Memorial Stone

You know how the Israelites set up stones as a memorial after crossing the Jordan River into the Promise Land (Joshua 4:1-9)? This idea of memorial stones has become a kind of 'thing' now with Christians. A way to talk about times of their life that they will always remember and be able to look at to remind them where they've come and why they are doing what they're doing.

I feel like this time of working (and working and working) will be a memorial stone. It's hard for me to talk about it without complaining, which I try not to do (in writing, on the internet). So thinking of it as a memorial stone helps me be more positive.

I'll refer to my favorite commentary writer (commentarian?), David Guzik, as he discusses the Israelites and their situation surrounding their memorial stones:

Israel was now on the other side of the Jordan - in the Promised Land. But what is life in the Promised Land like? Is it one glorious vacation time after another? No; for Israel it was a place of battle, but most of all, it was a place of trust - they knew they had to trust God with every thing they had, because the challenges only got bigger in the Promised Land - but so did the blessings.

I loved this. (If you remember, God's Country and God's Country Revisited the idea of the Promise Land plays a part in my recent testimony).

We feel like this is exactly where God wants us, for now, and we both feel that, for now, working like crazy is how God is providing for us... but it's a struggle! Like the Israelites, God didn't bring us to the place He wants us for a vacation. He brought us here to live life.. messy, busy, relational life! A life that teaches us to trust in Him for guidance, provision and strength.

I am learning big life lesson right now about dying to self and laying down my ideas for God's ideas. I'm learning to put others first and to be motivated to love others because of the love I have received. These are things that I'm sure I'll need to know when the next stage of life comes along.

I just want to remember this feeling later. When I get to stay at home with my little babies (in 28 or more months), I want to remember how I got there.
When I get tired of doing load of laundry after load of laundry and never leaving the house, I want to remember that I asked for that!
When I start complaining about needing more in my life than housewife and mom, I want to remember that I worked my buns off to be able to afford to have those titles alone.

I want to remember how far God has brought us and how much I look forward to the next set of (even bigger) challenges the Promise Land brings. So this is part of my memorial stone, my reminder of where we've come and the One who shows us where we are going.