Information Related to "Written on His Hands"
| Audio/Video |
How does God remember all of our names?
My teenaged son has a bad habit of writing things on his hands. We'll be sitting across from each other at the dinner table, he'll reach for a napkin, and I see the telltale flash of blue ink. The ensuing conversation usually begins with my saying, "Really? Have you not been introduced to paper?"
Often, his rejoinder is this: "Mom, the teacher started assigning the homework after the bell rang and we had already put our books away. I don't have time to get things out again. I didn't want to forget."
I was thinking about this the other day, remembering similar conversations held with my own mother when I was in high school. I remember that the things I would write on my hands were usually important things: phone numbers, homework assignments, and different tasks I needed to remember. Sometimes, they would be messages from a friend. I don't know why it was so special if a friend wrote some silly word or drew a picture on my hand, but it was. These were all things that I wanted to remember, and that I would see over and over throughout the day. My hands were always there before my eyes; that same flash of blue ink a vivid reminder of something I wanted to commit to my memory.
This little trip down memory lane reminded me of one of my favorite scriptures. In Isaiah 49:14, we read: But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me, and my Lord has forgotten me.”“ Can a woman forget her nursing child, and not have compassion on the son of her womb? Surely, they may forget, yet I will not forget you. See, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; your walls are continually before Me.”
God promises throughout the Bible that He will not forget His people or forsake them, though they may be tested, tried, or even punished. When I read this particular statement of that promise, though, it is so much more vivid and personal. We are inscribed on God's hands. It isn't as though we are a bad memory that He has to remember, that He can't forget. If we are written on His hands, then surely it is a safe conclusion that He wants to remember us; that we are indeed something He treasures and does not want to forget.
In Matthew 28:18 we read Jesus' instructions to His disciples and another promise, one that goes beyond remembering. And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
Not only does God remember us, but He promises to be with us always. Along with this Paul points out that He will remember more than our names. He will remember our work. For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister. And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope until the end, that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises (Hebrews 6:10-12).
We do not need to fear that God will forget us. Instead, we must take steps to remember Him, so that we are demonstrating our faith in His promises and our awareness that He is, indeed, with us. How? By doing the things He has commanded us to do, and as Paul writes, to do them with diligence, looking ahead to the full culmination of God's promises to us. As we are written on God's hands, His words are to be written in our hearts and minds. Christ's sacrifice has made this possible, but God does not simply take a permanent marker and write His words in us, we must also do our part and put the truth we know into action, allowing God to change us inside and out. As we use our hands to minister to others and to do the work of God, let us remember that we are never in danger of being forgotten by the One who matters most. We are written on His hands.
To learn more about committment request a copy of the booklet: You Can Have Living Faith
©1995-2022 United Church of God, an International AssociationRelated Information:
Other Articles by Katherine Rowland
Origin of article "Written on His Hands"
Keywords: God's hands remembering God with you
God's faithfulness: