The Daily Memo

Even when their path winds through the dark valley of tears, they dig deep to find a pleasant pool where others find only pain. He gives to them a brook of blessing filled from the rain of an outpouring. (Psalm 84:6 - The Passion Translation) Lord, thank you for allowing me to go through the difficult seasons. There was a time in my life when I never thought I would say those words, but now I look back and see how glorious those dark times really were. In the midst of my…

Samuel was one of the greatest prophets in the Old Testament. I don’t believe it’s a coincidence that his first assignment from God was to listen for God’s voice (see 1 Sam. 3:8-10). Samuel’s story shows us that there’s a difference between active listening and passive hearing. Hearing is something we do with our ears. If our hearing is normal, we can’t help hearing sounds traveling within a certain range. Listening, however, involves the.…

I realize that many dear followers of Christ have been taught that God only speaks to his sons and daughters through the Bible. The irony of that theology is this: that’s not what the Bible teaches! The Scriptures are filled with stories of God speaking to his people — intimately, personally. Adam and Eve spoke with God. As did Abraham, Moses, and Elijah. So did Noah, Gideon, Aaron, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ananias, and the apostle Paul. On and on the examples go. In…

Jesus said of those who follow Him: My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. (John 10:27-29)What a great statement of hope and comfort this is to us! We can know the voice of the Lord. As we follow His voice and do what He says, we&rsquo…

Why did Nicodemus visit Jesus at night? Fear of what his peers would do if they found out. He wasn’t alone in this; John says that “many even among the leaders believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they would not confess their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue” (John 12:42). They chose job security over Jesus. This fear is a mighty powerful force. The fear of man. Peer pressure. What will others think? This can get deadly. This…

“Courageous speech has always held us in awe. From the first time we spoke back to our parents as angry, stuttering teens, or had to stand tongue-tied before a roomful of people, feeling naked as the day we were born. There is, after all, something bare and revealing about speech. Perhaps because we intuit the physical intimacy behind the sound of words and the way they are spoken, and that much against our wishes our words tell the listener a good deal more than we…

Some people say the most difficult part of any job is not the task itself or the challenge involved but getting along with coworkers. Are you surprised? Getting along with other humans is where things likely fall apart. So, after Jesus drives home God’s intention that not even one of His little ones should perish, the immediate takeaway He gives the disciples is conflict management advice. Jesus says to point out transgressions privately to a brother or sister in sin.…

One of the most important lessons you and I can learn is how to listen to God. In our complex and hectic lives, nothing is more urgent, nothing more necessary, and nothing more rewarding than hearing what God has to say to us—both as a body of believers and as individual people.You may ask, “But does God really speak to us today?” The Bible assures us He does. The book of Hebrews opens this way: “God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the…

I love the story of a certain man whom Jesus interfered with, much to his initial chagrin. Remember when Jesus met the man possessed with many demons in Luke 8? So they arrived in the region of the Gerasenes, across the lake from Galilee. As Jesus was climbing out of the boat, a man who was possessed by demons came out to meet him. For a long time he had been homeless and naked, living in the tombs outside the town. As soon as he saw Jesus, he shrieked and fell down in…