Of Stones and Monuments

A friend of mine recently shared with me a message from her Bible study about stone monuments. Monuments are an age old way for us humans to commemorate people or events. The study had revealed moments in the Old Testament where battles were won or trials were conquered, and the people would build up stones to mark the place of victory. Check out Exodus 12:14 where Moses built a monument of stones. (I’ll be posting more later on other stone monuments.) But why did they do this? Simple. They did it to remind themselves of evil that was defeated and/or the commands and faithful provisions from God. My friend suggested that we can gather stones today to represent our victories. Ecclesiastes 3:5 says there is definitely a season for gathering stones.

I would like to propose going a step further. We are in the midst of a battle like no other. For most of us, the current global struggle is the biggest battle we have ever or will ever see in our lifetime.

But… there are surely stones to gather during all of this. We have all been affected by the current storm, yet I have personally seen victories and miracles all around me. They have happened as the winds roar, the rain tears at us like teeth, and the waves crush. Some victories are tiny but some are mind-blowing. If we each gathered a stone as victories happen and God’s mercies are revealed, how big would our monuments be in a week, a month, a few years?

The truth is, we already know how the battle ends. Satan is afoot and doing his very best to do his very worst right now. But Scripture promises Satan’s defeat in the end. Great news: WE ALREADY KNOW HOW THIS BATTLE ENDS!!! (Revelation 12:9, Matthew 25:41 for starters.) If we know the victory over evil is coming and we know how big that victory will be, we should be preparing a monument like never before. I challenge you, brothers and sisters, to start gathering your stones! Real stones, people. I’m a science teacher, so I’ll let a literature teacher tackle the abstract side of this. Gather stones, my friends! Take notice of every single victory or blessing in your life, big or small. Then, find a stone to represent it. When this global battle is won, let us all bring our stones together and build a monument, lest we ever forget God’s grace and mercy, and how He carried us when we grew weak and tired. I have a feeling some of you already have monuments to build and plenty of stones to be found. How many stones will you gather?

As you begin gathering your stones, I pray that God shields your eyes from deception, puts a hedge of protection around you, and fills you with His peace that passes all understanding!! (See Phillipians 4:6)