My name is Julianne Clayton, and I’d like to introduce you to the remind(h)er podcast. I live in
Florida with my husband, who is a pastor, our two dogs, Kaylee and Clyde, and our cat, Kat Middleton. I work in the office of a local church in town, but my passion is words – reading words, writing words, speaking words, and God’s Word. More specifically, I love connecting with people through words, and that is the heart behind this podcast.
I’ve come to realize that reminders are helpful and common, as obvious as that might sound. My phone reminds me of events on my calendar, Facebook reminds me to wish my friend a happy birthday, my doctor calls to remind me of appointments, the post-it note on my desk reminds me to call that person back, and my smartwatch even reminds me to breathe every now and then. Reminders are a very practical part of our lives. They keep us moving and on track. They help us seemingly keep it all together.
But what about reminders in the context of our faith? I would argue that reminders are actually vital to our faith. Just like the practical reminders in our lives I mentioned moments ago, reminders of our faith, or rather God’s presence and faithfulness, give us hope, bring us peace, and help us live into and become the people God calls us to be. And, as it turns out, we are actually called to remember.
Throughout Scripture, we see that theme between God and God’s people over and over again. As the Israelites were wandering in the desert for 40 years, they were continually called to remember God’s faithfulness in all of their forgetfulness.
Throughout the Old Testament, we see God’s people build altars and mark and name certain places to commemorate and remember God’s presence and all God did for them in that particular place. People like Jacob and Samuel and David, just to name a few.
During the Last Supper, while Jesus and His disciples were celebrating the Passover (which, by the way, was also a form of God’s people remembering), He introduced them to Communion or Eucharist. As often as we eat the bread and drink the cup, we remember Jesus. His life, death, and resurrection and all that it means for us today.
And the very last message Jesus had for His disciples during the Great Commission was “Remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Clearly, Jesus didn’t want us to forget. And clearly, Jesus thought we might struggle to remember.
We are called to remember. And yet, if you’re anything like me, it’s much easier said than done. As the classic hymn says, we are prone to wander. With the pace and load of life, I am more prone to forget. I quickly lose my focus, getting caught up in all the distractions and chaos of day in, day out life. I worry and become easily flustered and frustrated. I am running late, dealing with spilled coffee, yelling at incompetent drivers who can’t actually hear me, and circling back to my never-ending to-do list in my brain. And in the middle of it all, I forget.
I also know and want to recognize that your distraction might weigh more than those things. Maybe you’re dealing with a scary diagnosis. A broken relationship. A failed class or a lost job or the death of a loved one. Or maybe you’re just tired. So so tired. And in the middle of it all, you forget.
We are called to remember, but we need a reminder. And that is my hope for this podcast.
My hope is that in the middle of all the things – first-world-problems or maybe much heavier burdens – you would take the time to listen and be reminded. Maybe you’ll listen while you’re commuting to class or to work. Maybe you’ll take a quick stroll around the neighborhood with your earbuds in. Maybe you’ll actually take 10 minutes and just sit comfortably somewhere with your eyes closed and your heart steady. Or maybe you’ll even listen in with a group, so that you can be reminded in community.
No matter how or when, I hope you’ll choose to listen. To reset, refocus, and recalibrate. To be reminded of God’s presence and faithfulness in your life. I promise to keep the episodes short, but meaningful. And I promise to serve you, the listener, as best I can.
Florida with my husband, who is a pastor, our two dogs, Kaylee and Clyde, and our cat, Kat Middleton. I work in the office of a local church in town, but my passion is words – reading words, writing words, speaking words, and God’s Word. More specifically, I love connecting with people through words, and that is the heart behind this podcast.
I’ve come to realize that reminders are helpful and common, as obvious as that might sound. My phone reminds me of events on my calendar, Facebook reminds me to wish my friend a happy birthday, my doctor calls to remind me of appointments, the post-it note on my desk reminds me to call that person back, and my smartwatch even reminds me to breathe every now and then. Reminders are a very practical part of our lives. They keep us moving and on track. They help us seemingly keep it all together.
But what about reminders in the context of our faith? I would argue that reminders are actually vital to our faith. Just like the practical reminders in our lives I mentioned moments ago, reminders of our faith, or rather God’s presence and faithfulness, give us hope, bring us peace, and help us live into and become the people God calls us to be. And, as it turns out, we are actually called to remember.
Throughout Scripture, we see that theme between God and God’s people over and over again. As the Israelites were wandering in the desert for 40 years, they were continually called to remember God’s faithfulness in all of their forgetfulness.
Throughout the Old Testament, we see God’s people build altars and mark and name certain places to commemorate and remember God’s presence and all God did for them in that particular place. People like Jacob and Samuel and David, just to name a few.
During the Last Supper, while Jesus and His disciples were celebrating the Passover (which, by the way, was also a form of God’s people remembering), He introduced them to Communion or Eucharist. As often as we eat the bread and drink the cup, we remember Jesus. His life, death, and resurrection and all that it means for us today.
And the very last message Jesus had for His disciples during the Great Commission was “Remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Clearly, Jesus didn’t want us to forget. And clearly, Jesus thought we might struggle to remember.
We are called to remember. And yet, if you’re anything like me, it’s much easier said than done. As the classic hymn says, we are prone to wander. With the pace and load of life, I am more prone to forget. I quickly lose my focus, getting caught up in all the distractions and chaos of day in, day out life. I worry and become easily flustered and frustrated. I am running late, dealing with spilled coffee, yelling at incompetent drivers who can’t actually hear me, and circling back to my never-ending to-do list in my brain. And in the middle of it all, I forget.
I also know and want to recognize that your distraction might weigh more than those things. Maybe you’re dealing with a scary diagnosis. A broken relationship. A failed class or a lost job or the death of a loved one. Or maybe you’re just tired. So so tired. And in the middle of it all, you forget.
We are called to remember, but we need a reminder. And that is my hope for this podcast.
My hope is that in the middle of all the things – first-world-problems or maybe much heavier burdens – you would take the time to listen and be reminded. Maybe you’ll listen while you’re commuting to class or to work. Maybe you’ll take a quick stroll around the neighborhood with your earbuds in. Maybe you’ll actually take 10 minutes and just sit comfortably somewhere with your eyes closed and your heart steady. Or maybe you’ll even listen in with a group, so that you can be reminded in community.
No matter how or when, I hope you’ll choose to listen. To reset, refocus, and recalibrate. To be reminded of God’s presence and faithfulness in your life. I promise to keep the episodes short, but meaningful. And I promise to serve you, the listener, as best I can.
RSS Feed