Making Memories
or, the one in which she talks about creating reminders of the faithfulness of God
I’m a picture person. Portraits, selfies, screenshots, videos, you name it. I love capturing moments that happen because I know that at this stage, my mind cannot remember 100% of the things that happen. But once those moments are captured, they’re immortalized forever (not forever but you get what I mean). I have many, many screenshots that I’ve taken to remind me of something, or to make sure that I keep something in my heart (like when someone sends a word of blessing over my life).
I don’t always look through all of my photos but on the days that I do, I find myself getting lost in those moments. I find myself experiencing the joy and laughter all over again. And I especially love when my phone reminds me of photos from different parts of the year because then I have the opportunity to go back and see what was going on, what was happening, and how I felt.
Taking pictures is a rather modern concept but the idea of memorializing key events, or making memories, isn’t brand new. Even in the pages of scripture, we see instances when certain people or groups of people did something to help them remember how God delivered them or what God did for them.
Case study: The Israelites
And Joshua said to them, “Pass on before the ark of the LORD your God into the midst of the Jordan, and take up each of you a stone upon his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the people of Israel, 6 that this may be a sign among you. When your children ask in time to come, ‘What do those stones mean to you?’ 7 then you shall tell them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD. When it passed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. So these stones shall be to the people of Israel a memorial forever.”
Joshua 4:5-7 ESV
Now, in Joshua 3, something miraculous happened. The Israelites were preparing for the journey into their promised land. And to do that, they needed to cross the Jordan. God being God, He made a way for them to literally pass over the Jordan. They walked on dry ground as the followed the ark of the covenant of the Lord. And now, even as the waters were suspended, God told Joshua to instruct the Israelites on what to do. The direction? Carry 12 stones. At first, I was confused. But the Holy Spirit helped me understand what was going on in the verses above.
The Israelites took the stones in order to build a memorial. It was a way to remind them of what God had done. It was a way to show them that the same God who made a way for them to pass through the Jordan is the same God who continued to walk with them and lead them into their promised land. In fact, it wasn’t just a memorial for the Israelites but for all the nations of the world, as seen below. By the memorial, people would know that God is mighty. By the memorial, people would come to understand the awesome power of God.
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, 24 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 4:23-24
Bringing it home
A lot of the time, we realize that when it’s testimony time, we struggle to think of what to thank God for. It’s because, unlike the Israelites, we haven’t built a memorial to remember what the Lord has done. You might not be carrying stones left and right and putting them wherever you please. But even a simple note on your phone goes a long way. A jar where you put notes that describe how good God has been. All these are little actions that we can do in order to remind ourselves that our God is indeed mighty.
When God does something miraculous, spectacular, or even what you consider to be “ordinary”, do you make a memorial to remind you of His faithfulness?
— A Daughter’s Musings
God is good all the time. We know this. But, it becomes difficult for us to remember this off the top of our head when we are going through situations that are testing our faith. However, there is a way we can continue to practically have our eyes on Jesus. We can choose to have a memorial, a record of all that which God has done in our lives. The memorial serves as a reminder. A reminder that God has done it before and He is more than capable of continuing to make a way.
As we head into a new year, let’s make memories with God. Let’s create for ourselves memorials that remind us of God’s faithfulness. It can be a note, a book, or a physical jar/folder. It’s important to note God’s track record so that when the enemy tries to cause us to stumble or falter, we can boldly say that our God has done it before and we know that we can count on Him.
Until next time,
Dzifa 💜