Have you ever forgotten something important that created an uncomfortable moment?
I feel like a terrible father when I go to the pharmacy to pick up medicine for one of my children and they ask me for the date of birth. I feel like it’s the final question on “Who Wants to be a Millionaire” and all of America is watching.
The most painful situation where I forgot something was with a lady who used to go to my church several years ago. I walked up to her and she said, “Pastor Roscoe this is Jack. You remember Jack don’t you?” I said, “Of course! He’s your Dad.” She turned white, and then red… “No, he’s my husband!” Awkward.
Now you know why I said she used to go to my church.
Forgetting is painful.
The worst is when you feel like God has forgotten you. When you feel like He doesn’t remember your name or your circumstances.
At some point in your journey you will feel like God has turned a blind eye. You’ll feel like Heaven has shut its doors. You’ll feel like the forgotten son or the unwanted orphan. In that moment Satan will whisper in your ear…God has forgotten you. God doesn’t care about you. God isn’t real.
Ever felt that way before?
David knew what that felt like (Psalm 22:1-2).
Jesus knew what that felt like (Matthew 27:46).
What do you do? You think about God’s tattoo.
Did you know God has a tattoo? What in the world would God get a tattoo of? The Virgin Mary? A crucifix? A fish? A crown of thorns around His bicep? Not to mention…Where would God get a tattoo?
Isaiah 49:16 ESV
Notice the word “BEHOLD”. It’s like saying, “OMG…You’ve got to see this! You’ll never believe it!”
Believe what?
God has “ENGRAVED” you into His hands. In Hebrew it literally means to “cut in.” This isn’t some temporary tattoo that will wash off in a few days. It’s permanent. It will be there for eternity. He will never forget you.
What is “ENGRAVED” on God’s hands? Not just your name–“YOU”. Everything that’s “YOU.” Your hopes, your desires, your dreams, your likeness, your name, your potential, your future. It’s all permanently carved on His hands.
God doesn’t have you tattooed on His hand so He wouldn’t forget you; He did it so you would know how valuable you are to Him.
Last weekend my wife and I had the privilege of spending some time with my friend who pastors a great church in Dallas. While we were in Dallas we stopped by the George W. Bush Presidential Library. (I’d highly encourage you to visit as many presidential libraries as you can. Fascinating!)
One of the displays was of 9/11 and there was a wall that had the names of every person who died that day engraved on it. The names made me sad at the loss of life, but I had no personal connection or memories with those names. For others who visit the wall it is a different experience. They touch the engraved names. Those letters evoke so many emotions because it’s the name of a friend or relative.
God doesn’t have your name engraved on a wall somewhere…He has YOU engraved on His hands.
The same hands that made this world. The same hands that formed you in your mother’s womb. The same hands that hold the world in motion. The same hands that He stretched forth on a cross and had pierced through with nails…those hands.
I wonder as the nails were piercing his hands if he looked at his hands and saw “YOU”.
The reason the prophet Isaiah gives us this powerful word picture is because at times we can feel that God has forgotten about us. The 2 verses right before it address the feeling that many Jews had about God.
Isaiah 49:14-15 Yet Jerusalem says, “The Lord has deserted us; the Lord has forgotten us.” “Never! Can a mother forget her nursing child? Can she feel no love for the child she has borne? But even if that were possible, I would not forget you!
How can a mother forget her baby? We are told nothing is deeper than a mother’s love, then I saw this sign the other day outside of Wal-mart.
So I guess it happens. My kids are never quiet enough to ever be forgotten.
God is saying I’ll never forget you. You are so precious to me “I HAVE” tattooed you on my hand. God didn’t have someone else do it. He did it himself. “I HAVE” chosen “YOU”. He picked “YOU” to get a tattoo of…in all of our sin…in all of our mistakes…in all of our pain…in all of our self-reliance.
The passage doesn’t say “I WILL” engrave you. I WILL when you get your life together…I WILL when you get yourself cleaned up. No, Isaiah says “I HAVE” because I see all of the potential you don’t see yet. “I HAVE” because I want to help you become the best version of you. “I HAVE” picked you from before the foundations of the world.
The question is will you pick the God who loves you? The God who gave his life for you. The God who tattoos you on His hand. The God who will never forget.
