The Daily Memo

The longing for things to be good again is making us vulnerable to all sorts of compromises. I can help you with this. First, let’s remove the shock and shame of those moments when hard-pressed you suddenly rages, binges, goes faithless, or simply shows up as a very unappealing version of you. Salvation is a process, not an event. Oh yes—salvation is a homecoming to be sure. That is the event. Our salvation begins when we first turn toward Jesus with an open.…

But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's delicacies, nor with the wine which he drank.... --Daniel 1:8 Though we do not hear much of it in this age of spineless religion, there is nevertheless much in the Bible about the place of moral determination in the service of the Lord. "Jacob vowed a vow," and it was the beginning of a very wonderful life with God.... Daniel "purposed in his heart," and…

I oftentimes preach, “God loves you, and He has a purpose for your life.” Yet whenever I do, it seems that someone in the crowd believes he or she is an exception. Sadly, people with this mindset have bought into Satan’s lie: They think they aren’t important enough to be singled out from among the billions on earth to receive a blessing. Or they listen to the Deceiver when he insists they are too weak, sinful, or scared to merit the Lord’s.…

The beginning of the Bible tells us that God created human beings in His image. But we’ve been tempted to reimagine God in our own image. The result? Believing that God is much less than who He really is. These misconceptions can make God seem more like a cartoon villain instead of the loving and gracious Creator that He is. So how can we truly see and understand the character of God? We look at the life of Jesus in the New Testament. The New Testament authors share…

Many years ago, Joni Mitchell wrote a song called “Woodstock” in which she saw the human race trapped in a “bargain” with the devil. Urging her listeners to seek a simpler, more peaceful existence, she sang of a return to “the garden.” Mitchell spoke for a generation longing for purpose and meaning. Mitchell’s poetical “garden” is Eden, of course. Eden was the paradise God created for us back in the beginning. In this,…

Sunlight on water. Songbirds in a forest. Desert sands under moonlight. Vineyards just before harvest. These all share something in common—they reflect the heart of a particular artist. They are his masterpieces, his expression and his gift to us. The artist’s name is Jesus. Something else lies in common between these treasures and Jesus as well— words on a page cannot compare to a personal experience. Sailing the ocean on a bright morning with the wind in…

In order for us to live in freedom and become the women we are to become, we need to receive God’s love even in our lowest places. Spiritual warfare is designed to separate you from the love of God. Its goal is to keep you from living in the freedom that Jesus has purchased for you. Satan whispers to us when we have failed or sinned or are feeling horrid that we are nothing and no one. He is a liar. And our fight for our freedom involves exposing him for who he is…

In his Introduction to Living in the Light - Money, Sex & Power, John Piper made a few very insightful observations. “God did not conceive and create money, sex, and power simply to be a temptation. He had good purposes in mind. Money, sex, and power exist for the great aims of God in human history. They are not detours on the path of God-exalting joy. Along with all the rest of God’s good world they are the path. With them we can show the supreme worth of God.;…

Of all that God created, one thing did not meet with His approval. With regard to Adam, He said, “It is not good for the man to be alone” (Gen. 2:18). The Creator designed people for emotional, mental, and physical intimacy—to share their innermost selves with one another. Jesus taught His disciples that they should love each other as He had loved them. (John 15:12). In a God-honoring friendship, two people build each other up and spur one another toward.…