The Comfort in Forgetting

[19] Every man also to whom God hath given riches and wealth, and hath given him power to eat thereof, and to take his portion, and to rejoice in his labour; this is the gift of God.

[20] For he shall not much remember the days of his life; because God answereth him in the joy of his heart. - Ecclesiastes 5:19-20

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“Fear not; for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more.” - Isaiah 54:4

“For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.” - Isaiah 65:17

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“And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” -Revelation 21:4

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"For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us." - Romans 8:18

Selah.

All That Hear Will Laugh With Me

“And Sarah said, God hath made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me.” - Genesis 21:6

“Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad.” - John 8:56

The Angels Appear to Abraham - Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, Public Domain Image

“[9] Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope… [11] Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. – Psalm 16

These verses speak of the joy of knowing the goodness and mercy of God. Sarah knew by the Spirit that the child she was being given in her old age was not just for her sake but was part of the sure promises of God to bruise the head of the serpent and redeem his people forever. “All that hear will laugh with me,” she says, speaking of the resurrection of the just when every believer will rise in triumph by God’s power.

Speaking of Jesus, Peter writes, “Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory.” – 1st Peter 1:8.

Adoration of the Lamb – Jan van Eyck Public Domain Image

And that is our blessed hope (Titus 2:13), which places us through faith into such excellent company as Abraham, Sarah, and Peter.

Amen.

Written on the Heart

“Hearken unto me, ye that know righteousness, the people in whose heart is my law; fear ye not the reproach of men, neither be ye afraid of their revilings.” – Isaiah 51:7

33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. – Jeremiah 31

“Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.” - 2nd Corinthians 3:3

Selah.