The Call to Remember
A compilation
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I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will consider all your works and meditate on all your mighty deeds.—Psalm 77:11–12
One of the greatest themes that I’ve noticed in the Bible is the importance of remembrance. All throughout the Scriptures, God calls His people to remember His goodness.
In the book of Leviticus, God appointed weekly and yearly rhythms of remembrance for the people of Israel. For example, the Sabbath was a weekly rhythm to remember how God rested on the seventh day. The Passover was a yearly rhythm to remember how God delivered the Israelites from Egypt. …
All throughout the Psalms, David and other writers meditated on the works and wonders of God. They called the reader to remember God’s past faithfulness and dwell on His goodness. Most poignantly, at the Last Supper, Jesus invited His followers to take the bread and the cup in remembrance of Him.
It’s clear that God calls His followers to be a people marked by remembrance. There is so much power in remembering God’s goodness.
The Israelites repeatedly forgot the Lord and His goodness to them. They cycled through seasons of faithful remembrance and seasons of forgetfulness. When they forgot God, they became captives to idolatry and oppression.
Oh, how I see my own heart reflected in the story of Israel. I am so quick to forget all that God has done for me. … I’ve noticed that I’m most vulnerable to anxiety when I focus my attention on disappointment and pain. …
However, the opposite happens when I dwell on God’s goodness in my life. I notice the ways that He has been guiding and sustaining my life since the day I was born. I remember the difficult seasons He has carried me through and the growth that He has brought in my heart. I am struck by the deep and meaningful relationships He has provided in different seasons of my life. And most of all, I remember the way He has unconditionally loved me and forgiven my sins. …
At the close of each day, I like to take inventory of the day and ask God to reveal His goodness and grace to me. This can include very small moments, like the grace to handle a difficult conversation, energy when I felt weak, or the beautiful, misty morning as I drove to work. Looking for God’s fingerprints in the small things enables me to see the larger patterns of His goodness in my life.
Every year or so, I read back through my journals. Each time I am struck by the ways that God has been so faithful in my life. I remember times when I felt lost and afraid, but God was actually at work in ways that I couldn’t see at the time. I am struck by how God repeatedly used painful situations to draw me into deeper intimacy with Him. …
Even in the most challenging times, God invites me to reframe my perspective. He invites me to remember who He is and what He has done. I don’t want to ever forget.—Hannah1
Remembering who we are and who we belong to
Throughout the Old Testament, there were constant reminders to remember.
Deuteronomy 8:2 tells us, “Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these 40 years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.” Ecclesiastes 12:1 says, “Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say, ‘I find no pleasure in them.’” And Psalm 77:11 says, “I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago.” …
God says, “Remember.” We are to remember who we are and who we belong to. Why are we to remember? Not for the point of going back and thinking in a nostalgic way, “I remember when things used to be good.” Remembering reminds us of all the wonderful things that we should be grateful for and for what God has done for us in the past. Additionally, our remembering should inspire in us a trust that God will continually act on our behalf and “works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).
May we take a moment to remember and maybe pull out a pen and paper as we record where God has met us and where He is meeting us. Then, we can open to God every aspect of our life and yield to Him wherever He wants to take us. ...
As believers, we are to set our hearts and our minds on things above, remembering that when we received Jesus into our lives, we put to death our own lives and now live for Christ (Colossians 3:1–3). May we live into the fullness of Jesus Christ, remembering that He is our life and one day, we also will appear with Him in glory (Colossians 3:4).—Living Truth2
Remembering the God factor
We all face times in our lives when we feel overwhelmed by hardships. We are beset by difficulties, economic worries, or health problems. As we confront one obstacle after another, life can seem to be conspiring against us. We can become befuddled and confused to the point that we begin to doubt God’s good design for our lives.
But it’s important to remember that though our challenges may seem insurmountable, they do not have the final word. The key to overcoming adversity is within our reach. It is trusting in the “God factor”—God’s intervention in our lives.
“With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God,” Jesus told His disciples (Mark 10:27). God’s divine authority and omnipotence can alter any circumstance or give us the grace to meet the challenge at hand! With God, the impossible becomes possible. Faith in God and His promises turns the tide.
Remember that God is sovereign over every situation. He is the God of miracles, the God of extraordinary circumstances, the God of the impossible. He is the God who walks with us through every dark valley. This isn’t wishful thinking, it is about applying faith to our reality and watching the Almighty work all things together for good for us (Romans 8:28).—Gabriel and Sally Garcia
The Constant Call to Remember
“Do this in remembrance of Me.”—Luke 22:19
The call to remember is not simply “Don’t forget what has happened”; it’s a call to remember that the power of God that raised Jesus from the dead has not been exhausted, nor will it ever be. Everything God did at the cross continues with power that is available to us in a constantly broadening spectrum of possibility. That’s what He doesn’t want us to forget—that what was launched at the cross continues till now. …
We need to remember hope, for the Lord calls us to lift our eyes toward Him. Don’t let yourself become soured by society or by the things that press in on you. Over and over, Jesus will show His love where you are. Most of all, we need to remember Jesus.
He’s alive. John is on the tiny little isle of Patmos, cut off with nothing he can do about his future, when Jesus appears to him and says, “Behold, I am He who was alive, died, and am alive forevermore, and I have the keys to death and hell” (Revelation 1:18). Hallelujah! There’s nothing He can’t unlock. He is alive. …
He’s active. Hebrews 7:25 says Jesus continues always to make intercession for us. Jesus is praying for you and me right now.
He’s alongside us. That day on the Emmaus Road, the disciples thought every hope they’d had was ended in the city behind them, Jerusalem. That their hope for a Messiah had gone up in the clouds of a stormy day at Calvary, and now, His grave had been robbed. What’s the hope of the future, they wondered. And then a Stranger joins them on the road, and before long, they discover that the One who’d come alongside them when they thought everything had been wiped out was the resurrected Savior.
He’s advancing. Philippians 1:6 says, “He who has begun His work in you will keep on performing it until He comes again.” Let us remember these things.—Jack Hayford3
Published on Anchor April 2026. Read by John Laurence. Music by John Listen.
1 Hannah, “The Power of Remembrance,” Grace to Be Imperfect (blog), November 9, 2019, https://gracetobeimperfect.wordpress.com/2019/11/09/the-power-of-remembrance
2 “Remember,” Living Truth devotional.
3 Jack Hayford, “The Constant Call to Remember,” Jack Hayford Ministries, https://www.jackhayford.org/teaching/articles/the-constant-call-to-remember
