Encouragement for Today - June 28, 2011
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June 28, 2011
Memory Stones |
"Joshua set up the twelve stones that had been in the middle of the Jordan at the spot where the priests who carried the ark of the covenant had stood. And they are there to this day." Joshua 4:9 (NIV)
I discovered an old journal in a box in my garage. As I thumbed through its pages, I found prayers I had written as a young mom. There were prayers that my children would grow up to love the Lord. Prayers when I needed guidance. Prayers written years ago when I was diagnosed with cancer and my children were in elementary school.
When I penned those words, I had no idea what the answers would look like, only that my strength was replenished when I turned to God in prayer.
When Joshua led the nation of Israel across the Jordan River, it was harvest time and the Jordan was at flood stage. As the priests stepped to the water's edge, suddenly the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away and the water flowing downstream was completely cut off. Miraculously the priests stood firm on dry ground while all of Israel passed.
God commanded that each tribe take one stone from the middle of the Jordan and take it with them. They placed the stones in a pile and later, when their children asked, "What do these stones mean?" they were told about the day God supernaturally stopped the flow of the Jordan River.
As I read the journals, I could clearly see my own memory stones. God had held me and my family close during those times. He had answered a young mom's prayers in His timing. It may not have been clear then, but now I could recount how God cared for us.
Comfort. Provision. Even miracles. The prayers were a glimpse of our history and God's hand over our family.
What memory stones will you share with your children? It might be a story of God's love shared at bedtime. Or comfort to a teen as you recount a moment when God stepped in for you in the midst of your own struggles and obstacles. Perhaps it is a memory shared with an adult child who is struggling and wonders if God cares.
Memory stones can be powerful stepping stones, leading your child straight into the arms of a Heavenly Father as you recall God's faithfulness together.
Dear Lord, sometimes I pray, but then I fail to rejoice in the answer, having moved on to the next need or next prayer. Today I thank You for every memory stone. You are a powerful and loving God. I am grateful for Your provision over me and my family, In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Related Resources:
Do You Know Him?
Visit Suzie's blog to discover how to create a prayer journal and start collecting memory stones of your own.
The Mom I want to be: Rising above Your Past to Give Your Kids a Great Future by T. Suzanne Eller
Jesus Lives: Seeing His Love in Your Life by Sarah Young
When you purchase resources through Proverbs 31 Ministries, you touch eternity because your purchase supports the many areas of hope-giving ministry we provide at no cost. We wish we could, but we simply can't compete with prices offered by huge online warehouses. Therefore, we are extremely grateful for each and every purchase you make with us!
Application Steps:
• Write down one story of God's faithfulness.
• Thank God for it in your personal time. Ask for insight on the right opportunity to share it with your child.
• When you share it, don't make it a lesson, simply a praise.
Reflections:
People create scrapbooks so they can treasure memories. What would a scrapbook of my life as a believer look like? What a legacy that would be in the hands of future generations!
Power Verses:
Joshua 4:5b-6, "Go over before the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, 'What do these stones mean?'"
Joshua 4:7a, "Tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord."
© 2011 by T. Suzanne Eller. All rights reserved.
Proverbs 31 Ministries
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