I forget a lot of things. Birthdays. Where I set my car keys. Speaking of, where did I set my car keys? The points of stories. Taking out the garbage. The capitol of North Dakota. The list goes on. I was reading a passage in Job tonight that struck a nerve, because it reminded me of a time when I forgot something a little bigger than all that. It reminded me of a time when I forgot God.

Job 8:13-22 – So are the paths of all who forget God; and the hope of the hypocrite shall perish, whose confidence shall be cut off, and whose trust is a spider’s web. He leans on his house, but it does not stand. He holds it fast, but it does not endure. He grows green in the sun, and his branches spread out in his garden. His roots wrap around the rock heap, and look for a place in the stones…

This passage ends by saying that if he is destroyed from his place, it will deny him, saying “I have not seen you,” and that this dwelling place of wicked will “come to nothing.”

This is a perfect compilation of the different issues I’ve grappled with the past few years. Shallow roots. Double-mindedness. Idolatry. Chains. Self-medication. Clinging to things that expire instead of things that are eternal. Basic wickedness, according to these verses.

Three short years ago, I had forgotten God. I had compartmentalized my relationship with Him, tucked it deep into a corner of mind and heart. I had gone numb to what grace and mercy really meant, completely ignoring the sacrifice of salvation. I wasn’t even aware enough to understand how hopelessly far away I had drifted from Him.

I remain so amazed and thankful that I have remembered God. That I’ve received glimpses of who He is and who He wants me to be. And  yes, all the “wickedness” described in this passage is still the “wickedness” I battle on a daily basis. But as I’ve said many times before, I’m in pursuit now. I’m fighting now. And everyday, pass or fail on my attempts to be more Christ-like, I always succeed in one task. Remembering Him.