Memorial [ muh–mawr-ee-uh l, –mohr– ]
something designed to preserve the memory of a person, event, etc., as a monument or a holiday.
Definition from dictionary.com
Memorial Day was yesterday, a day set aside to remember all military personnel who died defending our freedom and country in the United States. A worthy holiday, for sure.
Did you know that there are memorials mentioned in the Bible as well? In the Old Testament, God’s people often used Standing Stones to preserve the memory of the miracles God performed in their life.
Jacob used them to remember the vision, blessing, and promise God gave him in a dream. Moses set them up after hearing from God at the top of Mount Sinai and receiving the 10 Commandments. After passing the Jordan due to God’s provision, Joshua describes the meaning of the stones best:
“And those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up at Gilgal. And he said to the people of Israel, “When your children ask their fathers in times to come, ‘What do these stones mean?’ then you shall let your children know, ‘Israel passed over this Jordan on dry ground.’ For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up for us until we passed over, so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty, that you may fear the Lord your God forever.”
-Joshua 4:20-24
Do you have any memorials in your life? Something that causes you to pause and remember the miracles God has worked in you?
Perhaps it is a date that marks the day you surrendered to God and received Eternal Life. Maybe it is a tear stained page that reminds you of how God brought you through a hard time. A tattoo that reminds you of God’s promise and hope. The weathered Bible on your nightstand that echoes all the times you studied, prayed, or communed with Him. A cross that you wear, a verse that you’ve taped to the mirror. Sometimes, like the Israelites who wandered in the desert, we need a reminder of God’s faithfulness when things get tough.
In addition to having Memorials, the New Testament challenges us to BE memorials.
“As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ….But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.”
– 1 Peter 2:4-5,9-10
Just as the children passed the 12 stones and asked, “What do these stones mean?” Our hope is that as people pass us they ask, “How are Christians so different? How are they so kind, compassionate, brave, and hopeful? What does this mean?”
The stones marked a single story of God’s hand in this life: a single dream, a single miracle, a moment in His presence. However our lives should be a living testimony of the constant provision, hope, forgiveness, love, and mercies that God pours out on us each day.
We need to remember the monumental moments, both big and small, where God moved in our lives. These stories ground us and spur us on, they are the foundation of our faith! Then we need to be the testimony that causes people to pause and reflect on the mercies of God. Our lives need to cry out like the rocks and inspire those who walk by.
– Emilie
