Day 309...

In our ladies Bible class last night we talked about memorial stones, physical and figurative. We discussed the Bible story where Joshua leads the Israelites into the Promised Land. After wandering around in the wilderness for 40 years, the Israelites finally were able to cross the Jordan into the land that the Lord had promised them. With the priests standing in the middle of the river, God parted the waters which allowed the people to cross on dry land. Once they all made it across, Joshua instructed twelve men to collect twelve stones from where the priests stood. Each tribe took a stone back to their camp that would serve from then on out as a memorial to remind the Israelites of all that God had done for them.  

We all have mementos that remind us of important events, those we love who have passed, and special memories that we share with those we love. Sometimes family members pass down special items that remind us of them every time we use them.  When we go on vacations, we bring home souvenirs so we will remember the fun we had. I have a mini Statue of Liberty that reminds me of my visit to NYC every time I look at it. Instantly, the memories come flooding back, not only from my visit specifically to the Statue of Liberty but to my entire week-long adventure that was an absolute dream come true.

I am writing this blog to serve as a memorial stone in itself. One day I am hoping I will have triumphed over many of the issues I've been facing, and I will have this blog to remind me of my journey with God through the troubled times. Every time I sit down to write, I am reminded of my realization that conquering the problems I have needed to fix could never have been accomplished on my own. I knew that I needed God to help me through, and I wanted to document my journey. If I were to print out all of these posts and bind them into a book to sit on my coffee table, it might seem a little more like a physical memorial stone. The most important part of a memorial stone is that the stories that go with the stone are shared, that we pass down the memories and lessons to those we care for. I think I've got that part right. Thank you for reading and being a part of my journey. I truly believe that God is working wonders in my life and that I will have a great story of perseverance and faith to pass down to future generations.

He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the Lord is powerful and so that you might always fear the Lord your God. (Joshua 4:24)