The Daily Memo

Have you ever felt like a failure, or of no use to God, or thought that God wouldn’t want to answer your prayers? Until I first read Colin Urquhart’s book, *In Christ Jesus*, I had never realized how significant that little word ‘*in*’ is in the New Testament. Understanding that, as a Christian, you are ‘*in*’ Christ Jesus revolutionizes how you see yourself, your self-image, your identity and how you understand your value to God. Write…

Prayer is the heartbeat of the believer’s walk with God, and He commands us to pray about everything (Phil. 4:6). But we sometimes wonder what kind of influence our conversations with the Lord really have, and we find ourselves asking the following two questions: 1. If God controls all things, why does He want us to pray? He’s self-sufficient and needs no help to accomplish His purposes, so what could any of us possibly contribute? 2. Would God’s plans…

Thanksgiving Day meals in America bring families together for a delicious ham or turkey dinner. But they are notorious for family spectacle as well—the picky great-aunt who remembers when she could cook better, the politically active uncle who can’t hold his opinions back, the growing son helping himself to a fourth serving of potatoes. Sometimes manners don’t match the occasion. Turns out, family drama is nothing new. In the first century church,…

Part of our healing comes with forgiveness (of ourselves and others), and part of it comes with repentance. But first, we have to begin with how God sees us. How he sees you. Do you know? You are deeply and completely loved (Rom. 8:38–39) You are totally and completely forgiven (1 John 2:12) When God sees you, he sees the righteousness of Jesus (2 Cor. 5:21) You mean the whole world to him (John 3:16) He thinks you are beautiful. Right now (Song of Sol. 4:1) He is…

“Love your neighbor as yourself,” Jesus taught (Mark 12:31), implying a direct link between one and the other. Loving our neighbor is clearly an essential to Christian faith; I think we all get that one. But the qualifier “as yourself” is lost upon most people; it confounded me for years. It almost sounds too pop psychology, something you’d see on the cover of the magazines at the checkout stand, right next to the articles on “brain superfoods;…

In 1970, a car executive visiting Denmark learned that a 1939 Buick Dual Cowl Phaeton was owned by a local resident. Since the car never actually went into production, it was a rare find—a one-of-kind vehicle. Delighted with the discovery, the executive bought the car and spent his time and money to have it restored. Currently, this unique car is featured in a world-renowned collection of classic vehicles. Hidden treasures can take many forms, and in the book of 2…

We have fears below the surface that we don’t consciously know we have. God wants us to be free of them. How can we be? Well, he has made a way for us. It is the way of his love. His perfect love for us casts out all fear. "And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them...There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear...The one who fears is not made perfect in love." (1 John 4:16&ndash…

Job knew trouble and temptation, but he boldly claimed, “Though He slay me, I will hope in Him” (Job 13:15). He had lost his children, his fortune, and his health, but he didn’t abandon his faith. He was determined to hold on because he trusted God. Unlike Job, we have Scripture, in which God reveals His nature and promises. His Word tells us that our Father is always good, always just, always faithful, and always trustworthy. When we focus on honoring and…

I got a text from Colleen last Friday at 4:00 that she’d be home from work at 5:30 and would bring appetizers for dinner. Perfect timing, I thought, I was hungry already. She showed up at 7:10 after texting she was on her way at 6:03, and it was a 25-minute drive, with an empty Chick-fil-A bag that once held her dinner she picked up in the drive-through. I didn’t respond. Nor did I say much of anything when she got home. I chose the silent treatment for a few…