Praise the Lord. He is good and faithful. His mercy endures for ever. His love never fails. Praise the Lord for the great hymns and songs of the church. Our grand daughter has memorized some hymns, and one of the hymns she sings with her parents at bed time is, "Come Thou Fount of every blessing, Tune my heart to sing Thy Praise". There is one stanza that begins with these words “Here I raise mine Ebenezer; hither by thy help I’m come,”.
The word " Ebenezer" taken is from a story in the Old Testament. The Philistines, Israel’s enemies, had gathered against the Israelites to engage them in battle. Samuel, the priest, was offering a sacrifice as the Philistines approached, and the Lord thundered from heaven, throwing the Philistines into confusion and panic. They fled from the battlefield, and Samuel took a large rock and set it up as a reminder. He called the stone Ebenezer, which means “stone of help,” and said, “Thus far has the Lord helped us” (1 Samuel 7:12). Every time an Israelite saw that stone they were reminded of what God had done for them in the past and gained hope for the future.
May be we need to set up an Ebenezer, a “stone of help” — a writing, a plaque, a picture, a marking, an object, a trip, a celebration. Let us Think of some creative way that we can mark a significant event in our lives, where we can say, “Thus far has the Lord helped us", and we know he will take us the rest of the way. Let it be a permanent testimony to those who come after us.
Hudson Taylor was a missionary and founder of China Inland Mission. In his home he kept a plaque with these Hebrew Words on it: EBENEZER, meaning “Stone of help,” and JEHOVAH JIREH: “The Lord is my Provider.” One looked back at what God had done and how he had helped in the past, and the other looked forward to how he believed God would provide in the future. One reminded him of God’s help and faithfulness, and the other helped him to focus on God’s provision and assurance of help in the days to come.
Let’s raise an Ebenezer to God’s faithfulness in the past, and let’s believe that God is Jehovah Jireh, our Provider.
In Christ,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V84STSWVp3g
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