Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name. John 20:30-31

            I was caught by surprise. Walking down Peachtree street in the afternoon I looked ahead of me and saw a man and his daughter walking  hand in hand. That momentary glance was enough to register in my memory and I found myself walking a street in Spokane, Washington with a little girl – my own daughter – hand in hand. The emotions that emerged within me were bitter-sweet: a longing for yesterday and a deep gratitude for what had been.

            I have never understood why we remember what we do. I have been told that our memories are selective. That may be true, but I know that we often have little or no control over what we remember when – just like that instant on Peachtree.

            I have discovered, however, that we have the choice of reframing our memories. We can decide the purpose which a memory can serve – even if we cannot choose what we remember and when. That memory led me to a prayer of thanksgiving for the love I have known in my family – especially that between a father and his daughters.

            John’s Gospel tells us that all that happened in the life of Jesus and was shared with his followers is not recorded in the scriptures. The Bible is like a memory bank. It does not record all that happened. It does record for us some things – and each one has a purpose. We do not always understand the purpose any more than we can understand why we remember (or don’t remember!) what we do. Nor is it always easy to understand what this or that event in the life of God’s people or the Savior Jesus is recorded. But John tells us the purpose for the remembering we have in his Gospel. …so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.

            The point is that we might have life – abundant life – here and now and in eternity.

            I’d like to believe that, by the touch of God’s grace, every memory we have can be turned to good. I’d like to believe that even the most distressing memory can be used by the Holy Spirit to provoke life-giving change in us – not just guilt or embarrassment. Perhaps that’s the promise in John’s words for you and me. Lord Jesus, make it so in all of us. Amen