I Will Not Forget

Happy Thanksgiving.  The Holiday Season is officially upon us.  Our family was talking last night about how fun this time is.  Grant (10 years) said, “My favorite thing about the Christmas season is the spirit in the air.  People are just in a good and joyful mood and it’s so much fun.”  We celebrate family, friendships, togetherness, tradition, giving.   What’s not to love?

But as I reflected on all I am thankful for, it dawned on me that not everyone loves the Holiday Season.  For those who have no family or who have strained relationships with their family, this season can dredge up bad memories or wishful thinking of what should be.  For my friend who just lost his wife to cancer, this season magnifies the depth and breadth of his loss and his grief.  For my single friends who long to have a spouse to share this time with, it can bring up discontentment and feelings of isolation.  To my friends struggling to pay their bills and losing their homes, this season magnifies their helplessness.  Or what of my Haitian friends who live every day without electricity, running water and permanent homes? 

It’s easy to feel alone, isolated, and abandoned by people and by God.  I read Isaiah 49 yesterday and was touched again by God’s intense love, protection, and possessiveness of His most treasured creation – us. 

If you are one of those people who dread the Holiday Season, be encouraged.  This is what the LORD says... (Isaiah 49:13, 15-16, 23, and 26)

“For the Lord comforts His people and will have compassion on his afflicted ones….  Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne?  Though she may forget, I will not forget you!  See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; Then you will know that I am the LORD; those who hope in me will not be disappointed. Then all mankind will know that I, the LORD, am your Savior, your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.”

You are not alone.  Your family may forget you, but God says, “I will not forget you!”  May you feel His personal love and protection over your life this Holiday Season.