Life goes on. The pain eases slightly with time. The days feel normal and we get busy with them. Then certain things remind us, like a date, the day they left. Emotions and memories, forgotten in the day-to-day, flood our hearts and minds and the pain returns; we feel the loss again. In this pain and loss, we do things to remember the one lost, to feel their presence again. We look through photos, talk about them with family and friends, think about the poignant moments we shared, place flowers on their gravesites, or visit places we used to go or live.

And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”

Luke 22:19 NIV

In Luke’s passage, Jesus is preparing the apostles for his upcoming crucifixion and death. However, they don’t understand or want to believe what the Lord is trying to tell them. The apostles don’t know how imminent it is. Within twenty-four hours they will have lost their mentor, leader, dearest friend and hope for their future.

Sometimes we have warnings about the loss of our loved ones, but don’t know the moment they will leave us. Other times it is sudden, like lightning striking in front of our faces. Nothing can ever prepare us for the moment of separation.

Just as Jesus warned the apostles about His coming death, God has warned us we all will die at some unknown moment. But like the apostles, we don’t believe it until it happens.

The Lord does not leave us alone in our sorrow, though. He told the apostles to meet together and replicate their last meal with Him, so they could comfort and encourage one another in their faith. We console ourselves, as I mentioned above and we should do the same in the family of God. In the re-enactment of the last supper, we remember together where our hope is,

I love how Sara Groves puts it in her song, Joy is in Our Hearts.

It is good to come together,

in our friendship to remember,

 all the reasons joy is in our hearts.

Hallelujah, hallelujah,

Christ our joy and strength.

We are not to give up meeting together to remember the life and sacrifice of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. The Lord knew we needed reminding so we would not feel alone in our battle against sin and the trials we would face because of Him. He also knew how tempting it would be to drift away. That is why He commanded us to remember Him in this way. We were created for community, we need each other, warts and all.

So let us gather as believers in Jesus Christ, every chance we get, to remember Him. How He lived and how He died; for us. We can share stories of His faithfulness, look at pictures of Him in His word, remember the places he lived and walked, and experience His presence as a body. We can share the loss and grief of being separated from the Lover of our soul and comfort one another on the journey home.

Remember Him, for He is worthy. He has never forgotten you.

Be well!

Patricia