God sees, God remembers, God knows

Memorial Day weekend is many things to many people. To historians, it is Decoration Day. To schoolchildren, it symbolizes the nearing end of school and opening of the local swimming pool. For the outdoor grillers, it is the start of barbecue season. For our nation, it is the day to remember and honor the men and women who have sacrificed their lives to the service of our great country.

The book of Exodus introduces us to the Hebrews, who were pressed into slavery by Egyptians. When they first arrived in Egypt, they were refugees from a famine. Decades passed since their arrival; they were viewed as a threat and enslaved. Under the yoke of slavery we see God's remembrance. Exodus 2:24 reads, "And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. God saw the people of Israel -- and God knew."

"And God knew" -- three comforting, illuminating words. He knew. He knew their sadness and their joy. He knew their fears, and he knew when their bravery was masking their fears. And God knew.

God sees and he knows. Too often when life presses down from areas you could never imagine, it is easy to be tempted into thinking that God does not see, that God does not know, that God does not care. God remembered his people. He knows those whom he loves. And God knew.

God remembered the covenant that he made generations before the descendants of Abraham found themselves enslaved to the Egyptian pharaoh. God knew. A covenant is an agreement that brings to the forefront a commitment to fulfill. It is not a contract. In a contract, party A agrees to fulfill its requirements when party B fulfills theirs. In a covenant, the party who initiates the covenant will fulfill the covenant. It is binding. It is always remembered.

There is no better way to celebrate Memorial Day than to live in faith that God remembers, God sees and God knows. God sees, knows and remembers the soldier on the plains of Afghanistan. God sees, knows and remembers the family who for the first Memorial Day will be visiting the grave of their fallen soldier. Nothing is beyond his vision, nothing is beyond his compassion. God sees, God remembers and God knows.

Rob Hurtgen is a husband, father, minister and writer. Read more from him at www.robhurtgen.wordpress.com.