MY EBENEZER

Samuel took a stone and set it up. ... He named it Ebenezer, saying, "Thus far has the Lord helped us."
-1 Samuel 7:12


MY granddaughter began reading aloud from an old hymnbook, "Here I raise mine Ebenezer; hither by thy help I'm come."* She stopped and asked, "Grandma, what does Ebenezer mean?" Together, we discovered that an Ebenezer is a kind of memorial made of stones; it symbolizes God's help and guidance.

My granddaughter and I talked together about things that remind us of God's love. We remembered the story of Jacob's dream and God's promise to bless him. (See Gen. 28:10-22.) Jacob poured oil over the stone he had used as a pillow and set it apart as a memorial of his encounter with God. We read about Joshua leading the tribes of Israel across the Jordan River. (See Josh. 4.) A representative from each tribe carried a stone from the middle of the river, and Joshua set them up together as a permanent reminder of God's care.

We, too, can have "Ebenezers." It is good at times to look back -- to how we came to know God, to healing, to answered prayers -- and to remember that God who was mightily present at those times walks with us day by day as our guide and our help.

Elvie Klein (Queensland, Australia)