Tell Your Story

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“Joshua also set up another pile of twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan, at the place where the priests who carried the Ark of the Covenant were standing. And they are there to this day.”  – Joshua 4:9

The pebbles were round and smooth, certainly unsteady under foot, but not hurtful in any way.  The man led his family along their trek to the southern valley where he had heard stories of the welcoming people there, and the prosperity they had been experiencing.  Living in the North had become dangerous ever since the attacks and many of his friends and family had been slaughtered or taken as slaves.  He, his wife and their 3 sons had packed everything they owned onto these two small donkey’s and spent the last three days on this journey.  It is good that he had picked a route along the river, for fresh water and frequent engagement with other travelers.

As they came upon the town of Jericho, they set up a camp along the flat lands near the banks of the Jordan river.  The father looked to his eldest boy to go and gather some wood from the river so they could start a fire.  Of course Simon (the younger brother) went with him.  As the boys made their way closer to the river’s edge, darkness was beginning to fall over the desert night.  They found a few pieces of drift wood that had come aground and was dry enough to burn.  Under the pale light of the moon they continued walking and looking for something slightly larger.  It was then that they came upon the unusual formation of rocks.  Piled in a unique fashion, it obviously had been done with a purpose in mind and not by the current or by accident.  They looked at it from all sides, it was bizarre how these heavy stones were stable and secure in their most peculiarly stacked pile.

They found a few larger pieces of wood and made it back to the camp.  Father was waiting for them, obviously irritated with their delays, and having to start a fire in the dark.  He proceeded to get a spark and then one of the dry pieces of wood caught fire and the tension eased a little.  As the fire sparked and grew in size, more wood was applied and soon they had a blaze for their mother to begin cooking.  The boys sat next to their father, and he could tell something was on their mind. “What, what is it?  What took you boys so long?”

“Father, we found the most unusual thing down by the river.  It was a large pile of stones, perfectly balanced and resting one upon another.  It must be a sign of something, there is no way it was an accident.”, the boys blurted out together.  The father looked at them intent and with a knowing and discerning view.  “Boys, you must take me to these stones first thing in the morning, where we will lift our voices and spirits and praise God Almighty for His love and grace”, the father told them when he heard their story.  Simon immediately demanded that they go back now, “Let’s take some fire and go now, I know the way even in the dark.”  Wiser heads prevailed and they all ate well and then got a good night sleep.

The next morning the family quickly packed their things back onto the donkey’s and hurried through the brush and over the smooth stones to the river’s edge.  They proceeded down the river to the place where the boys remembered the stones.  The stones were not there, they knew this was the place for there was the large log that they chose to leave the night before.  “Father, you must believe us.  Last night the stones were right here”, both boys said together as they look on in bewilderment.  The father looked down at both of his boys and knew they would not have lied about this.  There is no way they could have made this story up. Somehow God had placed these rocks in the eyes of Simon and his brother last night as a gentle reminder to their father. For you see the father had actually seen the actual stones in that exact spot many, many years earlier, before the rise and fall of the river Jordan washed them away. Putting his arm around his sons, they walked ahead of the others, while he proceeded to tell them the history of God’s children entering the Promised Land, and the meaning to the 12 Stones Memorial

In today’s fast paced world we fail to take the time to stop and pass on to the younger generation the blessings from God above.  The legacy we are tasked to leave behind with our children is to educate them on the family history and the history of God Almighty.  The miracles, no matter how small or how grand, that have taken place in your life need to be talked about and passed on to the children.  Some people I know have created a display of small stones in their front yard, others have pictures and tell stories this way.  Still others have shadow boxes with small objects representing each miracle in their life.  Maybe your story isn’t as grand as Joshua’s in the Old Testament, but it is unbelievably important that they hear it from you, so they in turn can tell their children and so on.

Think carefully about the stories you need to tell your children.  What will you display as a reminder of how great God has been to you?  Don’t put this one off, you can create something small today and build/add on to it over time.  The key is to build it in honor of what God has done in your life and for your family.

Prayer:,
Heavenly Father,
We stand awe of your completely amazing miracles and teaching for our lives.  We draw from Your word a look at the past and for you to reveal the future for each of us.  Help us to see Your blessings in our life and to be able to share them with others.  In Your name we pray – Amen
 
 
 
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