it fade from your memory and tell your descendants to pass it on. We of course need to tell the stories of what Jesus has done in our lives appropriately, but it's OK to boast in the Lord. If the prevalent culture of avoiding offence is allowed to take hold, then stories of healing, provision and the miraculous will be silenced.
I believe our nation needs hope: to know that Jesus is alive, that he listens and that he answers. I am praying that God will raise up a nation of storytellers, who will remember his mighty deeds and tell them to those that surround their lives. Let's overcome our cultural restrictions and make hope visible.
By Richard Gamble.
Richard Gamble is the founder of the Eternal Wall of Answered Prayer which opens in 2023. After becoming a Christian in 1990 Richard studied at Bible college, worked in the corporate world, was the former chaplain of Leicester City, and has this year authored his first book Remember: Revealing the eternal power of answered prayer. The Eternal Wall of Answered Prayer will be a huge, thought-provoking piece of public art created to make hope visible by showing the reality of the power of prayer. Eternal Wall’s Crowdfunder launched on 13 September to raise the £2.5million needed to begin building.
If you have a story of answered prayer, please share it at www.eternalwall.org.uk or donate at www.eternalwall.org.uk/donate to support the project to build a national landmark about Jesus in the UK.