Remembering God's Mercy: Renewing Our First Love

Familiarity can quietly drain the wonder out of things that were once precious. Marriage, friendships, a dream Jeep, and even a long relationship with God can become so normal that attention fades and gratitude gets thin. God has not become less wonderful, but He can become familiar when routine takes over.

The honeymoon stage carries a few simple things: pausing an agenda to consider the other person, taking notice, staying curious, spending time together, and showing affection through kindness. Those same movements reveal a way back into deeper connection with God. The call is not to chase a new feeling, a new house, a new friend, or some shiny new thing because the old thing feels boring. The question is whether something else has taken the place of awe and wonder.

Memory becomes important because painful memories can rise up without warning. Trauma can get triggered by a sound, a place, a feeling of abandonment, or something that seems small on the surface. Joyous memories can also be brought back up, though they may take more intentional work. God can use remembered mercy to create a different response in the heart.

Romans 12 begins with “in view of God’s mercy” before it calls believers to become living sacrifices and to be transformed by the renewing of the mind. Paul’s call to renewal is rooted in remembering what God has done. Scripture becomes more than information when the heart reads through the lens of God’s mercy. The Bible helps believers recall truth, remember His faithfulness, and offer themselves back to Him in true worship.

The image of lightning and rain gives a picture of this work. Lightning breaks up nitrogen in the atmosphere so that rain can carry it down and nourish the ground. God’s mercy can feel like something hanging in the air until remembrance grabs hold of it and lets it come down into real life. Gratitude, reflection, and specific memories of God’s goodness can nourish a heart that has gotten stale.

Jeremiah remembers the devotion of youth, and Revelation calls the church to remember its first love, repent, and do the things it did at first. The goal is not to go backward and recreate old feelings. The goal is to let old memories of mercy deepen the connection with God right now, with all the wisdom and depth that have grown over time. God remains near, waiting for His people to draw near and remember.

##

---

Key Takeaways

• 1. God has not become less wonderful. Familiarity can make even a precious relationship feel ordinary, but God’s character has not changed. The loss is often not in His presence but in a heart that has stopped taking notice. Awe grows again when attention turns back toward who He is. [44:49]
• 2. Remember mercy before seeking renewal. Romans 12 roots transformation in “the view of God’s mercy.” Renewing the mind is not merely trying harder or thinking better thoughts. God’s past faithfulness gives the heart a solid place from which surrender and worship can grow. [47:57]
• 3. Memory can challenge fearful beliefs. Painful memories often create automatic reactions, but remembered faithfulness can interrupt those patterns. Specific recollections of God’s care do not deny present hardship. They remind the heart that fear is not the only true thing in the room. [48:44]
• 4. First love moves forward, not backward. Remembering early faith is not an attempt to recreate an old emotional moment. Mature faith can carry both the freshness of first love and the depth gained through years of walking with God. God uses remembrance to deepen present connection, not to trap believers in the past. [53:48]
• 5. Gratitude nourishes a stale heart. God’s mercy can seem like air waiting to be remembered and used. Naming a specific act of God from the week gives gratitude something real to hold. That kind of remembering becomes true worship that reshapes the heart.
  
  ## [54:48]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [28:23] - A Living Room Conversation
• [31:10] - When Precious Things Become Familiar
• [35:29] - Trauma, Triggers, and Joyful Memory
• [39:04] - Remembering First Love
• [43:17] - The Jeep That Became Ordinary
• [45:57] - Pausing in God’s Presence
• [46:11] - Romans 12 and God’s Mercy
• [48:44] - Renewing the Mind Through Remembering
• [50:04] - Lightning, Rain, and Mercy
• [51:43] - Remember Your First Love
• [53:48] - Going Forward With Deeper Connection
• [54:48] - Gratitude and True Worship
• [55:11] - Prayer for Renewed Wonder

Bible Reading

Romans 12:1-2
“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” [46:19] [47:57]

Revelation 2:4-5
“But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.” [52:11]

Jeremiah 2:2
“Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem, Thus says the LORD, ‘I remember the devotion of your youth, your love as a bride, how you followed me in the wilderness, in a land not sown.’” [51:55]

Observation questions

1. In Romans 12:1-2, what comes before Paul’s command to offer our bodies as living sacrifices and to be transformed? Why might the words “by the mercies of God” matter for the rest of the passage? [47:57]
2. What actions does Revelation 2:4-5 call the church to take after recognizing that it has left its first love?
3. What does Jeremiah 2:2 remember about Israel’s earlier relationship with God, especially their devotion and willingness to follow Him into the wilderness?
4. What are the five relationship habits connected with the “honeymoon stage”: pausing, taking notice, staying curious, spending time, and showing kindness? [34:28]

Interpretation questions

1. Paul connects God’s mercy with surrender, worship, and a renewed mind. How does remembering what God has already done change the way a believer approaches obedience instead of treating it as merely trying harder? [48:10]
2. Revelation tells believers to remember, repent, and do the works they did at first. How can someone return to these “first works” without trying to force old emotions or recreate an earlier season of faith? [53:41]
3. Painful memories can produce quick fearful reactions, while joyful memories may take intentional effort to recall. How can specific memories of God’s faithfulness challenge a fearful belief without pretending that present pain is not real? [48:52]
4. Familiarity does not mean that God has become less wonderful. What might it reveal about a believer’s attention, gratitude, or daily routines when God feels ordinary? [44:45]

Application questions

1. Has something precious in your relationship with God become familiar lately? What are some signs in your prayer life, worship, Bible reading, or daily choices that might reveal this? [42:45]
2. Which of these would most help you draw near to God this week: pausing your agenda, taking notice of His character, being curious in Scripture, spending intentional time with Him, or showing His love through kindness? What could that look like in one specific moment this week? [45:57]
3. Think of one specific mercy God has shown you in the past week—a provision, protection, encouragement, answered prayer, person, or moment of strength. What happened, and how does naming it affect your gratitude right now? [54:38]
4. When feelings of fear, abandonment, shame, or discouragement rise up, what true memory of God’s care could you bring to mind? Is there a verse, prayer, person, or past season that helps you remember you are not alone? [37:03]
5. Is there a spiritual practice you once did with sincere love—such as praying honestly, reading Scripture slowly, serving someone, worshiping freely, or sharing your faith—that God may be inviting you to practice again? What would a mature, present-day version of that practice look like? [52:05]
6. Rather than looking for a “new” thing to fix a stale heart, where might God be inviting you to notice what is already good and gracious in your life? How could you make room this week to sit with that gratitude? [45:05]