Remember well
Passages (NIV): Psalm 77
Preacher: Mark Kingston
This year might not be easier. Most of us know that already. But it could be deeper: a year where our roots go deeper into God. The Bible says that when that happens, good things grown. Imagine if 2026 was the year you discovered greater peace, joy, love, patience and kindness growing up in you…
That’s what this series is about. Practices shaped by scripture and proven by other Christians that help us stay close to God and grow deeper roots. This week, the practice is remembering well.
Remembering well is about making a habit of calling to mind the ways God has protected, guided, and provided before. These could be moments from your own life, stories from someone else or stories from Scripture that remind you who God is and what God has done.
When we remember like that, something settles in us. The present feels less shaky. The future feels less threatening. Faith grows where fear used to dominate.
But remembering well has some competition!
Sometimes we remember the wrong things. Pain from the past becomes the lens we look through. It teaches us to stay alert. Be careful. Watch for danger. Don’t get hurt again. I’ve lived that way. It feels smart. It feels responsible. And learning the lessons and processing the pain of difficult past experiences is really important. But if we allow past pain or fear to sit in the driving seat of our lives, we pay a high price. Living out of fear is exhausting. Past pain can end up stealing joy from our present and peace from our future.
Other times, we just forget. God often works quietly. A small nudge. A door opening at the right time. A calm that didn’t make sense. We notice it, then move on. So when trouble comes, fear rushes in because we don’t have those memories to steady us.
That’s why remembering well really matters.
Here’s the big idea: God doesn’t change. So the care he has shown us in the past reminds us the truth of who he is now, and assures us that he is still in charge and will never leave or forsake us.
One more thing.
In the Bible, remembering is usually something a community does together. Not privately. Not alone. So, we should remember together too.
That’s why we’re going to start making regular space for this in our services. You don’t have to give a big speech or present a polished testimony. Just a sentence or two is fine, sharing, “this is where I noticed God at work this week…”
Why not share this coming Sunday? Your 2 or 3 sentence mini story could help us remember well together. And when we do that fear loosens its grip and peace has room to grow.
REFLECTION QUESTIONS
What’s Leading?
Right now, what seems to be most “in the driving seat” of your inner life: trust, fear, tiredness, hope, or something else?Your Default Lens
When pressure or uncertainty shows up, what story do you tend to tell yourself about what’s coming next? Where might you have learned that story?Trace His Care
What is one clear moment from your past where you can see God’s care, guidance, or protection, even if it felt small at the time? How does remembering it affect you now?Shared Memory
Is there a story from Scripture, or from someone else’s life, that reminds you of who God is when your own memories feel scarce?A Simple Practice
What would remembering well look like for you this week in a way that feels gentle and realistic? For example, you could start a “Remebering Well Journal” where you write down moments big and small where you knew God was at work helping, guiding and caring for you. Or, you could share a short story with someone you trust, or even share a short story with all of us next Sunday?
