The Daily Memo

I remember my dad asking that question many times. What’s your hurry? Maybe it’s generational and he did live through the Great Depression, if that’s relevant. He took his time on most any project he ever did to be sure it was done correctly. He worked with numbers in his management career for the Pennsylvania Railroad. Perhaps that’s why he wasn’t in a hurry. Everything had to add up before moving to the next thing. That certainly is not the…

We all—men and women—were created in the image of God. Fearfully and wonderfully made, fashioned as living icons of the bravest, wisest, most stunning Person who ever lived. Those who have ever seen him fell to their knees without even thinking about it, as you find yourself breathless before the Grand Canyon or the Alps or the sea at dawn. That glory was shared with us; we were, in Chesterton’s phrase, “statues of God walking about in a Garden,;…

In difficult seasons, it’s natural to want to make changes—such as quitting a job, ending a friendship, or moving away—in order to resolve frustration. But first we should investigate the cause. Discontentment may come from: • Inability to accept ourselves as we were created. The talents, personality, and physical attributes God gave us are exactly what we need to follow His will for our life. Dwelling on the things we lack or would change distracts…

Let’s come back to something very basic to our pursuit of God and the transformation he is always after in our lives—everything we do has a reason behind it, a motive. Within the Christian community we tend to focus on behavior, and that is right and that is wrong. Of course what we do matters. It matters how you treat people. It matters whether you lie or steal or commit adultery. Our actions have enormous consequences to them. However, according to Jesus,…

As a Christian, embracing your brokenness means acknowledging and accepting your imperfections, weaknesses, and struggles. It is recognizing that as humans, we are all flawed and in need of God's grace and redemption. Here are a few key aspects of embracing brokenness as a Christian: Humility: Embracing brokenness involves humbling yourself before God and others, acknowledging that you are not perfect and that you need God's help. It means letting go of pride and self,…

I wondered early in my walk with God - was there a wedding in the Garden of Eden? Then it occurred to me, of course there was. After all Eve came from Adam. They were one before they weren’t. That sounds like a Yogi Berra quote. But it’s true. Then the Lord God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.” Gen 2:18 (ESV) 21 So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took…

Sometimes God calls us to participate in His mission in unusual or even confusing ways. These situations might ask us to step outside of our normal manner of doing things and take a risk, give sacrificially, inconvenience ourselves, or even suffer for the sake of others. Have you ever felt called to go beyond your routine to do something extraordinary? For some Christians, this might look like answering a call to move overseas and share the gospel with unreached people.…

When you think of what Desolation looks like, picture a barren desert. Desolation wants to make everything a wasteland. So what is the opposite of a wasteland? Eden! The paradise of God, our first home, with all its lush, glorious beauty overflowing here, there, everywhere! If you follow the flow of Scripture and human history, you can see that our enemy wants to make everything a wasteland, and God wants to make everything a restored Eden. When it comes to the resilience…

Yesterday we looked at two reasons we might miss God’s will. John 14:26 says the Holy Spirit teaches us all things. So why do we sometimes have trouble understanding His plan? We make decisions according to emotions. When life gets hard, our instinct is to move away from the source of pain—but in reality, we need to move closer to Jesus. When we figure He couldn’t possibly want us to feel this way, we’re more prone to take action and hope that we&rsquo…