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The question that I want to ask each of you today is, how good is your memory? How good is your ability to recall at will, past events and previous experiences? Can you really say that I can remember it like it was yesterday? Memory is one of our most relied upon assets. It is a blessing to have a memory, and it is a double blessing to have a good one. I have heard many prayers in my life. I’ve heard folks ask the Lord for many things. Of those many things, I have never once heard anyone ask the Lord for a good memory in his or her prayers.
One possibility is that, we take it for granted that we will always have our memory. But let me ask you this, have you ever gone into a room to get something and when you got there could not remember what you were looking for? Have you ever picked up the telephone and dialed a familiar number not knowing that you had dialed it wrong until somebody you didn’t know answered?
Some of you sisters, have you ever gone to the market to get the fixings for a special meal, only to discover that in the midst of it’s preparation that you still didn’t get the one thing you really needed? Never take for granted that a good memory will always be there for you. There are some things that you can’t always remember (higaw). I don’t remember when I was born, when I did remember anything I was already here. I don’t remember cutting my first tooth, or if I bit anybody with it all I remember is that I had teeth to eat with. I don’t remember when I got this tall. All I know is when I got through growing I was as tall then as I am now. There are some things, I tell you that you just can not remember. Then my brothers and sisters, this should not be confused with what is call selective amnesia. That’s when, you conveniently can’t remember. In other words you forget on purpose. You can get a good picture of what I’m saying when you run into someone who borrowed your money and hasn’t paid you back; and that person acts as though he doesn’t remember. Selective amnesia, they didn’t have it when you loaned them your money, but when the time came to pay it back it was a different story.
Politics is another place you will get a good picture of selective amnesia. Mr. Nixion had it. He couldn’t remember Watergate. Mr. Reagan had it. He couldn’t remember the Iran-Contra affair. Mr. Clinton had it too. He couldn’t remember whether he did or he did not have sexual relations with that woman (aypwm). A good memory is a blessing. Our ability to remember things about our past, will impact the way we do things now.. Paul the writer of the text had a brilliant mind and an exceptional memory. He was a profound and a prolific author and orator of God’s word. Little did he know that his past would greatly influence his future. Remember now, that this is the same man who crashed in on prayer meetings, pulled praying folks up off of their knees and had them arrested; who sang and prayed with Silas from the jail house down in Philippi. This is the same man who kicked in the doors of the church and stopped the preacher from preaching, who stood up on mars hill and preached about the unknown God.
This is the same man, who tried to tear down the church, but became the greatest organizer of churches. This is the same man, who watched as they executed deacon Stephen, that was watched at his own execution (higaw). This is the same man who was beaten so bad that he didn’t know if he were dead or alive. He didn’t know whether he was in his body or out of his body. But he went up and looked into heaven, and what he saw up in heaven inspired him to tell everybody, "don’t look back". What God has in store for us, eyes have not seen, nor have ears heard, neither has it entered into the hearts of men. Just don’t look back.
Then just when we start feeling safe and secure in the hands of Jesus; Satan will show up and try to show out. He’ll start by reminding us of how we used to be before we met the Lord. He knows how holy God is. But, he also knows how impious we are (higaw). Some of us were on drug or were drug dealers. Some of us were users or abusers of alcohol. Some of us even had the nerve to call ourselves hustlers and players, who would gamble all night and sleep all day. Some of us were whores and some of us were Whoremongers; doing what we thought was right in our own eyes. We were lovers of ourselves more than lovers of God. And Satan wants us to believe that we will always be what we used to be.
But I stopped by today to tell you, that the omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent all knowing, all powerful, and everywhere at the same time God, does not love us because of, he loves us inspite of what we used to be. He did not save us to loose us, he saved us so that we would not be lost. Every time that Satan reminds us of our past, we ought to return the favor and remind him of his future. No matter how bleak our past might have been, Satan’s future don’t look good either. (aypwm) God did not pick us up and turn us all the way around. If he had done that, then we would still be headed in the same direction we started. He did turn us around, but when he turned us around we started going in a different direction. A direction that keeps on reminding us don’t look back.
As I hurry on to a close, not looking back will not erase the past from your memory. In the ancient days, when the athletes would train for a race, as part of their training, they were taught, while they were running, to forget looking back. They knew that while they ran, other would be running too. In every race there would be runners behind them; runners in front of them, and runners on either side of them. They were trained not to look back, but keep their eyes on the finish line. Looking back breaks your concentration and slows down your progress. It’ll cause you to loose, when you should have won (aypwm). Our memory is not emptied of our yesterdays. We know what we used to be and we know what we are now. Our memory not only serves to remind us of how it was, it also reminds us of how it is now. But one other thing my brothers and sisters that we ought to consider about our memory, it will also hold on to the promises of hope for tomorrow.
I don’t know about you today, but my hope is in Jesus and Jesus is my hope. Jesus I know him for myself. Somebody wrote, "If you’re talking about Jesus, he’s a friend of mine", somebody else wrote, "what a friend we have in Jesus all of our sins and griefs to bear what a privilege it is to carry everything to God in prayer. I heard Jesus say, " greater love hath no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends’. My friend was crucified on a roman cross, out on a hill called Calvary. He died on that cross, they took him down and laid him in the grave. But on the third day morning early my friend rose from dead, he stepped out of the grave, when he stepped out of that grave he didn’t look back, he caught a cloud went back to heaven, and one day my friend is coming back again. He’s coming back, but while we are waiting, keep on running for Jesus and don’t look back.
Temptation will try to catch you, don’t look back, yield not unto temptation. Weakness will try to catch you, don’t look back. Fall down on your knees and call on the name of Jesus. When you are weak prayer will make you strong. Sorrow will try to catch you, don’t look back he’s joy in the time of sorrow. Doubt will try to catch you, don’t look back, he is our blessed assurance, keep on running and don’t look back, one day we’ll make it to the finish line where his voice will say well done.