MEMORY LAPSE

DAY 82: On the spur of the minute I decided to take a quick trip to the beach.  My husband was out of town and the kids all had other plans.  With the whole country taking Spring Break, I had the urge to see the beach, too.  Fortunately, I also had a friend who was willing to take a spontaneous trip with me when I called her at 10pm the night before I wanted to leave. 

So early the next morning we were out the door and on our way.  It was less than a four-hour road trip but it was early, so we made just one stop on the way for coffee about 30 miles into the drive.  As long as we were parked, I took out my briefcase to retrieve the number to the hotel and confirm our reservation.  Since I had booked our room using points just hours before, I wanted to be sure we were set.  The best thing about the trip was that it wasn't going to cost hardly any money, just a couple of meals and gas.  With coffee in hand and that quick call made we were back on the road. 

Time flew as we spent the next couple of hours listening to music and catching up on each other's lives.  Then out of nowhere I had a random panicked thought. 

"Pam, would you look in the backseat and make sure I put my briefcase back in the car after we stopped." 

She searched the car.  She searched again.  "Kim, it's not here." Thinking back, I could see myself setting my briefcase on the trunk to get the number and then sitting behind the wheel to make the call. I drove off with it still on the car. We called the Starbucks where we had stopped.  The clerk searched the parking lot but found nothing.  I called the local police department who graciously sent an officer to search the area.  Nothing.  It was gone.  Suddenly, my almost free trip cost almost $2000.  That is the value of my brand new briefcase, laptop computer, camera, phone chargers and my favorite Bible stored inside.  To top it off, my debit card was in there, too.  All I could do was pray it was all found by someone honest who would eventually get it to the police station.  In the meantime, I made it to Galveston with $7.46 and my health savings account money card.  So I did what any responsible person would do:  I went to the beach and soaked up some sun. 

While I was sitting there I tried to figure out whom I could blame.  Starbucks for not having a parking lot monitor?  Whoever found it for not running after my car to stop me?  The police department for not calling in the Special Victims Unit for Careless People?  In the end, there was no one to blame but me.  Oddly enough, once I came to grips with that reality, I could move on with whatever came next.  And not surprisingly, what came next was a Bible passage for the day about someone else who pointed the finger in the wrong direction. 

In Deuteronomy 2 and 3, as Moses is wrapping up his trip down memory lane, reminding Israel why it took them 40 years to travel what should have taken two weeks, he also remembers a little of his own journey with God.

²⁵ Please let me cross the Jordan to see the wonderful land on the other side, the beautiful hill country and the Lebanon mountains.’²⁶ “But the Lord was angry with me because of you, and he would not listen to me. ‘That’s enough!’ he declared. ‘Speak of it no more. ²⁷ But go up to Pisgah Peak, and look over the land in every direction. Take a good look, but you may not cross the Jordan River. ²⁸ Instead, commission Joshua and encourage and strengthen him, for he will lead the people across the Jordan. He will give them all the land you now see before you as their possession.

Talk about a memory lapse. I feel so much better seeing Moses using selective memory that I am so good at.  What did he say? "The Lord was angry with me because of you...” Moses was clearly forgetting that little incident when HE ALSO disobeyed God by striking a rock to get water for the people when God had told him to speak to the rock.  I don't want to bash the guy, so you can flip back and read it yourself. Suffice it to say, Moses didn't need anyone's help to stir God's anger in that situation. Pointing the finger at Israel didn't change the facts, no matter what he thought he remembered.  Yep, that little incident made me feel much better about my own momentary blame/game lapse. 

What made me feel better though was the bigger picture. Moses, even though he couldn't always remember the truth about himself, managed to remember what was true about God - HE IS LIMITLESS!

²³ “At that time I (Moses) pleaded with the Lord and said, ²⁴ ‘ O Sovereign Lord, I have only just begun to see your greatness and strength to me. Is there any god in heaven or on earth who can perform such great and mighty deeds as you do?

WHAT A DECLARATION!  Moses had seen God bring plague after plague against Egypt.  He had seen God part the Red Sea, drop manna from heaven, send quail at will, punish His people with fire, serpents, and disease.  He saw God deliver great victories against fierce enemies. He had seen Israel travel 40 years in a harsh desert and want for nothing, with not even the sandals on their feet wearing out. YET, he declared, "I have only just begun to see your greatness and strength...”

I cannot help but camp on these words that too rarely reflect my view. I see God do something like help me find my missing ferret, provide my husband a job, protect someone I love from harm and illness... and I think I've seen it all .... how could God possibly do more?  I make too little of God who is bigger than I could ever begin to imagine. It is impossible to see the scope of His greatness and power. I don't need to fear that God has maxed out on greatness... I can't even imagine the limits of His power.  Moses, as human as you or me, reminds us that even people looking to show God's glory are prone to slip up now and then. We can get angry, blame others, get scared.... and still, with a right understanding of God, can find our way back.

Today I won't dwell on his faulty memory,  (or mine) but something much greater and eternally enduring:Moses rock-solid declaration of God limitless power and greatness.

When the patterns of our lives form a picture of a person pursuing God, the little faulty stitches here and there only remind us and others why we so desperately need that UNLIMITED power, greatness and grace of God. He gave it to Moses. He gave it to Israel. He gives it daily to me! 

PS  I'll let you know if I get my briefcase back!

Day 82 of 365
Deuteronomy 2 & 3
Luke 6:12-38
Psalm 67:1-7
Proverbs 11:27