Remember and Declare: How God’s People Proclaimed His Faithfulness Then and Now
“I will sing of the steadfast love of the Lord forever;
with my mouth I will make known your faithfulness to all generations.”
— Psalm 89:1
I don’t know what parish you grew up in, but the one I knew didn’t talk much about God’s faithfulness. I bounced in and out of three different homes, and on Sundays the pastors preached—and preached some more. But by God’s grace, I was shepherded by men and women who took me under their wing. They showed me systems and habits that pointed me to Jesus. What about you? What systems and traditions shaped your faith—or are you building in your family today?
The psalmist in Psalm 88 isn’t talking about private feelings. He’s making a vow: I will declare God’s faithfulness, and I will not stop until the next generation knows.
The people of Israel didn’t leave this to chance. They built habits, systems, and traditions that wove God’s faithfulness into daily life. Their lives were calendars of remembrance.
We can learn from them. The Sunday messages and podcast during the week are not enough. If we do not put intentional systems around our lives to remember, praise, and speak about God, we risk forgetting, which will lead to wondering.
Daily Rhythms: Faith in the Ordinary
Israel prayed the Shema every morning and evening: “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” (Deut. 6:4)
They nailed Scripture to their doors. They prayed blessings before meals and travel. Their days were filled with reminders.
Today: Begin and end your day with Scripture and prayer. Put verses on your wall or lock screen. Teach your children short prayers of thanks. Declare His faithfulness in the small, repeated acts.
If you are buying a new house or repairing it, put scripture on your wall before you paint over it.
Weekly Rhythms: Rest as Testimony
Every Sabbath, Israel stopped working. That pause was a declaration: God provides. God sustains. God is faithful (Commanded in Exodus 20:8–11; Deuteronomy 5:12–15).
Today: Don’t just attend church; join it with a heart that remembers what God has done. Mark a family Sabbath with a meal, a walk, or a simple reading of Scripture. Even a digital sabbath can proclaim, God is enough.
Too often, I hear Sabbath being about ‘not working.’ For now, I'll say, Sabbath is not about not working. Instead, it is about the posture of the heart.
Yearly Rhythms: Storytelling on Repeat
Passover wasn’t just a meal—it was a retelling. Children asked, “Why is this night different?” and parents recounted God’s deliverance. The Feast of Booths meant camping out to remember the wilderness. Their calendar was a storybook (Exodus 12:24–27; Leviticus 23:42–43).
Today: Easter and Christmas are not consumer holidays; they are covenant remembrances. Tell the story. Build family traditions where you recount God’s answered prayers at Thanksgiving or New Year’s. Mark spiritual milestones—baptism anniversaries, provision days—so your family sees His hand.
Communal Rhythms: Faith Declared Together
Israel sang psalms in unison: “His steadfast love endures forever” (Psalm 136). They gathered to renew the covenant, confess sin, and remember His works.
Today: Share testimonies in your small group or with colleagues and friends. Sing loudly in worship—yes, even if you think your voice is bad. Gather men, women, and children around stories of God’s rescue. Don’t keep His faithfulness private—declare it everywhere you go.
”But they’ll be offended…” In the West, people call it offensive to speak about Jesus. But offense is not neutral—it's spiritual resistance. The gospel has always been a stumbling block. Don’t confuse someone’s discomfort with a good reason to be silent. Behind that offense is the enemy who wants to shut down the name of Jesus. Love the person, but never mute the truth.
Tangible Reminders: Faith You Can Touch
Israel stacked stones after crossing the Jordan so their children would ask, “What do these mean?” (Joshua 4). They wore tassels on their garments. They touched mezuzahs on their doors.
Today: We have baptism and communion—physical signs of God’s covenant love in Christ. But we can also build our own markers: a family journal of answered prayers, a wall of Scripture memory, a stone on your desk that says, “God brought me through.”
Never Finished Challenge: The Call for Us
Psalm 89 begins with a bold vow: I will sing. I will declare. I will pass this on.
You don’t need Israel’s temple choir or feast calendar. You need rhythms—daily, weekly, yearly, communal, and tangible—that keep God’s love visible in your life and unforgettable for the next generation.
Don’t wait for a special moment. Start today. Sing of His love. Speak of His faithfulness. Tell His story.
Because the steadfast love of the Lord is not only forever—it is for your children, and their children, and their children after them.
Ask God to help you choose one of the above to do consistently, or all the above, or none of the above, and something else that allows you to stay rooted.
What does today say about God?
Intentional.
Why do we need all of these systems, traditions, habits, and events?
We are a forgetful and distracted people. God knows this, so He enters into this distraction with intentionality.
Ultimately, God gives us Himself.
What a Father,
What a Friend,
What a King!
Thank you, Jesus.