God who remembers me

1 But God remembered Noah and all the wild animals and the livestock that were with him in the ark, and he sent a wind over the earth, and the waters receded. 2 Now the springs of the deep and the floodgates of the heavens had been closed, and the rain had stopped falling from the sky. 3 The water receded steadily from the earth. At the end of the hundred and fifty days the water had gone down, 4 and on the seventeenth day of the seventh month the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat. 5 The waters continued to recede until the tenth month, and on the first day of the tenth month the tops of the mountains became visible.

Genesis 8:1~5

0. A story

There once was a bird coming to the window of a house at the same time every day.

But everyday as the bird flew toward the window, it always bashed its head on the window.

This behavior continued repeatedly, day after day. People looking outside wondered why the bird did that. The other windows were open, so it didn’t seem like the bird was trying to get into the house.

So, eventually, people just concluded that the bird was stupid.

But then one day, someone began to closely observe the bird’s strange behavior.

After a while, he went home laughing loudly.

Under the window were scores of dead worms and bugs!!

The reason for the bird’s head bashing? It was after the bugs under the window. It was eating them day after day, and enjoying a feast!

As you can see from this story, there are times when we also do not see or understand certain phenomena properly. Sometimes we can’t even understand our own lives. Whenever that happens to you, dig into the Bible, closely observe God’s word as the man closely observed the bird, and pray sincerely. Then God, who created us, will open our eyes and our hearts to help solve our questions and problems at the right time, in his time.

I hope that we will all meet God through the Bible today.

1. Self-consciousness (Perception of God)

Everyone thinks of themselves as special.

People want to discover their talents and live independently.

In fact, the adage “know thyself” is widely circulated in the world today and has inspired countless philosophers over the centuries. 

<It was originally engraved on the front of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi in ancient Greece, and was later adopted by both philosophers Socrates and Plato, who grappled with the mysterious nature of knowledge and identity.> – (maybe not necessary, but interesting)

So, we try various things to find our “true selves.”

We meditate, take aptitude tests, or challenge ourselves to do new things.

But what is truly the best way to find “my true self”?

[Sally Anne Test]

The following is a psychological test that is often used in developmental psychology to measure a person’s cognitive ability to assign false beliefs to others. This is called the “Sally-Anne Test”.

Situation: Two girls, named Sally and Anne are in a room together. Sally has a basket, and Anne has a box. They are playing with a ball together.

At one point, Sally needs to go to the bathroom, so she leaves the room and puts the ball in her basket.

After Sally has left the room, Anne pulls the ball from Sally’s basket and puts it in her box.

After a while, Sally returns to the room.

Question: Where will Sally first look for the ball?           … In her basket? or Anne’s box?

The answer is, of course, her own basket, where she left it!

But to solve this problem, you need the ability to think from someone else’s point of view.

This is the amazing ability that God has given to people.

We hear this story and know that the ball actually sits in Anne’s box.

But the correct answer to the question can only be given if we understand Sally’s point of view. “She’ll look in her basket to find the ball.”

Usually, young children under the age of four, and up to 80% of autistic adults don’t have the ability to distinguish between their own point of view and Sally’s. They say, ‘Sally will look in the box’ (Anne’s box) when they answer this question because they know that the ball is in fact in the box.

What’s interesting to note is that when children turn five years old, they begin developing the ability to understand the perspectives of others. That’s when the child begins to have a clear sense of self.

In fact, when we have a clear sense of self, other people and I become like two sides of the same coin. On one side, “You are separate from me,” and on the other, “I am separate from you.” Psychologically speaking, when we understand the perspectives of others, we begin to realize who we truly are.

But biblically speaking, if you really want to know who you are, then you have to read the Bible.

You see, there are many other people in the Bible that are different from me, and their stories are about how they lived with God. When we read their stories, we can try to see things from their perspectives to understand their feelings and experiences. By doing so, we can try to understand the heart of God toward them in their various situations. Then, when we can see how God provides for, interacts with, disciplines, and blesses the people in the Bible, and when we can understand why and how they respond to God, we will better understand our true selves.

2. Dark Night of the Soul (The time God is working)

A dark night of the soul comes at one point or another to everyone in life, whether you are a Christian or not.

Noah provides an example of this. He lived in the darkness of the ark, while overhead dark skies rained a seemingly endless torrent of rain, and outside, dark waters raged and swept the ark from side to side over a vast sea that spanned the whole earth. In the midst of such external darkness, and the uncertainty of how long it would last and when it might end, he certainly experienced a darkness in his soul as well.

Just like the flood that Noah had to endure, sometimes we also must endure huge problems in our lives that we can not solve on our own.

When these problems overwhelm us with darkness and threaten to swallow us and steal our confidence, we may shrink and lose the courage to go out into the world.

Sometimes, the darkness we experience may seem endless. Sometimes the darkness we experience may cause us to lose all hope, motivation, and meaning in life. Sometimes, the darkness we experience may threaten to swallow and erase all our good memories from our previous life. In this eternal darkness, how can we endure? How can we survive? How can we overcome? How can we even return to the land of the living again? In the same way that Noah did, with a word from God.

Noah was able to endure through his dark days, by believing in the promise that God had made to him <in Genesis 6:17-18>, where he promised to establish his covenant with Noah and save his life and the lives of his whole family. Noah held onto this promise of God and believed, even though the frustrating ark life seemed to be without end.

Genesis 8:1-2

1 But God remembered Noah and all the wild animals and the livestock that were with him in the ark, and he sent a wind over the earth, and the waters receded.

2 Now the springs of the deep and the floodgates of the heavens had been closed, and the rain had stopped falling from the sky.

God remembered Noah’s faithfulness every day he endured life on the ark.

But because Noah remained at all times inside the ark, he was unable to feel any change in his situation that might overcome his darkness.

So, every day of Noah’s life during this period was the same. Each day became a repeat of the day before – a day in darkness, without sunlight, without hope, in a raging sea with no end in sight. <Perhaps his emotional state also deteriorated, spiraling further and further downward into mental despair and distress.>

But then! God remembered Noah and began working to solve his problem! The rain stopped falling day and night, the sea calmed down, the sun came out, and the waters began receding! Noah’s endless night had finally turned to dawn as God’s glorious day arrived!

Do you believe God works for us like this?

In fact, God is still working for us like this!!

3. The prime of life (the moment of accompanying God)

Everyone has a dark time in life.

But on the other hand, everyone also lives with the hope that they will one day experience the prime of their lives. The prime of life can be considered the pinnacle, or peak of one’s existence – the time of the greatest success or achievement.

So when is the prime of one’s life?

In the ark, Noah believed that God was working for him, and lived faithfully doing what he could. When the time of God’s judgment was over, Noah escaped from the ark and offered God a great sacrifice of joy.

Was not the prime of Noah’s life when he escaped from the ark? Was not this exit from his confinement and subsequent new life his pinnacle achievement?

What do you think?

You see, when we think of Noah, his exit from the ark is not the most important image that comes to mind. In fact, we remember Noah for many more deeds that provide us with much more powerful images.

The image of Noah working hard to make an ark, obeying God’s command.

The Image of Noah taking countless animals into the ark to escape floods.

The Image of Noah sending pigeons out of the ark to look at the outside situation…

That’s right! The times when Noah obeyed God’s commands and accompanied God were truly the pinnacle and prime of his life!

But when Noah looked back on his life, he would probably not consider life in a dark ark to be his prime. In fact, he would probably remember it as stifling and depressing. But when he accompanied God, especially into the ark, his story became one of the best, most powerful, and impressive stories in the whole Bible! It certainly was the pinnacle story of his life!

Consider J.K. Rowling, the famed Harry Potter novelist. When was the pinnacle of her life?

Was it when Harry Potter was published and made her a huge fortune as a bestseller?

No!

It was when she was sitting down every day at a small desk, in a quiet room, where no one paid her any mind, writing the Harry Potter series manuscript. That was the pinnacle of her life, when she was able to maximize her imagination!

So now, is your life drowning in darkness? Does it feel halted completely? Or are you feeling desperate?

<Jesus>

Consider Jesus. The end of his life was also drowning in darkness. His 3-year ministry was seemingly halted completely, and his disciples were feeling truly desperate. 

At the end of his life, Jesus was sentenced to die the most horrible, excruciating death ever invented by mankind. He was wrongfully accused, an innocent man, and the people laughed at him and mocked him. The guards spit upon him, beat him, and nailed him to the cross.

From outward appearances, this dark time should have been the greatest failure in Jesus’ life, a disgraceful humiliation to end his ministry. But it was not. In fact, this dark time was his greatest triumph, the pinnacle of his life!

It was on the cross that Jesus’ completely fulfilled the mission that God had called him to. He died on the cross for sin, our sins, an innocent man taking our place in death. But God raised him to life again, restoring his relationship to God. And if we put our faith in him, he will do the same for us, forgiving our sin and restoring us to a right relationship with God as well. 

</Jesus>

Believe in God who always remembers you, even in your darkest times and still works for you! Just as God did not forget Noah in the ark, nor Jesus on the cross, God has never forgotten you, nor will he ever forget! The attention of God, the master and creator of the whole world, is focused on you! Because you are his precious child that he loves. He loved you enough to send his own son to die in your place, exchanging your sin for his righteousness.

The prime of your life will begin from the moment you begin to accompany God!

It is a great blessing to be able to meet God through our problems, in the middle of our troubles and darkness.

I hope we become people who don’t miss that blessing!!