Reflection: Stones of Remembrance 

 We’re talking rock-talk now — 12 hefty ones stacked along the riverbank. Sometimes, a single boulder on a hill. Again, this wasn’t a new idea. Megaliths (literally ‘great stones’ in Greek) go way, way, way back. And who wouldn’t take notice and wonder, ‘What the?!’ That’s the whole point. Story-telling stones on a grand scale. Awe-inspiring stones that pass down legends and lore from generation to generation.  

 I think we’ve maybe lost those cues with all our fancy tricks and technology. But I’ve discovered that pixelated images are like piles of stones. In the same way that an Israelite would notice a stack of boulders, you and I might show interest in a coffee-table photo album. And in the same way that Joshua regaled his children and grandchildren with tales of miraculous memories, we’re reminded of stories — extended captions — as we flick through an album. The point is that we get to recalling God’s part of the picture; recounting God’s providence and grace in the story…so we might always fear the Lord our God. 

 There’s a fearful story about the Lord our God in 1 Samuel 7 that’s memorialised with a boulder. Under the leadership of Samuel there’s mass demolition of idols, a mass assembly of Israel. There’s fasting and confessing in true worship, dramatic burnt offerings, thunder, enemy armies and crazy battle scenes…and euphoric victory! Samuel sets up a stone of remembrance where the battle is won, and he names it Stone of Help (Ebenezer). For him (and for generations to come), that is to say,” The Lord got us through that!*   

 Prayer: 

I want to spend my life storytelling where you’re the hero, Lord. Give me reminders, jog my memory of some of those stories today and give me opportunities to share, like Samuel: The Lord got us through that!  

 Footnote

*1 Samuel 7:12 paraphrased