In the
past few days, I found myself quoting lines from the hymn, “Come Thou Fount.” “Here I raise mine Ebenezer, hither by thy
help I’m come.” Those words reference a story in I Samuel 7, which documents Samuel’s
miraculous defeat of the Philistines who had constantly invaded Israel. He set
up a stone, named it Ebenezer, and said, “Thus far the Lord has helped us” (I
Samuel 7:12).
At the time, I was cleaning out old files and came across a few pieces of note paper from many years ago. They served to document a dark time in the life of someone we love, but at the same exact second in another place, an event was unfolding, which we could have never dreamed of in that long ago difficult time. It was such a poignant moment , because it served to remind of all the Lord had done in the interim.
We can get
so laser focused on the present problems, it’s easy to lose the long view, to remember
where we started. It’s easy to forget the miraculous journey on which God has
brought us.
The
meaning of the word Ebenezer is stone of help. When Samuel erected that stone,
he knew that it was only by God’s power he had been able to defeat the
Philistines (Read the story of how God thundered against the Philistines and
scattered them). Likewise, when we raise our Ebenezers, we need to remember it
is only with the Lord’s help that we are victors.
Our
situation in the life of our loved one has had many chapters, and each one has
had its own challenges, but a few pieces of note paper served as a rock of
remembrance and tribute to God’s help and faithfulness.
At the
State Botanical Gardens of Georgia, there is a square fountain carved from rock that I
once painted as a gift for a friend (Above in a pixelated photo). There are several symbolic ways to see
that stone, but one of them is that water comes from our rocks of help. When we
stop to thank God for all He has done, we will find new life and refreshment from
His living water that flows from that rock.
I had been
troubled by many things in the past weeks, but coming upon those notes makes me
want to walk around with my hands in the air in constant praise to the Lord. And
somehow, the things that weighed me down grow lighter because I have a greater
confidence in God’s ability to change, heal, and restore.
Take the time to set down your own rock of remembrance. Let’s look at every dimension in our lives and give thanks for all that God has done. And when we sing “Come Thou Fount,” we’ll sing it with renewed joy in how far the Lord has brought us.
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