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“Then God remembered Rachel; he listened to her and enabled her to conceive.”
Genesis 30:22

Sometimes, it’s easy to feel as if God has forgotten us.

We go through a rough patch. We pray for something that doesn’t ever seem to happen. We find ourselves trapped in a job we hate, a relationship that’s going nowhere, or a sickness that doesn’t ever seem to get better. We face hardship and turmoil and persecution with no end in sight. We struggle and push and watch other people being blessed, and wonder why God isn’t doing the same for us.

God gave us a promise, said He would bless us, told us that the hardship would come to an end soon and then…nothing.

It feels as if He’s forgotten us.

Forgotten the promises He’s given.
Forgotten the provision we need.
Forgotten to help and direct and speak to us.

We’ve done everything He asked, obeyed as best we could and it seems as if God is nowhere to be found.

Rachel knew how that felt.

She stood by as her older sister, Leah, conceived and gave birth to five children with their mutual husband. She felt the pain of trying to give her husband a child and each time, finding out that she was barren.

She cried out.
Asked God to give her this one thing.
Begged for a son to make her husband happy.
Did everything she could to assist in the process.

Rachel felt as if God forgot her.

But God never forgets the promises He has given us. He never goes through a period where He has to be reminded of what He said.

God knows what we’re going through.
He remembers the promises He made.

The word translated as remembered in the above verse is the Hebrew word זָכַר (zakar), and means: to mark, to mention, to remember, record, mindful, think, bring to remembrances, burn – to retain in thought.

God burns His promises in the forefront of His mind.
He records them and keeps them ever before His eyes.

He doesn’t forget what He promises us, leaving us on the sideline and blessing others while overlooking us.

God retains us in His thoughts, constantly thinking about the promises He made us and how He will work to bring those promises about.

They never leave His mind.
And neither do we.

And so, my brothers and sisters, as you journey through your trials and hardships, may you know that God never forgets you. May you be reminded that He retains your promises in His thoughts at all times. And may you, as you remember the thoughts He as towards you, gain a deeper level of trust that He will fulfill every promise He has given you.

How does knowing that God never forgets His promises change the way you perceive seasons of waiting?