“They remembered His words.” (Luke 24:8 NIV)
The Marys had arrived at the tomb: ready to serve the body of Christ one last time. To their surprise, the tomb was empty. The fallen frame of their Lord was missing. While they were still pondering His absence, the tomb was overtaken by light. Two angels told the story of Jesus’ resurrection. They reminded the Marys of Jesus’ word to them. And then they remembered.
We can’t recall what we haven’t put in. The Marys had spent time in Jesus’ presences, so they had His words to retrieve. Had they not walked with Him, listened to His teaching or mediated on His messages, they would have lacked the memory to rely on in this moment.
The Marys remind us: we must spend time in the Word to build up our treasury. The Holy Spirit cannot retrieve what we have not laid back. Be encouraged, though, the converse is true, also. When we are faithful to study, the Spirit will pull just the right truth at just the right moment.
“A good man brings good things out of the the good things stored up in him and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him.” (Matthew 13:35 NIV)
Recently, I was struggling with our impending transition. The hunt for a home, the need to downsize (again), the strain of acclimating to yet another community… Even for a veteran mover like myself, relocation is overwhelming and emotional. When I confessed my burden to my husband, he prayed with me and reminded me of my keeping scriptures from previous seasons: we live in tents (Genesis 26:25), the times and places we live are God-appointed (Acts 17:27) and we store up our treasure in heaven, not on earth (Matthew 16:19). Just hearing my husband remind me of truths I’d clung to in previous seasons comforted my soul. The Spirit was able to retrieve treasure I’d already squirreled away.
Lord, we are a forgetful people. We thank You for the Holy Spirit’s retrieval ability. May we be faithful to store up good things, God things in our hearts. Give us a love for Your presence and an appetite for Your word. Fill us up with the good things we can find again in the future. Amen.