阅读经文 

维护房屋需要付出劳动。无论你是拥有自己的房子还是租住别人的，总会有一些小的维护项目悄然而至：灯泡需要更换、草坪需要修剪、水龙头开始滴水、门需要重新粉刷。有时我们会把这些工作拖到另一天再做，但如果我们等得太久，房子就会变质。房屋总是需要定期维护。

我们也会面临诱惑，把神同在的家视为理所当然。在顺境时，我们看看自己的物质财富，看看自己与家人和朋友的关系，或者看看自己的道德品质，就会认为自己过得很好。我们忘记了这些都是神赐予我们的恩典。

神提醒以色列人，当他们到达应许之地时，需要努力记住神。神警告说，如果他们不积极尊崇耶和华的赏赐，他们很快就会忘记那位赐恩者。

我曾经读到过，大多数离婚不是因为婚外情或配偶的暴力行为，而是因为冷漠——丈夫或妻子开始认为对方是理所当然的。类似的情况也可能发生在我们与神的关系中。我们的神希望我们知道我们的祝福从何而来，尤其是我们在基督里与祂的关系这份礼物。你还记得吗？

It takes work to maintain a home. Whether you own your own residence or rent from others, there are always little maintenance projects that creep up: light bulbs need replacing, lawns need mowing, faucets begin to drip, doors need to be repainted. Sometimes we put the work off for another day, but if we wait too long the home will deteriorate. A home always needs regular maintenance.

We can also face temptations to take our home with God for granted. When times are good, we look at our material blessings, at our relationships with family and friends, or at our moral character, and we assume we are doing fine. We forget that these are gifts from God that we receive by grace.

Israel was reminded that when they arrived in the promised land, they needed to make work of remembering God. God warned that if they did not actively honor the Lord for his gifts, they would soon forget the Giver.

I read once that most divorces occur not because of an affair or a spouse's violence but because of apathy—a husband or wife simply begins to take the other for granted. Something similar can happen in our relationship with God. Our God wants us to know where our blessings come from—and especially the gift of our relationship with him in Christ. Do you remember?