Leaving and Forgetting

The Holy Spirit's message to the bride of Christ in Psalm 45 was “Forget your own people also, and your father's house” (Psalm 45:10, NKJV). The still, small voice was whispering, “It isn’t enough just to leave your past behind. You must also forget it all. Put every past love and distraction behind.”

The messenger here says to the bride, “Are you going to give him mere lip service after the wedding, or does your mind wander back to things of your past, old friends, habits and loves? If you commit to this marriage, you must not only leave your past behind, you must forget it completely.”

When Jesus speaks of some who “do not forsake all” (Luke 14:33), he is speaking of those who turn from him and cling to idols. An idol is anything that possesses our time, attention, love or money.

Many husbands can rightly say that they are good providers, right? They work long and hard and spend quality time with their families. How much time do they devote to Jesus? Do they have what I call a “leaving-and-forgetting time” when they set aside quality time for Jesus alone?

Many wives also neglect their time with God. They have given their husbands and children the best years of their lives. They are hardworking and faithful and they take good care of their families. Yet, how much “leaving-and-forgetting time” do they give to Jesus? How many hours a week do they shut out the world and draw close to him?

The problem isn't family or career. Rather, it’s the loitering, aimlessly lounging around and wasting time. Many of God's people spend their time endlessly idly spending time with friends or lolling in front of the TV. We waste so many precious hours and neglect our Lord and Savior.

How jealous the Lord must be over all our other loves, all the things that eat up our time and attention. The old adage is true. It's not the ‘bad’ that is the enemy of the Christian, but the ‘good.’ It's family, career, job, children. These things in themselves do not stand between us and the Lord. No, it's our loitering. The Lord wants his time alone with us. It is crucial that we take time out and give him our full attention. He asks us, “Do you love me more than these?” (John 21:15).