shadow

Jordan River

What Are These Stones?

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Those twelve stones which they had taken from the Jordan, Joshua set up at Gilgal. He said to the sons of Israel, “When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, ‘What are these stones?’ then you shall inform your children, saying, ‘Israel crossed this Jordan on dry ground.’” 

Joshua 4:20-22, NASB

RockTraveling to Nicaragua in 2014 was an eye-opening, life-changing experience for me. Getting a front row seat to watch God work in ways that I had never imagined was beyond anything I had ever experienced. I knew I would never be the same.

Fast forward a few weeks and months. Life quickly resumed a pattern of normalcy. Meals had to be made and sibling squabbles needed a referee. The images of poverty and God stories, once in the forefront of my mind, had been replaced with meal planning and story time. Consumed with my own life, I had forgotten.

The nation of Israel struggled with memory loss as well. As a nation, they had witnessed miracle after miracle. They had seen manna fall from heaven, been guided by a pillar of cloud during the day and fire at night, and had walked through parted waters on dry land. Yet all too soon they would forget God’s provisions.

After crossing the Jordan, the Lord commanded a man from each of the twelve tribes to go back to the middle of the dry river bed and take a stone and build an altar, or memorial, to Israel forever. For generations, when asked what those stones meant, they would remember the Lord’s provision and the deliverance of their nation.

Like Israel, we are prone to forget God’s provisions in our lives, but the importance and purpose of remembering hasn’t changed.

God has delivered each and every one of us from something. If we have placed our faith in Christ, we have been delivered from eternal condemnation and separation from Him. Maybe you’ve been delivered from financial ruin, addiction, or a broken marriage?

Regardless of how He has worked in our lives, it’s important to remember and it’s important to share it with others for God’s glory. Through the remembrance and sharing of our God stories, others are pointed to Christ, a legacy of faith is left for our children, and our own faith is strengthened when our lives take unexpected twists and turns.

How can you remember today?

Remembering,

Traci

Stick Your Foot In

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And when those who carried the ark came into the Jordan, and the feet of the priests carrying the ark were dipped in the edge of the water (for the Jordan overflows all its banks all the days of harvest), the waters which were flowing down from above stood and rose up in one heap….and the priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan while all Israel crossed on dry ground, until all the nation had finished crossing the Jordan. 

Joshua 3:15-17, NASB

crashing wavesThe Lord had spoken to Joshua and His command had been clear: the Ark of the Covenant was to be carried across the Jordan River. Not only was it to be carried, but the priests who carried the Ark were to stand still in the middle of the river. That’s not a big deal if we are talking about a small stream where the water is no more than a peaceful trickle, but this was no small stream. There was no trickling. In fact, the river was flooded. That changes things a bit, doesn’t it? It requires a bit more trust. OK, a lot more trust.

The Ark contained the stone tablets on which the Ten Commandments had been written. To say it was a treasured possession would be a gross understatement. Yet when the Lord told them to pack up the Ark and cross the overflowing river, they went. It wasn’t until the soles of their feet rested in the waters that the flow was cut off and dry land appeared.

I love it when God shows up and shows off, don’t you?

Imagine what would have happened if the Israelites had refused to trust God with the Ark and hadn’t crossed the river? What if they had waited for the river to stop flowing first? I guess they’d still be waiting. Thankfully, they were faithful and obedient.

We all have things we value that can prevent us from stepping out in faith and following God’s call for our lives, to bring us to the Promised Land the Lord has for us.

Maybe it’s our career or our home? The Lord has told us it’s time to move on, but there are too many unknowns. The new job pays less, comforts may be lost, and relationships left behind, so we stay where we are.

Maybe the Lord has stirred your heart toward fulfilling the Great Commission and taking the gospel to the nations? The risks are too great and the unknowns are too many to count so we push those stirrings aside.

Your heart wants to leap at the chance to serve in an area of ministry? You feel ill-equipped and afraid of failure, so you never put yourself out there.

You’ve felt compelled to share your faith with your neighbor? You don’t know enough, your life is far from perfect, and they might think you’re weird. You’ll do it when you know more and if they initiate the conversation first.

Remember friend, God didn’t dry up the water until the priests placed their foot in the flood waters. What step is God asking you to take today?

Stepping in faith,

Traci